The makers of Castrol synthetic oil have brought us one step closer to Judgment Day with their robotic motorcycle tester. Named Flossie, the mechanical test rider can reproduce exacting tests on virtually any bike on a dynamometer by “learning” how to ride it.
Weather at the Sachsenring for MotoGP’s qualifying was rainy to put it mildly. As such, the water soaked track feasted upon the unsuspecting riders as they left pit-lane wearing full sets of rains. In total, six riders touched the asphalt with more than a knee puck or elbow, with Turn 6 responsible for the majority of that action.
MotoGP this season has been plauged with changing conidtions on race weekends, and Germany will be no different. With Saturday’s rain, comes Sunday’s sunshine (or at least more sunshine than Saturday’s). This will likely cause a bobble in the qualifying order, which has already seen some surprise this weekend. Continue reading to find out all about it.
In Germany to watch the MotoGP race, John Hopkins answered questions to the recent news that he had been diagnosed with osteoporosis. Thankfully for the young American rider, that initial report that he had the bone disease was wrong, as a later test proved.
Hopper went on to confirm that, “I’ll be at Brno with my Stiggy Honda.”
Take a walk around the MotoGP paddock at the Sachsenring this weekend, and you might see some interesting posters being hung up through out the race track.
Wanted dead or alive is Carmelo Ezpeleta, Dorna Sports CEO, for his crimes against the 250cc class. Someone has put up as a joke (we hope) a $1,000,000 bounty on the race promoter’s head, with a caption that reads, “Wanted for crimes against the 250 cc bikes. He is a 2-stroke killer. Outlaw is known to be extremely dangerous and should be approached with caution.”
The poster is an obvious reference to Dorna’s demise of the 250GP class, in favor of the upcoming Moto2 class, which will replace the 2-stroke 250cc bikes, with 4-stroke 600cc prototypes.
Ezpeleta has been responsible for a number of changes in premiere motorcycle racing, starting with Moto2, which will launch at the beginning of the 2010 season, and serve as a feeder into the MotoGP series. Additionally, any rider coming into MotoGP, including from Moto2, will have to first start in a MotoGP satellite team, with some exceptions.
It’s only rumor right now, but expect the bounty to be increased if plans to replace the 125GP class are put into motion.
Source: GPone via Two Wheels Blog
Electric scooter manufacturer Vectrix is set to file for bankruptcy in 30 days, after failing to find the cash infusion they need back in April. The move to Chapter 11 doesn’t surprise too many people close the company, citing both poor business practices and customer dissatisfaction as being reasons for the manufacturer’s demise.
French magazine, MotoRevue, has speculated and rendered up what they believe to be the upcoming GSR750. Expecting the bike to hit the streets in early-2010, the render borrows heavily on the lines of the B-King, and is expected to be Suzuki’s answer to the growing 750cc standard bike market. As such the GSR will have stiff competition from the Kawasaki Z750, Aprilia Shiver/Mana, Triumph Street Triple, etc.
Powering the bike will be a detuned GSX-R750 motor, which you can expect to make power south of 120hp. No word on what markets the bike will enter into, but don’t hold you breath to see it on American soil. Considering the GSR series has traditionally been a European/Asian market bike, we expect the 750cc version to be available only abroad as well.
Source: MotoRevue; Photochop: Jérôme Vannesson
Despite being 6th fastest in today’s World Superbike testing at Imola, Italy, John Hopkins may not be at Brno in two weeks, when WSBK takes up racing again. After yesterday’s off, Hopkins was in pain through out the night, and after this mornings testing session, the American had some X-rays taken of his leg.
After looking at the results of his X-ray, doctors here in the US determined that Hopkin’s bones were not developing calcium deposits properly, and diagnosed him with osteoporosis. This finding leaves some doubt as to whether Hopper will be on his Honda at Brno, since a crash there would likely have dire consequences on his body in its current state.
Buell Racing is trying to go legit, and make a bid at the American Superbike class in the AMA. After already making a joke out of the Daytona Superbike class, Buell is going to offer a turn-key bike for AMA licensed racers who are looking to take on real superbikes like Honda CBR1000RR and Yamaha R1.
If you’re an AMA licensed privateer, looking to compete in the American Superbike class, with about $40,000 burning a hole in your pocket, Buell is hoping you’ll take up the cause and waive the American flag for them.
With its second quarter sales dropping 35%, Harley-Davidson is going to be trimming its ranks in order to stay afloat. The Milwaukee based company will inject 700 hourly-wage workers, and 300 salaried workers into the ranks of the unemployed, with possibly more joining them in the future. These reductions come after Harley-Davidson earlier this year announced it was eliminating 1,400-1,500 hourly production positions in 2009-2010 along with 300 salary positions.
Michael Fabrizio was the fastest man of the day while testing at Imola today for World Superbike. He was followed closely by Ben Spies, who was just a tenth of second behind the Italian rider.
Notably absent from the testing day was the injured Noriyuki Haga, who isn’t expected to be back to WSBK until the race at Brno, which is in two weeks.
However, noticably present near the top of the leaderboard was Ruben Xaus, with the BMW squad clearly making some progress with their $13,800 motorcycle.
BMW has finally gotten around to setting the MSRP on its highly anticipated S1000RR sportbike. Priced in-line to compete with the major Japanese manufacturers, the S1000RR is going for a measly $13,800.
For that price you’ll receive a bike with 193hp at the crank, a dry weight of 404lbs, and a headlight only a mother could love. For an additional $1,000, you can get the S1000RR with ABS brakes, and only sacrifice an additional 5.5lbs of that curb weight.