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Yet Another Solid Photo of the Yamaha YZF-R25

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Unfortunately, the Yamaha YZF-R25 isn’t slated to debut until May 2014; but as luck would have it, the month of May starts tomorrow. It shouldn’t surprise us then that the R25 is leaking like a sieve all over the internet.

We brought you some very nice photos of Yamaha’s 250cc sport bike earlier this morning, and now we have another good glimpse of the Yamaha R25 from the front.

In this shot we get a good glimpse of the YZF-R25’s headlight, which reminds us of the redesign Honda did to the CBR600RR. Clearly visible on the side fairing is the “R25” logo, so we know we are dealing with the real thing. Unfortunately though, the photo is pretty low-resolution, so it’s hard to gauge fit and finish.

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MotoGP

MotoGP: Bridgestone Adds Third Front Tire Option for 2014

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Bridgestone is to add an extra compound of front tire for MotoGP riders to choose from. After complaints from the teams over problems at some circuits, Bridgestone has responded by expanding the number of front tires allowed for each rider from 9 to 10, and adding an extra compound of front tire to help deal with differing conditions.

The change to the allocation had long been a wish of the MotoGP riders. Though Bridgestone’s two selected compounds performed well under most conditions, a sudden drop in temperatures sometimes left riders and teams struggling.

The problem was most pronounced in the morning sessions at circuits like Valencia and Aragon, where temperatures can be very cold. There were several front-end crashes in those morning sessions, as tires struggled to get up to temperature. Adding a softer tire should make the morning practice sessions safer, and allow teams to work on setup without compromising safety.

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Bikes

Transform Your Honda CBR600RR into a Vyrus 986 M2

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Maybe one of the most lurid motorcycles ever to grace the pages of Asphalt & Rubber, the Vyrus 986 M2 Moto2 race bike is just as much art as it is engineering innovation. A hub-center steering front-end, self-supporting carbon fiber body pieces, and a bevy of GP-level electronics adorn this futuristic looking motorcycle from Italy.

The goal from Vyrus was to have a Moto2-class legal racing machine that was ready for competition, though we doubt many owners see it that way. What few bikes that actually leave their owner’s garage, we imagine only a handful will see any track time, but that’s sometimes just the way it goes.

Originally priced at €55,000 for the race bike (a pretty cheap price for a Moto2 machine), a street version was supposed to debut at €25,000, while a Vyrus 986 M2 kit was to be made available at €16,900 (one must supply their own Honda CB600RR motor to use the kit option).

After currency exchange rates, the Vyrus 986 M2 kit sounded like a fairly affordable and hands-on way to own such a unique machine. Well, now that Vyrus is actually able to make good on its do-it-yourself option, things have changed a little…by say €10,000 or so.

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Bikes

Proper Spy Photos of the Yamaha YZF-R25 in the Wild

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Last week, alleged photos of the much-anticipated Yamaha YZF-R25 made their rounds on the internet. The shots in question were really just of a tail light and tail section, which honestly could have been of anything — so, we passed on running them.

We get it, it had been a slow news week in the motorcycle world…but the photos had no substance, and we really just don’t go for the whole linkbait thing here. We’d make you a Top 10 list as to why, but you wouldn’t believe what we’d type next (did you see what we did there?).

Anyhoo…today we have something of some real substance: our first proper shots of the Yamaha R25, courtesy of our Indonesian friends over at TMC Blog. Giving us a proper view of the R25’s profile and front fairings, we know that this is the R25 because of the teaser film released during Yamaha’s RevStation site.

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Dirt

Watch “Caselli 66 – Ride The Dream” Right Here

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On that fateful day during the Baja 1000, Kurt Caselli’s life was ended far too early. At thirty-years-old and still riding an upward trajectory with his career, Caselli had already amassed an impressive resumé of race wins, and had just been announced as the newest rider KTM Racing’s Dakar Rally factory team for 2014.

While it is easy to talk about his off-road accomplishments, the thing we hear the most, from the people that knew him best, was Kurt’s amazing personality. He was the very best at what he did, and also one of the very best doing it.

It is touching then to see that the short video “Caselli 66 – Ride The Dream” has been produced to honor our lost racer. For those that didn’t know Kurt, it is a great introduction into his amazing life, on and off the race track. And for those he was close to, the video serves as an excellent vehicle in which to remember those better times.

After the jump is the 30-minute-ish film, but be sure to grab some tissues before you hit play. It’s powerful stuff.

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Bikes

2014 Yamaha YZF-R1 Endurance Race Bike by YART

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The Yamaha Austria Racing Team (YART) might not have had a result at the 2014 Bol d’Or that was commensurate with the team’s ability, but ask anyone in the Endurance World Championship paddock who the top teams are, and YART is surely on their short-list.

Finishing 5th in the 2013 Championship, YART’s first goal is to best its French counterpart, the Yamaha Racing – GMT 94 – Michelin squad. Running similar equipment, the Austrians have been making a strong showing in the French-dominated endurance paddock.

So strong is EWC in France, that Honda Racing Europe finally had to give up its TT Legends team, which was comprised of road racing and TT stars, in favor of an all-French rider lineup of endurance specialists.

Featuring some of the most interesting racing equipment, the Endurance World Championship breeds a special kind of racing motorcycle. Bikes are rolling compromises, setup to provide the widest range of usability and riding style for the two, three, sometimes four riders that have to share the motorcycle during an endurance race.

Reliability is key, where a bulletproof bike with superior fuel economy, can be an advantage over the bike with the most horsepower on the grid. The human-factor is huge too, especially as races like the Bol d’Or carry-on into the night. Mistakes from rider and crew can mean time lost, or worse, the end of a race.

That all being said, here is the Yamaha Austria Racing Team’s 2014 workhorse, in all its go-fast glory.

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Columns

Trackside Tuesday: The Setting Sun

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Sometimes one or two photographs can rescue what would otherwise be a wasted session. That was exactly the situation recently when shooting the Moto2 warm up in Qatar.

Unlike the rest of the weekend the Moto2 warm up started in daylight. After a bit of deliberation I left the Media Center with the intention of taking a shuttle to the inside of Turn 2 as the low evening sun would be behind me.

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Bikes

Saroléa SP7 Electric Superbike Debuts Ahead of IOMTT

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After a 50 Year Hiatus, the Belgian brand Saroléa is making a bit of comeback, albeit this time in electric form. Already making its intention to race in the 2014 Isle of Man TT, Saroléa has now finally debuted its racing machine, the Saroléa SP7.

An amalgamation of retro-styling and high-technology, the Saroléa SP7 boasts a carbon fiber chassis, a 174hp (130 kW) motor, and a 441 lbs bulk.

All of that is wrapped into a café racer styled machine, which with all the modern equipment has a certain juxtaposition that is both visually pleasing, and visually glaring — we will let you decide which sensation dominates your senses more heavily.

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News

Sunday Summary at Argentina: Of New Tracks, Doohanesque Domination, & The Merits of a Rossi Revival

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There is much to be said in praise of the first running of the Argentinian round of MotoGP at the Termas de Rio Hondo circuit. First and foremost, praise should be heaped upon the circuit itself. Designer Jarno Zafelli took a formerly pedestrian layout and added just enough kinks and twists to make for an exhilarating and difficult racetrack.

There are plenty of places to pass, and sections different enough that teams and riders can concentrate on their strengths, though that makes them vulnerable at other parts of the track. Add in a final section which lends itself to last-gasp attacks – at the risk of penalty points, as Romano Fenati found out – and you have an utterly superb track for motorcycle racing.

If Jarno Zafelli of Dromo was hired more often, instead of Hermann Tilke, there would be a lot more fantastic circuits to race at.

The only negative was the fact that the track was still so dirty, a result of it not yet having seen enough action. Once the riders got off line, they found themselves struggling for grip, losing a lot of ground.

Fortunately for the races, almost everyone got off line at some point or other, putting them all on an even footing. Once the surface cleans up properly, the track should offer even more places to attack, and alternate lines through sections. The Termas de Rio Hondo circuit is a fine addition to the calendar.

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Racing

2014 Bol d’Or 24-Hour Race Results

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The first round of the 2014 Endurance World Championship is in the bag, as the 24 hours of the Bol d’Or at Magny-Cours are now in the bag. Taking the top step on the podium was last year’s Bol d’Or winner, SRC Kawasaki, but the win didn’t come easily for the Kawasaki factory team.

“The week got off to a bad start. With Fabien Foret out and the crash for Matthieu, I wouldn’t have fancied us to win,” admitted SRC Kawasaki Team Manager Gilles Stafler. “The best win we ever had in a 24-hour race was our first in Le Mans in 2010. But this one was the toughest. There was also a luck factor in the choice of the tyres and we had the support of really top-notch technical staff.”

Because of Matthieu Lagrive’s crash during the free practice session, this meant that SRC Kawasaki teammate Gregory Leblanc and Nicolas Salchaud had to pretty much split the racing duties for the 24-hour race. At one point, SRC Kawasaki was in the 20th spot, after an early crash, but the team rallied together, and capitalized on the misfortunes of others to bring home another Bol d’Or win.

Finishing five laps down, in second, was the Yamaha France’s factory-supported team: Yamaha Racing GMT 94 Michelin; and in third was the Superstock Class leader, Junior Team LMS Suzuki, which was 11 laps down at the finish.

Noticeably absent from the finishing board were the usual suspects of Honda Racing, Yamaha Austria Racing Team (YART), and the Suzuki Endurance Racing Team (SERT), all of whom had to retire mid-race because of mechanical troubles, but had strong showings prior to their retirements.

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