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MotoGP: Livio Suppo Leaves Ducati Corse for HRC

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Want further proof that HRC is trying to buy their success in 2010? Just confirmed is the news that Livio Suppo will be leaving Ducati Corse for HRC. After 11 years with Ducati, Suppo for many reasons has been the driving force and ethos of the Corse team. His departure signals not only an active acquisition strategy at HRC, but also a shake-up at Ducati Corse. While Suppo cites HRC’s offer as an opportunity difficult to resist, there seems to be some speculation about his departure being related to Ducati Corse courting Valentino Rossi for the 2011 season. Helping fuel this rumor is the fact that former Ducati test rider, Vito Guareschi, will take over as the new team manager.

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News

Honda Motors Profits Down 56%, Motorcycles Only Down 17% – Expects Profit in First Half of 2009

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Honda has released its second quarter financials, with the highlight (if you can call it that) being a 56.2% drop in their net income. Honda attributes this loss primarily to decreased car sales, and the currency exchange. For its part though, Honda’s motorcycle sales were down only 16.8%, with 2.4 million units sold during Q2.

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Rumors

Aprilia RSV550 Prototype In the Works

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While out testing the 2010 Aprilia RSV4 R in Tuscony, the guys at Hell for Leather got a word with Aprilia’s Motorcycle Product Manager, Francesco Polimeni, regarding rumors of a RSV550 prototype. Allegedly, the bike would use an RS chassis, and the SXV/RXV’s 550cc v-twin motor, and according to Polimeni everything about that rumor is true…except the fact the bike would be coming to market any time soon.

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Rumors

Mavizen TTX03 Supermoto Quietly Being Developed?

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With the announcement of Mavizen’s TTX02 KTM RC8 look-alike taking up all of the spot light, Mavizen’s other project the TTX03 has quietly been hinted at by the company, and is expected to be an electric supermoto racer. Continuing what is shaping up to be the worst naming structure in the industry, the TTX03 also shows the links between Mavizen and the TTXGP organizers.

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Racing

Ben Spies’ Official MotoGP Livery for Valencia

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Ben Spies is gearing up for a weekend in the Spanish city of Valencia, as MotoGP makes its last stop of the 2009 season. Appropriately, Yamaha is also getting ready for the addition of Ben Spies into the Tech3 Yamaha garage. Since Spies isn’t officially on the Tech3 team yet, special racing livery is needed for the weekend, and Yamaha has released his full racing kit ahead of the weekend’s races.

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Racing

Wayne Gardner Tests the WSBK Paddock at Portimao

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A lot of time has gone by since Wayne Gardner won the 1987 500GP World Championship or the 8 Hours of Suzuka, but that didn’t stop the Austrialian motorcycling icon from doing the rounds at the WSBK Portimao testing paddock this past week. Hoping on a variety of bikes, Gardner got a chance to see what WSBK riders were dealing with this past season, and gave GPone his thoughts on how each bike performed around the Portuguese track. Click past the jump for his thoughts and a video.

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Banter

SOLD: It’s A Buyer’s Market – $4,225 MV Agusta Brutale [UPDATED]

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UPDATE: The bike has now been sold.

We don’t usually post up bikes for sale, but this one seemed like too much of a bargain not to comment on, and in a way it speaks to the current state of the used motorcycle market. A 2004 salvage title MV Agusta Brutale for $4,225, it sounds like one of those bad eBay scams, but reading through this thread on ADVrider, the deal seems not only legit, but also some buyer’s lucky day.

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Banter

Haute Couture Meets the BMW S1000RR Superbike

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Before BMW officially unveiled its S1000RR superbike, it teased us with a series of shots with fashion models backed up by helicopters and cheetahs, making for high-fashion meets German stoicism in a delicious pairing of opposites. In a return to these roots, German photographer Markus Hofmann has once again introduced BMW to Haute Couture for a photo shoot. Video after the jump.

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News

Yamaha Motors President Out After $2 Billion Loss

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At this point it’s abundantly clear how hard the recession has hit the motorcycle industry, so it doesn’t come with too much surprise that some management types are having to take the fall for the down-turn in profits. For Yamaha Motors President, Takashi Kajikawa, the only silver-lining to the situation is that this isn’t feudal Japan, and no one is offering him a sword to fall on. Unfortunately though, Kajikawa will still have to resign from his position as company President, as Yamaha Motors prepares for a $2 billion loss.

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