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Hitting Your Mark

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Last weekend's racing at Donington Park was exactly the shot in the arm that WorldSBK needed.

A new rider on the top step of the podium, a new bike as the center of attention in Parc Ferme, and most importantly: Jonathan Rea being beaten in a straight up fight by Michael van der Mark.

Rea and Kawasaki have dominated the championship over the last three years, and even for Yamaha's Van der Mark, it was a surprise to finally break his duck in such style with a double.

“I was surprised by this weekend! Kawasaki and Johnny have been so dominant over the last few seasons and to beat them is very special."

"It shows that we're getting closer, and most importantly, it shows that we can beat them. It's easy to accept that Kawasaki will be in front and winning, and that's why it's important to prove to yourself that you can win races.”

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Kenan Sofuoğlu, A Rider’s Measure

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To be the best, you've got to beat the best. Going up against Kenan Sofuo?lu was no easy matter for the top riders in World Supersport, but it was necessary if you were going to move on from the feeder class.

Kenan Sofuo?lu was the benchmark upon which every WorldSSP rider was judged. If you wanted to move from the class to race a superbike or a grand prix machine, you needed to prove you could beat Sofuo?lu.

As the dominant force of the class his rivals never underestimated the challenge they faced. To mark Kenan's retirement from motorcycle racing, we reached out to his fiercest competitors to see what they had to say about competing against the Turkish rider.

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How Ducati’s Superbike Specials Raked in the Dough

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Here is a common joke that you will often hear: "How do you make a small fortune in the motorcycle industry? Start with a large one." Well, the next time you hear the lead-up, here is a new punchline for you: "Sell a limited edition model."

Motorcycle manufacturers have been onto this gag for a while now, offering limited edition, numbered for collectors, pure unobtanium motorcycle models to the well-heeled masses.

There may not be that many people that can afford a motorcycle that costs as much as a modest house, but there enough of these people in the world that selling a couple hundred expensive superbikes a year is a pretty trivial feat - it helps too that many of these enthusiasts are return-customers too.

Take the case of Ducati, as our Bothan spies have provided us with some interesting information about the Borgo Panigale brand. Last year, the Italian company made more money on its special edition superbikes, than the regular models it sells.

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Jonathan Rea, Building A Legacy

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Having equalled Carl Fogarty's WorldSBK win-record at Imola, Jonathan Rea's legacy is now firmly in his own hands. The Northern Irishman said afterwards that while he is the equal of Foggy in terms of victories, he still has some way to go before being his equal; it will take winning a fourth title to do so.

The Kawasaki rider sat down in Italy to talk about his place in racing history, and about the luck of the draw in Irish racing.

“My dad raced, and I always respected what he did,” said Rea. “I really understand that now because Jake looks up to me so much, and I was the same when I was his age."

"My dad was my hero, he always made me feel a part of it, and I could see how winning made him feel. I was too young to remember his racing, but recently Duke sent me footage of his 1989 250 TT win, and he flat-out beat Hizzy and Foggy in that race."

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The Only Motorcycle Statistic That’s Worth a Damn

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Every year the Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA) releases data about motorcycle fatalities in the United States. The results are never that surprising, and despite some fluctuations year-to-year, the basic takeaways are always the same.

Motorcyclists are way more likely to die (28x more likely per mile traveled) than automobile drivers and passengers; fatal motorcycle crashes are more likely to involve alcohol than other vehicle fatalities (25% vs. 21% for passenger cars); and motorcycle fatalities closely correlate to new motorcycle sales.

The figures are of course important, but reporting the results is an exercise in playing a broken record, over and over again. Except for one statistic that caught our eye this year: motorcycle fatalities as a percentage of overall vehicle fatalities.

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A Red Tide Rising in the WorldSBK Paddock

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They say that the more things change, the more they stay the same. Chaz Davies will certainly be hoping that this isn't the case.

The Welshman has had a turbulent start to the 2018 World Superbike season, but after four rounds he finds himself closer to Jonathan Rea in the standings than any recent season.

Davies has been able to win twice already this season, in Buriram and Aragon, and sits 30 points behind Rea. After four rounds he'll have every reason to feel that this year he could finally be in a position to mount a season long title assault.

A tire issue at Assen robbed him of pace in Race 2, but he has proven again that he, and Ducati, are the only realistic opposition to Rea's quest for a fourth title.

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The Clock Keeps Ticking for Bradley Smith

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That the world keeps spinning and the clock never stops is one of the few constants in life. For a MotoGP rider, that is even more true. For one in a contract year, it always seems to speed the process up throughout a campaign.

Bradley Smith had to deal with the pressures of expectation last year, and he knows that teething issues will be no excuse in 2018.

The British rider also knows that the KTM will be a sought after seat throughout the silly season, and with Johann Zarco and Dani Pedrosa having been heavily linked with a move to the Austrian manufacturer, it is clear that Smith needs to exceed expectations.

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What We’re Reading – The Electric Troll Art Edition

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Asphalt & Rubber typically posts between 20 and 30 stories a week. We are not prolific in the amount of content we produce each week, instead we are selective about what we cover, and always try to frame a single story into a much larger understanding of what is happening in a particular segment or in the industry as whole.

So, this means that not everything we want to cover gets covered. Some stories don't make the cut, some stories fall to the wayside because of time or resources, and some stories just simply get lost in the shuffle.

It is a shame, so I wanted to create a new segment where we touch back on some of those topics, and include a few others that are completely outside the scope of this motorcycle blog.

Part clearinghouse for stories that we will never get our full attention, and part book club for our loyal readers who are doing their best to survive the work day, say hello to the first installment of the "What We're Reading" column series.

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How Far Can Talent Take You?

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God-given ability can be a crutch or curse depending on the mindset of an athlete. Talent can take you all the way to the top, but eventually you'll face a challenge that can only be overcome through hard work.

Lessons need to be learned along the way to ensure success, and only a handful of riders ever make it to MotoGP on their talent alone.

Most riders marry talent with dedication at an early age in the Grand Prix paddock, and some have had to learn those lessons at a very young age. Vince Lombardi once said that “the only place where success comes before work is in the dictionary.”

In any sport, to get to the very top you need dedication as well as raw talent, but how far can natural ability get you in motorcycle racing? We set out to answer that question at the recent Qatar Grand Prix.

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PJ Jacobsen’s WorldSBK Learning Curve

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PJ Jacobsen's rookie WorldSBK campaign is one that will be defined by small steps. The American, racing for Triple M Honda, knows that making progress is the key, and that it will only be in the second half of 2018 that we truly see his potential.

The season opening round of the season at Phillip Island came too soon for Jacobsen, with the team still dialling in its electronics package after a difficult winter.

A vicious highside at Lukey Heights left a lasting impression on the paddock about the task facing the team this year. However, Thailand was much improved with the 23-year-old making progress session by session.

With the electronics more sorted and predictable, Jacobsen was able to fight and battle before claiming the first top ten finish of his WorldSBK career.

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What A Trade War Means for Motorcycles

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Strangely enough, we have talked about trade wars several times before, here on Asphalt & Rubber, as the Trump administration has been keen to use this tool in its toolbox, often with effects that reach into the motorcycle industry.

The first time around, we talked about how the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) affected the motorcycle industry, namely Harley-Davidson, and how the United States' withdrawal from the agreement would likely be a negative effect for US motorcyclists.

We have also had to talk about how fighting over beef imports could lead to possible tariffs on small-displacement European motorcycles in the United States, a tariff that would seriously hurt Piaggio/Vespa scooter sales and KTM dirt bike sales.

This week a new specter is on the horizon, as the Trump administration is eyeing tariffs on both steel and aluminum, at 25% and 10% a pop - respectively.

Naturally, the increase in the cost on importing raw metals into the USA is going to have an adverse effect on manufacturing-based businesses, but not all of these companies are affected equally when tariffs are imposed.

So, let's take a look at what this really means for the American motorcycle industry.

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