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2011 MV Agusta Brutale 920

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After the news yesterday that the Canadian distributor for MV Agusta had posted pricing on its website for a new Brutale model, MV Agusta has quietly released photos and information on the 2011 MV Agusta Brutale 920, an entry-level version of its big street-naked motorcycle. With its four-cylinder radial valve 921cc motor, the MV Agusta Brutale 920 shares the same crankshaft as the Brutale 1090RR (55mm stroke), resulting in this over-square motor making 129hp with its 73mm bore. Available in matte black and white, we expect the new Bruatle to his US shores with a ~$14,595 price tag.

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News

Canada Outs New MV Agusta Brutale Model & Pricing

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After recently announcing the return of MV Agusta to the Canadian market, MV Agusta’s Canadian distributor Motovan has outed the Italian company’s new Brutale model. While it doe not seem that this model is the 675cc “Brutalina” that Castiglioni hinted at earlier this year, this Brutale instead appears to be an F4 derived street-naked, and is expected to hit the North American markets in mid-summer 2011. With pricing starting at $15,595 CAD, we expect pricing here in the United States to be closer to $14,595.

Likely based off the revised MV Agusta F4, which debuted at EICMA back in 2009, the new Brutale should see a style update to keep the street-naked inline with MV’s current take on the F4. Noticebale from Motovan’s pricing is the new Brutale’s lower price tag amount, which should help move some more units. We expect the new Brutale to have a 920cc displacement, and borrow heavily from the F4’s chassis design and aesthetic.

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Team SuperMartxé VIP by Paris Hilton Launches – Further Down the Downward Spiral?

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Unveiled this weekend in Madrid, Paris Hilton was on-hand in her pink, blue, and white skin tight set of leathers to help promote her latest business endeavor (her words, not ours): Team SuperMartxé VIP by Paris Hilton. While we generally hate everything about Paris Hilton, and even try to avoid staying in Hilton hotels just for good measure, we do have to say one thing: this weekend’s launch of the SuperMartxé VIP by Paris Hilton Team is arguably the largest team launch in history of GP racing (in one of the worst economic climates ever for the sport)…and that includes the upcoming Wrooom launch of Valentino Rossi and Ducati Corse.

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Banter

Ducati Corse Needs Hayden for a Special Project

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Needing Nicky Hayden for a special project at Ducati Corse HQ, the Italian company called the former MotoGP Champion into its Bologna office, only to have the place be completely deserted when he arrived. Like a kid in a candy store, Hayden does what we imagine anyone would do in such a situation, and trying out the new Diavel and taking a stroll through the Ducati Museum. Watch all the way through for the feel good ending, and Happy Amadeus everyone! (trust us when we say that’ll make more sense when you watch the end of the video…that Nicky Hayden is one silly son of a bitch).

Source: Ducati

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Triumph North America Introduces New CEO at Long Beach

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After a long absence, Triumph North America has once again joined the Progressive International Motorcycle Show, after being absent from the American event for several. Looking to come out of the gates in strong form, Triumph is showing its largest collection of motorcycles ever in the company’s 109 year history. With 23 models spanning six motorcycle families, Triumph will make its 2011 American debut at Long Beach this weekend.

With the Tiger 800, Tiger 800 XC, Daytona 675R, and Speed Triple being the crowning jewels of Triumph’s new model line-up, Triumph’s North American subsidiary will also be introducing its new CEO Greg Heichelbech.

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2011 Kawasaki ZX-10R Tops November Sales in the UK

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The British Motorcycle Industry Association is reporting that the 2011 Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10R was the best selling 651cc-1000cc motorcycle on the island nation for the month of November (with a whopping 17 sales!), despite the fact that the 10R has been put on a technical hold by Kawasaki, and not a single machine has made it to a British customer. Leaving aside the obvious problems of counting your chickens before they’ve hatched, and the validity of the MIA’s statistics just generally, it will be interesting to see how this “technical hold” affects Kawasaki’s sales for the superbike-derived ZX-10R as we get closer to the prime sportbike selling season.

Already under some controversy for coming to the United States sans about 20hp, the technical hold on what many believe is a piston wear issue is another blow to Team Green. While A&R‘s ZX-10R launch invite must have gotten lost in the mail (that’s what you get for being one of the first to break Kawasaki’s lowered RPM news), it would appear from one owner’s video that the 2011 Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10R is more than capable of ludicrious speed in street form (not that we condone such a thing). Video of a 300+ km/h top speed run after the jump.

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Racing

Paris Hilton 125GP Livery – Please God, Make It Stop

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In the story of Oedipus Rex, the protagonist gouges out his eyes after learning that he senselessly killed his father, and has been pounding his mother into the bedroom headboard. Until recently, we didn’t think we could get down to that level and relate to Oedipus with the same wealth of shame and despondency; but the universe is a fickle beast and wins another round today, as we’ve been dry heaving all morning after looking at the race livery for the Team SuperMartxé VIP by Paris Hilton race livery.

Everything we feared it would be, the pretty-in-pink design is going to be obnoxiously flamboyant on the 125GP grid. Capping off the news is that we learn that Paris herself will be attending more than a few races, helping promote the team, do a couple lines of coccaine, and maybe run over a few MotoGP fans while in a drunken stupor. Pretty typical Sunday for the famous for being famous star.

Undoubtedly not the proudest moment in the GP paddock, we’ll leave you with this thought though. Has any other 125GP team made headlines in the New York Times, Perez Hilton, and Asphalt & Rubber this week? This month? This year? Say what you will about the former sex-tape star, but she’s already borught the team a plethora of attention. That’s a win in marketing dollars speak. Touché Paris.

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Bikes

Mission R Electric Superbike Breaks Cover

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After teasing us earlier last month with its silhouette, Mission Motors has finally taken the wraps off its Mission R electric race bike.

Boasting some big numbers, namely a 14.4 kWh battery pack and a 3-phace AC induction motor that makes 141hp and 115 lbs•ft of torque, the Mission R ticks all the right performance boxes with its 160mph top speed, 100 kW motor controller, regenative breaking, and barely race legal 545 lbs weight.

Taking lessons learned from the Mission One, Mission Motors has built the Mission R from the ground-up, and tapped some well known names to help the company make this striking motorcycle.

With James Parker (of GSX-RADD fame) designing the chassis, and Tim Prentice of Motonium working on the industrial design, the Mission R is not only a very pleasing motorcycle to look at (drool over that billet single-sided swingarm), but also incorporates some advanced concepts to make it a potent and compact racing weapon.

Oh, and did we mention the bike looks freaking fantastic?

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Racing

Chip Yates Electric Race Bike Practices at Infineon

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Asphalt & Rubber was on-hand yesterday for first testing of the SWIGZ.COM electric race bike, which is being put together and piloted by Chip Yates and his crew. Getting blessed with a perfect California winter’s day, we only had to wait for Infineon Raceway, which is becoming the venue of choice for electric motorcycle race teams, to dry out from the previous night’s rain before the sunny 54° F temperature allowed Yates to get on the track. Taking eight laps in the afternoon, Yates ran the SWIGZ bike without the highly anticipated front KERS components, which will be the same configuration the bike will use when racing against the gasoline powered v-twins in the WERA Pirelli Sportsman Heavyweight Twins Superbike class later in January.

With the SWIGZ bike showing more than ample power in the straightaway, the electric race bike “exceeded all my expectations” said an enlighted Yates when he finished his last session. The first shakedown test on a track, Yates was also pleased with the bike having no mechanical failures during the sessions, giving him a vote of confidence for January’s race, which will see the SWIGZ race team contend against Ducati 1198 and KTM 1190 RC8 R superbikes.

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Bikes

Aprilia RSV4 Carbon Fiber Fairing Kit

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It seems Aprilia is getting ready to offer street-ready carbon fiber body panels for the RSV4 superbike, which should help well-financed Aprilia owners unload a maximum amount of cash for a minimal amount of actual performance increase (it’ll look good though). Composed of a carbon/kevlar/carbon layered composite, pricing for the carbon fiber fairings is being bantered around at about $5,000 for the carbon belly pan, front fairing, tank cover, air vents, right side panel, left side panel, and carbon tail pieces.

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Banter

20 KTMs of Yore for You to Drool Over

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KTM has released 20 images of motorcycles from the company’s rich past. Spanning from dirt to asphalt, street to racing, and old to know, there’s a little something for everyone in this early Christmas package. Founded in 1934 by engineer Hans Trunkenpolz, KTM (Kraftfahrzeuge Trunkenpolz Mattighofen, then later Kronreif & Trunkenpolz Mattighofen) has made its home in Mattighofen, Austria ever since. The company originally started out as a metalworking shop, but in 1953 began producing production-level motorcycles. The rest they say is history, but the Austrian company has picked some of the more important and historic bikes to come out of the Mattighofen factory, you can find 20 of these two-wheeled masterpieces after the jump.

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