Video: Josh Brookes Shows Us the Fastest Line over “The Mountain” at Cadwell Park

The Mountain at Cadwell Park, as it is known, is like the British version of the Corkscrew at Laguna Seca: another one of those special points on a race track, that would not exist on the computer-generated courses we see today. Famous for lofting bikes into the air, The Mountain makes for spectacular photographs, and should be on every rider’s track day bucket list. Finding the fastest racing line over The Mountain can be difficult though, as riders have to contend with keeping the front of their motorcycles down, but such is not the case for HM Plant Honda’s Josh Brookes…

Lost Knee Puck Hinders Hayden at Indy

Track conditions were the talk of the paddock this weekend at the Indianapolis GP, as riders battled the changing tarmac surfaces, and undulating bumps of the Indy infield. Perhaps most vocal of his displeasure with the course was Ducati rider Casey Stoner, who called the Indianapolis Motor Speedway not a world class track, and specifically complained about plastic drains that would catch riders as the ventured in towards the edge of the track (Rossi also complained of these drains). Teammate Nicky Hayden was less critical before Sunday’s race though, saying that Stoner’s comments could be applied to many of the courses on the MotoGP calendar. However after losing a knee puck to one of the drainage grates that Stoner criticized earlier, Hayden may be re-thinking his tune.

Rossi Waiting to Hear if Burgess Will Retire

Talking after the Indianapolis GP, Valentino Rossi explained that he is waiting to hear from Jeremy Burgess as to whether the Australian Crew Chief will retire next season. Assured of the fact that Burgess would not stay behind at Yamaha, and would not work with another rider, Rossi stated the buzz around whether Burgess would move with the Italian to Ducati, hinges as to when Burgess plans on retiring from motorcycle racing.

Nicky Hayden Renews Contract with Ducati

Under the lights of the Indy Mile, where motorcycle racing began for the Kentucky-born MotoGP racer, Nicky Hayden has signed a two-year contract with Ducati Corse for the 2011 & 2012 seasons. Not the biggest surprise in the paddock, Hayden’s contract renewal has never really been questioned this season as the American started the season off with series of strong finishes and continues to be a strong brand ambassador for Ducati in the United States. Hayden will be joined the next two years by former teammate Valentino Rossi, the pair rode for Repsol Honda in 2003, with Hayden finishing the season 5th in his rookie GP season.

World Superbike Responds to Ducati Exodus

Infront Motor Sports, rights holder to the World Superbike Championship series, has responded to the news that Ducati Corse will be leaving the series in 2011. Responding with an official press release, IMS’s message essentially boils down to poking holes in Ducati’s statement about technical regulations. Stating that the 2009 season was dominated by the Ducati 1198 Superbike, sans one Ben Spies, the Italian firm has clearly been able to be competitive with the current formula. IMS goes on to basically say that WSBK is about more than one manufacturer, and can’t cater to Ducati’s whims even if they do have a lengthy history together.

Ben Spies to Factory Yamaha Team

As expected, Ben Spies and Yamaha have announced that the current World Superbike Champion and MotoGP rookie will move up to the factory Yamaha team (noticeably not called Fiat-Yamaha in the press release) for the 2011 season. Spies’ move to the factory squad has lovingly been referred to as the “second worst-kept secret in MotoGP,” right after Rossi’s departure from the Fiat-Yamaha team to Ducati Corse.

Colin Edwards – “I’m going fishing. Screw this sh*t.”

No one makes the MotoGP media center come alive with emotion more so than Colin Edwards. A veteran of the sport, and born with no filter between his brain and mouth, the Texan Tornado captured the spotlight during the pre-race press conference at the Red Bull Indianapolis GP. A stark contrast to the polished veneers of other riders, Edwards isn’t afraid to tell things the way he sees it, even if it involves some colorful language. To get an idea of what we mean, check out a portion of the press conference transcript after the jump.

Ducati Trademarks “Diavel” Name in the UK

Ducati has recieved a trademark with the UK Intellectual Property Office for the Bolognese word for devil, or “Diavel”, which according to MCN is to be the name of the company’s new performance cruiser (shown here in a render done by Bar-Design exclusively for Asphalt & Rubber). Interestingly enough, Ducati has not trademarked the Diavel name with the United States Patent & Trademarks Office (USPTO). However with the British government, Ducati has reserved the Diavel mark for virtually every use possible, including lifestyle items like shirts, perfume, watches, and our personal favorite: skin cleansing lotions and creams.

Casey Stoner Ducati 1198S Phillip Island Replica

Missing three races because of a mystery illness, Casey Stoner put any critics he had from his sudden departure in 2009 to bed with his masterful race at Phillip Island. Racing in front of his home crowd, Stoner slid around the Australian course to a decisive victory, in what we called one of the top races of 2009. Making the moment even more special for Australian fans, and Ducatisti alike, was the special race livery that Stoner ran for his home race. Hoping to commemorate that race and Stoner’s contributions to the Marlboro Ducati team (Stoner is leaving Ducati for HRC next year), a French Ducati dealership in Moulins-lès-Metz has decided to sell a limited number of Casey Stoner Ducati 1198S Phillip Island replicas.

Norton Returning to MotoGP Racing

German magazine Speedweek is reporting that Norton will be back in GP racing for the 2012 season with a two-man team. Speedweek’s highly respected Austrian journalist Gunther Wiesinger has received word that Norton has requested two spots on the 2012 MotoGP grid, and has signed a request to join the series when it returns to the 1000cc format. It’s unclear at this time if Norton will be entering as a claiming rule team (CRT), or be listed as a factory prototype, which could have a dramatic affect on the team’s success in the series.

MotoCzysz Confirmed with TT Zero – Will Return to the Isle of Man with 90% New Bike

Fri 02/19/2010 @ 11:05 am, by Jenny Gun

Home » News » MotoCzysz Confirmed with TT Zero – Will Return to the Isle of Man with 90% New Bike

MotoCzysz has confirmed today that they will be racing at the Isle of Man’s TT Zero event. The Portland based team has been hard at work on a new bike design that they feel not only has a chance of breaking the 100mph barrier, but possibly winning the event as well. MotoCzysz was a favorite in last year’s event, but failed to finish after suffering a failure to its Agni electric motor drive system. Learning from that hard taught lesson, Czysz & Co. are expected to return to the Isle of Man with their new 2010 E1pc, and tackle the Mountain Course once again.

The Isle of Man has put up a £10,000 bounty to the first zero emissions team to break 100mph under race conditions while on the Mountain Course. Should more than one team break 100mph during TT Zero, the fastest team will claim the prize. With their eye on this prize, MotoCzysz is expected to have a race bike for the Isle of Man that is 90% new, with changes likely including an all new MotoCzysz proprietary controller system and motor setup.

Talking to Asphalt & Rubber, Michael Czysz lamented about the challenegs of making another electric race bike basically from scratch, “There is even more work to do in less time than last year. The new 2010 E1pc is anything but a timid solution.” Czysz jokingly continued, “for 2011 we are going to just change paint and graphics!” giving a hat tip to the daunting effort of refining their E1pc in just one year’s time.

The new E1pc is rumored to have the highest torque/density energy powertrain in the racing class, while still weighing significantly less than its predecessor. Talking to Manx.net, Czysz commented, “We are very excited to be returning to the Isle of Man to compete in the 2010 TT Zero. The fact that electric motorcycle racing has been elevated to an official class within the TT shows the commitment of the Isle of Man Government in providing the low emission pioneers with a world stage to demonstrate their solutions. This may end up being one of the purest prototype classes left in racing.”

With this announcement, we see the first major team toss their hat in the ring with TT Zero. With teams like Brammo still unconfirmed for the 2010 racing season, and Mission Motors at least second guessing their exclusivity with TTXGP, we doubt this will be the last team we hear making the comment to race across the pond. More as we get it.

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Tagged under: E1pc, electric, electric racing, IOM, IOMTT, Isle of Man, Isle of Man TT, Michael Czysz, MotoCzsyz, MotoCzysz E1pc, race, TT Zero

Comment:

Darrell Kendall says:

02/19/2010 at 11:20 AM

RT @Asphalt_Rubber: MotoCzysz Confirmed with TT Zero – http://bit.ly/9HKDtv #motorcycle
Peter Kim says:

02/19/2010 at 11:24 AM

RT @Asphalt_Rubber: MotoCzysz Confirmed with TT Zero – http://bit.ly/9HKDtv #motorcycle
Vehix Car says:

02/19/2010 at 2:44 PM

MotoCzysz Confirmed with TT Zero – Will Return to the Isle of Man … http://bit.ly/awu7oO
Ducati Desmo says:

02/19/2010 at 3:58 PM

MotoCzysz Confirmed with TT Zero – Will Return to the Isle of Man … http://bit.ly/bqKnt0
Anthony Creek says:

02/19/2010 at 4:09 PM

Hell Yeah! RT @Asphalt_Rubber: MotoCzysz Confirmed with TT Zero – Will Return to the Isle of Man with 90% New Bike http://bit.ly/9HKDtv
EnvironMoto says:

02/20/2010 at 2:36 PM

RT @skadamo: Nice write up… RT @Asphalt_Rubber: MotoCzysz Confirmed with TT Zero – http://bit.ly/9HKDtv #motorcycle
ElectroVelocity says:

02/21/2010 at 10:04 PM

RT @skadamo: Nice write up… RT @Asphalt_Rubber: MotoCzysz Confirmed with TT Zero – http://bit.ly/9HKDtv #motorcycle
ElectroVelocity says:

02/23/2010 at 12:36 AM

RT @Asphalt_Rubber: MotoCzysz Confirmed with TT Zero – http://bit.ly/9HKDtv #motorcycle
cgougler says:

02/23/2010 at 3:50 PM

Portland-based MotoCzysz team confirmed to race at the TT Zero – Will return to the Isle of Man with 90% new bike http://bit.ly/bKJHLS
cgougler says:

02/23/2010 at 3:51 PM

Portland-based MotoCzysz team confirmed to race at the Isle of Man TT Zero with 90% new bike http://bit.ly/bKJHLS

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