Mission Motors tweeted out something interesting just a moment ago, a link to a new website for Mission Motorcycles. Teasing there a photo of the Mission R, it would seem that the electric superbike that does competitive AMA Supersport lap times at Laguna Seca, is finally set to come to production. It seems we won’t know everything about the new Mission Motorcycles project until June 3rd, though we can speculate pretty accurately on what the A&R Bothan spy network has been telling us. Expect to see the Mission R electric superbike in street legal trim, honed even further than when we rode the machine back in August last year.
Stefan Pierer’s acquisition of Husqvarna continues to baffle me. You will note I say Pierer, and not KTM, bought Husqvarna, since the Austrian CEO used Pierer Industrie AG in the transaction as a means to help side-step European antitrust issues. After all, we can’t have Europe’s largest dirt bike manufacturer, nay largest total motorcycle manufacturer, gobbling up even more brands in the two-wheeled world. But, I digress. Developing three road bikes (Husqvarna Nuda 900, Husqvarna Strada 650, & Husqvarna Terra 650), with three more concepts waiting in the wings (Husqvarna Moab, Husqvarna Baja, & Husqvarna E-G0), it is with even more confusion that we learn that Pierer & Co. intend to kill the Husqvarna Nuda project and its other street siblings.
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.
Excited for Speez, Yamaha never brought him what he seeked in the end.
Call it unlucky… call it wrong timing.
I do miss the snot green of the Pramac livery like before.
Are those Ali frames made by Suter now!?
Vai Benny, vai…
I’m excited to see an American company supporting an American rider in MotoGP. Is it April 21st yet?!?!?!
+1 on what Doug said but moreover, it’s a company outside of the industry.
Interesting team. Maybe even more than Spies, I’m keen to see how Crazy Joe handles a MotoGP bike. It might actually suit him more than Spies.
I really wish Ben the best and hope Yamaha has an abysmal season. They were rude to Ben and I hope the garage explodes with infighting. I like the riders but not enough to erase the bad behavior of the factory. For Ben to state he has wanted this from the beginning is truly inspiring. Hopefully, the Ducati/Audi marriage is up to the task.
awesome paint design really hope they get it together and compete for the podium by mid season…
I put Ben in the Roberts, Spencer, Lawson (something very special) league from the 1st time I saw him ride a superbike. He proved that in WSBK but for one reason or another just hasn’t had the right mix to do it in MotoGP. I really hope this Ducati suits him because for me his style is the closest to Stoner’s out of the four.
To be honest I think Nicky’s style is the closest to Stoners. “Elbows” Spies is very reliant on front end feel. Nicky and Rossi are probably to only two guys who can still steer a bike with the back wheel on a GP bike. That being said, Ben and Dovi’s style will be a huge benefit to Ducati to get that from end feel back.
“Nicky and Rossi are probably to only two guys who can still steer a bike with the back wheel on a GP bike.”
Judging by how crossed-up Stoner would get nearly every time out on the bike, you’d simply have to put him firmly in the steer from the rear camp. Hang it out, stand it up and blast off.
I like this livery waaaaay better than the factory team’s livery!
Spies looks thrilled.. not
I think the loose feeling of the Ducati will be good for Spies. He is better suited to sliding around a Superbike than keeping wheels inline on a GP bike. Maybe his good friend Stoner will share some secrets with him as well regarding how he rode the Ducati so well.
A pig with lipstick. Not you Ben. That sow under you. Ok, new lipstick. Better?
I love the idea of seeing Nicky and Ben on my brand. BUT; Nicky never figured out how to go ultrafast with the dead front end feel. Ben , needs front in feel also – so I don’t see him going much better. You guys a talking about driving the back end; those days are simply gone. The Aliens all came from 125 etc…so they ride these big bikes the same; Stoner really does ride like no one else. He gets an extra 1% out of any riding situation by effort that looks more or less like magic to the other riders. He takes extra care to notice and use everything to gain speed. His level of detail is really amazing. He can tell you about every single inch of every track. Amazing focus like all of theses guys but just a tad extra. IF motogp was just about riding something with too much power, the Americans would fair better, but with all the electronics, these bikes can be ridden like 125′s – so I predict more or less the same results. Can’t wait to see it in Austin!! Lets Get it!