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Volkswagen Ordered to Sell Its Stake in Suzuki

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The big news this week might be about how Volkswagen falsified emissions reports on its diesel-powered automobiles – a move that today lead to Volkswagen CEO Martin Winterkorn stepping down from his position in the company, and VW stock dropping nearly 30%, at the time of this writing.

Less well-known though is that Volkswagen has also lost its long-fought battle with Suzuki over the Japanese company’s stock ownership. VW and Suzuki were supposed to untie the knot back in 2011, but Volkswagen did not go quietly into that good night.

Taking the case to arbitration, the London Court of International Arbitration has finally handed the two parties its verdict. As such, Volkswagen will have to sell its 19.9% stake back to Suzuki.

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MotoGP

MotoGP: Nicky Hayden Breaks Thumb While Training

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MotoGP is headed to Motorland Aragon this weekend, and while the Spanish track is usually a favorite with the GP riders, for Nicky Hayden, it’s looking like a tough weekend already.

Breaking his right thumb while training on minimotos in Italy, Hayden will have to assess his ability to race on Friday, and if he decides to continue with the weekend, will likely have a hard time of things come race day.

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Racing

Official: Yamaha Returns to World Superbike for 2016

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An announcement that has been expected for quite a while now, Yamaha is officially returning to the World Superbike Championship for the 2016 season.

The news comes after nearly a season of competition for the Yamaha YZF-R1 in other classes, which has seemingly given Yamaha Motor Europe the confidence to support a factory team in the premier production racing series.

Helping Yamaha in that endeavor will be the experience WSBK outfit of Crescent Racing, who will run the day-to-day operations of the team, while Yamaha Racing develops the racing platform and strategy.

Yamaha’s return is already well-formed, as both Sylvain Guintoli and Alex Lowes will be riding for the factory team. Additionally, Yamaha Racing has already secured PATA as the team’s title sponsor.

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News

Unfold Honda’s “Power of Dreams” in Paper

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It’s easy to focus on what is right in front of us, but every now and then you have to stop and think about the past – and a company like Honda certainly has a storied past.

Honda helped contribute to the rise of a post-WWII Japanese economy. It has built some of the most iconic vehicles in modern time, some of them two-wheeled, some of them not.

And for as much grief we give Big Red sometimes, it is one of the few brands in the motorcycle industry that truly sets the tone for everyone else. When Honda talks, everyone listens.

Maybe that’s what makes this short video from Honda, which debuted on Sunday during primetime football, so appealing to us – both as lovers of motorcycles, but also good branding.

The commercial is clever and well executed, and in less than two minutes it not only reminds us of the pedigree that is the Honda brand, but also of all the milestones the company has achieved in what will be 67 years at the end of this week. Pretty impressive stuff.

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Bikes

Nine New Ducati Models for 2016

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We all know the new model season is upon us, and Ducati has wasted no time in already letting slip two new models for the 2016 model year: the Ducati Monster 1200 R and the Ducati Diavel Carbon.

The Bologna Brand has a few more tricks up its sleeve, as it plans to debut nine new models at the upcoming EICMA show in Milan. In addition to that, Ducati says we can expect machines the will push the company into two market segments that the Italian brand is not in with its current lineup.

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Bikes

2016 Ducati Diavel Carbon – Bold New Carbon

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Do you like the current Ducati Diavel? Do you like carbon fiber? If you answered yes to those two questions, chances are then that you will like the 2016 Ducati Diavel Carbon model that has just been released.

At the core of the Ducati Diavel Carbon remains the same Testastretta 11° Dual Spark engine, which makes 162hp claimed and is packaged into the same 452 lbs mass that carves turns and turns heads.

The only actual technical change then is the Zircotec ceramic coating on the exhaust headers being the mainstay, along with a new seat that has special trim. In the motorcycle world, we call that bold new graphics for the Diavel – though tastefully done, as only Italians can do.

In addition to the Carbon version, the 2016 Ducati Diavel will also be available in a “Dark Stealth” model.

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Bikes

Suter MMX 500 – Reviving the 500cc Two-Stroke…Again

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Suter Racing’s 500cc V4 two-stroke track bike project is back, in case you didn’t hear. Now called the Suter MMX 500, the ~200hp / 284 lbs motorcycle is set to debut again, as the Swiss firm gears up for the World GP Bike Legends event.

Presumably, not too much has changed on the GP-inspired machine, though we can expect to see an updated set of bodywork, suspension, and other farkles. At the core will remain that beautiful pre-mix consuming engine, in its V4 configuration.

We say presumably, because Suter is staying tight-lipped on this project, simply teasing the Suter MMX 500 with a dedicated website and with dyno-run soundtrack. So…stay tuned.

In the meantime, we have seriously just copy-and-pasted the same photos and information that was available four years. At least we’re honest.

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Racing

SERT Wins the 2015 FIM Endurance World Championship

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Taking things all the way to the last round of the championship – the Bol d’Or 24 Hour race – the Suzuki Endurance Racing Team can finally lay claim to being the the 2015 FIM Endurance World Champions.

Though endurance racing is very much a team effort, this victory for SERT couldn’t have been achieved without the team’s EWC veteran riders: Vincent Philippe, Anthony Delhalle, and Etienne Masson.

The trio’s results have allowed Suzuki to claim its 14th EWC title, which is just one part of the Japanese brand’s domination in the FIM Endurance World Championship.

On its road to EWC glory, SERT won at Le Mans, finished fourth in the very competitive specialist field at Suzuka, landed second on the podium at Oschersleben, and wrapped up the Bol d’Or in the third position.

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Bikes

MV Agusta F3 RC Mega Gallery

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Debuting its World Supersport replica today, the MV Agusta F3 RC is a rolling tribute to the efforts of the Reparto Corse squad on the race track. Only 100 units of the race-legal 675cc machine will be made, compared to the 250 units of the track day weapon that is the F3 800.

Like its 1,000cc counterpart, the MV Agusta F4 RC, the Varese company’s paint scheme is very fetching, though the F3 models comes without the improvements found on the F4.

Some of that has to do with the more limited rules in WSS – and this being a race replica and all – but we still think MV Agusta could have massaged a few extra ponies into this “RC” model, and thus buck the trend of only liter-class bikes getting the über limited-edition treatment. Our tastes certainly are picky, no?

That all being said, we thought A&R readers didn’t quite get enough Italian for lunch today, so here is a mega gallery of the new MV Agusta F3 RC. Beware of clicking the photos, we spared no pixel, and some of these images are huge. Bring a napkin.

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Bikes

MV Agusta F3 675 RC – Italy’s WSS Replica

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The rumors were true, mostly, as MV Agusta has just released details on its World Supersport replica motorcycles, the MV Agusta F3 675 RC & MV Agusta F3 800 RC (mega gallery here). Unlike its four-cylidner compatriot, the MV Agusta F4 RC, the F3 675 RC is all show, with unfortunately no added go.

Changes, in addition to the paint job, include mirror block-off plates, Ergal clutch and brake levers with anti-break joints, a solo-seat cover, Ergal “running boards”, and a complimentary rear-wheel racing stand.

We doubt that will hurt sales much though, as the Reparto Corse branded F3 will be an exclusive affair, with only 100 units of the 675cc machine being produced, while 250 units of the 800cc variant will be released as well. There are surely 350 well-heeled collectors who would love to add this MV Agusta to their collection.

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WSBK

Jonathan Rea is the 2015 FIM Superbike World Champion

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After this weekend’s World Superbike racing in Jerez, Jonathan Rea has finally emerged as the 2015 FIM Superbike World Champion, clinching the title with a fourth place in Race 1, and then backing up that result with another fourth place in Race 2.

The championship title has been a long-time coming for Rea, having first shown himself to be the only man capable of wrangling the factory Honda CBR1000RR to success, and then this season showing his brilliance on the Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10R.

Absolutely dominating the 2015 season on the track, and continuing his typical humble nature off of it, Rea is a popular choice for the WSBK Championship title, and will certainly be a force to reckon with now that he’s on a competitive machine.

“This is an amazing moment for me in my career because I started schoolboy motocross when I was six years old, spending time at race circuits with my father and growing up in a racing environment, so I always dreamed of being world champion. So to finally be here and be world champion is incredible,” said Rea.

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