Photo of the Week: Here’s to the Unsung Heroes of MotoGP

This, race fans, is Danilo Petrucci, one of the brave souls trying his luck on the future of MotoGP hardware, in his case the doggedly underpowered Came IodaRacing Project machine. Not on a (relatively) zippy Aprilia ART, or a Honda-powered FTR, Petrucci qualifies on the same grid as Casey Stoner and Jorge Lorenzo, and brings to this gunfight a knife that packs a whopping 185 bhp, compared to the factory prototype engines that are rumored to be around 260 bhp. As I photograph a race, I see a much different version of the event than TV viewers. I watch the recorded TV broadcast later, and can tell you that there is a lot going on with the Claiming Rule Team bikes that doesn’t make in onto TV.

Suter 500 Factory V4 – Thank You for Smoking

We are now purely a “suck, squeeze, bang, blow” society, and while that suits many motorists just fine, there are some who enjoy the smell of pre-mix in the morning — you know who you are. You enjoy the sound of angry bees following you from apex to off-camber. You think a displacement for “serious riders” starts at around 250cc. You like your engine compression low, and your powerbands narrow. You sir (or madam), are a two-stroke junky, and we have just the fix you need. Having a bevy of intriguing two-wheeled projects within its walls, the Swiss bike that catches our eye today is the Suter 500 Factory V4: a two-stroke, 500cc, V4, track weapon that puts out over 200 hp and weighs 284 lbs ready to race — no, that is not a typo.

Photo: Five – Two = Podium

Blurred to protect against spoilers, we’ll just leave things simply by saying that World Superbike’s Race 2 at Donington Park is well worth a watching if you haven’t already seen it. Decided right down to the last few turns, race pundits surely will be discussing the race and its outcome over the next week. Unsurprisingly, geography is playing a major a role in how things are being viewed. Though in a race where a number of questionable passes occurred, it is hard to single out this one event from the plethora of others that occurred during the race, but of course this one had the biggest effect on the race outcome. Click past the jump for the he said, she said, and of course for some slightly sharper photos.

Norton V4 Gets Shakedown Test Ahead of Isle of Man TT

More news from Norton, as the British firm has begun track-testing its V4 road race bike, in preparation of the 2012 Isle of Man TT. Focusing on the bike’s handling, Norton has been working hand-in-hand with Öhlins and Dunlop developing the bike’s chassis. The trio has devised the highly sophisticated “165 mph no hands” test, which supposedly checks the stability of the bike, though we imagine Health & Safety would frown upon it. With the bike’s Aprilia RSV4 motor putting out 195hp at the crank, and with the total race package weighing 419 lbs (195 kg) when it is sopping wet, the Spondon-framed Norton may not be exactly what fans of the famous marques were hoping for after seeing the very appealing Norton NRV 588, though it does seem to be a potent package.

2012 Brammo Empulse R – Was It Worth the Wait?

Launching in downtown Los Angeles, the 2012 Brammo Empulse R & 2013 Brammo Empulse broke their cover and officially debuted. Right off the bat from the designations, you can see that Brammo intends for the Empulse R to be a 2012 model, with the base model Emuplse coming out next year (more on that further down). As we expected, the Brammo Empulse R got quite the price bump after its 22-month marination, and will be $18,995 MSRP. Meanwhile when the Brammo Empulse becomes available next year, it will have a slightly more palatable $16,995 price tag.

Up-Close with the Erik Buell Racing 1190RS ‘merica Edition

While the EBR 1190RS race bikes were on the track, their $40,000+ street-legal counterparts were on display outside of the Erik Buell Racing garage. Rocking an American flag livery, I naturally took pictures of this show bike. Eye catching to say the least, nothing says “Made in ‘merica” better than a red, white, and blue color scheme, especially when it is laid over carbon fiber. And while I want to love this bike because of its nuances and outside-of-the-box technical design, I don’t.

Sunday Summary at Estoril: Be Afraid, Be Very Afraid

If there’s one lesson we can take from Sunday’s race at Estoril, it’s this: “I’ve always said we know Casey’s the guy that’s the fastest guy in the world. Maybe over the seasons he hasn’t put the championships together, but by far he’s the best guy in the world.” Cal Crutchlow is not known for mincing his words, and his description of Casey Stoner pulls no punches. But given the fact that Stoner only managed to win the Portuguese round of MotoGP by a second and a bit, is that not a little exaggerated?

Up-Close with the 2012 Brammo Empulse RR

Brammo is back for electric motorcycle racing in the North American TTXGP series, as the Ashland-based company is set to defend it’s #1 plate this year with Steve Atlas on board ( Shelina Moreda is slated to join the team later in the season). Gaining a title sponsorship from Icon, Brammo arrived at Sears Point with some edgy graphics on the 2012 Brammo Empulse RR. Dropping roughly 35 lbs in weight, and gaining roughly 50hp over the bike they ran at last year’s season opener, Brammo is making most of those gains in its revised motor and power inverter for the newest Empulse RR.

Mea Culpa: The Media’s Hard-on for a Good Penis Story

As you can imagine, the bulk of the commentary, both from readers and from professional journalists, has centered around the absurdity of the claim, with even jokes being offered about how an aged BMW rider should be thanking the German motorcycle brand for saving him money on Viagra, etc. The situation reminds me of the McDonald’s hot coffee lawsuit. You know the story, right?. A woman buys a cup of coffee at McDonald’s, spills it on herself while in the car, and sues the bastards for her incompetence. True to litigious American form, the unthinkable happened, and a jury awarded this gold-digging woman millions of dollars. It is repudiating, and it stands for everything that is wrong with the legal system, or so we would be lead to believe — especially by the media.

An Addendum to Valentino Rossi’s Options for the Future

Never say never, but few are expecting Valentino Rossi to hang up his spurs at the end of the 2012 MotoGP Championship. Going out on a career low-point is certainly not the Italian’s style, especially as it casts a particularly dark shadow on a career that has enjoyed the bright-light superlative of “Greatest of All Time” from some of motorcycling’s most knowledgeable sources. Hoping to cast that phrase with an underlined typeface, and not with an interrogatory question mark, there is sufficient evidence to believe that Rossi will want to end his career in a way that will leave no doubt about the nine-time World Champion’s abilities. The question of course is how those final seasons will play out, and who they will be with.

FB Corse to Join MotoGP in 2010 with Former BMW 3-Cylinder Prototype Race Bike

09/10/2009 @ 9:03 am, by Jenny Gun6 COMMENTS

Former World Superbike Team, FB Corse, looks to be poised to enter the MotoGP Championship series for 2010 with race bike that uses a proprietary chassis and a 3-cylinder motor that was originally designed for BMW’s MotoGP effort.

The motor was designed by Mauro Forghieri, of the Oral Engineering Group, who was an engineer from Ferrari’s Formula One program. Forghieri has also designed engines for the likes of Bugatti and Lamborghini. If rumors are correct, this three-cylinder motor is the same one that BMW had hoped to campaign, before scraping their plans to join MotoGP.

The motor is unique in MotoGP as it will be the only inline triple raced in the series. Because of the fewer number of cylinder, it is expected to make around 200hp-210hp, or 10% than the other bikes on the grid. However with the power disadvantage, comes a weight advantage, as FIM regulations allow for a three-cylinder motorcycle to weigh 15lbs less than a four-cylinder configuration.

The power difference is also a lesser concern because FB foresees that the new motor restrictions (6 for the whole season) will cause the high-strung motors of 2009 to be replaced with more reliable counterparts for 2010. With more reliability comes less power, and that could tip the balance of power (if you’ll allow the pun) in FB’s favor, who would then have a motorcycle that makes just as much power as the rest of the field, but also weighs 15lbs less.

With an all Italian design team, it seems almost certain that we can expect an Italian piloting the FB come 2010. So far early rumors point to Ducati Pramac man, and former FB WSS rider, Niccolo Canepa, but, names like Alex de Angelis, and even James Toseland have been also whispered in the paddock as possibilities.

While the team has a laundry list of technical and non-technical hurdles to overcome, one thing is for certain: Dorna and the FIM will be pleased to see another season start with 18 motorcycles on the grid. Also, new blood in the MotoGP series is always a good thing, hopefully FB Corse will be able to put up some good results in their first year. Thanks for the tip Alison!

Technical Specifications of the Fb Corse MotoGP Motorcycle:

Engine

4-stroke, in-line three-cylinder
Total Displacement: 797.99cc
Bore: 90 mm
Stroke 41.8 mm
Compression ratio: 13.9:1
Power: more than 150kW @ 18000 rpm
Cylinder head with pneumatic valve system
Electro-mechanically operated variable length intake trumpets
Mechanical accelerator and drive by wire system
Electro-hydraulic clutch
Six-speed semi-automatic transmission
Hydraulic pressure control: 200 bar
Magneti Marelli engine management system

Chassis

Aluminum frame
Tank capacity: 22 l
Aluminum rear swingarm, with progressive suspension and Ohlins shock absorber
Brembo brakes: front disc ø 320 mm MMC, rear ø 218 mm
Wheels: front 16” x 3.6”, rear 16.5” x 6.25”
Bridgestone tires
Overall weight: 143 kg

Bodywork

Carbon fibre bodywork
Cx aerodynamic: 0.22, from wind tunnel measures, 0,27 with rider on-board.

Source: MotoBlog.it via Two Wheels Blog

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Tagged under: 2010, 3-cylinder, BMW, Fb Corse, MotoGP, Oral Engineering Group, prototype, race, race bike, three-cylinder, triple

Comment:

Peter Lombardi says:
September 10, 2009 at 2:10 PM
damn, that’s a beautiful engine, those intakes are massive!!!
-peter
Asphalt_Rubber says:
September 10, 2009 at 1:03 PM
FB Corse to Join MotoGP in 2010 with Former BMW 3-Cylinder Prototype Race Bike – http://bit.ly/2dYBQU #motorcycle
taly purwa says:
September 15, 2009 at 10:11 AM
the new type engine at Moto GP….i hope it can provide a new knowledge in Moto GP….lets strugle FB Corse….succes for you…..
i hope the less weight engine have a really big power…..
home and house says:
January 20, 2010 at 10:55 AM
very impressive bike, just waiting for the 2010 motogp show…
viva lorenzo…
Benjamin says:
February 1, 2010 at 2:52 PM
Correct me if I am wrong, but won’t the upcoming rule changes make this engine ineligible? I’ll be the first to froth at the mouth at the very mention of a triple in MotoGP. I don’t like these rule changes because from what has been published, the series will be a 4-cylinder only affair. The whole thing seems counterproductive.
swanson says:
October 22, 2010 at 6:18 PM
When Will BMW build a 3 cylinder street bike similar to the 1000rr????

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