Testing has already gotten underway and concluded at Sepang today, meaning the teams of MotoGP have released their livery for the next season with varying degrees of fanfare and showmanship. It’s no surprise then that we found a couple photos of the LCR Honda RC212V adorned with a seductive Playboy bunny affixed to it, in what surely has to be the best GP team launch in 2011.

If you read Asphalt & Rubber on a religious basis (we are your motorcycling zen temple, right?), you’ve likely divined by now that I’ll chastise just about any company that uses the premise that “sex sells” (nothing boils my blood more than this cleverly short, yet misguided maxim), and that I love a good scrappy startup that’s got more hustle than funding (case in point: A&R is a penniless motorcycle startup trying to make it in this crazy online world).

So how does a the multi-million dollar motorcycle racing team with half-naked women draped all over their machinery get such accolades from our humble motorcycle blog? Because LCR Honda is the epitome of innovation on the business side of MotoGP racing.

God bless Randy de Puniet. For whatever reason, the French LCR Honda rider has wormed his way into our hearts here at Asphalt & Rubber. At first it was because de Puniet had a penchant for crashing, perpetually misplacing his shirt, and well…being French. As the leading satellite bike rider in the 2010 season though, Randy de Puniet has found a new consistency with the LCR Honda, and has even given the factory Repsol Honda boys a run for their money on more than one occasion. We have to admit, we’ve been impressed with de Randy 2.0 this season.

de Puniet has also stayed mostly out of the gravel traps for 2010, showing a new maturity. He’s still French, pompous, and generally comes across as a playboy, but we sort of like that in our French men. Afterall, if Parisians were courteous to American tourists, the city would feel a lot like Atlanta: hot, dirty, and full of people who talk funny.

So when Randy de Puniet broke his leg during the German GP, we were crushed to hear that our favorite rider in the paddock would be out until Brno, and miss the Laguna Seca round. Our concerns of course then immediately turned to Randy’s well-being as he was being carted off for examination at Clinica Mobile.

Was he ok? Did his broad shoulders fit through the clinic’s meager doorways? Who would hold his brave hand while Dr. Costa poked and proded him with his medical “science”? We now know those answers. Video after the jump.

This isn’t the first time we’ve compared a MotoGP rider to an elf, troll, warlock, or hobbit, and it won’t be the last. Nice pink shirt Randy, next time try vertical stripes. 

Shortly after this photo was taken, the woman in the blue dress was scene taking the French rider home in her pocket, slipping him a peanut when he got hungry. Isn’t that precious?

Choosing the right umbrella girl is a long and arduous process. It doesn’t have to be that way, but why would you want to rush through such a delightful process? And for the Italian GP at Mugello, the role of the umbrella girl is big business. After all, who doesn’t like a scantily clad women holding a canopoy more than the Italians? 

Getting ready for the GP this weekend, various teams have made a spectacle out of their “talent” search, with competitions and club events looking for Miss Right.

It looks like the rumors were true about Playboy taking up ad space on Randy DePuniet’s LCR Honda. Lucio Cecchinello has confirmed that  the sponsorship deal with Playboy has gone through, and we have the pictures to prove it. If you missed the paint job this weekend at Jerez, get ready to see it again at the Spanish and Japanese GP’s. Warning, the picture gallery while tasteful, is Not Safe For Work (NSFW).

Here’s a Sunday afternoon rumor for you. Lucio Cecchinello, owner and manager of LCR Honda, has been looking for sponsorship in some atypical places. Italian magazine Motocorse is reporting that the Playboy bunny head will be gracing Randy de Puniet’s MotoGP race bike soon as LCR Honda’s newest sponsor.