In case you missed the story last week, Kevin Schwantz is preparing to race in this year’s Suzuka 8-Hour endurance race. For the race, Schwantz will be riding on a team formed by Yukio Kagayama, who in addition to having raced in the MotoGP, World Superbike, and British Superbike Championships, is also a previous Suzuka 8-Hour winner with the Suzuki Endurance Race Team (also joining the three-rider team Noriyuki “Nitro” Haga). Releasing a Q&A about his team’s Suzuka 8-Hour entry, Kagayama-san walks us through how the team came together, what equipment the riders will use, and his outlook on the team’s competitiveness.
A single-cylinder hooligan-maker, the KTM 690 Duke is 330 lbs (curbside without fuel) and 67hp of two-wheeled fun, and we hope that the Austrians bring the KTM 690 Duke R our way as well. While we are on the topic of things missing from KTM’s American line-up, a decent supersport is painfully obvious, yet we can’t see the folks at KTM following the paths of other brands. That’s where our friend Luca Bar comes to mind with his latest concept: the KTM RC4. Using the KTM 690 Duke platform and its LC4 engine, Bar has designed a super-single full-fairing sport bike that takes the Austrian company’s “Ready to Race” DNA and applies it to an idea that is not all that disimilar to the Ducati Supermono.
When I sat down with Claudio Domenicali at the Ducati 1199 Panigale R launch, the now-CEO of Ducati Motor Holding was still just the General Manager of the Italian motorcycle company. Four weeks after our interview though, Gabriele del Torchio would leave Ducati for Alitalia; and Domenicali, a 21-year veteran of both the racing and production departments of Ducati, would take his place at the top of Italy’s most prestigious motorcycle brand. After reading our interview from Austin, Texas after the jump, I think you will agree too.
That Yamaha is working on a seamless gearbox is no secret, with Yamaha’s test riders currently racking up the kilometers around tracks in Japan. Recently, however, Spanish magazine SoloMoto published an article suggesting that Yamaha has already been using its new seamless gearbox since the beginning of the season. My own enquiries to check whether Yamaha was using a seamless gearbox or not always received the same answer: no, Yamaha is not using the seamless gearbox. To test this denial, I went out to the side of the track on Friday morning at Jerez to record the bikes as they went by.
After a very public father/son break-up between Paul Teutul Sr. and Paul Teutul Jr., a steroid-ring scandal involving Paul Sr., and finally a bankruptcy proceeding, it appears that Orange County Choppers is the impossible to kill multi-headed hydra of doom that we all knew it was, as the custom chopper shop is once again headed to the small screen and recruiting some talent, on and off the show. Looking for “someone who will work alongside Paul Senior, running the shop and helping build some of the best custom motorcycles in the world,” OCC says it will be back on television with a new show later this month. Please for the love of god, will someone give this man the attention he craves so dearly??! Or, just shoot us in the face.
We love us some concept bikes here at Asphalt & Rubber, and we have featured more than a few pieces of stunning design and imagination on our pages. Though, we can’t remember the last time one of these works of art were brought to us by a legitimate racing team, but that is what we have here with the Team Alstare Superbike Concept. A nod to the former Suzuki team’s return to the World Superbike Championship as the Ducati factory squad with Carlos Checa and Ayrton Badovini, Alstare has enlisted the help of designer Serge Rusak of Rusak Kreaktive Designworks to ink the shape of its futuristic Superbike concept, while Tryptik Studios handled the 3D modeling prowess.
If you didn’t watch Thursday’s pre-event press conference for MotoGP at Jerez, it is worth a viewing right to the end (assuming you have a MotoGP.com account). Building off the news about the NBA’s Jason Collins coming out as gay in a self-written feature in Sport Illustrated, my good colleague David Emmett had the courage to inquire about the culture and acceptance of the MotoGP paddock for homosexual riders. For the sake of accuracy, after the jump is a full transcript of David’s question, as put to riders Cal Crutchlow, Jorge Lorenzo, Marc Marquez, Andrea Dovizioso, Stefan Bradl, and Scott Redding, as well as those riders’ responses to David’s inquiry.
News that Suzuki plans on returning to the MotoGP Championship in 2014 should be old information for dedicated Asphalt & Rubber readers, and the Japanese company’s inline-four race bike was already spotted doing test laps last year by the eager eyes at Cycle World. Well the American print-mag has another set of eyebrow-raising high-quality photos of the 2014 Suzuki GSV-R to mull over from the Motegi race track, along with some technical insights provided by the venerable Kevin Cameron.
A surprise addition to BMW Motorrad’s 2013 model line-up, zie Germans have announced a new middleweight adventure-tourer, the 2013 BMW F800GS Adventure. Like its larger predecessor, the BMW F800GS Adventure is a more travel-ready and off-road capable build of the recently updated BMW F800GS motorcycle. Featuring a larger windscreen, panniers, and a bigger fuel tank capacity (2.1 gallons larger, for a total of 6.3 gallons of fuel), the BMW F800GS Adventure keeps the same 85 hp, liquid-cooled, 798cc, parallel-twin engine found on the F800GS, as well as the same chassis configuration. Pricing in the US will be $13,550 for the base model BWM F800GS Adventure.
Former 500cc World Champion Kevin Schwantz has certainly been in the news a bit these past few months, mostly for his involvement and falling out with the Circuit of the Americas and the Americas GP, but also more recently for his comments regarding Dani Pedrosa — we also sat down with Mr. Schwantz in Austin, and the Texan gave us some sobering insight into the future of American road racing. As if all that wasn’t enough, Schwantz is making a return to two-wheeled racing, and has entered the prestigious Suzuka 8-Hours endurance race with Team Kagayama racing alongside Noriyuki Haga and team owner Yukio Kagayama.
FYI the first night race was in Singapore, not Abu Dhabi.
Absolute soul consuming eye candy
It’s the most achingly beautiful motorcycle I’ve ever seen. I wish I could have it in a 400. I just see no point for 195HP on the street. For me, people. For me. You guys can buy whatever you like. :)
Sounds like a chainsaw.
It very pretty and I’m sure it’s a fantastic bike to ride. Way too much power for the street and why for the love of is it only available in red. If I’m spending that much on a bike have some color choices. Nice to see some new tech make it to the street though.
Sounds like a mix of CrossPlane, RSV4 and “some Duc” still left in it. I like it.
@Trane:
It won’t be a 400 but they will make a MiniMe version of it, it’s almost a given. Time frame ? Go figure…
@Scott:
Good point, so much money and yet only ROSSO ? Screw them…what ever happened to that screaming YELLOW that the 1098 once sported in the USA Market ? Or WHITE ? ALL Black is A MUST(rims,swinger,all).
SWEET RIDE, that’s for sure…wish i had the $$$ to back up my day dreaming. LOL. SIGH.
Observing Ducati’s historical sales strategy, don’t buy one now. As there will be a better one next year with better parts and cheaper than the previous model.
Sweet bike needs a set of Termi’s and she’ll beready to rock out at the track!! Can’t wait for mine to get in tracking it next to the RSV4!!
MikeD, the problem ends up being that anything beyond about 80 HP on the street (or, more correctly, 6 lbs/hp) is way overkill for me. I doubt there’d be anything as small as a 696 and even if there were, it’d be breathed on a lot to differentiate it from the M696′s performance.
Shawn, the “better later” thing is true of pretty much everything everywhere. True, there’s often good reason to avoid 1.0 tech and wait for a revision or two to smooth out the bumps, but I suspect the Panigale will be magical to ride.
@Trane:
I feel u, i miss riding some aircooled OBESE(550LBS) clunker i had up to the other day…GS1100G, the thing had just enough power (80-90HP in a good day) to scare the “living shit” out of me and no herky-jerky throttle response TO BOOT! I miss CV Carbs and AirCooled flat crank I4s. (-_- )’
@Scott
It’s just the first year. It’ll come in different colors next year or even mid-year.
For collectors, it’s going to be the bike to have in any collection. For riders, I would wait next year too. I personally am looking for the 799cc or less version…
But lets be real, this bike is not meant to be a daily commuter. That’s what the Monsters are for…
195 horsepower would be ridiculously fun on the street. c’mon, guys, people have been making these arguments for decades, now, but we’ve ALWAYS loved more horsepower. i mean, let’s be real. a 1986 gixxer 750 is WAY TOO FAST FOR THE ROAD. but if we compare it to the sportbikes we have now, it would feel like a pig. i have a 1098. it’s meant for the track, but it’s a blast down the 9. this 1199 will be even MORE fun through the twisties. power in every combination possible. i can’t wait for this thing.
@david:
Hey, nobody said it wouldn’t be fun. :) I’d just rather give hell to a small motor than run out of speed limit before I even hit redline in 1st on a big one. YMMV and all that.
Disclaimer: Most giggles per mile for me to date was on a ’79 RD400 Daytona Special.
Nice sound, but not for a twin. And as I look at the wheely photo I am still not
convinced of the looks. Seems like another bad 916 variation but without
the exhausts in the seat.
track must suck, rarely breaks 200kmh. Motor sounds like he’s lugging it all the way around the track…meh.
>>, but we’ve ALWAYS loved more horsepower
No, I don’t, I would pay for less weight.
A 125 kg weighting nice mono with 50 bhp would enough for me.
Its FAKE!!
See the video again, from 45 sec and you see troy braking towards chicane. but while braking and tip in the corner you hear the engine reving and up shifting!!!
SO….WHILE BRAKING YOU ALSO ACCELLERATE AND UP SHIFT????
Love all the comments on less horses. My 800 SS puts out around 80 horse power moded, and with the gearing change I made to it, I get that 80 to the rear almost too fast. She hates traffic and slow speeds. However, this bike will be great for the sport. I’m personally still hoping to get an RC8 for the track… Still prefer human go fast ability over computerized assisted ability, but some one like Mr. Bayless exploits both rather well…
@Dc4go
Are you insinuating that you have an RSV4 and you are also buying one of these? If so I would find that….odd to say the least.
I like the look of the bike, but still think the 1198 was better in the looks department. That being said it should be a great bike overall, especially with the improved ergos and 15k mile service intervals. I buy bikes for the road, not the track.
I am very interested in it, but I will wait until some jackass with too much money buys one, realizes it is too much for him and puts it on craigslist for $7k less than he paid for it lol.
Also the video ISN’T fake, the audio track is just completely not in sync.
Give Troy a break though, he wasn’t trying to set a lap record, he was just doing this for a press event.
@ david
It’s not the 195 horsepower that makes the bike any less of a pig. It’s the overall engineering of a GSXR 750 bike in 1986 that makes it seem like a pig…
It’s the technology advancements in chassis design, suspension, aerodynamics, light-weight materials, etc. etc…
A 750 gixxer of today should feel light-years better than one in 1986, if not, then Suzuki is not the manufacturer everyone makes them out to be…
Make mine Ducati…
BBQdog says:
February 14, 2012 at 6:01 AM
And as I look at the wheely photo I am still not
convinced of the looks. Seems like another bad 916 variation but without
the exhausts in the seat.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Yes, i was wishing too for more “futuristic” DESMOSEDICI (central ram air) than “classic” 916 fugly front end…but hey, beggers can’t be choosers, right ? LOL.
I think their xcuse was that if they were to venture into a whole new look with out “injecting” any “past’s cues” into it it would scare away/alienate their “core costumer base”…(did i sound a bit H-D PR Puppet there ? , LMAO)
Not as beautiful as the 1198 but more angular and muscular looking, I love it. Cant wait to get mine…
According to Visordown.com the tank is now made of aluminium and carries a bit more fuel than before from 4.0 gal to 4.5 gal.
No more swelling…of the gas tank at least. LOL.
As a side note, looking at the power/torque graph the 1198 used to be “more of a V-TWIN” than this new version of the 90* V-2 Legend.
It’s power/torque albeit lower it came up sooner on the rev range=more urgency all over the place.
Even some testers seem to be saying how this new mill likes to have it neck twisted like an I-4 somehow confirming the curve’s shapes on the graph.
I hate to correct you, but BMW pioneered Electronically Adjustable Suspension on the K 1200 S back in 2005. Ducati’s a little late to the party there.
Got some comments on this Duc but that doesn’t mean I would be unhappy to own one :-)