Talking to the Indy Star, Mark Miles (CEO of Hulman & Co, the parent company to Indianapolis Motor Speedway) has put some doubt into the historic venue’s commitment to host the MotoGP Championship. Having a contract to run the race through the 2014 season, Miles said that IMS might opt-out of the final year in its agreement with Dorna (IMS apparently has this option for a brief window after the 2013 Indianapolis GP). However while the news has focused so far on IMS’s ability to opt-out, both Dorna and Indianapolis Motor Speedway have options in their contract to go through with the 2014 round, and with a bevy of variables in the air, we may or may not see three American GP rounds next year.
Surprise! America will be getting a 847cc three-cylinder naked bike for the 2014 model year, the 2014 Yamaha FZ-09. Replacing the Yamaha FZ8 in the Japanese company’s line-up, the FZ-09 is the first motorcycle from the tuning fork brand to sport the Yamaha’s new line of three-cylinder engines. The Yamaha FZ-09 comes about as the MIC is reporting its second-consecutive year of growth in the 751+cc sport bike segment, as well as increase in commuter riding over short-distance sport riding. With those trends in mind, Yamaha has punched out the displacement on its middleweight naked bike, and focused on giving riders a comfortable, yet stout, motorcycle. Priced at $7,990 MSRP, we think Yamaha hit the nail pretty much on the head with this one.
In the past few years I’ve come to believe that, while superior physical differences (their reflexes and fine motor skills) are significant, it’s the mental differences that are the most interesting. I suppose anyone who has ridden a motorcycle even a bit beyond one’s comfort zone can appreciate some part of the physical aspect of riding a racing bike. For most of us, even the speed of racers in local events is impressive compared to our street riding. While the skills with throttle, brakes, and balance are on a level similar to the best athletes in other sports, I think that what really sets motorcycle racers apart is their ability to overcome fear.
The progress in the last five years on electric motorcycles has been astounding. Taking their first laps around the Isle of Man TT Mountain Course, a 87.434 mph pace was the best an electric motorcycle could do at the prestigious road race in 2009 — a pace that was on par with the 50cc record set in 1971. In just five years after the first laps were taken by electric motorcycles at Snaefell, these machines have grown their average lap speeds by over 20 mph at the TT Zero race, setting a new record of 109.675 mph in 2013, and boasting a rate of improvement of roughly 5 mph each year since 2009. If hitting 142.2 mph down the Sulby Straight speed trap wasn’t further proof of the speeds these bikes are achieving, maybe some visual evidence will help support the notion.
Darius Glover is a dirt bike racer. Like you and me, he lives to ride, and when he is on two-wheels he feels the freedom that only other motorcyclists can truly understand. The thing is though, Darius is paralyzed from the waist down. Where others would give up their dreams and this sport, Darius at the age of 15 instead pushed onward. No pity parties, no excuses, just simply a daily example of where there is a will, there is a way, and a reminder that you can achieve anything that you put your mind to. It’s hard not to get a bit choked up listening to Darius tell his story, but you walk away feeling uplifted after feeling his attitude come across the screen.
Any race where 1,500 riders start, 500 qualify, and only 14 finish, has got to be an epic competition, and considering the fact that the Erzberg Rodeo starts in the excavation pit of an Austrian mine…well, it takes a special rider to be enticed by such an event. One such special rider is Graham Jarvis, who was the first of the fourteen men to reach the 20th and final checkpoint. Taking 2 hours and 52 seconds to complete the course, Jarvis made the 2013 Erzberg Rodeo look downright easy. However, with one look at the race-day conditions from this past weekend, we know it was anything but.
While normally, MotoGP fans never get enough of seeing Valentino Rossi on TV, there is one shot they would (for the most part) gladly be spared. As he leaves the pits, Rossi stands on the footpegs, and pulls his leathers from between his buttocks, before sitting back down again and leaving. These rituals – part useful limbering up, part invocation of Lady Luck – are something many riders perform, in their attempt to exert control over themselves, and over their environment. In a fascinating press release – by far the most interesting we have received in many months – the Aspar team today provided a discussion and explanation of what riders are trying to achieve through the use of these rituals.
Hoping to make it four wins in a row, it goes without saying that the MotoCzysz crew is working hard to close the gap to the John McGuinness and the Mugen team. However, having Team Principal Michael Czysz stuck back in the US, undergoing cancer treatments, must certainly add another level of motivation for the on-island MotoCzysz crew. Making time in their busy schedule, Asphalt & Rubber got to take some up-close photos of the 2013 MotoCzysz E1pc. The most obvious changes made to the MotoCzysz E1pc for the 2013 TT Zero race are the use conventional suspension pieces. Of course, it’s not a completely standard suspension setup, as MotoCzysz has developed its own adjustable triple clamp that incorporates tunable lateral flex parameters.
Max Biaggi is to make a surprise return to riding a MotoGP machine. The former 250 and World Superbike champion will take a seat on Ben Spies’ Ignite Pramac Ducati as part of a one-day test at Mugello, as part of Ducati’s testing program, according to Italian site GPOne. Spies was scheduled to stay on at Mugello to take part in a two-day test, but after the first day of practice at last weekend’s Italian Grand Prix, it was clear to both Spies and Ducati that his shoulder was still too weak to ride a MotoGP machine. With work continuing on the Desmosedici, it was important for Ducati to get as much data as possible on their bike, and so Biaggi was offered the chance to ride the machine.
Just as our Bothan spies had predicted, the folks in Varese, Italy have debuted an 800cc version of the MV Agusta F3. The new machine is cleverly named the MV Agusta F3 800, and as you may expect, the street bike features the 798cc three-cylinder engine that is found on the MV Agusta Brutale 800 and the still unreleased MV Agusta Rivale. Pepping that three-cylinder motor up to 146hp (note: MV Agusta continues to have some trouble converting kW into horsepower, and other publications continue to fail at checking MV’s math. Last we checked, 108.8 kW equalled 145.9 hp), MV Agusta has wedged the lump into its supersport chassis, and reports that no additional weight has come as a result.
Not long after we talked about how Husqvarna’s on-road segment was saving the boutique motorcycle manufacturer from its dwindling off-road segment, do we get a spy photo of what appears to be a Husqvarna Nuda 900 in a touring setup.
Featuring more of a top fairing, proper windscreen, and a broader saddle for the rider and passanger, the changes should make this Nuda variant a bit more comfortable on long hauls when compared to its predecessor, if not more attractive as well.
![2013 Ducati Hypermotard 848 Caught Blurring the Lines Between the Multistrada? [UPDATED] 2013 Ducati Hypermotad 848 spy photo 635x475](http://www.asphaltandrubber.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/2013-Ducati-Hypermotad-848-spy-photo.jpg "2013-Ducati-Hypermotad-848-spy-photo")
UPDATE: The water-cooled 2013 Ducati Hypermotard has now been released by Ducati.
We have a sneaking suspicion that the 2013 Ducati Hypermotard 848 that has been spotted tramping about is going to be a very interesting motorcycle indeed; as from out perspective, Ducati seems set to consolidate the Hypermotard line into a single water-cooled model, while simultaneously offering a smaller-displacement multi-tasker that will slot in under the Ducati Multistrada 1200.
Our best view yet of the bike’s exhaust side comes from the folks at Moto Revue, as we see what looks to be a finalized exhaust can and a clear view of the HM848′s water-cooled Testastretta 11° motor. There has been tremendous confusion/controversy as to whether the spied machine is a new Hypermotard or Multistrada model, and the confusion is rightfully so, as the bike takes cues from both machines.
The Hypermotard series is growing long in the tooth, and while everyone expects the Ducati’s smaller Superbike to get revamped in 2013, here is some evidence to suggest that the big news at EICMA this year will be an all-new Hypermotard model. Expected to have a water-cooled motor, best guesses would have the new Hypermotard using the 849cc Testastretta power plant, which would dovetail nicely with the supersport-sized Superbike getting an ~800cc variant of the new Superquadro motor.
In yet another glimpse of the 2012 Ducati Superbike 1199, we see the World Superbike-spec version of the v-twin machine testing on the track with a Ducati test rider at the helm. Clearly seen are the Öhlins FGR forks and horizontally-placed rear shock, and also apparent is the dual-underslung exhaust cans that the belly pan accents (we like this touch a lot). Beyond the blacked-out race bodywork, there isn’t anything terribly new to glean from the photo, but what is interesting is that for an OEM that is rumored to have no plans for a factory-backed team in WSBK for 2012, it sure is testing its WSBK-spec racer quite a bit. Make of that as you will.
Source: Ducati.org via Ducati News Today
Spending some time at Borgo Panigale factory during the San Marino GP race week, Ducati Corse rider Nicky Hayden couldn’t help but tease the upcoming 2012 Ducati Streetfighter 848 that was “spied” testing last month. With this photo and tweet, Hayden affirms the news we broke in July, and with the message ”Coming soon… #ducati #droppingonmonday” we can infer that Ducati will be taking the wraps off the Streetfighter 848 on Monday next week.
Set for its official public debut at this year’s EICMA show, the MV Agusta Brutale 675 B3 was caught testing in this “spy photo” that was snapped near Varese, Italy. The form of the three-cylinder naked streetbike is not terribly surprising, as it borrows heavily from the MV Agusta F3, making similar changes to the supersport’s design as the original Brutale did with the MV Agusta F4. Expected to sell around the €9,000 mark, the Brutale 675 will be MV Agusta’s most affordable motorcycle.
It didn’t take long for a “spy photo” of the 2012 Ducati Streetfighter 848 to emerge from Bologna, and it looks like Ducati wants to tease out the yellow paint job it plans to bring to the smaller displacement Streetfighter. The five-bolt arrangement on the rear-wheel hub is a give away to the fact that an 848 motor lurks in the Streetfighter shown, as the current Streetfighter 1098 uses a six-bolt pattern because of the more powerful 155hp motor. With the Ducati Superbike 848 EVO motor making 140hp (and also sporting a five-bolt rear hub pattern), we can expect that the Ducati Streetfighter 848 to lose 10-15 ponies from its superbike compatriot.
According to MCN, this is a “spy photo” of the 2012 Triumph Daytona 675, which was spotted outside of Triumph’s Hinckley factory. The British mag says that it has other, much more clearer photos, that clearly show the new Daytona in detail (of course, we’ll have to take their infallible word on this since they didn’t publish them online), revealing a new styling update, and complete mechanical design overhaul. Gone is the underseat exhaust, though the front looks fairly similar, with a center running light seemingly added. Expect to see the new Daytona 675 debut later this year.
Source: MCN
One of the great things about the online media format is that it allows our readers to provide instantaneous feedback to stories we publish (try doing that with your print magazine), so we’re eternally grateful to A&R reader zampetti for dropping off this capture of the new 2012 Ducati Superbike (seemingly shot out of an Italian magazine) into our comment section yesterday.
Clearly a photo of the street-going version of the Superquadrata (or will it be called the 1199?), this is a stark difference to the Supersport class bike we showed you yesterday. Other sites will probably try and pass this photo off as there own, but they saw it here first (it’s nice to know they read our comments though). Keep the tips coming guys!
It was only a matter of time until a photo of the new 2012 Ducati Superbike “Superquadrata” appeared online, as we knew the bike was testing last week at Mugello, alongside Valentino Rossi’s further testing of the Ducati Desmosedici GP12. Set to debut at the 2011 EICMA show, the new Ducati Superbike is a marked departure from the current Ducati Superbike 1198.
Up until now, we did not know fully what the bike would look like, but this photo featured by MotoSprint.it sheds some light on the new Ducati, and confirms earlier reports we’d been given. Featuring an over-square v-twin motor (hence the name Superquadrata that’s been milling about), the 2012 Ducati Superbike says goodbye to the iconic trellis frame, and features a chassis that takes a page from Ducati’s MotoGP project.
