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Nürburgring Nordschleife

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A collaboration between the Nordschleife and MV Agusta sees us today talking about the aptly named MV Agusta Brutale 1000 Nürburgring – the most extreme Brutale 1000 built to date.

This limited edition machine features carbon fiber BST wheels, for better turning and less unsprung weight.

A single-can full titanium Arrow exhaust is also a highlight, and uses a longer primary manifold for higher torque values. A “race” ECU is also included in the package.

After three years of uncertainty, the Nürburgring has finally been sold, and not to an American investment group as had been rumored, but instead to a German real estate development group: Capricorn Development.

Capricorn is said to have paid €77 million for the iconic race course and its surrounding facilities, with the Düsseldorf-based firm promising to pump another €25 million into the property once they take full-ownership of it on January 1, 2015.

We probably would have posted this video out of sheer Star Wars geekdom, but a 7min 10sec lap around the Nürburgring Nordschleife (BTG) is also nothing to scuff at as well. Such is the accomplishment of Andy Carlile, a 33-year-old Englishman living in Germany who was on a mission to be the fastest on two-wheels around the ‘Ring.

Setting the record on street-legal Dunlop rubber, perhaps the only thing more impressive than Carlile’s lap time is his feat of keeping the squirrely but otherwise mostly stock and street-legal 2005 Yamaha YZF-R1 at bay, as the video shows the massive movement of the bike on braking and acceleration. Jedi mind trick for sure.

No, we’re not encouraging you to step away from any planned New Years Eve wedding proposals, but the Nürburgring Nordschleife does apparently need your help. Known throughout the motorsports community simply as the ‘Ring, the Nürburgring Nordschleife track plays host not only to car and motorcycle enthusiasts, but also serves as a formidable test track used by many OEMs when developing new vehicles (recently the track has also been a place for manufacturers to lay bragging rights for quickest lap times in sports cars).

It seems however that the ‘Ring, despite its popularity with track enthusiasts, is not the profitable endeavour that the German government thought it would be. Four years ago plans began to be implemented that would see other attractions added to the Nürburgring venue, which have reportedly done nothing to help boost the profitability of the track, and now in May of this year the ‘Ring was turned over to the same pair of businessmen responsible for that transformation, with the goal of boosting the track’s revenue, and that’s where the controversy starts.