True to Ducati form, we cannot have a base model 2014 Ducati Monster 1200 without also having a higher-spec 2014 Ducati Monster 1200 S. As usual, the addition of a single letter signals the addition of more power from the 1,198cc Testastretta 11° engine, as well as high-spec suspension and braking components. Also true to form, Ducati has made some aesthetic differences between the two models.
With the Ducati 1199 Superleggera already shown ahead of the 2013 EICMA show, the big news from Milan for Ducati is the long-rumored 2014 Ducati Monster 1200.
Saying goodbye to the Monster’s air-cooled v-twin, the Monster 1200 takes a page of history from the Ducati S4/S4R, and uses Ducati’s water-cooled Testastretta 11° motor (as seen on the Ducati Multistrada 1200 and Ducati Diavel) for its locomotion.
Surely to ruffle a few feathers with the hardcore Ducatisti, the water-cooled engine isn’t the only big innovation for the Ducati Monster 1200, as the motorcycle is the continuation of Ducati’s chassis philosophy, as seen on the Ducati 1199 Panigale. As such, both the steel trellis main frame, and steel subframe, attach directly to the Testastretta 11° engine’s cylinder heads.
Though MV Agusta gave us a good insight into what to expect at EICMA, the company from Varese has finally debuted its sport-touring machine, the 2014 MV Agusta Turismo Veloce 800. Built around MV Agusta’s 800cc three-cylinder engine, the Turismo Veloce 800 and the Turismo Veloce Lusso 800 (the pannier-equipped higher-spec model) feature a 125hp and 62 lbs•ft of torque.
True to the current MV Agusta aesthetic, the MV Agusta Turismo Veloce 800 has obvious design cues from the MV Agusta F3 and MV Agusta F4, and translates those cues into a machine that is very sporty in nature. Slenderly built and having performance in mind, the 427 lbs machine boasts the best in class power-to-weight ratio.
True to the spirit of MV Agusta’s brand, Giovanni Castiglioni reiterated that “nobody needs an MV Agusta in their garage, you buy an MV because it transfers emotions.” The 2014 MV Agusta Turismo Veloce 800 is no different.
We already teased you with Pierobon’s newest creation, a trellis frame kit for the Ducati 1199 Panigale, and now we have the full details of this Italian firm’s work…along with some tasty photos.
Pierobon says it wanted to build a chassis kit was to build a bolt-on frame that would replace Ducati’s “frameless” design, with a steel trellis creation.
The project’s main goal was to add no further weight to the svelte Panigale, but also to bring the chassis stiffness into spec with the parameters Pierobon has shown on its previous machines (Pierobon X60R & Pierobon F042).
Using 28mm diameter steel tubing for the trellis work, Pierobon says it design meets the project’s weight criteria, and computer analysis suggests that torsional stiffness is right on point as well with the Bologna firm’s goals. Now Pieorbon just waits to go riding on the track.
In our quest to bring you stories that show motorcyclists in a positive light, we bring you this feel-good video of one street-biker doing his daily good deed. Kudos to this street-biker. Beers are on us, if we ever meet up. Thanks for the tip Rose!
Next up from Benelli is the 2014 Benelli BN302, a pint-sized two-cylinder machine that continues the Italian company’s quest to bring in new riders to the brand. As such, styling is taken obviously from the Benelli BN600, though shrunken down into a smaller format for younger riders.
We assume that the BN302 uses 300cc parallel-twin motor, though the Italian company failed to mention engine capacity in its press release. Nonetheless, we do know the lump has fuel-injection and that the key power figures are 36hp and 20 lbs•ft of torque.
Benelli has a couple new models waiting for us at EICMA this year, and first up is the 2014 Benelli BN600GT. Based on the Benelli BN600 that debuted last year (which the company is now confusingly calling the Benelli BN600R since it added Brembo Brakes, Marzocchi forks, and Sachs rear shock to the machine), the Benelli BN600GT is a more touring-friendly approach, with the same 80hp inline-four engine.
Last year we were wowed by the Bimota BB2, and not necessarily in a good way. The boutique Italian brand has a reputation for making rolling pieces of art that feature production motors with Bimota’s own chassis genius. While the BB2 was powered by the venerable BMW S1000RR’s inline-four engine, Bimota failed to live up to its end of the bargain, which made the Bimota BB2 an interesting, although rather unappealing, effort.
From what our sources have told us, that project has since been taken out behind the woodshed, and to help make up for things, a clean-slate Bimota BB3 will debut at this year’s EICMA show. The first machine to debut under Bimota’s new owners, Marco Chiancianesi and Daniele Longoni, the BB3 again features an S1000RR power plant, and from what our sources have been telling us, the BB3 swaps the BB2’s throwback retro look for a 21st century racing aesthetic.
We already showed you the first glimpse of the 2014 Kawasaki Z1000 two weeks ago, but with just a few days until the start of the 2013 EICMA show, Kawasaki’s new naked bike is giving us the full monty, courtesy of Japan’s Mr. Bike. Getting a chance to film the new Kawasaki Z1000 with up-close panning shots, we are even treated to the new Z’s exhaust note.
For the new model year, things seem to be mainly an aesthetic overhaul — the great internet debate is now whether the new Z1000 retains its predecessor’s 136hp motor, or whether the machine gets the 140hp lump from the Kawasaki Z1000SX. One would presume the latter, though both engines are of the same ilk and difficult to distinguish from visually.
With BMW Motorrad pulling the plug on its World Superbike racing effort, and letting the BMW Motorrad GoldBet SBK team disband, speculation has been rife as to where riders Marco Melandri and Chaz Davies would land for the 2014 WSBK season. We already know that Chaz will join Davide Giugliano at Ducati Corse next season, but what about Marco?
Well according to the Italian this week, Melandri will fly the Tricolore with Aprilia Racing for 2014 — presumably taking Eugene Laverty’s spot in the factory-run team. Lapping around Jerez on an RSV4 at the end-of-the-season WSBK test, Melandri’s move is perhaps not a shock for anyone following World Superbike, and the announcement already makes him a favorite for the championship next season.
Today’s guest post is written by our good friend Shelina Moreda (Facebook & Twitter), an FIM eRoadracing rider for Team Parker Brammo, an AMA Pro Harley Davidson Vance & Hines rider with Team Spyke’s H-D / She’z Racing, and the first female to have raced a motorcycle at the famous Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Having just got back from the FIM Women’s Road Racing Training Camp in Albacete, Spain, we asked Shelina to share with us her experience teaching at the girls training camp, what she learned in attendance, and how the sport of motorcycle racing is being invaded by these talented ladies. -Jensen
The first ever FIM Women’s Road Racing Training Camp in Albacete, Spain was better than any of us could have hoped for. The camp sold out, with 24 girls from 10 different countries in attendance.
The Women in Motorcycling Commission organized this camp as one part of their larger goal of promoting women in all motorsports, and I was honored to be asked to instruct at this camp.
My fellow teachers include Mr. Ismael Bonilla from Spain – former Grand Prix rider in the 250cc class from 1996 until 2001, as well as guest instructor Melissa Paris, of AMA Pro Daytona SportBike road racing fame — an athlete many female riders look up to.
The goal of the camp was to give female riders from all over the world the opportunity to train with high-spec motorcycles and professional coaches on a major racing circuit, and to give them the tools to make them better riders. The FIM hit it out of the ballpark.