Q&A: Yukio Kagayama Talks About the Upcoming Suzuka 8-Hour with Kevin Schwantz & Noriyuki Haga

In case you missed the story last week, Kevin Schwantz is preparing to race in this year’s Suzuka 8-Hour endurance race. For the race, Schwantz will be riding on a team formed by Yukio Kagayama, who in addition to having raced in the MotoGP, World Superbike, and British Superbike Championships, is also a previous Suzuka 8-Hour winner with the Suzuki Endurance Race Team (also joining the three-rider team Noriyuki “Nitro” Haga). Releasing a Q&A about his team’s Suzuka 8-Hour entry, Kagayama-san walks us through how the team came together, what equipment the riders will use, and his outlook on the team’s competitiveness.

KTM RC4 Concept by Luca Bar Design

A single-cylinder hooligan-maker, the KTM 690 Duke is 330 lbs (curbside without fuel) and 67hp of two-wheeled fun, and we hope that the Austrians bring the KTM 690 Duke R our way as well. While we are on the topic of things missing from KTM’s American line-up, a decent supersport is painfully obvious, yet we can’t see the folks at KTM following the paths of other brands. That’s where our friend Luca Bar comes to mind with his latest concept: the KTM RC4. Using the KTM 690 Duke platform and its LC4 engine, Bar has designed a super-single full-fairing sport bike that takes the Austrian company’s “Ready to Race” DNA and applies it to an idea that is not all that disimilar to the Ducati Supermono.

Q&A: Claudio Domenicali Talks Frameless Chassis, Sacred Cows, & The Future for Ducati

When I sat down with Claudio Domenicali at the Ducati 1199 Panigale R launch, the now-CEO of Ducati Motor Holding was still just the General Manager of the Italian motorcycle company. Four weeks after our interview though, Gabriele del Torchio would leave Ducati for Alitalia; and Domenicali, a 21-year veteran of both the racing and production departments of Ducati, would take his place at the top of Italy’s most prestigious motorcycle brand. After reading our interview from Austin, Texas after the jump, I think you will agree too.

Is Yamaha Using A Seamless Gearbox? The Data Says No

That Yamaha is working on a seamless gearbox is no secret, with Yamaha’s test riders currently racking up the kilometers around tracks in Japan. Recently, however, Spanish magazine SoloMoto published an article suggesting that Yamaha has already been using its new seamless gearbox since the beginning of the season. My own enquiries to check whether Yamaha was using a seamless gearbox or not always received the same answer: no, Yamaha is not using the seamless gearbox. To test this denial, I went out to the side of the track on Friday morning at Jerez to record the bikes as they went by.

OCC Coming Back to TV? — Universe Collapses in on Self

After a very public father/son break-up between Paul Teutul Sr. and Paul Teutul Jr., a steroid-ring scandal involving Paul Sr., and finally a bankruptcy proceeding, it appears that Orange County Choppers is the impossible to kill multi-headed hydra of doom that we all knew it was, as the custom chopper shop is once again headed to the small screen and recruiting some talent, on and off the show. Looking for “someone who will work alongside Paul Senior, running the shop and helping build some of the best custom motorcycles in the world,” OCC says it will be back on television with a new show later this month. Please for the love of god, will someone give this man the attention he craves so dearly??! Or, just shoot us in the face.

Alstare Superbike Concept by Team Alstare

We love us some concept bikes here at Asphalt & Rubber, and we have featured more than a few pieces of stunning design and imagination on our pages. Though, we can’t remember the last time one of these works of art were brought to us by a legitimate racing team, but that is what we have here with the Team Alstare Superbike Concept. A nod to the former Suzuki team’s return to the World Superbike Championship as the Ducati factory squad with Carlos Checa and Ayrton Badovini, Alstare has enlisted the help of designer Serge Rusak of Rusak Kreaktive Designworks to ink the shape of its futuristic Superbike concept, while Tryptik Studios handled the 3D modeling prowess.

Transcript: The Gay Question at Jerez

If you didn’t watch Thursday’s pre-event press conference for MotoGP at Jerez, it is worth a viewing right to the end (assuming you have a MotoGP.com account). Building off the news about the NBA’s Jason Collins coming out as gay in a self-written feature in Sport Illustrated, my good colleague David Emmett had the courage to inquire about the culture and acceptance of the MotoGP paddock for homosexual riders. For the sake of accuracy, after the jump is a full transcript of David’s question, as put to riders Cal Crutchlow, Jorge Lorenzo, Marc Marquez, Andrea Dovizioso, Stefan Bradl, and Scott Redding, as well as those riders’ responses to David’s inquiry.

2014 Suzuki GSV-R Spotted Again

News that Suzuki plans on returning to the MotoGP Championship in 2014 should be old information for dedicated Asphalt & Rubber readers, and the Japanese company’s inline-four race bike was already spotted doing test laps last year by the eager eyes at Cycle World. Well the American print-mag has another set of eyebrow-raising high-quality photos of the 2014 Suzuki GSV-R to mull over from the Motegi race track, along with some technical insights provided by the venerable Kevin Cameron.

BMW F800GS Adventure – Germany’s Middleweight ADV

A surprise addition to BMW Motorrad’s 2013 model line-up, zie Germans have announced a new middleweight adventure-tourer, the 2013 BMW F800GS Adventure. Like its larger predecessor, the BMW F800GS Adventure is a more travel-ready and off-road capable build of the recently updated BMW F800GS motorcycle. Featuring a larger windscreen, panniers, and a bigger fuel tank capacity (2.1 gallons larger, for a total of 6.3 gallons of fuel), the BMW F800GS Adventure keeps the same 85 hp, liquid-cooled, 798cc, parallel-twin engine found on the F800GS, as well as the same chassis configuration. Pricing in the US will be $13,550 for the base model BWM F800GS Adventure.

Kevin Schwantz Returns to Motorcycle Racing – Enters the Suzuka 8-Hours with Team Kagayama

Former 500cc World Champion Kevin Schwantz has certainly been in the news a bit these past few months, mostly for his involvement and falling out with the Circuit of the Americas and the Americas GP, but also more recently for his comments regarding Dani Pedrosa — we also sat down with Mr. Schwantz in Austin, and the Texan gave us some sobering insight into the future of American road racing. As if all that wasn’t enough, Schwantz is making a return to two-wheeled racing, and has entered the prestigious Suzuka 8-Hours endurance race with Team Kagayama racing alongside Noriyuki Haga and team owner Yukio Kagayama.

Vyrus 984 Ultimate Edition

11/20/2012 @ 8:14 am, by Jensen Beeler12 COMMENTS

Vyrus 984 Ultimate Edition Vyrus 985 Ultimate Edition 01 635x357

Technically very similar to the Bimota Tesi 3D (there’s a reason for that), the Vyrus 984 C3 2V is that other hub-center steering motorcycle from Italy. Featuring a 992cc Ducati DesmoDue motor at its core, the Vyrus 984 is about as radical as it gets when it comes to modern motorcycles. Upping the ante another notch though is the Vyrus 984 Ultimate Edition, which takes the already light 984 machine, and drops its weight to 144kg (317 lbs) dry.

Helping Vyrus achieve that ludicrous figure is the company’s copious usage of carbon fiber on the Vyrus 984 Ultimate Edition, which drops over 10 lbs from the original design. A large part of this weight savings is the front portion of the machine, which like the Ducati 1199 Panigale, builds directly off the engine cylinder heads, and serves double-duty as the motorcycle’s airbox.

Other goodies include carbon disc brakes, Öhlins TTX shocks for suspension, magnesium case covers, and an upside down aluminum box frame swingarm. Designed with the track in mind, the Vyrus 984 Ultimate Edition also comes with traction control and a full data-logging system. Price? Let’s just say it’s six figures. Expect a water-cooled Vyrus 985 Ultimate Edition to follow shortly.

Vyrus 986 M2 Gets Street Legal

04/23/2012 @ 4:51 pm, by Jensen Beeler8 COMMENTS

Vyrus 986 M2 Gets Street Legal Vyrus 986 M2 05 635x474

One of our favorite bikes to debut last year, the Vyrus 986 M2 continues to be developed by the small Italian firm, and pictures of the 600cc, omega-framed, hub-center steered motorcycle have been uploaded to the Vyrus Facebook profile page, and show the Moto2 hopeful in its street-legal form.

Breaking cover back in January 2011, Vyrus had hopes of racing the 986 M2 in the Moto2 Championship, as well as selling a street and kit version of the motorcycle to consumers. At €25,000 ready to roll (€50,000 for the race version), the street-going Vyrus 986 M2 might be one of the most expensive supersport-class motorcycles on the market, but honestly, wouldn’t you want to own one these bay boys instead of a comparably-priced liter-bike? We know we would.

Vyrus 986 M2 Gets Race Partnership from MIVV Exhaust

04/14/2011 @ 11:26 am, by Jensen Beeler16 COMMENTS

Vyrus 986 M2 Gets Race Partnership from MIVV Exhaust Vyrus 986 M2 MIVV 1 635x423

The Vyrus 986 M2 has to be one of the most gorgeous motorcycles we’ve ever seen grace our pages here at Asphalt & Rubber. It’s edgy and doesn’t conform to many of the elements we’d expect from a motorcycle design, and best of all Vyrus intends to race the hub-center steering bike (well maybe the fact you can buy one/build your own is the best thing of all).

With the Moto2 World Championship perhaps out of reach for the small Italian company, we instead see the Vyrus 986 M2 making an entry in the Spanish CEV Moto2 Championship, a national-level series that uses the same rules as the World Championship. Helping Vyrus enter that series is exhaust manufacturer MIVV, which has some experience in the CEV series, having partnered with FTR in past years.

Motorcycle Lust: KTM/Vyrus Frankenbike

02/19/2011 @ 4:55 pm, by Jensen Beeler10 COMMENTS

Motorcycle Lust: KTM/Vyrus Frankenbike KTM Vyrus Bikenstein 635x411

This has to be the most impractical motorcycle ever conceived…but we absolutely have to have one. A mixture of the KTM Dakar 450 & KTM Freeride concept, and the Vyrus 987 C3 4V, this Frankenbike not only grabs our attention for its outrageous design, but for its handy work in Photoshop as well. You’d think with the combined forces of KTM‘s proven Dakar winner, Ducati’s stout 1198cc v-twin power plant, and Vyrus‘ hub-center steering chassis design, this would be the last word on all things two wheeled, but as its creator points out, that’s likely not to be the case.

Vyrus 986 M2 Gets Three-Tiered Pricing & DIY Kit – Race: €55,000 – Street: €25,000 – Kit: €16,900

01/25/2011 @ 6:55 am, by Jensen Beeler8 COMMENTS

Vyrus 986 M2 Gets Three Tiered Pricing & DIY Kit   Race: €55,000   Street: €25,000   Kit: €16,900 vyrus 986 m2 verona unveiling 6 635x423

Our friends at MotoBlog.it continue to have the inside track on the recently debuted Vyrus 986 M2 that was unveiled at the Verona Bike Show this past weekend. The Italian boutique manufacturer confirmed that it wanted to offer the Vyrus 986 M2 to teams competing in the Moto2 World Championship, and hinted that a production version could come father down the line, later revealing that we could expect to see a street bike as early as Sepetember of this year.

Now getting a chance to talk to Ascanio Rodorigo, MotoBlog.it has revealed that Vyrus 986 M2 will come in different variations, a Moto2-ready race bike (Factory), a street bike (SL Replica), and a do-it-yourself self kit (Replica Kit), which sees a rider buying just the rolling chassis and having to source their own motor. There’s a price point for everyone in this launch, as the Factory will cost €55,000, the SL Replica €25,000, and the Replica Kit rounding out things at €16,900.

Vyrus 986 M2 Street Version in September

01/24/2011 @ 12:01 pm, by Jensen Beeler8 COMMENTS

Vyrus 986 M2 Street Version in September vyrus 986 m2 verona unveiling 3 635x423

We’re still recovering from the impressive bout of puppy love we had with the Vyrus 986 M2 Moto2 race bike that was debuted in Verona last weekend. And just when we thought we had that love sickness beat, we get news that the Italian manufacturer expects to debut its street version of the 986 by September of this year (swoon!).

Like the race bike, the street version will center around a modified Honda CBR600RR motor, and will come chalked full of go-fast goodies, including a custom special-built exhaust by Zard.

Vyrus 986 M2 Moto2 Race Bike Unveiled at Verona – It’s Time to Breakout the Kleenex

01/21/2011 @ 9:36 am, by Jensen Beeler25 COMMENTS

Vyrus 986 M2 Moto2 Race Bike Unveiled at Verona   Its Time to Breakout the Kleenex Vyrus 986 M2 Verona unveiling 1 635x423

After covering the debut of new motorcycles for a little over two years now, I’d like to think I’ve become immune to the sheer product lust the occurs when seeing an exceptional two-wheeler. Well wheel me back to the insane asylum of discretionary consumer income, because the only thing I can think of today is this Vyrus 986 M2 Moto2 race bike, and what it’s street counterpart could look like if Vyrus green-lights the project.

I don’t care if the hub-steering design is truly superior to traditional fork suspension. I don’t care if a single team even picks up the Vyrus chassis to race in Moto2. And in fact, I don’t even care if this whole talk about racing in Moto2 is just a ploy to launch the 600cc sibling of the Vyrus 987 C3 4V Supercharged.

Looking at these photos (courtesy of our friends at MotoBlog.it), the only thing going through my mind is OMGWTFBBQ I Want One! Eloquent I know, but if you can handle your streetbikes being non-traditional is design, I think you’ll have a similar response after the jump when you see the Vyrus 986 M2, which was finally unveiled at the Motor Bike Expo at Verona today.

Vyrus 986 M2 – Soon to Infect Moto2 & Showroom Floors

01/13/2011 @ 7:16 am, by Jensen Beeler14 COMMENTS

Vyrus 986 M2   Soon to Infect Moto2 & Showroom Floors Vyrus 986 M2 Moto2 concept 635x424

You remember Vyrus right? The company that makes the Vyrus 987 C3 4V…the Bimota Tesi look-alike with a Ducati 1198 motor, hub-steering, and a supercharger? Not willing to rest on its laurels as having “the most powerful production motorcycle in the world” (211hp gets you that title), the small Italian boutique firm seems set to enter Moto2 racing with its new Vyrus 986 M2 race bike, whose preliminary concept photo has just leaked out of the Rimini factory.

Taking the idea of prototype racing to its fullest dimension with its hub-center steering design, perhaps the only thing more exciting than the prospect of seeing a few of these Vyrus 986 M2′s at 18 of motorcycling’s best venues, is the prospect that a road-based version of the machine could be siting in our garage later this year (assuming we could afford such things). Details after the jump.

Vyrus Street and Superbike by Oberdan Bezzi

02/22/2010 @ 3:09 pm, by Jensen Beeler4 COMMENTS

Vyrus Street and Superbike by Oberdan Bezzi Oberdan Bezzi Vyrus Superbike race motorcyclejpg 635x440

For some, the aggressive lines of the Vyrus 987 C3 4V are bit too avant-garde for their delicate tastes, despite the bike’s impressive power package found nestled in its hub-center steering chassis design. Helping water down the Vyrus’ potent palette, Italian designer Oberdan Bezzi has put pen to paper to dream up a Vyrus Superbike, and what he calls the “Yellow Fever” street variant. We’re not too sure about the nomenclature, but the bikes look good. Check them both out after the jump.

Official Pictures of the Vyrus 987 C3 4V

01/28/2010 @ 2:20 pm, by Jensen Beeler10 COMMENTS

Official Pictures of the Vyrus 987 C3 4V vyrus 987 c3 4v official 4 560x370

Vyrus has finally gotten their 987 C3 4V off the beach, and into the studio for some standard mug shots. With proper lighting we can now see all the details lurking on the body of the Vyrus 987 C3 4V, and the bike looks stunning. Take a look after the jump for all the hub-center steering, 184hp, carbon goodness. Want to know how it all goes together, check this time-lapse build video out too.