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IOMTT: Bruce Anstey Racing a Honda RC213V-S

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We suppose someone would be crazy enough eventually to try it, and today we get confirmation that Bruce Anstey will be racing a Honda RC213V-S in the Superbike TT and Senior TT races at the 2016 Isle of Man TT.

The MotoGP bike for the streets will be part of the Valvoline Racing by Padgett’s Motorcycles Team, and is a product of the Isle of Man TT’s looser rules when it comes to homologation requirements.

The move is a clever one, as straight out of the box the Honda RC213V-S stacks up quite nicely against even the most highly prepped racing superbikes at the Isle of Man TT – boasting a 210hp figure with the sport kit installed, and a 390 lbs mass when ready-to-race.

A team with a proven track record at the Isle of Man and developing street bikes for road racing, the Padgetts Honda squad has made some modifications of their own to suit the RC213V-S for the Mountain Course’s trials.

Still, the Honda RC213V-S alone won’t assure Antsey of a race win, though it certainly will add some spice to the rider lineup before they head down Glencrutchery Road.

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Bikes

Mugen Shinden Go Debuts in Japan with More Power

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The Mugen Shinden Go has officially dropped in Japan, showing us the Japanese outfit’s fifth evolution of the Isle of Man TT electric superbike.

As we reported earlier, the Shinden Go comes with obvious changes to the fairing design, though likely there are further enhancements underneath its skin.

To our eye, the Shinden Go looks to have smaller frontal cross-section than bikes of the past, and there are noticeable changes to the race bike’s carbon fiber chassis, which now looks to be of a monocoque design. The carbon fiber swingarm design has also been changed.

Additionally, Mugen says that the rear suspension is a “cross link rocker” design, which has been developed specifically for the Shinden Go.

Of course, the biggest change people will be talking about is the 10kW power increase, which brings the Mugen Shinden Go’s peak horsepower figure up to 161hp. Weight remains at 550 lbs, with peak torque down to 154 lbs•ft (from 162.24 lbs•ft).

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Bikes

Mugen Shinden Go Caught Testing in Japan

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The Isle of Man TT is still two months away, but Team Mugen is looking ready to make it a three-peat in the TT Zero electric race. Mugen’s 2016 bike is called the Shinden Go, and while “go” might be Japanese for “five” the name is very appropriate for the electric superbike.

Many expect Mugen to break the 120 mph lap barrier at the Isle of Man TT, especially since John McGuinness came extremely close to the mark last year, with a 119.279 mph lap.

Caught testing in Japan this month, here are our first glimpses of the Mugen Shinden Go, with test rider Hikaru Miyagi on-board at the Tsukuba Circuit (above) and Sodegaura Forest Raceway (photos after the jump).

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Bikes

Suter MMX 500 Hopes to Smoke the Field at Isle of Man TT

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Two-stroke fans were stoked to hear of Suter Racing building a 500GP-styled superbike smoker, the Suter MMX 500. The 576cc, V4, two-stroke machine promises superbike power coupled to a GP-level punching weight, 195hp and 280 lbs respectively, with modern suspension and chassis design.

Only 99 specimens of the Suter MMX 500 will be produced though, each costing CHF 120,000 – roughly $125,000 or €109,000. And now, one of those machines has been tapped for racing duty, as Suter will be competing in the 2016 Isle of Man TT.

Therefore, expect to see the Suter MMX 500 racing in the RST Superbike and PokerStars Senior TT races, with Ian Lougher behind the handlebars.

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Products

Arai Unveils Its 2016 Limited Edition Isle of Man TT Helmet

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Every year Arai Helmet comes out with a highly coveted limited edition lid for the Isle of Man TT; and each year has a different design, with the latest crop coming from the studio of Aldo Drudi.

This year’s design comes on the Arai Corsair-X, a helmet we were very impressed with when we tested it at Thunder Hill last year.

As you can see from the photos, Drudi has emblazoned the Corsair-X helmet with the “TT” logo, as well as the island nation’s Triskelion symbol, which is of three running legs. “Ellan Vannin” is of course the native Manx name for the Isle of Man.

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Racing

Mugen Confirms “Shinden Go” for 2016 Isle of Man TT

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Development for properly fast electric racing motorcycles has fallen onto the shoulders of one brand: Team Mugen, and the Japanese firm has confirmed that it will continue to push boundaries at the Isle of Man TT this year.

Confirming this week that it would race the 2016 Isle of Man TT, in the SES TT Zero electric race, Mugen also announced the return of its two-rider team of John McGuinness and Bruce Anstey.

In addition to that news, Mugen formerly divulged the fifth edition of its electric superbike, called the Shinden Go  – in case you haven’t caught onto Mugen’s naming scheme, “go” is “five” in Japanese.

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Racing

Guy Martin Will Not Race in the 2016 Isle of Man TT

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The world’s favorite road racer will not be at the 2016 Isle of Man TT, nor at the North West 200, as Guy Martin says he will be missing those events on this year’s calendar. Instead, Guy Martin will take to a different kind of road bike, cycling in the Tour Divide race through North America.

There has been rumor for some time about Martin forgoing the TT for quite some time now, and there has even been talk of the Lincolnshire man hanging up his leathers entirely.

The latter doesn’t seem to be the case, but Martin does seem to be drifting away from the Isle of Man TT – an event he has never won a race at, though he has come close.

“I’m not done with motorbikes and if I race on the roads again this year it will be with the TAS team,” said Guy Martin, talking with the Isle of Man TT website. “The BMW bikes are mega and the team are spot on.”

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Dirt

Paddock Pass Podcast – Episode 13 – Superprestigio

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Just because it’s the off-season, doesn’t mean that the Paddock Pass Podcast has a dearth of topics to cover. As such, Episode 13 comes to you from Barcelona, where the guys were on-hand for the third meeting of the Superprestigio event.

This special race, hosted by Marc Marquez, once again showed some close racing from riders across a variety of disciplines and nationalities. If you happened to miss the Superfinal, or your live feed died on you mid-race, you can watch/re-watch it on FansChoive.tv now.

In addition to all the happenings in Spain, the crew also wraps-up some updates from the MotoGP and Moto2 paddocks, namely the progress of KTM’s factory MotoGP team and the departure of Suter Racing from the Moto2 series.

If you notice a new voice on the show, it’s because Steve English is back on the mics with us. We are very happy to have Steve working with us again, and we think his exceptional insights will be enjoyed by all racing enthusiasts.

As always, be sure to follow the Paddock Pass Podcast on Facebook, Twitter and subscribe to the show on iTunes and SoundCloud – we even have an RSS feed for you. If you like the show, we would really appreciate you giving it a review on iTunes. Thanks for listening!

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MotoGP

Paddock Pass Podcast – Episode 12 – Jerez Test

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Just because it’s the offseason doesn’t mean the guys from the Paddock Pass Podcast aren’t busy cranking out shows. Episode 12 finds David, Neil, and Tony after the Jerez test for both the MotoGP and World Superbikes, as well the Macau Grand Prix.

The boys talk about how the MotoGP teams are handling the unified electronics and adapting to the Michelin tires. They also gives us a status update on how the Aprilia and KTM projects are coming along.

Moving on to WSBK, there is a good discussion about the speed from the Kawasaki factory bikes, and how Nicky Hayden is handling the switch to the production class, with the Honda CBR1000RR. You will also enjoy Tony’s report from the Macau Grand Prix, the last stop on the 2015 road racing calendar.

The show is continues its mix of useful racing insight and friendly banter – if you ever wanted to know how much KTM’s Moto3 bike weighs in pixie farts, this is the show for you.

As always, be sure to follow the Paddock Pass Podcast on Facebook, Twitter and subscribe to the show on iTunes and SoundCloud – we even have an RSS feed for you. If you like the show, we would really appreciate you giving it a review on iTunes. Thanks for listening!

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Racing

The 49th Macau Grand Prix with Tony Goldsmith

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Peter Hickman on his way to victory. He crashed on his debut at last year’s Macau Grand Prix, and didn’t make the race as the bike sustained too much damage. That makes his victory in this year’s event even more impressive.

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The start of the race and Martin Jessop leads the field into the tight Lisboa turn on the opening lap.

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Ian Hutchinson leaves pit lane to start Thursday afternoon’s qualifying session. The Macau race was Hutchy’s last appearance on the Kawasaki before he moves to the Tyco BMW squad for the 2016 season.

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