April 2016 - Page 4 of 7 - Asphalt & Rubber

MotoGP

LCR Honda in the Running for Final 2017 MotoGP Grid Slot

By David Emmett 04/15/2016 2 Comments

The MotoGP grid is set to expand to 24 riders once again in 2017. The current teams are expected to retain the 21 grid slots already allotted, while KTM’s factory team will take two more when the Austrian manufacturer enters MotoGP next year.

This will take the grand total up to 23 seats, leaving one more grid slot to be filled.

Who will fill that final grid slot has been the subject of much speculation. Rumors that the Sky VR46 team were to take the slot were immediately quashed by team manager Pablo Nieto, saying they were only interested in Moto3 and Moto2.

Sources indicate that there are two firm candidates, with three more having expressed an interest. The two candidates include one MotoGP team, and one Moto2 team.

The MotoGP team interested in expanding is LCR. The Monaco-based team ran two bikes in 2015, but sponsorship woes had forced them to cut back to just a single bike for the 2016 season.

When asked if he was interested the final grid slot, team boss Lucio Cecchinello acknowledged that he was, and that he was working towards securing sufficient budget to meet the submission deadline on 29th April.

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Bikes

FZ-07 Powered Yamaha Super Ténéré Spotted

By Jensen Beeler 04/14/2016 11 Comments

It looks like Yamaha is getting ready to bring an updated Tiny Ténéré to market (photos here), giving ADV riders a new middleweight option in the Yamaha lineup. This is because spy photos from Europe show what looks like a adventure-tourer, powered by the 689cc FZ-07 parallel-twin engine.

If we do see a Yamaha XT700ZE enter the market, it would be a welcomed compliment to the 1200cc Yamaha Super Ténéré, and help the Japanese brand compete in the increasingly competitive ADV market, especially against brands that already have a ~800cc adventure model available.

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MotoGP

Suzuki MotoGP Update: Changes, Chassis, & Contracts

By David Emmett 04/14/2016 12 Comments

On the Monday after the Austin round of MotoGP, the Suzuki team stayed on to do an extra private test, which we attended. Aleix Espargaro and Maverick Viñales had hoped to start relatively early, but heavy overnight rain left the track both wet and dirty, taking some time to dry out.

When they did start, the times were poor – around 2’08, rather than the 2’05s both riders had been posting in the race. But conditions improved as the day went on, and the session turned into a very productive test for both riders.

After two races on back-to-back weekends, there was little time to be testing new parts. Both men had some new electronics to try, aimed at helping the seamless gearbox be a little smoother. They also both tried the 2016 chassis again, after having spent the first three races on the 2015.

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MotoGP

Photo Essay: 12 Shots from MotoGP in Austin

By Daniel Lo 04/13/2016 5 Comments

The large swatches of red, white, and blue paint at the Circuit of the Americas are a great visual addition to an already fairly scenic track.

Throw in a bit of elevation change, and the colors provide endless possibilities waiting to be explored.

With smooth armco and solid stripes serving as a background, a motion blur was easy to achieve. This came with a caveat, as this particular composition was also only possible with the fastest riders.

The reason for this is that the armco abruptly cuts off mid-corner, followed immediately by unsightly plastic crash barriers that required a substantially slower shutter speed to smooth out.

Slower riders didn’t get their bikes down at full lean until they were past the armco, which yielded very different results.

I tend to gravitate towards abstract compositions that intentionally obscure the location on the track. Any educated guesses as to Dani Pedrosa’s whereabouts?

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MotoGP

Phillip Island Secures MotoGP & WSBK for 10 More Years

By David Emmett 04/13/2016 No Comments

The long-term future of MotoGP and World Superbike in Australia has been secured. Earlier this week, Dorna signed an agreement with the Victorian government and the Phillip Island circuit that will see both world championship motorcycle racing series remain at the circuit for the next ten years, until 2027.

The agreement is great news for motorcycle racing fans and riders, as the Phillip Island circuit is almost universally regarded as one of the best two or three circuits in the world.

Riders praise its fast, flowing layout – it is the fastest track on the calendar, with an average speed of well over 181 km/h – and its location, perched atop a cliff overlooking the Bass Strait which separates mainland Australia from Tasmania, makes for a spectacular setting and dramatic TV images.

The flowing layout always provides fantastic racing, as the 2015 MotoGP race proved.

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News

BMW Motorrad Q1 2016 Sales Up 7.7%

By Jensen Beeler 04/11/2016 2 Comments

BMW Motorrad says that its first-quarter 2016 motorcycles sales are the best start to its motorcycle season, ever for the German manufacturer. To this point, in the first three months of the year, BMW sold 33,788 bikes to customers, up from last year’s mark of 31,370 units.

That 2,418 unit increase comes to a 7.7% growth in Q1 for BMW Motorrad, over the equivalent period from last year. The bulk of those sales came in March, with 16,465 units delivered to customers.

The news is a continuation of BMW’s sales growth, and the German brand has been a testament to what motorcycle OEMs can achieve purely with large-displacement machines, though that will begin to change for the marque.

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Bikes

Christini Working on “2WD” Snow Bike

By Jensen Beeler 04/11/2016 No Comments

A photoshopped image, along with suspicious timing, got us on the wrong track (pun intended) with Christini Technologies, but indeed the American outfit is working to bring its two-wheeled drive dirt bike technology to the snow bike market.

The idea seems fairly obvious, which of course is why we thought it was the perfect April Fools story, since all it requires is Christini to attach a Timbersled track to the rear of its chassis design, and develop a front track and ski that can be powered by the Christini 2WD drivetrain.

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MotoGP

Lorenzo Ducati Announcement Expected Next Week

By Jensen Beeler 04/11/2016 30 Comments

It’s the worst kept secret in the MotoGP paddock right now, and the flat refusals to talk about it, by those involved, hasn’t helped the matter either. What are we ranting about? Jorge Lorenzo moving to Ducati Corse next year, of course.

There’s been so much smoke around this fire for the past two weeks, and it was obvious in the pre-event press conference that the MotoGP press was hungry for some confirmation to the speculation that has been circulating recently. We were sadly disappointed.

But, that hasn’t stopped more intrepid scribes from peddling around strongly supported rumor as fact, as virtually every MotoGP journalist expects Ducati Corse and Jorge Lorenzo to unveil their marriage when MotoGP lands in Europe next week.

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MotoGP

Sunday MotoGP Summary at Austin: Imperious Marquez, Complex Crashes, & Intrigue in the Support Classes

By David Emmett 04/11/2016 8 Comments

If the big question at the Circuit of the Americas was “Who can beat Marc Márquez?” then we found out the answer on Sunday: Nobody. There were only two brief moments during, where Márquez was not leading the MotoGP race.

Off the line, Jorge Lorenzo was a fraction quicker going into Turn 1, but Márquez turned earlier and already had the lead on the exit. Lorenzo tried once more into the hairpin of Turn 11, but overshot and ran wide, Márquez taking back the lead immediately.

After that, Márquez was gone. Andrea Dovizioso and Jorge Lorenzo kept Márquez honest for a couple of laps, but the Repsol Honda rider’s relentless pace forced them to concede.

Márquez went on to win his fourth straight Grand Prix of the Americas, and his tenth straight win in the United States of America. Since ascending to MotoGP, he has never been beaten on American soil.

There are plenty of adjectives you could throw at Márquez’ performance – imperious, dominant, superlative – but perhaps the best word to sum up Marc Márquez at the Circuit of the Americas is “Unbeatable.” His rivals will have to wait another year to try to find a way of stopping him.

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