It looks like some video of the new Africa Twin has leaked out of Honda HQ, showing the adventure-touring bike going through its paces.
From the few glimpses we see from the video, the Honda Africa Twin looks very similar to the True Adventure prototype that Honda unveiled at EICMA.
Designated as the Honda CRF1000L, the Africa Twin is shaping up to be a very interesting motorcycle from Big Red.
Yamaha has been rolling out some interesting YouTube fodder lately, with the most recent installment being a short video that features the five project leaders from the different generations of Yamaha YZF-R1 superbikes.
Unfortunately, we don’t get to hear too much from the Japanese project leaders, other than a quick one-line synopsis of what their project goals entailed, but we are treated to some good visuals of Valentino Rossi flogging the 2015 Yamaha YZF-R1 down the race track.
The best part of the video though might be the pride shown by these project leaders — they look like proud fathers standing next to their creations.
Yamaha is looking to defend its FIM Endurance World Championship title, won last year by the Yamaha GMT94 squad. Yamaha is still very much in the hunt for the 2015 title, though the GMT94 guys will have to post some strong results to overcome their 5th place finish at the EWC’s first round, at Le Mans.
You wouldn’t know that the reigning world champions were having a tough time of it, after checking out their promotional video from the 24 Hours of Le Mans Moto — it’s that well done.
Hopefully that will translate onto the track for the French team, and their Austrian counterparts at YART, who are also featured.
It’s a poor workman who blames his tools, and similarly it’s a poor motorcyclist who blames his adventure bike for not getting through the tough terrain.
For every reader that’s shown up in our comments section, sullying the good name of ADV bikes around the globe…we’ll just leave this here for you.
It’s been a long time since The Netherlands had a rider to cheer for as a nation, but Michael van der Mark is changing that. At just 22-years-old, Van der Mark is not only the reigning World Supersport Champion, but he also currently sits 7th in the World Superbike Championship, with the Pata Honda squad.
Don’t let his young age fool you, the Dutchman is all business on the track, most recently grabbing two podiums at his home round in Assen — an impressive feat for any true WSBK rookie.
Equally impressed with their rider, HRC Europe has put together a nice video that features and introduces the young man beneath the helmet, who will also be Casey Stoner’s teammate at the upcoming Suzuka 8-Hour endurance race.
We expect big things from Michael van der Mark over the course of his two-wheeled racing career. Remember his name, you’ll surely be hearing it more and more often in the winner’s circle.
We’re not really sure why Husqvarna is creating a micro-site and teaser campaign for its soon-to-debut 701 Supermoto, after all the 690cc machine already broke cover at the 2014 EICMA show, after being teased in concept the year before.
Certainly a bike we are excited to see debut — please God, bring it to American soil! — the cat does seem a bit out of the bag at this point on the 67hp, 320 lbs, four-stroke thumper with its APTC slipper clutch, ABS brakes, WP suspension, and ride-by-wire throttle with riding modes.
That being said, the first installment sees the Husqvarna 701 Supermoto kitted out with some spiked ice tires, for some winter hooligan fun. Color us jealous…the video is after the jump.
Got a case of the Munnnndays? Don’t worry, we’ve got a little mid-day pick-me-up for you, courtesy of Michelin’s “We Are All Racers” ad campaign (note, we’re not getting paid for this).
It’s just some great on-track footage that features CEV Superbike Champion Kenny Noyes and Team Luc1’s rider Sylvain Bidart.
Click past the jump for some knee-dragging, wheel-drifting, two-wheel good times. It’ll just take a couple minutes of your time.
Our friends over at OnTheThrottle.tv have put together a great video of Dane Westby, using footage they collected from the 2014 season.
It’s a great tribute to a competitor whose time came far too early, and it shows how the tough times are what make the good times so good.
If you say that you didn’t get a little misty-eyed in the comments, we won’t believe you.
The American road racing community is still coming to grips with the loss of Dane Westby this week, after the 28-year-old died tragically while riding his street bike in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
While his family, friends, and fans work through their grief over the loss of Dane, we can at least remember “The Wolverine” for the competitor that he was.
As such, Yamaha has put together a nice video of Dane at the MotoAmerica tire test at COTA. Set to race in the Superstock 1000 class this year, Dane clearly was measuring himself against the faster guys in the Superbike class — the true mark of a true competitor.
That’s just one of the reasons why everyone liked him so much
It’s finally here. After much speculation and teasing, the 2015 MV Agusta F4 RC superbike is finally officially official, with official pictures and official specs to boot.
Confirming much of what we already knew, MV Agusta’s spec sheet has the F4 RC making 212 hp with the race exhaust, or 202.5 hp in street trim, while peak torque is 84.8 lbs•ft in either configuration.
Thanks to carbon fiber fairings, titanium connecting bolts and exhaust, lithium-ion battery, forged aluminum wheels, and magnesium casings, the MV Agusta F4 RC is 33 lbs lighter than the RR model, with a 386 lbs dry weight.
As expected, the 2015 MV Agusta F4 RC is equipped with the MVICS 2.0 electronics system, which includes traction control, ABS, rear-wheel lift control, and quick-shifter.
I am always amazed by the sort of people that read Asphalt & Rubber on a daily basis — we have some very talented people in our ranks (including some even very famous ones), and it’s great to get email from them, even if it’s just to say hi.
Along those lines, I got a message from a reader named Brian recently, just showing us a spec commercial he and some friends made about motorcycling a while back. It features a Ducati, so I guess you could say it is aimed at the Ducati community, but honestly I think any motorcyclist would resonate with its words. Enjoy!