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Bad news from the World Superbike Championship paddock, as the Russian round, which was scheduled to be held at Moscow Raceway on September 21st 2014, has been cancelled because of concerns stemming from the Russian/Ukrainian situation along the Crimean peninsula.

Promoters DWO and YMS Promotion declared that, “the current political situation affects the capabilities of a number of key partner companies essential to run the event. Parties regret the decision, but are confident that the strong partnership between DWO and YMS Promotion will prevail.”

MV Agusta continues to build a head of steam with its sales reports, as the Varese-based company is reporting a 22% growth in the first quarter of 2014, over the same time period from last year.

Ending 2013 up 20% overall, the MV Agusta sales increase can mainly be attributed to the company’s three-cylinder models, the MV Agusta F3 675/800, MV Agusta Brutale 675/800, and MV Agusta Rivale 800.

With the MV Agusta Turismo Veloce 800 and MV Agusta Brutale 800 Dragster also recently shown to the public, the Italian company certainly has some more sales growth still to do. Also, let us not forget that MV Agusta promised us one more model to debut in early 2014.

Bad news in the EV world, as Vectrix Motorcycles has filed for bankruptcy…again. Unlike its previous bankruptcy though, this time around Vectrix is filing under Chapter 7 of the US Code, meaning that the company will not be restructuring and keeping its business, but instead liquidating all of its assets and ceasing operation.

We had been hearing rumors as far back as October of last year that all was not well at the prominent electric vehicle company, and finally in December 2013 things came to a head, with Vectrix closing its doors on its US operations.

Towards the end of last year, I spent some time bumming around Italy, and one of my many stops was the Dainese headquarters in Vicenza, Italy. A company that is responsible for protecting many of the top motorcycle racers, as well as Yours Truly, Dainese is a company focused on safety, but this focus is really a bi-product of the Italian company’s thirst for competition.

Competition is of course about finding out who is the best, and at the pinnacle of that decision is finding out who is the Greatest of All Time, or G.O.A.T. And in motorcycle racing, when you think of the term “G.O.A.T.” two names come to mind: Giacomo Agostini and Valentino Rossi.

Motorcycle racing fans can debate well into the night as to which of these Italian racers is truly the greatest. Regardless who you pick though, both men are legends, and both men have been supported throughout their careers by Dainese.

That brings us back to my trip to Vicenza, because the battle between these two great riders continues, just not in the way you would suspect.

One of the more interesting details to come from the Mugen Shinden San electric superbike reveal is that a familiar name is helping power the Japanese motorcycle: Mission Motors.

One of the inaugural racing teams at the first Isle of Man TT electric race, Mission Motors has since focused its business model on providing OEMs with HEV/EV powertrains — you may remember its motorcycle project was spun into a new company, Mission Motorcycles.

HRC are to have a get a new President. After five years, Tetsuo Suzuki (right) is to step down as present of Honda’s racing department, and move back towards the production side of the business. He is to be replaced by Yoshishige Nomura (left), a man with a long history in HRC.

Nomura was involved in the engineering of some of Honda’s most classic engines, including the NR750, the RC30, and the RC45. He also had a role in the 990cc V5 RC211V MotoGP machine.

Nomura will oversee all of Honda’s racing activities, while HRC Vice President Shuhei Nakamoto will look after the day-to-day running of Honda’s involvement in MotoGP. The HRC press release issued announcing Nomura’s appointment appears after the jump.

Red Bull are poised to make two dramatic announcements over the next two weekends, we can exclusively reveal. At next weekend’s Bahrain F1 race, the Austrian energy drink firm will announce its withdrawal from the premier four-wheeled racing series at the end of 2014.

A week later, at the Austin MotoGP round for which it is the title sponsor, Red Bull is to announce that it is to purchase Bridgepoint Capital’s remaining stake in MotoGP, and take over the running of the series.

Sources in the private finance industry with knowledge of the situation say that Bridgepoint has been looking to rid itself of its motorcycle racing business for some time. The private equity firm had acquired 71% of Dorna in 2006, at the peak of MotoGP’s popularity, reputedly for £400 million.

Since then, they have seen the value of their investment drop, and have been looking to get their money back from the deal ever since. The sale of a 39% stake in Dorna to the Canadian Pension Plan Investment board was the first step in recouping their investment.

That deal was rumored to be worth €400 million, or just over 70% of their initial outlay. Sources with knowledge of the situation say that Red Bull is to acquire the remaining 32% of Dorna for around €300 million , but with full control over the series.

Just last month we brought you news about BMW Motorrad working on a possible sport-tourer that was based off the company’s BMW S1000RR superbike. Well today we get confirmation of that machine, with the BMW S1000F being caught in the wild, panniers and all.

The S1000RR’s motor and exhaust are clearly visible in this side profile picture, as are the mounting points for side bags and a top box. With the S1000F sporting noticeably taller suspension than its sport bike sibling, one has to wonder if BMW isn’t trying to make another adventure-touring model, one that could compete against the Ducati Multistrada 1200 in sportiness.

It is a brave new world when it comes to the internet and motorcycle companies, and I have no problem saying that Asphalt & Rubber has broken a number of stories simply because we bring a different set of skills to the table when it comes to sniffing out a lead: namely we’re a bunch of nerds, who spend far too much time with computers.

Motorcycle OEMs are still coming to grasp with this internet thing and how the opening of information has changed the landscape, and that is where Yamaha got itself into trouble today. Just hours ahead of their launch, we can confirm that Yamaha is ready to drop the Yamaha R25 250cc sport bike and the Yamaha Tricity three-wheel scooter.

This isn’t exactly new information — it has even been hotly tipped by a number of publications, including A&R — but where the information comes from certainly is: Yamaha’s website metadata.

Undoubtedly fueled by Audi’s purchase of Ducati Motor Holding, rumors out of Italy now peg Fiat to acquire MV Agusta. While neither party will talk about the rumors, it is no secret that MV Agusta is in need of more cash, as the company had difficulty securing credit after the Castiglioni’s repurchased the company, now debt free, from Harley-Davidson.

This has lead to the Varese brand releasing a rapid succession of closely related motorcycles in an effort to bolster sales and penetrate new market segments: the MV Agusta F3, MV Agusta Brutale, MV Agusta Rivale, MV Agusta Turismo Veloce, and MV Agusta Dragster. The company’s financial position has also fueled CEO Giovanni Castiglioni to talk last year about a possible IPO by as early as 2016.