Q&A: Claudio Domenicali Talks Frameless Chassis, Sacred Cows, & The Future for Ducati

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.

Is Yamaha Using A Seamless Gearbox? The Data Says No

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.

OCC Coming Back to TV? — Universe Collapses in on Self

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.

Alstare Superbike Concept by Team Alstare

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.

Transcript: The Gay Question at Jerez

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.

2014 Suzuki GSV-R Spotted Again

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.

BMW F800GS Adventure – Germany’s Middleweight ADV

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.

Kevin Schwantz Returns to Motorcycle Racing – Enters the Suzuka 8-Hours with Team Kagayama

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.

Öhlins Releases a Semi-Active Suspension Upgrade for the Ducati Multistrada 1200 S – But, What’s Next?

An interesting development on the aftermarket side of things has graced our desks, as Öhlins has released a “suspension control unit” (SCU) that upgrades the electronically adjustable suspension on the Ducati Multistrada 1200 S so that it becomes a semi-active suspension system. Whhhaaaat??! So, if you’re the proud owner of a pre-2013 Ducati Multistrada 1200 S, and you think that your electronically controlled Öhlins suspension is no longer boss, now that Ducati has released its Sachs-powered “Skyhook” semi-active suspension pieces on its new batch of Multistrada sport-tourers, there is a remedy for your motolust.

Up-Close with the 2013 Yamaha YZR-M1

In case you missed our exhaustive coverage of the Grand Prix of the Americas, those fools at Dorna gave me pit lane access this MotoGP season. So while the whole paddock waits for the Spaniards to come to their senses, I don’t plan on wasting the opportunity to share with our readers our extreme access to motorcycling’s premier racing class. Accordingly, here comes another installment into our ever-continuing “Up-Close” series, featuring the very finest Iwata has to offer: the Yamaha YZR-M1. Thirty 2000px-wide photos are waiting for you after the jump.

MotoGP: Yamahas Dominate Qualifying at Brno

08/26/2012 @ 12:19 am, by Jensen BeelerComments Off

MotoGP: Yamahas Dominate Qualifying at Brno Ben Spies Yamaha MotoGP Brno 635x423

The 2012 MotoGP Championship continues its trend of mixed weather, as riders had to contend with an evening rain that washed the Brno circuit. A decisive moment in the Championship points, the Czech GP already dashed the hopes of Casey Stoner, who after consulting with his Doctors back in Australia, was advised to sit out the Czech round and return back to Oz for surgery on the ankle he injured last weekend at Indianapolis. Also sitting out the weekend were Nicky Hayden and Hector Barbera, with the Spaniard being again replaced by Toni Elias.

It was not all doom and gloom on Saturday though, as Cal Crutchlow announced his new contract with Monster Yamaha Tech 3, ending the speculation as to where the likable Brit would land for the 2013 season. With Jorge Lorenzo only 18 points ahead of Dani Pedrosa, Brno is a critical round to nail down a solid lead in the Championship, though the Repsol Honda man has been gaining momentum the past few rounds.

Pedrosa will need that momentum on Sunday, as Saturday at the Czech GP belonged to the Yamahas. Crashing early in the session, Pedrosa just managed a decent lap in the closing minutes of qualifying, disrupting Yamaha’s total grid dominance. Still, with four Yamahas in the Top 5, Pedrosa will have his work cut-out for him, especially with Jorge Lorenzo showing an impressive pace. Equally impressive were Cal Crutchlow and Ben Spies, and everyone will be holding their breath for the Texan tomorrow, hoping that he is not the recipient of further bad luck on race day.

Of note too is Valentino Rossi, with the Italian’s Ducati showing its first signs of dry-weather prowess. Rossi was up-beat about his chances for race day, and the Czech GP might be the first race this season where Rossi doesn’t pray for rainy conditions for the race. Time will tell if his prayers will be answered.

Qualifying Results from the Czech GP at Brno, Czech Republic:

Pos.RiderNationTeamBikeKM/HTimeDiff.
1Jorge LORENZOSPAYamaha Factory RacingYamaha306.81’55.799 -
2Cal CRUTCHLOWGBRMonster Yamaha Tech 3Yamaha303.31’55.9950.196
3Dani PEDROSASPARepsol Honda TeamHonda309.91’56.3270.528
4Ben SPIESUSAYamaha Factory RacingYamaha305.61’56.3310.532
5Andrea DOVIZIOSOITAMonster Yamaha Tech 3Yamaha307.51’56.5590.760
6Valentino ROSSIITADucati TeamDucati304.11’56.7350.936
7Stefan BRADLGERLCR Honda MotoGPHonda306.01’56.8271.028
8Alvaro BAUTISTASPASan Carlo Honda GresiniHonda305.91’57.0681.269
9Karel ABRAHAMCZECardion AB MotoracingDucati309.61’57.7731.974
10Randy DE PUNIETFRAPower Electronics AsparART291.21’57.8442.045
11Aleix ESPARGAROSPAPower Electronics AsparART291.51’58.1532.354
12Yonny HERNANDEZCOLAvintia BlusensBQR286.51’59.0873.288
13Toni ELIASSPAPramac Racing TeamDucati306.51’59.1203.321
14Michele PIRROITASan Carlo Honda GresiniFTR285.11’59.3873.588
15Colin EDWARDSUSANGM Mobile Forward RacingSuter291.21’59.8634.064
16Mattia PASINIITASpeed MasterART285.41’59.8654.066
17James ELLISONGBRPaul Bird MotorsportART287.32’00.3164.517
18Ivan SILVASPAAvintia BlusensBQR285.82’00.3294.530
19Danilo PETRUCCIITACame IodaRacing ProjectIoda272.02’00.8545.055

Source: MotoGP; Photo: Yamaha Racing

Top 5 Related Posts:

  1. MotoGP: Yamahas Flex Some Qualifying Muscle in Catalunya
  2. MotoGP: Sunshine & Qualifying at Brno
  3. MotoGP: Yamahas vs. Hondas During Qualifying at MotoGP
  4. MotoGP: Yamahas vs. Hondas at the Catalan GP
  5. MotoGP: Qualifying Trouble for Ducati at the San Marino GP

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