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Video: Rider Nails the Landing After a Nasty Crash

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The upside to having rampant insurance fraud with motor vehicles is the increased use of dashboard cameras, at least that’s our selfish take on the situation currently in Russia. If that’s truly the case, then the crowning achievement of that philosophy is surely the following video.

Going far too fast for the flow of traffic, our protagonist finds himself quickly cut-off by a car that is changing lanes. What happens next is entirely predictable, yet incredibly not. We don’t want to give it away, just watch it after the jump…no pun intended. Thanks for the tip Taco Ben!

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WSBK

WSBK: Russian Round Cancelled over Political Concerns

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Bad news from the World Superbike Championship paddock, as the Russian round, which was scheduled to be held at Moscow Raceway on September 21st 2014, has been cancelled because of concerns stemming from the Russian/Ukrainian situation along the Crimean peninsula.

Promoters DWO and YMS Promotion declared that, “the current political situation affects the capabilities of a number of key partner companies essential to run the event. Parties regret the decision, but are confident that the strong partnership between DWO and YMS Promotion will prevail.”

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News

Ural Sidecars Used in Opening Ceremony for Sochi Olympics

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Proud of the opportunity to host the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia showed its accomplishments to the world during the opening ceremony on Friday by showing off its culture, traditions, and highlights of its post-World War II industrial economy.

As part of those highlights, a procession of twenty bright red Ural sidecars rolled across the ice at Fisht Olympic Stadium, as three billion people looked on via television.

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Racing

Andrea Antonelli Dies During World Supersport Race – Second WSBK Race & Other Events Cancelled

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It’s with our deepest regret that Asphalt & Rubber reports the passing of Team Goeleven Kawasaki Rider Andrea Antonelli, who was involved in a serious accident during the opening lap of today’s World Supersport race.

Crashing on the straight between Turns 14 & 15 at the Moscow Raceway, Antonelli then collided with another machine, and as a result, suffered a fatal cranium base fracture.

The race was red flagged, and Antonelli was immediately taken to an ambulance where the medical staff worked to resuscitate him. Despite their efforts, Andrea sadly succumbed to his injuries at 2:10pm local time.

With the World Superbike paddock mourning the loss of the 25-year-old from Castiglione del Lago in Italy, the day’s remaining races and events have been cancelled. A&R‘s best thoughts are with his friends and family.

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Racing

WSBK: Kawasaki Racing Re-Signs Tom Sykes

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Tom Sykes may be having a tough time of things on the track in Moscow this weekend with WSBK, but off the track with Kawasaki Racing, the Brit has some good news. Signing up for another year with Team Green, Tom Sykes has his 2014 racing plans sorted out, and can get back to overcoming his 0.5 point let-down on last year’s World Superbike Championship.

Soon to make it five years in a row with Kawasaki Racing, Sykes currently leads the 2013 FIM Superbike World Championship by six points, though he will start Sunday’s races in the 9th grid position, after falling during the third round of the Superpole qualifying event.

Kawasaki says that with the rule changes coming down from Dorna, it was important for the team to shore up its lead rider. We think they made a fine choice, though the move may mean the offer is off the table for Nicky Hayden, as the American looks for a home outside of Ducati Corse’s MotoGP campaign. There has been no word on a contract for Loris Baz though.

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News

Video: Sometimes It’s Just Not Your Day…

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The old adage with motorcycles is that it’s not if you crash, but when you crash. That is because over an infinite amount of time, your chances of riding a motorcycle without crashing drop to zero — if not but for the simple fact that you cannot control the actions of others.

Take for example our unfortunate Russian friend here, who had the misfortune of crossing over a path of diesel/oil/coolant left by a car on a highway off-ramp. Obeying all the laws of the road, he still ended rubber-side-up on the roadway, and left to pick-up the pieces after the crash…literally.

It is sort of a surreal video with the music choice, but serves as a good PSA for the ATGATT movement. Luckily this rider was able to walk away relatively unscathed, and his bike will live to ride another day as well. Be careful out there folks.

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News

BMW Motorrad Posts Best Month Ever – BMW R1200GS Leads the Way with 27% of Company Sales

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Record months, quarters, and years are becoming an old hat for BMW Motorrad, and last month continues the trend for the German brand. Selling 14,587 motorcycles in April 2013, BMW Motorrad says that it saw an 11.5% sales increase over April 2012.

The primary contributor for that sales boost is the 2013 BMW R1200GS, which has been completely redesigned from its venerable predecessor, and now includes “strategic” liquid-cooling for the cylinder heads, and a bevy of other enhancements (A&R will be swinging a leg over one shortly).

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Racing

Provisional World Superbike Calendar for 2013 Released

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At Magny-Cours this weekend, World Superbike released its provisional calendar for the 2013 WSBK Championship. Subject to some change, maybe more so now that Dorna is in charge of things, the big changes to the 2013 calendar over this season is the addition of a round in India, as well as the American round moving from Miller Motorsports Park to Laguna Seca.

World Superbike returns to Russia again for 2013, helping the series branch out a bit from the Western Europe centrality. Along that same vein, both Misano and Brno are absent from the 2013 calendar, with the second race in June still to be announced.

We would expect Brno to get filled-in at this slot, since the Eastern Europe circuit has the right geography, solvency, and attendance support when compared to the Italian track. However, as always, time will tell. The 2013 World Superbike Provisional Calendar for 2013 is after the jump.

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Racing

WSBK: Kawasaki Retains Tom Sykes for 2013 Season

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We are a bit late to this news, in internet terms at least (we’re WAAAY ahead in print terms, for whatever that is worth), but Kawasaki announced at the Moscow round that it has re-signed factory rider Tom Sykes to its 2013 World Superbike team. Eight podiums so far this season, including one race win and seven of pole-position starts, Tom Sykes has been delivering solids for Team Green this season.

So, it should come as no surprise then that Kawasaki wanted to lock-down the Brit for another season, with the Japanese manufacturer holding an option for two more years on top of next season’s contract. His third year with the Kawasaki squad, Sykes is also third in the Championship standings, just 41 points behind series leader Marco Melandri.

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