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Mercedes-AMG Acquires 25% of MV Agusta

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One of the worst-kept secrets in the motorcycle industry, Mercedes-AMG has now officially acquired a 25% stake in MV Agusta S.p.A. The news also sees Mercedes-AMG and MV Agusta signing a long-term partnership agreement, as well as collaboration on future sales and marketing efforts.

Neither Mercedes-AMG, nor MV Agusta, are talking the price of the 25% investment, though rumors peg the cost of the deal around €30 million — a very good valuation compared to the €747 million Audi paid for Ducati Motor Holding just two years ago. Also as a part of the agreement, Mercedes-AMG will appoint one member to MV Agusta’s board of directors.

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Bikes

Technical Specifications of the MV Agusta Stradale 800

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Earlier today, we showed you the first photo of the MV Agusta Stradale 800. Essentially an MV Agusta Rivale with touring bags and a windscreen, the technical specifications of the MV Agusta Stradale tell a slightly different story though.

The biggest different between the Rivale and the Stradale comes from the 798cc three-cylinder engine, which is down 10hp, and thus makes 115hp at 11,000 rpm. The power disadvantage seems to come from a lower rev limit — a simple but effective way to differentiate the Stradale from the Rivale to consumers.

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Bikes

Is Husqvarna’s New Street Bike an ADV or Supermoto?

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Husqvarna has begun its teaser campaign for the three street bikes it will unveil at EICMA. We know that two of the machines will be concept bikes, while the third will be a 2015 production model. We also already know that the production bike will be a large-displacement single-cylinder machine, with premium components and electronics.

Releasing a video of the machine today, Husqvarna doesn’t tip its hand beyond the information we already knew…or does it? Clearly audible in the video is a street-going thumper, but the look and feel of the terrain, rider, and bike, suggests that Husqvarna could be set to release an ADV rider’s dream machine.

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Bikes

LEAKED: First Photo of the MV Agusta Stradale 800

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Our Bothan spies are hard at work, ahead of this year’s EICMA show, and thus we have another leaked photo for your viewing pleasure. Giving us our first glimpse at the rumored MV Agusta Stradale 800, we can see that Varese is borrowing heavily from Ducati’s playbook.

If the Rivale was MV Agusta’s response to the Ducati Hypermotard, then the Stradale is the company’s riff on the Ducati Hyperstrada, as our photo shows what appears to be a Rivale with bags and a windscreen attached.

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Racing

Team USA “Against the World” at the Supermoto of Nations

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Three American racers made the trek to the Circuito San Martino Del Lago in Cremona, Italy earlier this year, representing the United States of America, for the first time, at the FIM Supermoto of Nations event. Racing for the Red, White, & Blue were Johnny Lewis, Monte Frank, and Gage McAllister, along with Team Manager Jay Klinger.

Team USA finished 15th overall in the event, with Gage McAllister grabbing one Top 10 finish (a 9th), while Team France won the competition outright, with two race wins to their name in the three races.

Putting together a short-ish video of the team’s journey to Italy and competition there, you can watch Team USA’s efforts at the Supermoto of Nations, after the jump. America is seeing a resurgence in supermoto racing, hopefully this won’t be the last time our country competes at the Supermoto of Nations.

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News

Watch Ducati Unveil Its 2015 Models Right Here

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The 2014 EICMA show officially starts on Tuesday, November 3rd, though Ducati typically holds a private event the Monday ahead of the show, likely in the hope to get a little extra space on the news cycle, and to help build buzz ahead of Tuesday’s opening day for press and trade. The event is usually open to VIP and press only, but that’s about to change this year.

Setting up a live stream of the pre-EICMA unveiling on YouTube, Ducatisti around the world will be able to see Claudio Domenicali introduce the all-new Ducati Multistrada, with its new Testastretta DVT engine, as well as the 1299 superbike. We can also expect some “bold new graphics” changes to several models, and Domenicali will reintroduce the Ducati Scrambler as well.

It’s a pretty good show the few times A&R has attended, and it’s interesting that we are just now seeing OEMs embrace streaming technology for unveils like this. Of course, it has the downside of making it difficult to un-invite rogue journalists at the last-minute…maybe that’s cause enough in the slow movement for change.

Watch the live steam after the jump, starting November 3rd at 5:15pm Central European Time.

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MotoGP

Report: COTA Brings Nearly $900 Million to Austin

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In a report commissioned and released by the Circuit of the Americas (COTA), and prepared by the Greyhill Advisors, it would seem that hosting MotoGP and other events at the newly built track was a benefit to the local Austin economy this year, to the tune of $897 million.

The Greyhill’s analysis covers all of the events held at COTA, such as Formula One, MotoGP, and the ESPN X-Games, and it also includes all track rentals, concerts, and other events at the track as well.

Through these events, 1.1 million people attended COTA, whose operations directly account for $166 million of the $897 million brought to the area. The remaining $731 million comes from money spent by attendees outside of the track.

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Columns

Destination Malaysia – Day Six: Race Day

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Time of day is no escape from the heat and humidity of Malaysia, and it’s no different here at Sepang on race day. I could wax-poetic about how the extreme temperatures here at the track change the smell of the four-stroke exhaust fumes.

Or, how the humidity, which leaves you with a constant layer of sweat on your skin, changes the thunderous sounds of the 1,000cc MotoGP engines, but it would be a lie. It’s just hot here, and your body braves its exposures to the outside world only if you make it the future promise of air conditioning.

I have no idea how the fans pack the stands here at Sepang International Raceway on race day, but they do. They come in droves, and many ride here. Large convoys of bikers make the trek from nearby countries even.

Southeast Asia is rampant for GP racing, and it shows. Attendance on Friday is non-existent, Saturday is modest, at best, but the come Sunday, 80,000+ Malay, Chinese, Thai, Indonesian, Burmese, and countless other ethnicities line the track. It’s a spectactle, to be certain.

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Bikes

Bienville Legacy – From the Mind of JT Nesbitt

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The Confederate Wraith is perhaps one of our most favorite custom motorcycles ever produced, and it happens to be the product of JT Nesbitt’s supreme imagination.

Working now out of his own shop, Bienville Studios, Nesbitt has produced the first of his ultra-premium, tailor-made, American-born motorcycles, dubbed the Bienville Legacy.

Beyond the radical lines, there is the familiarity of things like the Wraith’s carbon fiber girder front-end style, the Motus MST’s V4 engine, and…that is about it.

The rest of the Bienville Legacy motorcycle is unlike anything else on the market, which should surprise no one considering its source (Nesbitt) and the fact that Bienville is setting out to make commissioned bespoke machines for its patrons.

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Bikes

MV Agusta Turismo Veloce Finally Coming in Spring 2015

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MV Agusta has this nasty habit of debuting motorcycles in the autumn trade shows, and then taking a couple years to actually produce the machines for public consumption. Such was the case with the MV Agusta F3, the MV Agusta Rivale, and now with MV Agusta Turismo Veloce.

The Varese company’s challenge to the Ducati Multistrada (which will be a new model for 2015, by the way), the MV Agusta Turismo Veloce builds upon the now exhausted aesthetic of the Italian company, adding a more upright seating position and touring focus to the brand’s lineup.

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