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The Massive 2016 MotoGP Rule Update

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With major changes to the technical regulations for MotoGP in 2016, it has taken some time for the FIM to produce a new and revised version of the rulebook.

The first provisional version was made available today, the new rules bringing together all of the new rules agreed over the past few years into a single set of regulations.

Most of the new rules have already been written about during the year, but putting them into a single rulebook helped clarify them greatly.

The biggest changes are to the technical regulations. The abolition of the Open class means everyone is back on a single set of rules. Or rather, nearly everyone.

There are still two types of manufacturers: manufacturers subject to the standard rules, and manufacturers who have not yet had sufficient success, and therefore have been granted a number of concessions.

Those concessions are more limited than the Open class, though, and relate now only to testing and to engine development. Everyone will have the same amount of fuel, the same tire allocation, and everyone will use the same electronics, the spec hardware and the unified software.

Though many fans are disappointed that there isn’t just a single set of rules, the concessions which remain are absolutely vital to the long-term health of the series.

With Honda, Yamaha, and since last year, Ducati, all subject to a freeze on engine development and limited testing, Suzuki and Aprilia (and KTM, when they join the series in 2017) stand a chance of cutting the gap to the more successful factories.

Without concessions, the smaller factories wouldn’t stand a chance of catching the others, especially not a factory with almost limitless resources like Honda. Indeed, without the concessions granted to Ducati, there is a very good chance the Italian factory would have left MotoGP in 2014, after three long years without results.

The previous era, when the factories all competed under a single set of rules, ended up with just 17 bikes on the grid, and manufacturers showing more interest in leaving MotoGP than in joining. That situation has been completely reversed.

A more intriguing change has been the introduction of clear rules on the safety equipment to be used by riders. Back protectors and chest protectors are now compulsory, and minimum standards have been imposed for helmets, leathers, boots and gloves.

Rider safety equipment will now be much more closely regulated and monitored.

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Bikes

Here is What the 2017 Suzuki GSX-R1000 Will Look Like

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As we predicted, Suzuki has debuted a new Suzuki GSX-R1000 superbike at the EICMA show, though before you get your hopes too high, we should preface that the model is actually the Suzuki GSX-R1000 concept.

Suzuki clearly isn’t ready to bring the GSX-R1000 to market in-time for the 2016 model year, and our sources tell us that the Suzuki GSX-R1000 Concept will in fact be the 2017 Suzuki GSX-R1000, which will debut in the second half of 2016.

That being said, the news is an exciting development from Suzuki, which says that the new Suzuki GSX-R1000 is the lightest and most powerful superbike ever from the Japanese manufacturer. To our eye, it looks to be the most advanced as well.

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Bikes

Watch Ducati Assemble the New Multistrada 1200

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When you think about the assembly process involved in making a motorcycle, it is pretty staggering. Not only do Ducati engineers have the task of making the best motorcycle possible, but they also need to design the machine to be easily built by the factory workers at Borgo Panigale.

Which parts should go on before the next? where a cable should be routed through the frame and bodywork? The planning that must go into building out an assembly line is certainly an undertaking I would not want to have.

So while the latest video from Ducati is perhaps not the most ouvertly entertaining, it is certainly impressive nonetheless to watch Italy’s finest assemblying a 2015 Ducati Multistrada 1200.

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Bikes

2015 Ducati Multistrada 1200 – A New Face in ADV

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Confirming the news we broke last month, the Ducati Multistrada 1200 has been reworked for the 2015 model year, getting a major facelift, along with Ducati’s Testastretta DVT engine with variable valve timing.

The new Ducati Multistrada is also fitted with the Bosch MSC “cornering ABS” package, and thanks to its Intertial Measurement Unit (IMU), the Multistrada can brake more effectively and use cornering LED light (DCL) technology.

The IMU also help reduce wheelies, with the Ducati Wheelie Control (DWC) system. Like with the Ducati Traction Control (DTC) there are eight-levels of adjustability to the DWC parameters, helping riders dial-in how high they want the front wheel to loft.

Lastly, the IMU helps improve the function of the Ducati Skyhook Suspension (DSS). Our last acronym is ECC, for the electronic cruise control system, which has also been added to the 2015 Ducati Multistrada 1200.

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News

Ducati Announces DVT — Desmodromic Variable Timing

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As was teased, Ducati is unveiling its “DVT” technology today, which stands for Desmodromic Variable Timing, and to showcase that technology (borrowed from Volkswagen), Ducati has produced the first motorcycle engine with variable valve timing on both the intake and exhaust camshafts.

Adapted to the now-called Ducati Testastretta DVT engine, which we reported will debut first on the new Ducati Multistrada for 2015, Ducati’s new v-twin powerplant can change the intake and exhaust timing independently, and throughout the rev range.

This means that the Ducati Testastretta DVT engine can be optimized for peak power at high rpms, while maintaing rideability and smoothness at lower rpms — not to mention keeping with emission and noise regulations throughout the rev range.

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News

“DVT” Ducati Valve Timing Announcement Coming Soon

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Ducati sent out a rather terse press mailer today, which you can see above. Simply stating that DVT is coming on October 15th, we would normally be scratching our heads over what the Italian manufacturer has in store.

However, since we broke the news yesterday about Ducati bringing variable valve timing to the market, first with its all-new Multistrada, one doesn’t have to be a rocket scientist to put two-and-two together to come up with “Ducati Valve Timing” as the teaser’s subject.

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Bikes

Variable Valve Timing Coming to the Ducati Multistrada

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For the 2015 model year, Ducati is bringing a brand new Multistrada, which will debut at the upcoming EICMA show in Milan, Italy. Not much has been said about the new Multistrada, aside from A&R breaking the news about the new model a few weeks ago, so we thought we would update you further on it.

Designed to look very similar to the current Multistrada 1200, the new Multistrada will keep the basic profile and design of its predecessor, despite being an all-new machine. Perhaps the most intriguing aspect of the 2015 Ducati Multistrada though is the fact that Borgo Panigale has fitted variable valve timing (VVT) to the desmodromic valves of the Testastretta 11° engine.

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