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First Shots: Husqvarna 900cc Street Bike

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Here’s an interesting twist: instead of going through the trouble of setting up some sort of “spy shot” moment, and leaking it to the press, Husqvarna has cutout the middleman, taken its own photos, and sent them to web and print publications. Because of this, the use of the “spy shot” label is probably not appropriate, though we’d make arguments that it hasn’t been an appropriate label in many other situations as well. Leaving that subject for another time, what you really wanted to see is the new 900cc Husqvarna street bike in almost all of its glory.

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Racing

Concept: Bimota TB-2 675 by Oberdan Bezzi

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Last week Oberdan Bezzi inked his concept for a Triumph-powered Bimota, dubbed the Bimota TB-1. That fully-faired alternative to the MV Agusta F3 naturally needs a naked streetfighter variant, and accordingly Bezzi has penned today’s latest concept sketch, which he calls the Bimota TB-2 675. Featuring the Triumph 675cc three-cylinder motor, the Bimota TB-2 675 competes against its donor the Triumph Street Triple, and goes head-to-head with the heavily anticipated MV Agusta Brutale 675 B3.

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Banter

Light Painting the Ducati Streetfighter with Scott Jones

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Wanting to play a bit with a photography technique called light painting, Scott Jones stopped by the Asphalt & Rubber office yesterday with camera and penlight in-hand. We moved some tables out of the work room, and threw some tarps over our skylights, only to realize that achieving a perfectly dark studio is a task much easier said than done. Maning the light switch, I got to play “photo bitch” while Scott shot a couple dozen or so exposures.

Luckily we have some photogenic subjects here in the office, as Scott spent the next two hours shooting my Ducati Streetfighter in the dark with long shutter speeds (I’m really surprised one of us didn’t trip over something in the process). There are various ways to play with the light in this setting, but Scott focused on exposing individual parts of the motorcycle with a pen light, which created a more dramatic effect. Check out after the jump some of the fruits of Scott’s labor.

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Bikes

Erik Buell Racing 1190 Typhon by the Pegasus Race Team

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What do you do when you are the only race team outside of the United States racing a Buell…and winning…a lot? Well you build a street bike concept of course. Based off the Erik Buell Racing 1190RR race bike, the folks at the German Pegasus Race Team have taken the 1190RR race platform and made the EBR 1190 Typhon streetfighter concept. Drawing inspiration from the lines of the Buell XB, some parts from the soon-to-be-released EBR 1190RS superbike, and the blessing of Erik Buell himself, the folks at Pegasus have put together one stunning 185hp bike.

With the idea that the EBR 1190 Typhon concept could pave the way to an EBR-made model down the road, Pegasus drew heavily from the Erik Buell Racing 1190RR’s design, as well as the general Buell ethos. “Our idea was with our years of experience in Buell racing to concept the ultimate Streetfighter with outstanding performance and a unique design,” said Team Manager Jens Krüper. “To combinate a cool minimized look with real good aerodynamics is a real challenge, especially if something is so powerful as that EBR Superbike,” said Heiko Jessat of Gruner Engineering, the company that technically assisted PRT with the design for the Typhon.

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Bikes

2011 Aprilia Tuono V4 R: Proof That Some Bikes Should Leave Their Clothes On [UPDATED]

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UPDATE: Larger photos and more details have been added.

Well here’s your first look at the 2011 Aprilia Tuono V4 R. While we don’t have official information, the Tuono V4 line seemingly comes equipped with the Aprilia Performance Rider Control package. Sharing its frame with the RSV4 superbike, the Aprilia Tuono V4 R receives a de-tuned motor with performance figures coming in at 162hp and 81 lbs•ft of torque. Like the Aprilia RSV4 Factory APRC SE, the Tuono V4 R will be fitted with APRC system, which will bring traction control, anti-lock brakes, wheelie control, launch control, quick-shifter, and rider-selectable driving modes to the naked V4.

Braking power comes from radial Brembo monobloc calipers mated to 320mm discs up front. Suspension is done by Sachs, with 43mm titanium nitride (TiN) forks and a four-way adjustable (compression, rebound, pre-load, and ride height) rear shock with piggyback reservoir. The 2011 Tuono V4 R comes with new wheels that are 5 lbs lighter than the ones that come on the Aprilia RSV4 R. We apologize for the small photos after the jump, but perhaps that’s better so as to help you avert your eyes from this abortion of a motorcycle.

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Bikes

Radical Ducati 9½

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From the guys at Spanish firm Radical Ducati comes the 9½, a Ducati ST2 motor wedged into a Monster 900 chassis, making an Italian beauty that’s part cafe racer, part streetfighter. Drawing inspiration form Ducati’s single-cylinder race bikes from the 1970’s, the 9½ is not only a looker, but is comprised of parts from Ducatis long forgotten past (but perhaps more memorable bikes, if you can handle that oxymoron).

If you look closely you’ll see pieces from not only the ST2, Monster 900, but also from the Ducati 916 Superbike (swingarm and rear-wheel), and 999 Superbike (fuel tank). Some other Radical parts enter the mix as well from its RAD series, and the result is a retro-esque bike that looks scintillating, classy, light, and fast. Keep your eyes trained for more bikes from Radical Ducati, we expect we’ll see some more great pieces (like this Radical Ducati RAD02 Imola) from the firm as they continue their Desmo mash-up. Bunch o’photos after the jump.

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Bikes

Yuri Shif Customs DUster Streetfighter

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Belarus isn’t exactly known for its thriving motorcycle scene, let alone for its custom bike eye-candy, but Yuri Shif Custom is about to change all that. The small custom shop is creating quite a stir with its latest custom streetfighter the DUster. The DUster takes your normal mild mannered Ducati water-cooled motor, and dips it in an all white finish. Wrapping a completely custom chassis around the powerplant, Shif and his crew have made a very unique and eye-catching design.

The bike uses gold and italian themes for accents, with our favorite bit being the headlight casing, which has a gold band around it that looks almost like the focus ring on a camera lens. Other interesting pieces are the fuel tank filling cap, and perimeter brakes up front.

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Bikes

Oberdan Bezzi Ponders the BMW R1000RS – A S1000RR Based Streetfighter

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Famed motorcycle designer and two-wheeled sketch artist Oberdan Bezzi has put his pen to paper again, and this time he has dreamt up a streetfighter edition of the S1000RR. Dubbed the R1000RS, the 1000cc superbike motor gets to breath a little bit more without the controversial asymmetrical BMW fairings in place. Also gone is the winking headlight system, replaced with something that smells a bit more Italian. The effect is quite stunning, Bavaria are you taking note?

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Bikes

2010 Kawasaki Z1000 – Bringing Sexy Back

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We loved the Z1000 when it originally came out. A unique style, a superb power-plant, it was everything you wanted in a factory produced streetfighter. So, it warms our hearts to see that the Z1000 is back for 2010, and continues to push the envelope with its aggressive styling.

With an  all-new 1,043cc inline-four motor that makes 136hp and 81lb•ft of torque , the 2010 Kawasaki Z1000 shouldn’t disappoint the butt dyno. Other than the now standard ugly exhaust pipe that seems to be plaguing sportbikes lately, we have a hard time not liking what Kawasaki has done here. Specs, photos, and videos after the jump.

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