Dorna and the MotoGP rider’s Safety Commission met in Sepang this past Friday before the Malaysian GP to talk about the upcoming 2010 season, and in particular the addition of the Hungarian Balatonring to the schedule. While Dorna CEO Carmelo Ezpeleta believes the track will be completed on-time for its MotoGP debute, Satefy Comission Founding Member, Loris Capirossi, disagrees. Putting his money where his mouth is, Capirossi has bet Ezpeleta on the Hungarian tracks completion.
While many Moto2 teams are taking the path of least resistance, and out-sourcing or flat-out purchasing their race bikes, Tech3 will enter the 2010 Moto2 season with a chassis of their own design. With Colin Edwards residing in the paddock, and regarded as one of the best development riders, there seems some logic in Tech3 tapping him and prodigy Ben Spies to swing a leg over the Moto2 bike and give their impressions. However, Tech3 has announced that is not to be the case.
Zero Motorcycles has announced its launch of a fleet sales program aimed at corporations, non-profits, government bodies, and small business owners who are looking to make multiple unit purchases. The program is set to launch November 2nd, with pricing being based on volume and support requirements. It’s hard to make B2B sales sound sexy, but consider the missed opportunity that was Erik Estrada on a Zero DS…if only we could turn back time.
Ducati has officially acknowledged the existence of the upcoming Multistrada 1200, making a dedicated mini site for the adventure tourer. There’s not a lot there now in regards to information (there’s only a countdown timer to EICMA and a teaser video), but it does at least confirm the rumor of the bike’s name not being Stradaperta (we still like that name better). We’ll be in Milan in 10 days, bringing you as much information about the most hyped Ducati to date. Video and pictures after the jump
Living in the Land of the Free has its advantages, but one of them is not the gift of conveniently televised motorcycle races on SPEED TV. Did you miss Sunday’s race, and Tuesday’s rebroadcast? Well, we’ve got you covered…actually the organizers of WorldSBK.com have you covered. Click here for a list of WSBK races you can stream to your desktop, including Race 1 & Race 2 of WSBK’s stop at Portimao, Portugal. Thanks for the tip Cat.
Stepping out of the A&R office briefly today, we noticed a slight nip in the air, which in California means that the weather has dipped below 70°F. For the rest of the country though rain, ice, and snow have already begun to rear their ugly heads, and two-wheeled enthusiasts have already begun to put their motorcycles in the garage for winter’s cold freeze.
But these actions are not necessary, and BMW has sent Chris Pfeiffer with a modified BMW G450X “Snowcat” to remind us of that. Video after the jump of some quality snow-filled hooliganism.
That’s exactly what bsdesigns thought when they inked this concept sketch of a VFR’d Fireblade, and it looks exactly like this (scroll up). The Honda VFR 1200 Fireblade, as they call it, features the same CBR exhaust can, but retains the new VFR’s dimensions.
The sometimes reliable MCN is reporting that they have information that Aprilia will be launching a Factory version of their Dorsoduro street-tard at the EICMA motorcycle show in Milan in two weeks time. Also expected at EICMA is a revised version of the Aprilia Shiver.
A year ago today a little motorcycle blog set out to talk about motorcycle news, rumors, racing, and more. I hardly expected anyone to read Asphalt & Rubber when I started it, let alone for the site to reach the 100,000+ readers we have per month now. With this number continuing to grow somewhere near the order of 20%+ each month, A&R seems to gather more steam with each passing day.
As we add a candle to the birthday cake, I’d like to a chance to thank the folks that have helped make the site what it is today. Big thanks to: Jenny Gun, Dan Lloyd, Dustin Gibbs, Stephen Muller, John Adamo, Jeremy Korzeniewski, Jessica Pichora, Jason Yu, Peter Lombardi, Frank Schuengel, Chris Lo, and of course our loyal readers.
You may remember that we brought you some of the first shots of the Moto Morini 1200cc motard taking some test laps back in August. Now with an up-close look at the bike, Italian news site Motociclismo has gotten a chance to ride the new Moto Morini motard ahead of its EICMA unveiling. Photos after the jump.
UPDATE: Nakano has officially announced his retirement from motorcycle racing, saying “I think it’s time to stop and I have decided to retire. Thanks to everyone who has supported me during 13 years as a professional racer and eleven years in the world championships. Now, if my experience is a little help, I want to contribute to the motorcycle industry. I look forward to seeing everyone at the track in the near future, this time in a different capacity.”
Multiple sites are hinting that Shinya Nakano, teammate to Maxi Biaggi on the factory Aprilia WSBK team, could be announcing his retirement from World Superbike racing as early as today. Expected to make the announcement in a press conference in Japan, the Japanese rider would be retiring after 13 years of racing, and on the eve of his 32nd birthday.