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Dorna & Circuit of the Americas Confirm Austin GP

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The Texas round of MotoGP is to go ahead. The race, due to take place at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas has been confirmed for April 21st, 2013, with Dorna and the Circuit of the Americas issuing a joint press release announcing the date. The race in Texas was one of the two races marked as being subject to confirmation, but today’s announcement leaves just the race in Argentina and the Jerez round to be confirmed.

Confirmation of the race comes despite the ongoing legal action between Kevin Schwantz and the Circuit of the Americas. That legal action should have no effect on the race actually taking place, however. The lawsuit filed by Schwantz against COTA will take some time to actually get in front of a judge, and the most probable outcome is that money will change hands to settle the deal, either one way or another.

The signing of the Austin contract leaves just Argentina and Jerez to be sorted out. The Jerez deal is a question of paperwork and, most likely, money; it is inconceivable that Dorna would pull out of the deal to host the first European round of the season in Jerez, where it has been for several years now.

Argentina, on the other hand, is far more complex: there are reports from local Argentine sources that work on the facilities at the circuit is slow, but the bigger problem is political. The expropriation of Repsol’s Argentinian subsidiary Repsol YPF by the Argentine government has deeply upset the Spanish oil giant, and Repsol has threatened not to allow the teams it backs to attend the race, saying that they cannot be certain that their property will be safe, a claim which the local organizers have denied.

The full press release announcing the MotoGP race in Texas is after the jump.

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Schwantz Releases Another Statement about COTA & Dorna

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Kevin Schwantz has issued another statement in response to the press releases put out by both the Circuit of the Americas and Dorna, concerning his legal proceedings over the case. In the press release, Schwantz lays the blame for the situation at the feet of the Circuit of the Americas, and claims they attempted to obtain the contract to organize the MotoGP race in Texas by forcing him out of the deal with Dorna. The full statement issued by Kevin Schwantz is after the jump.

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Dorna Weighs in on the Schwantz/COTA Controversy

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After news emerged at the end of last week that Kevin Schwantz is suing the Circuit of the Americas (COTA), the track in Austin, Texas where the third US GP is to be held in 2013, attention turned to the details of just who held the contract to organize the event. In their lawsuit, Schwantz’ company 3FourTexasMGP alleged that the COTA had attempted to defraud him out of the rights to organize the race, something which the circuit denied in a press statement, with COTA claiming that Schwantz had never held a contract to organize the event.

In a statement issued by Dorna, the Spanish rights holders to the MotoGP series clarified the current legal situation between the various parties. The statement shows that both Schwantz and COTA are right: Dorna states that it signed a contract with both COTA and Schwantz’ company 3FourTexasMGP for the event, with Schwantz being granted the rights to organize the race, subject to being able to show he had come to an agreement with the circuit.

However, when asked by Dorna to provide the proof that he held a contract with COTA which would allow him to organize the MotoGP race there, Schwantz was unable to, and the contract was then passed to the Circuit of the Americas. COTA currently holds the rights to organize the event.

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MotoGP: Austin GP in Doubt as Schwantz Sues COTA

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The chances of a MotoGP round taking place in Austin, Texas seem further away than ever. Yesterday, Kevin Schwantz filed suit against the Circuit of the Americas (COTA), claiming an attempt to fraudulently deprive the 1993 500cc World Champion of the rights to organize the MotoGP race that would be held at the circuit outside of Austin, Texas.

In the lawsuit, Schwantz accuses COTA of going behind his back to arrange a deal directly with Dorna to organize the Austin round of MotoGP, while Schwantz’ company, 3fourTexasMGP, has a ten-year contract to organize the race. In a statement issued tonight by the circuit press office, COTA denies that Schwantz holds any rights to organize the event.

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Video: Kevin Schwantz – A World Champion

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Back in 1993 when grids were full, sponsors were smokey, and Americans dominated the sport, Kevin Schwantz was king. Riding on the Suzuki RGV500, Schwantz had to battle with a slew of 500GP legends in order to win his first World Championship — namely rival Wayne Rainey.

Deliciously 1990’s, the video is a bit hokey at times with its montages and questionable fashion choices, though it speaks to important issues currently being faced in MotoGP — namely the use of electronics.

Go ahead end the work-week an hour early, these four 15 minute segments are well worth watching, and show how far along Grand Prix motorcycle racing has, or hasn’t, come in roughly 20 years.

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Question Marks for MotoGP at Austin – WSBK Instead?

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News of a possible MotoGP round in Austin, Texas sent GP fans in the United Stats into a flurry, but the proposed third US round has been anything but a sure thing since its announcement, and continues to be so even after the signing of a 10-year contract. Trouble first started brewing as the Circuit of the America’s had trouble finalizing its deal with Formula 1, a deal that was the linchpin to the circuit’s financing. With the issues with F1 resolved, and the premier car racing series set to take the green flag at Austin later this year, MotoGP seemingly is having the same problem of coming to Austin.

Reported by the local Austin news site the Statesman, the issue is both complex and relatively simple. As with Formula 1, the rights to host MotoGP at the Austin track reside with Full Throttle, a promotion company owned in part by Tavo Hellmund, who in turn was a partner of the Circuit of the Americas (COTA) project. When last year Formula 1’s contract with Hellmund was found to be in breach, F1 Boss Bernie Eccelstone terminated his contract with Hellmund, which then sent the F1 deal at Austin into a tailspin, and caused COTA to deal directly with Formula 1 in securing the racing series.

With Hellmund also being the bond that tied MotoGP to Austin, the same issue has arisen with COTA and Dorna, the media rights holder to the MotoGP Championship. According to court documents, Hellmund alleges that COTA had an opportunity to buy the rights to host MotoGP for $18 million from Full Throttle/Hellmund when it bought the similar rights to Formula 1. Clearly unable to close that deal at the time, unless the Circuit of the Americas can secure those rights in the coming months, the Austin GP scheduled for 2013 will likely not be held.

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Kevin Schwantz Will Ride Marco Simoncelli’s Race Bike in an All-Hands GP Memorial Track Ride

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Sunday morning here in Valencia marks the final race of the 2011 MotoGP Championship, and the already bittersweet Grand Prix will become increasingly somber as the GP paddock will also be paying its final respects to Marco Simoncelli. Starting at 10:10am, 125GP, Moto2, and MotoGP riders will partake in a parade lap around the Circuito de la Comunitat Valenciana. The procession will be lead by Kevin Schwantz, who will ride Marco Simoncelli’s San Carlo Honda Gresini RC212V race bike for the occasion.

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Americans Get Ready for Moto2 at The Brickyard

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Taking a two-day testing session at The Brickyard, American riders Roger Lee Hayden, Jason DiSalvo, Kenny Noyes, Robertino Pietri (US Resident) had an opportunity to lap around the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in preparation for the Moto2 race held during the Indy GP this coming weekend. The first riders to take to the 2.6 mile, 16 corner course since MotoGP visited The Brickyard last year, the four riders were given 90 minutes each day to setup and practice for Sunday’s race.

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Honda Moto2 Livery for Indy Revealed

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American Honda has released the race livery of their wild card Moto2 entry for the Indianapolis GP, which sees Roger Lee Hayden riding at the helm of the bike and Kevin Schwantz managing the team’s effort. Using a Moriwaki MD600 chassis, American Honda tapped Drudi Performance to come up with the red, white, and blue Honda paint scheme. Additionally, Drudi has also designed a special set of leathers for Hayden, find them and more info after the jump.

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Wayne Gardner Calls Stoner’s Absence “Suspicious”

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After Casey Stoner chastised the press, and called out Kevin Schwantz for his opinion on Stoner’s illness,  Wayne Gardner, the 1987 500GP Champion, has weighed in his thoughts on Stoner’s absence from MotoGP racing. Saying what everyone already felt, Gardner calls Stoner’s absence “very suspicious” but still considers the Australian rider the favorite at the Australian GP this weekend.

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Kevin Schwantz Speaks to US Troops About Safety

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For the second time in recent months, the US Government is having a major motorcycle racer talk to US servicemen about safely operating motorcycles. A few months ago it was , and today it is Kevin Schwantz, the 500cc GP World Champion, who will speak at a number of road safety seminars.

 

Trying to find a common theme with his subjects, Schwantz refers to his races as battles (rightfully so), but emphasises there is a time and a place for riding fast:

“They were battles fought on the racetrack. It may look intense but it’s actually a very controlled environment. And that’s nothing like the battles our brave service personnel are fighting. For the military sportbike riders we’re talking about today, the real battleground is right here at home – on the streets.”

Back in October, CNN ran an interesting story about how motorcycle related deaths have killed more Marines in the past 12 months than enemy fire in Iraq. Similarly, the US Navy is finding a similar rise in motorcycle accidents by military personnel. In 2008, 25 Marines died on motorcycles, compare that to the 22 killed in hostile action in Iraq. Pentagon sources say a rising trend started in 2004, when seven Marines died on bikes.

Source: Visordown

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