Rookies start 18th season with racing rivalries and records

April 24, 2024

Drama and records are guaranteed. Jerez is going to be a thrilling weekend for the Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup and applications for 2025 are now OPEN.
The first 2 of 14 races in the 18th season and new stars are bound to emerge. There are heroes from last year like Álvaro Carpe who finished 2nd in his debut year with 2 superb victories as he disrupted the record-breaking domination of Angel Piqueras.
Carpe knows he will have a fight on his hands from 3rd-year Rookies Rico Salmela the 16-year-old Finn and South African 17-year-old Ruche Moodley. Both have grown both physically and in experience and are determined to take the fight to the 16-year-old Spaniard.
Another grudge match?
Arch rival for Carpe’s doubtless is Màximo Quiles. The 16-year-old Spaniard locked horns with Piqueras in 2022 and their rivalry burnt through 2023. While Piqueras remained ice cool Quiles boiled over on occasion and has to manage that if he is to better Carpe this season.
There are certainly more challengers. In fact, the Cup is wide open because Argentina’s 16-year-old Marco Morelli has all the skill required to battle for the Cup in his second season as does Guido Pini, the 16-year-old Italian. Last year Morelli was making up for a season out of racing altogether and Pini was trying to curb his enthusiasm.
They, like Salmela and Moodley, were incomplete racers in 2023 but will challenge Carpe if they assemble the missing pieces, as will Hakim Danish. The 16-year-old Malaysian started 2023 with a 5th and a 3rd, it was to be his best weekend of the season but he certainly has the pace, he needs the control and consistency.
First season heroes
Don’t discount the first-year Rookies, Carpe finished 2nd last year and back in 2011, Lorenzo Baldassarri took the Cup in his debut season. Kazuki Masaki matched that in 2017 as did José Rueda in 2022.
So who of the first-year Rookies are likely to challenge? There are some obvious candidates: Valentin Perrone, the 16-year-old Argentine, 15-year-old Italian Giulio Pugliese, Poland’s first Rookie, 17-year-old Milan Pawelec and Guillem Planques the 16-year-old Frenchman.
There is a huge breadth of experience but everyone is learning the Pirelli tyres and the first race weekend of the season is bound to throw up some surprises as we watch two thrilling races.

GP winners

The Rookies may well produce the best racing of the weekend but don’t forget there are some Grand Prix being contested as well. Ex Rookies have won 198 GPs and stood on the podium 596 times. So look out for that 200th win and 600th podium.

Last year’s Rookies Cup winner Angel Piqueras put himself on the Moto3 Rookies dominated podium last time out in Austin so he might take win number 199.

And then will Pedro Acosta, Rookies class of 2020, win his 1st MotoGP? Or will World Championship leader Jorge Martín, class of 2014, add to his tally of 6 MotoGP victories? Enea Bastianini, class of 2013, lies 2nd in the title chase and already has 5 MotoGP wins to his name.

Chase them now!

Check out the possibilities of the biggest challenge of your racing life with the online application for the 2025 Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup. Now Open.

Entry List

4 Sullivan Mounsey (ENG)

5 Leo Rammerstorfer (AUT)

7 Rocco Sessler (GER)

11 Ruché Moodley (RSA)

13 Hakim Danish (MAL)

16 Joel Pons (ESP)

20 Jakkreephat Phuettisan (THA)

24 Guillem Planques (FRA)

27 Rico Salmela (FIN)

28 Màximo Quiles (ESP)

31 Giulio Pugliese (ITA)

44 Milan Pawelec (POL)

45 Kgopotso Mononyane (RSA)

47 Dodo Boggio (ITA)

48 Lennox Phommara (SUI)

50 Carter Thompson (AUS)

51 Brian Uriarte (ESP)

52 Evan Belford (ENG)

54 Veda Pratama (INA)

56 Kevin Farkas (HUN)

57 Leonardo Zanni (ITA)

70 Kristian Daniel Jr. (USA)

73 Valentin Perrone (ARG)

83 Alvaro Carpe (ESP)

94 Guido Pini (ITA)

95 Marco Morelli (ARG)

For more info checkout our dedicated Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup News page Rookies Cup News

Or visit the official Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup website rookiescup.redbull.com/

Stafford Classic Bike Show Unveils October Lineup

Frank Duggan

April 24, 2024

A star-studded weekend awaits visitors at Stafford in October as motorcycle legends Carl Fogarty and Frankie Chili have been announced as guests.

The roar of stunning machines and motorcycle chatter will once again fill the air at the Stafford County Showground in October following the announcement of guests at The Classic Motorcycle Mechanics Show sponsored by Carole Nash.

Carl ‘Foggy’ Fogarty, a name synonymous with grit and determination, will be joining the event. With his four World Superbike Championship wins, Fogarty remains a fascinating figure in the hearts of racing enthusiasts worldwide. Also revving up the show as a guest is former British Grand Prix and World Superbike race winner Frankie Chili. A true legend of the sport, the Italian racer’s presence promises to elevate the event to new heights of excitement and nostalgia.

Hot off the heels of The International Classic Motorcycle Show sponsored by Carole Nash which took place from April 20-21, this October event is set to feature the best of classic bikes, stunning club stands and huge trade and autojumble offers.

Exhibition manager, Nick Mowbray said: “We are thrilled to welcome Carl Fogarty and Frankie Chili to the Stafford Bike Show this October. Their presence highlights our commitment to showcasing the history and enduring passion of classic motorcycles”.

More details will be released in the coming weeks…keep up to date by visiting www.classicbikeshows.com

Ducati Unlocks The Secrets of Adventure Riding

Frank Duggan

April 24, 2024

Ducati unlocks the secrets of adventure riding with the new Sweet Lamb DRE Adventure Academy.

In partnership with Sweet Lamb Riding School, Ducati has officially opened the new UK expansion of its premium DRE Adventure Academy riding experience to bring more emotion, fun and safety to adventure riding.

Situated at the Sweet Lamb off-road centre in the spectacular Cambrian Mountains in Wales, the new Sweet Lamb DRE Adventure Academy offers 6,600 acres of prime adventure bike territory to explore. It is the ultimate destination for anyone wanting to experience the thrilling performance and outstanding capability of Ducati adventure bikes at one of the best off-road riding locations in the UK.

With dedicated training areas designed to build up adventure riding ability and miles of trails helping learners put their new skills to the test, the Sweet Lamb off-road centre is the perfect home for Ducati DRE Adventures. All of this is on private land designed for professional motorsport use to make the training safe, effective, and enjoyable for everyone.

High-quality training is central to the DRE philosophy, and Ducati has pulled out all the stops to provide this at the new facility in Wales.

Training at the Academy is led by Mark Molineux – multiple enduro, motocross and rally champion with a legendary reputation in the industry – with a team of top riders and trainers who pride themselves on helping riders of all levels improve their offroad skills. International guests from the Ducati Adventure world will participate on selected dates as guest instructors to add a flavour of international DRE expertise.

With four levels of training available – from Rookie to Level 3 Course – the Academy caters for all abilities, including raw beginners with no offroad experience, transforming them into riders ready to take on anything they dream of.

The fleet of the latest Ducati adventure bikes at Sweet Lamb ensures that world-class training is matched with the best possible tools for the job. The motorcycles available at the Academy are the brand-new Multistrada V4S, Multistrada Rally, DesertX and DesertX Rally.

The brand-new Ducati hospitality space at Sweet Lamb matches the finest adventure bikes, top training, and jaw-dropping scenery. It welcomes riders for an adventure experience in total relaxation. Italian coffee provided by Lavazza and lunch will be available throughout the day. The Ducati welcome kit and the final certificate will send learners home with a big smile.

Booking for the Sweet Lamb DRE Adventure Academy courses is available online at
www.dre-adventure.co.uk, with a Rookie Day available at £295 and a full two-days adventure weekend at £599. Demand for places at the academy has been high from the announcement last year, and only limited places are left for this riding season.

Fabrizio Cazzoli, Managing Director, Ducati UK:
“We are delighted to welcome riders to the new Sweet Lamb DRE Adventure Academy. This is a true Ducati experience where riders can unleash their full adventuring potential, as well as enjoy the benefits of the latest Ducati technology. Regardless of their previous offroad riding experience, everyone joining us at the academy can enjoy the stunning location, world-class instruction, premium hospitality and the ultimate Ducati adventure bikes. This is a unique experience and another fantastic opportunity to build unforgettable memories with Ducati.”

Mark Molineux, Chief Instructor, Sweet Lamb:
“We are very excited and honoured to be working with Ducati and helping bring the DRE Adventure Academy to the UK. With its carefully crafted training areas, seemingly endless network of trails, and unbeatable Welsh scenery, Sweet Lamb is the perfect UK home for the Academy. We can’t wait to show riders everything we have to offer them. The experience is world-class, with everything from the bikes and trainers to facilities fine-tuned to bring you the best of the adventure world.”

The Bennett-Evan’s family, Owner of Sweet Lamb:
“We at Sweet Lamb are very happy to be hosting Ducati at our fantastic venue and look forward to working together, training their customers to enjoy Ducati’s exciting adventure range. Wales is a fantastic place to ride and learn more skills. We look forward over the coming years to improve and make this collaboration a success of the highest standards.”

For more Ducati news check out our dedicated page Ducati UK News

or head to the official Ducati UK website ducati.com/gb/en/home

Bimota returns to WorldSBK in 2025

Frank Duggan

April 24, 2024

Winners of the 1980 350cc World Championship fielding Jon Ekerold on a two-cylinder, two stroke Bimota YB3 machine, success was also achieved in TT Formula 1 with legend Virginio Ferrari aboard a YB4R taking the Championship honours in1987.

No strangers to four stroke machinery, Bimota won no less than seven races in the very first World Superbike Championship year of 1988 thanks to Davide Tardozzi (5) and Stephane Mertens (2). Even as late as the year 2000, Bimota were still able to achieve a WorldSBK race win thanks to the late, great Anthony Gobert aboard an SB8R machine mounting the top step of the podium at a wet Phillip Island race weekend.

For the 2025 season, Bimota is partnering with Kawasaki in a joint venture which will result in a Bimota chassis with Kawasaki engine (plus allied technology), competing in WorldSBK. Not only will the donor Ninja ZX-10RR powerplant be familiar, but also many of the team staff as Kawasaki transfers its efforts into the Bimota racing program marking a landmark moment in the journey of the Kawasaki Racing Team after nearly four decades in the premier global racing series based on production machines that can be purchased at dealerships.

Recognising not just the legacy of Kawasaki in Superbike racing, but also the close cooperation and synergies between majority Bimota shareholder, Kawasaki, and the Rimini based Italian manufacturer, the new team will operate under the title of Bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team.

Fielding a machine jointly developed by Bimota and Kawasaki, the new team will play a pivotal role in the wider global recognition and market presence of the Bimota brand as well as being crucial in highlighting the hand built craftsmanship and care that goes into the creation of every Bimota product. This wider appreciation of the Bimota brand and its core racing DNA is also expected to create increased demand and sales of Bimota street motorcycles.

Speaking about the new direction for Kawasaki in WorldSBK, President and Chief Executive Officer of Kawasaki Motors, Ltd. Hiroshi Ito, stated:
“Bimota has an enviable reputation for excellence in motorcycle design and manufacture. As part of our vision for the evolution of this world famous brand we see racing as a logical next step in terms of both product development as well as brand exposure on the global stage. Our commitment to WorldSBK is as strong as ever and we hope that this new racing project will energise fans of both Bimota and Kawasaki. The passion for race success remains and we look forward to the presence of the Bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team on the 2025 WorldSBK grid”.

On behalf of Bimota, COO, Pierluigi Marconi, Commented
“The engineering, technology and day to day business support already offered by Kawasaki has put Bimota firmly back into the consciousness of the media and potential customers, now it is time to take a next step in our evolution.

Bimota has had racing as part of its DNA from day one and to compete in WorldSBK alongside developing our new product range, while expanding the European and global dealer network, has an undeniable logic to it.

With the unparalleled experience of the existing Kawasaki racing team experts plus the full support and cooperation of Kawasaki Motors, Ltd. in Japan fills us with pride and optimism. The Bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team will surely form the foundations of the next chapter in the Bimota story”.

KRT Team Manager, Guim Roda, concluded:
“In the past thirteen years, myself, and all of those at the KRT workshop in Granollers, have dedicated ourselves wholeheartedly to the Kawasaki Superbike project and garnered seven WorldSBK rider titles in that time plus numerous team and manufacturer awards. Now – after Kawasaki competing for nearly four decades in the Superbike championship – we are proud to be part of a new era forming the infrastructure of the new Bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team.

For sure we will spare some time to reflect on and celebrate the heritage of Kawasaki in Superbike racing, but we are also extremely excited to be a core component of this new Bimota and Kawasaki joint venture. This is an evolution for Kawasaki’s approach to the top level of production racing and we are honoured to play our role in this new project. I am confident we have the technology and human resources necessary to succeed and it will be a fresh, energising experience fielding an impressive two rider team in the 2025 Motul FIM WorldSBK Championship.”

Baker Hughes’ Druck Pressure Sensor Technology Helps Reduce Lap Times for Hawk Racing

Frank Duggan

April 24, 2024

After helping reduce lap times in 2023, race-proven pressure measurement solutions from Druck, a Baker Hughes business, is set to help Hawk Racing achieve further success ahead of the 2024 British Superbike season.

The collaboration of the two Midlands based businesses follows a memorable 2023 season, which saw Hawk Racing, using Baker Hughes’ Druck sensor technology, shave more than two seconds from its fastest testing lap at Donington in March 2023, and its performance at the same track later in the British Superbikes season. This improvement, from 1:30.724 to 1:28.223, was directly attributed by Hawk’s race engineers to adjustments to the chassis setup, based upon analysis of brake pressure data recorded by Druck sensors.

Adding to the benefits of adopting Baker Hughes highly accurate and reliable Druck technology, the Hawk Racing Team in 2023 avoided its regular disposal of pressure sensors that provided inaccurate readings.

“During the 2023 season we only had to replace one Druck sensor,” said Steve Hicken, owner of Hawk Racing,” and that was due to a crash at Cadwell Park that physically ripped it from the bike!”

Baker Hughes’ Druck technology contributed to a successful 2023 season for Hawk Racing. Michael Dunlop claimed his 25^th victory at the famous Isle of Man TT, earning the title as the second-most successful TT racer ever, while Hawk Racing’s Charlie Nesbitt was the most prominent British Superbike rookie, earning three podiums during the season and finishing in 11^th position.

“The durability, reliability and accuracy of Baker Hughes’ Druck pressure sensors were undoubtedly a factor in our success,” continued Hicken. “Striving for further marginal gains in 2024 and leveraging the world class Druck technology to provide even more data points and benchmarks, we’re confident we’ll enjoy an excellent season.”

“Our advanced pressure measurement solutions enable motorsport teams to recognise small deviations in system performance, identifying changes before they become problems,” said Gordon Docherty, general manager of Druck, a Baker Hughes business. “We’re proud that Hawk Racing and our customers across all levels of elite motorsport are benefiting from our 30+ year legacy in motorsport pressure measurement technology and achieving the marginal gains that can make the difference between first and second.”

This season, Druck’s high quality PMP4300 and PMP4400 pressure sensors will feature on Hawk’s Honda CBR1000RR-R Fireblade SPs measuring front and rear brake pressure and oil pressure. Small and robust, the Druck sensors can perform at temperatures from -20 to 175 Degrees Celsius, and withstand the extreme vibration and shock associated with professional motorsport.

The evolution of a metropolitan icon

Frank Duggan

April 24, 2024

The evolution of a metropolitan icon. The FGTR helmet by Milanese brand Momodesign gets a makeover.

The partnership between Dainese and Momodesign gives rise to a new generation of FGTR helmets – ultimate style, quality and comfort with the best safety ever.

The new FGTR helmet – the quintessential urban demi open-face helmet inspired by helicopter flight helmets – evolves in all its shapes and forms. Fully restyled, the new design highlights its distinctive features, colors and exclusive graphics – a blend of style and quality, perfected in terms of safety and comfort.

Dainese’s culture of innovation, experimentation and safety meets the iconic design of Momodesign to radically transform the range with a shared aim – spreading Italian design and quality throughout the world and supporting present and future urban mobility challenges.

Dainese presents FGTR EVO and FGTR CLASSIC, the newly revamped lines from the 2024 range that, owing to the Group’s in-depth knowledge of safety and extreme use of helmets, now meets the strict E2206 certification criteria.

Dainese’s expertise in terms of attention to detail, choice of materials and quality finishes makes FGTR even more unique. Innovation through style is the soul of Momodesign. It is guided by the rule of designing exceptional objects that celebrate uniqueness and the extraordinary, reinventing new standards that answer to contemporary lifestyles, distinguishing itself from urban chaos and communicating its mission to new generations.

FGTR EVO, the premium version of the FGTR range, is the helmet boasting 100% Italian design. Distinguished by handcrafted details, such as the hand-stitched edges on the profile of the shell and visor, today the EVO model gets a makeover, with three shell sizes available, retaining its rounded shape and iconic “T” logo.

The visor, featuring two carbon fiber mounts with a matte finish, has been revamped, as has the visor mechanism, completely redesigned to make changing the lens itself easier and safer. The new cheek pad design allows them to hug the rider’s face more closely for superior comfort, due in part to the fit specifically developed for using eyewear.

On the new Evo version, contrasting white stitching and brushed metal pawls make it a helmet with an elegant look for every motorcycle and scooter rider who wants style and safety. It’s a versatile model, due to the built-in sun visor that makes it ideal for trips on sunny days.

The new EVO range features a refined color palette with a metallic texture for the Mono line, while sober and sophisticated graphics distinguish the Hip line. The interior of the FGTR EVO is removable and washable, compatible with general communication systems, and features a quick-absorbing fabric – DrySpeed treatment – for maximum comfort.

FGTR CLASSIC, an ever-evolving metropolitan icon, embodies the perfect blend of style, quality and safety.

The Classic model retains the same technical characteristics as the Evo model, with the exception of the sun visor. In the revamped version, tone-on-tone stitching and black pawls emphasize a bold look.

The chromatic choices for the Mono, Candy and Flip lines further enhance this model’s design with bold interplays of contrasting tones that retrace the palette of the brand’s great classics while also adding new bright colors, once again creating an urban icon for all motorcycle and scooter riders who love to stand out.

FGTR Classic is available from authorized dealers at a price of €199 for the Mono version and €219 for the Multi version, while FGTR Evo is available at a price of €229 for the Mono version and €239 for the Multi version.

Margate Meltdown With Ace Cafe

Frank Duggan

April 24, 2024

Bank Holiday Monday 27th May
Depart Cafe: 10.30am

Route: A406 – A13 – M25 – A2 – M2 – A299 to Margate seafront

Sixty years on from the legendary seaside “meetings” in 1964 of the Mods n’ Rockers, this year’s 14^th annual Meltdown again includes a ride out from Ace Cafe London to the event in the popular seaside resort of Margate in Kent.

The seafront and harbour is given over for the day to motorcycles, scooters, stands and displays.

Live entertainment will be rocking the seafront from midday onwards with DJ’s Bill & George Guntrip, together with hi-energy three piece band “Bamboozle”:

The destination town of Margate has everything for a great day out; a beach and plenty of things to do and see.

Buckets and spades are optional!

Special thanks to Thanet District Council and the town for helping us

NOTICE:
As guests of Margate, and this free to enter event we thank you in advance for your understanding and co-operation in ensuring that the event is accessible and safe for all who attend.

We ask that you do not park any vehicle on the pavements or block the footways and emergency routes, and adhere to the directions and requests of Meltdown Staff & Marshals.

Please note that the seafront road will be open to the public (and bikes) from 9.30am

The event closes at 6pm

Listen, revel and be immersed in a mix of the best rock and roll and rockabilly, blended with the London sub-culture sounds, broadcasting 24/7 on online radio and social media.

Say Hej! To The 2024 Riding Season With Husqvarna Motorcycles

Frank Duggan

April 24, 2024

Hej! Days Taking Place at Dealers 10th – 12th May.

Husqvarna Motorcycles is excited to announce Hej! Days, a new nationwide dealer event that invites pioneering motorcyclists – whether existing Husqvarna riders or not – to kit up, head to their nearest Husqvarna Motorcycles Dealer and to celebrate the 2024 riding season start, Swedish style.

From 10th – 12th May Authorised Husqvarna Motorcycles Dealers countrywide will be offering the chance to test the recently launched Naked range, including the rugged urban explorer – the Svartpilen 401 – alongside the Vitpilen 401, its roadster relative. However it’s not just the Naked machines available to test. Pioneering adventurers can experience the range topping Norden 901 Expedition while those looking to stick strictly to Street can sample the adrenaline enticing 701 Supermoto. Demo fleets may vary by dealer so riders are encouraged to contact their chosen Husqvarna Motorcycles showroom to find out which models are available.

Offering everything from new model test rides and Hej! Days special promotions to entertainment, food and drink, Husqvarna Motorcycles’ Hej! Days calls on all pioneers to join the celebrations and immerse themselves in the brand and experience the Swedish inspired motorcycle range.

For more information on Hej! Days, click here.

To find out more about Husqvarna Motorcycles, click here.

For more Husqvarna Motorcycles news check out our dedicated page Husqvarna Motorcycles News

or head to the official Husqvarna Motorcycles website husqvarna-motorcycles.com/en-gb.html

Illuminate The Way With The Denali D7 Pro Lights

Frank Duggan

April 23, 2024

The R&G-distributed Denali D7 PRO lights are the brand’s highest-performing and most feature-rich driving light yet, offering motorcyclists exceptional illumination, ensuring that they can not only see the entire road ahead but are also unmissable by other drivers.

Founded in 2012, Denali Electronics has grown to become one of the market leaders in LED auxiliary lighting for two and four wheels and are officially distributed in the UK by R&G. With a wide choice of products available, the new Denali D7 PRO lights are the latest addition to the impressive range.

The D7 PRO range is the most powerful driving light the company has built and features a split dual-circuit design that allows independent switching on and off of the centre flood beam and the outer spot beam. When combined with the Denali DialDim Switch or CANsmart Controller, riders can effortlessly control all their lighting functions from a single dimmer switch.Featuring the patented X-Lens systems, the Denali D7 PRO lets riders change the centre flood or DRL beam colour to white, amber or yellow, offering more flexibility and functionality than ever before.

Providing an incredible 11,900 lumens, the D7 Pro spot beam is capable of reaching 380 metres with a width of 75 metres, ensuring that the entire road ahead is illuminated. This not only keeps riders safe by allowing them to see any potential hazards but also ensures that they are unmissable to other road users.

The light kit starts at £332.50 (Excl. VAT) and is available now from R&G at https://www.rg-racing.com/browseBrand/Denali.

Bonhams|Cars Spring Stafford Motorcycle Sale Achieves £3 Million

Frank Duggan

April 23, 2024

Bonhams|Cars Spring Stafford Motorcycle Sale achieves £3 million with an industry-leading 95% sell through rate.

Bonhams|Cars’ market-leading motorcycle department returned to the International Classic MotorCycle Show with 365 lots of collectors’ motorcycles, memorabilia, spares, and dismantled motorcycle projects for The Spring Stafford Sale, achieving the highest grossing UK motorcycle auction of the year reaching £3 million total. The two-day sale, which included five major single-owner collections and nearly 60% of lots offered Without Reserve, attracted an international audience with bidders from over 38 countries, many in attendance or bidding on the Bonhams app, the phone, and by commission bid. The sale further reinforced Bonhams|Cars as the auction house of choice for the sale of important collector motorcycles as well as single-owner collections.

Overall, the sale achieved a total of £3 million with an industry-leading 95% sold by lot.

On 20 April, the sale kicked off with important motorcycle spares and memorabilia, achieving a white glove result – 100% of lots finding new homes. One of the many highlights of the spares and memorabilia section was a 1986 Suzuki RG500 Project – a dismantled example of the iconic two-stroke ‘screamer’ – cruising past its estimate to achieve £11,520. The motorcycle sale for the first day achieved a 98% sell-through rate with over £600,000 raised and several single-owner collections achieving white-glove results. This includes the late Ron Pladdy’s Collection of important racing motorcycles which featured a c.1963 Honda 50cc CR110 Racing Motorcycle nearly doubling its estimate at £46,000.

After an exciting first day, the Bonhams|Cars Motorcycle team took the opportunity to soak in the atmosphere of the International Classic Motorcycle Show with star guests Guy Martin, renowned racer and TV personality, and Philip McCallen, a racing legend from Northern Ireland that holds 11 Isle of Man TT victories.

Bonhams|cars Spring Stafford Motorcycle Sale Achieves £3 Million — Vincent Black Lightning, 14th production, sold for £150,000, and a 2003 Whitelock 4200cc Tinker Toy Frame sold for £92,000.

The second day of motorcycle sales saw even more success with more than £2.19 million achieved and 98% sold by value. Highlighting the day was a 1949 Vincent 998cc Black Lightning Series-C – one of only 34 made – selling for £150,000, a pre-war offering from the same manufacturer – a 1938 Vincent-HRD 998cc Rapide Series-A, selling for £228,850, as well as the 2003 Whitelock 4200cc Tinker Toy Frame, holder of the Guinness World Record for land vehicle with most cylinders, selling for £92,000. Also of note was The Clive Woods MBE Collection, which was 100% sold and achieved over £280,000 overall, one of the many collections to feature in the sale, sourced via Bonhams|Cars Motorcycle’s network of specialists and regional offices, offering an unparalleled market reach.

Additional highlights of the sale included:

A 1924 Brough Superior 980cc SS80 sold for £97,750.
A 1935 Brough Superior 1,096cc 11-50 with Brough petrol-tube sidecar chassis and Watsonian Avon sports ‘chair’ sold for £78,200.
An ex-Team Servisco; Fabbio Biliotti, 1987 Honda RS500 Grand Prix Racing Motorcycle sold for £73,600.
A 1974 MV Agusta 750S sold for £74,750.

The Bonhams|Cars motorcycle team is now looking forward to the next online sale, taking place from 14 – 24 June. They are currently inviting consignments and can be contacted at motorcycles@bonhams.com.

More auction news can be found on our dedicated page here: Motorcycle Auction News

For more information on Bonhams Motorcycles Auctions head to the official website: Bonhams Motorcycles

Retro Riding Jacket for Youngsters

Frank Duggan

April 23, 2024

AA-rated textile riding jacket for junior riders from Duchinni Youth.

New to the Duchinni Youth range, the Michigan textile jacket wraps up modern safety, comfort and practicality in seriously cool ‘old-skool’ styling that young pillion riders will love to wear, on or off the bike.

Like all the clothing in the Duchinni collection, the Michigan is made to the same high standards as adult motorcycle clothing.

Rated AA for safety, it has a tough and durable 600D outer shell and comes with a CE-approved back protector and armour at the shoulder and elbow as standard.

The Michigan’s retro styling will appeal to all ages, with contrasting leather arm stripes, diamond-quilted panels and vintage-styled YKK zips.

A comfy passenger is a happy passenger, so the Michigan is waterproof, windproof and breathable, with a removable 75gsm quilted thermal liner to deal with all weather conditions.

The collar is trimmed with soft Neoprene® and there are two zipped hand-warmer pockets to keep fingers warm when off the bike.

There’s plenty of adjustment at the waist, collar and cuffs, plus zipped 3 cm extension panels on each sleeve to accommodate growth spurts – a very welcome feature for budget-conscious parents.

Two zipped chest pockets on the outside and three internal pockets provide plenty of places for young riders to stash their treasured items.

The Duchinni Michigan retails at a recommended £139.99 and comes in a range of sizes catering for youngsters from 6 to 16 years old.

Find further information at thekeycollection.co.uk

Keyes and McLean star, as the Principal Insurance Masters Championship returns

Frank Duggan

April 23, 2024

Mondello Park kicked off the long awaited return of Irish Motorcycle Racing, with a thrilling Principal Insurance Superbike Championship season opener at Mondello Park on April 20th and 21st.

Watched by a large crowd of spectators eager to get their fix of Motorcycle Racing action after a year away, the newly named Principal Insurance Masters did not disappoint as Offaly’s Kevin Keyes and Derry’s Adam McLean were the stars of show.

Keyes lined up on pole for Superbike race one on Saturday, ahead of double 2022 race winner, Cavan’s Alan Kenny, and former champion Brian McCormack from Waterford. A poor start dropped Keyes back to third early on as McCormack’s BMW took the lead. Reigning Superbike Cup champion Andrew Whearty from Meath briefly ran second but Keyes soon moved his Yamaha past before taking the lead from McCormack. The Waterford man’s Roadhouse Macau BMW began to drop back with tyre issues, allowing Cavan’s Shane Connolly, on his Yamaha, to close in. In the end Connolly ran out of laps and had to settle for third as Keyes taking took the Daracore Racing’s first Superbike win. Ronan Waters was another first time winner as took the Superbike Cup spoils ahead of Seanie Smith and Declan Madden.

Race two, on Sunday, saw Keyes in even more dominant form as he took the lead from the start and came home over three seconds clear of Kenny, who made a much better start than in race one to remain in contention till the end. Supersport Cup rider Declan Madden on his DM Groundworks BMW finished third, and best of the Cup riders, ahead of Antrim’s Sean Brolly, on his Masters Superbike debut, and Daracore Racing’s Kevin Madigan.

Keyes again dominated race three, but on this occasion McCormack pushed him all the way to the final laps before deciding to settle for second ahead of Connolly. Waters again took the cup victory in seventh place overall, ahead of Madden and Madigan, who finished off an excellent weekend for Daracore Racing with another podium. After the opening three rounds Keyes now leads the championship from McCormack and Kenny, while in the Cup standings its Madden ahead of Waters and Madigan.

The Supersport riders endured a testing weekend as their three races were stopped a number of times due to incidents. Adam McLean, on his first visit to Mondello Park since winning the opening race of 2021, took pole position for race one and duly held off Keyes for the first Principal Insurance Supersport victory of the season. McLean’s JMcC Roofing Kawasaki took the victory by over two seconds from the similar machine of Keyes, with Yamaha mounted Dubliner Michael Sweeney taking a well deserved third place. DM Groundworks backed Meath youngster, Jack Whearty, was pushed hard for top spot in the Supersport Cup class by Wexford’s Brandon Kavanagh with Mayo man Michael Gillan third.

McLean was also on pole for the second race and romped unchallenged to his second win of the weekend. Keyes again finished second, but had to work hard for the runner-up spot as he took the first half of the race to work his way past Oisin Maher and Kerry rider Emmet O’Grady. Tipperary youngster Maher also got by his team mate and former champion O’Grady to take an impressive first podium on the AKR Honda. The top two in the Supersport Cup were Whearty and Kavanagh once again, with Cavan’s Keith Richardson taking his maiden podium finish in third.

McLean did not appear for the final Supersport race of the weekend, as he did not want to put more mileage on his Supersport engine prior to next months North West 200, leaving Keyes and Maher as the main battlers. Maher lead for the opening two laps but the more experienced Keyes moved past and then held Maher at bay to the end, taking the win by just under two seconds, from Maher and Sweeney. The top two positions in the Cup were once again filled by Whearty and Kavanagh but this time they had Corkman James Walsh for company on the podium.

The Megabikes Ballymount Supertwins gave Maher another chance at victory and he took the opportunity with both hands, taking three wins on his TAG Racing VTL Aprilia. Darragh Crean from Kerry, on a one off ride on a Kawasaki, rather than his usual Elcofire Aprilia, took two second places in the opening two races but failed to finish race three. In his absence Clare man Kevin Baker took the runner-up spot with Sean Brolly taking the final step of the podium in all three races on his series debut.

The DM Groundworks Junior Supersport and Moto1 grid was largely made up of new faces, as the latest crop of future stars got their first taste of race action. The podium places went to a mixture of newcomers and returning riders as 2022 Moto1 champion Reuben Sherman-Boyd took two wins in Junior Supersport, with newcomer Rhys Gates taking the other. The remaining podium positions were taken by Masters novices, Joey Milliken and Alanna Maher. In Moto1 it was newcomers all the way as Fionn Stephens, with two wins, and Fionn O’Connell, with one, shared the top two spots between them, while Joey Hennesy and Buster Sherman-Boyd also made the podium over the weekend.

After an incredibly successful return the Principal Insurance Masters Championship is now preparing for its second event of the season, with the championship returning to Mondello Park on May 18th and 19th. All the information on the opening event and the remaining dates for 2024 can be found on www.masterssuperbike.ie where livestream footage from the exciting first weekend can also by watched.

Next stop Spain: who’s coming out on top at the carnival?

Frank Duggan

April 22, 2024

A fiesta like no other awaits as the hillsides of Jerez prepare to come alive with MotoGP™

COTA promised a lot and it certainly delivered, but maybe not in the way most were expecting. After the rollercoaster ignited the Pecco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team) vs Marc Marquez (Gresini Racing MotoGP™) rivalry, saw Pedro Acosta (Red Bull GASGAS Tech3) get on the podium AND Jorge Martin (Prima Pramac Racing) head into Round 3 with a very nice lead indeed as heartbreak hit for Maverick Viñales (Aprilia Racing), it seemed Texas could stage a showdown between a few candidates. But the biggest answer of all after drama on the Algarve came from Viñales, who came out the blocks with an almighty advantage in Austin. And he converted that into a triple: pole, Tissot Sprint win and Grand Prix victory, becoming the first rider in the MotoGP™ era to win with three different factories. Chapeau.

So as we head for Batmav’s home turf at Jerez, he’s most definitely the rider in the spotlight, looking to show it’s not just Portimao, and not just COTA. But those on the chase are most definitely looking to change that, because the threat from Viñales is fast becoming very real – if not for those 20 points that went begging in Portimao, he’d be second overall.

THE LEAD IS NOT ENOUGH
Still, he’d be second to Martin, and the number #89 could be forgiven for arriving into the Gran Premio Estrella Galicia 0,0 de España feeling a little overlooked after Sunday in Texas. Still, there are plenty of positives from his slightly under-the-radar but well-paying weekend in the Lone Star State. First, after he led the title fight for a day in 2023, he’s still got that lead and it’s still a healthy 21 points, weeks later. He also bounced back well after a slightly disastrous qualifying that saw him crash twice. But a Sprint podium and a good haul of points on Sunday won’t be enough now we’re heading into Jerez, with the home, partisan crowd packed into the stands.

Leading, but not winning, and podiums, but not winning? That’s also not enough for Acosta, it seems. The rookie put in a stunner in Texas – as if Qatar and Portimao weren’t impressive enough – and led for the first time. And not just once, he fought for it. And only one of the most memorable winning rides of all time was enough to deny him the victory. He must have margin too, because he’s not crashing, so the rest must be wondering what exactly the GASGAS rider might have in the locker on home turf… where there’s even more incentive to rip it up. Final corner of 2013, anyone?

Speaking of, Marc Marquez also arrives into his first home GP of the year wanting to make an impression. A Sprint podium at COTA was a good start, but an issue and a crash out the lead of the big race? That will have the #93 fired up to prove some points, and there’s no better place than in front of the hillsides of Jerez that have loved him since before he even spun a lap on a MotoGP™ bike. It’s where fate intervened once and changed the course of his career – and it would be perfect turf to write another, healing chapter of it.

FORM RIDERS vs THE FORM BOOK
If Enea Bastianini (Ducati Lenovo Team) has anything to do with it, none of the above will be reigning the Spanish GP. The ‘Beast’ had a start in Qatar that didn’t raise too many eyebrows, but he moved forward in Portimao to second Ducati home on Sunday, and went one better in Texas to turn the tables on Martin and deny his old rival a podium. It was top Ducati though, now the aim is the top step. Can he upset the home heroes? The spotlight will be on his teammate Bagnaia too after the reigning Champion made Jerez a real statement Sunday win in 2023, with plenty now looking to the #1 to prove if the last two races are a blip, a dip, or something that could last a little longer as he looks for his mojo. Somehow he always finds it though, and it wouldn’t be a surprise to see Jerez stage a serious comeback for Bagnaia.

Two more looking for a comeback, and who impressed last season at Jerez, are Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) and teammate Jack Miller. In 2023 the duo were the sliding, sideways rebellion against Bagnaia’s serene showing at the front, and it was a serious show for the grandstands as well as a showcase for KTM. It also leaves plenty of questions to be answered coming into the event this season. Can they do it again after a tougher Texas on the way in this time round? And maybe the biggest question for many watching 2024 so far… can they do it in front of Acosta? The stakes don’t even end there either. Augusto Fernandez (Red Bull GASGAS Tech3) wants a big step forward, but while there’s a superstar rookie on one other RC16, there’ll be a MotoGP™ Legend on another as Dani Pedrosa returns for a wildcard. Jerez 2023 was impressive. At Misano he was top KTM, and nearly on the podium…

RESET RELOAD RACE
There are plenty of fast faces looking to make Jerez a turning point for themselves too. Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia Racing) has never got on well with COTA, but a solid result as his teammate steamrollered the field still isn’t quite enough. He’ll be pushing hard to remind everyone there’s more than one black Aprilia capable of fighting at the front. The Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team duo will be trying to make an impression too after a tougher season so far for both Marco Bezzecchi and Fabio Di Giannantonio, and Alex Marquez (Gresini Racing MotoGP™) even more so. The now two-time Sprint winner has been AWOL from a top finish for some time, but he’s been a master of Jerez before in his career. So too has Franco Morbidelli (Prima Pramac Racing), who has made his way into the ballpark after missing the whole of preseason, but now needs a finish and some solid points, if nothing else because the progress from FP1 in Qatar to now really does deserve it.

In MotoGP™, Master of Jerez has also been true of Fabio Quartararo. The tougher run continues for both El Diablo and new Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP™ teammate Alex Rins, but Jerez is a track that should be a little kinder for their bike, if track records are anything to go by. It’s also somewhere Quartararo especially has absolutely made his own, one of those where his name was penciled in next to victory before even arriving at the venue a few years ago. Is the fight for the top ten, top six or more on the cards for Yamaha in 2024? That’s also the kind of postcode the Trackhouse Racing squad will be aiming for. Miguel Oliveira had a tougher Texas, but Raul Fernandez managed to take a top ten. Can the duo get their elbows out for more? There’s also Aprilia Racing test rider Lorenzo Savadori wildcarding, so the Noale factory information gathering mission will be in full swing.

LOOKING FOR MORE
The information gathering will also continue at Honda. After some rumblings emerged over the last weekend that maybe the direction wasn’t paying off quite how it was expected, the race is on for the Japanese giants to find some more progress. The time going in to the project – including private testing and a wildcard for Stefan Bradl at Jerez this weekend – speaks to serious commitment to improve, and the season is young, but the points remain out of reach for the moment. Joan Mir (Repsol Honda Team) will want to be attacking his home round for a little more reward, but continues to set the Honda pace, whereas teammate Luca Marini is still trying to find his feet. Johann Zarco (Castrol Honda LCR) is maybe further ahead on that project, but the experience of Takaaki Nakagami (Idemitsu Honda LCR) is still seeing him in the mix with his fellow RC213Vs. Can they take a step forward at Jerez?

The Gran Premio Estrella Galicia 0,0 de España is ready to light up the hillsides of Jerez, welcoming MotoGP™ back to a true icon on the calendar. Home heroes. Rookies. Veterans. Wildcards. All coming together in the world’s most exciting sport. Are you ready?

TISSOT SPRINT: 15:00 (UTC +2) on Saturday
GRAND PRIX RACE: 14:00 on Sunday

For more MotoGP info checkout our dedicated MotoGP News page

Or visit the official MotoGP website www.motogp.com

©Words/Images are from official press release posted courtesy of www.motogp.com

Moto3: the race is on to catch Holgado and Alonso

Frank Duggan

April 22, 2024

David Alonso (CFMOTO Gaviota Aspar Team) hit back in a big way at COTA, disappearing at the front for a statement win and putting himself back within just two points of Championship leader Daniel Holgado (Red Bull GASGAS Tech3).

Now, the two are also a whopping 35 points clear of everyone on the chase led by Joel Kelso (BOE Motorsports), so the race is on at the Gran Premio Estrella Galicia 0,0 de España for the field to try and play catch up.

It won’t be easy as the duo have been the class of the field so far, but it’s been a mix of bad luck and trouble for a few fast faces tipped to challenge them. Ivan Ortola (MT Helmets – MSI) has had one podium and then played victim and perpetrator, respectively, in two doses of race day drama, and Jose Antonio Rueda (Red Bull KTM Ajo) has had a mixed bag too, making a mistake in Qatar that also took down Ortola and then being sidelined from taking his second place on the grid in Texas after getting appendicitis. Both are just looking for a smooth race weekend, and both have speed.

Meanwhile, Angel Piqueras (Leopard Racing) has started the season needing to pass medicals twice to compete in the full set of GPs, but once back at COTA, staged a duel to remember with Holgado and took a rookie podium at only his third GP. He didn’t test at Jerez in pre-season due to those injury issues, but he’s won there in junior categories including both JuniorGP™ and the Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup on his way to steamrollering both titles last season. Much is expected, and at COTA, plenty was served.

Tune in to see more incredible action from Moto3™ this weekend at Jerez, and see if anyone can catch the two at the top!

For more Moto3 info checkout our dedicated Moto3 News page

Or visit the official MotoGP website motogp.com

©Words/Images are from official press release posted courtesy of www.motogp.com

Moto2: Jerez promises another race to remember

Frank Duggan

April 22, 2024

Three races, three different winners. Moto2™’s unpredictability continued at the Americas GP as Sergio Garcia (MT Helmets – MSI) claimed a debut win in the class, with the Spaniard now heading to the Circuito de Jerez – Angel Nieto atop the Championship table.

There isn’t much in it though. Garcia’s classy win at the Circuit of The Americas saw him narrowly beat home hero Joe Roberts (OnlyFans American Racing), as the Californian claimed P2 to sit just two points adrift of Garcia ahead of the Spanish GP. Neither of the top two have stood on a Moto2™ rostrum in Jerez, but both will be looking to change that this time around.

They’ll have an array of competition though. Garcia’s teammate Ai Ogura was a winner in Jerez back in 2022, with Portuguese GP victor Aron Canet (Fantic Racing) second to the Japanese rider a couple of years ago. The pair will be hoping Jerez treats them a little kinder than Austin did, while the same can be said for Jake Dixon (CFMOTO Aspar Team). The Briton bagged a P3 in Jerez in 2023 and after a crash at COTA, the #96 desperately needs points on the board to kickstart his season.

Then there’s the SpeedUp duo. Fermin Aldeguer claimed his first rostrum of the season last time out and heads for home ground seeking a 25-point haul, with teammate Alonso Lopez hunting a return to the podium following a P4 in Austin and a crash in Portimao. The Spanish duo will be heavily tipped for success in Jerez. Tune in for the Spanish GP to see if the intermediate class has another twist in the tale!

For more Moto2 info checkout our dedicated Moto2 News page

Or visit the official MotoGP website motogp.com

©Words/Images are from official press release posted courtesy of www.motogp.com

Correa, Surowiak and Brown nab victories at Navarra

Frank Duggan

April 22, 2024

The 2024 British Talent Cup campaign kicked off under sunny but cool conditions at the Circuito de Navarra, in the North of Spain, with a bumper triple-header weekend and a total of 75 points available.
RACE 1
After the 2024 Class Photo was taken and testing wrapped up, it was Julian Correa (Microlise Cresswell Racing) who carried his good momentum from last season to the first pole position of the year. He was joined on the front row for Race 1 by Lucas Brown (Sencat Talent Team / Mortimer Racing) and Amanuel Brinton (Kovara Projects / RS Racing), the top rider from the 2023 season returning this year.

Correa took a solid start into turn 1 but Jack Burrows (Burrows Engineering / RK Racing) came out faster to lead the first lap, with Charlie Huntingford (Mototechniks) and Filip Surowiak (Team City Lifting/RS Racing ) jostling to work their way through the grid.

A mistake between Burrows and Josh Bannister (Fibre Tec Honda) saw them fall down the standings, allowing Correa to take the lead into lap 2, with Brown and Surowiak following him close behind and Brinton contesting for a podium position.

A hard-fought battle between Brown and Correa briefly saw the Sencat rider take to the front but Correa used the slipstream down the home straight and recovered the lead into the third lap – a foreshadowing of things to come.

Brinton pressed the leaders hard, overtaking Brown with a sharp inside move, moving into second as the leading pack began to pull away, with Mason Foster (BRP Racing) completing the top five.

A late lap 7 tussle between the front three allowed Brown to jump both Brinton and Correa, the polesitter dropping into third, but Brinton took the slipstream down the straight, overtaking Brown, and allowing Correa to retake the lead and Surowiak to take second.

By lap 9, an 11-second gap had formed behind the top five, Surowiak showing slipstream potential to take the lead from Correa but the Microlise Cresswell Racing rider looked in control, fending off attacks to retain his lead.

Lap 10 brought drama that would determine the outcome of the race; an error by Brinton saw him lose the front and go down, taking Surowiak and Foster with him, leaving Correa and Brown alone at the front and Ryan Frost (Fibre Tec Honda), some 15 seconds adrift, thrust into podium places chased by Clayton Edmunds (City lifting). All riders ok.

From here on in Correa worked to keep Brown at arm’s length to secure his first BTC victory, but the SENCAT Talent Team – Mortimer Racing rider wasn’t going to give in easy, taking a bold lunge up the inside of Correa into the penultimate turn of the final lap but Correa had the straightline speed and slipstream to carry him over the line first, just 0.046 seconds ahead of Brown in second, with Frost rounding out the Race 1 podium.

RACE 2
If at all possible, Race 2 was an even more dramatic affair, with Surowiak getting off the line fastest but Correa able to work the outside lines of turn 2 and 3 and cut inside into turn 4, snatching the lead from the Team City Lifting/RS Racing rider. Brown then edged his way past Surowiak and used the home straight slipstream to contest the lead into lap 2, going P1 out of turn 3.

In an almost repeat of Race 1, Correa, Brown, Brinton, Surowiak and Foster began to work a gap ahead of Frost.

With Lucas Brown in the lead, the front three began to break away, Brinton clearing the line into lap 4 over half a second faster than Surowiak, who was working hard to claw himself back into podium contention.

A crash at the final corner of lap 4 brought out the red flags. Josh Bannister suffered a highside just ahead of Samuel Munson (Wilson Racing) who had nowhere to go also going down, safely avoided by the trailing pack. All riders okay.

Once the track had been cleared, the riders lined back up on the grid for a reduced 8-lap Race 2, with Brown leading Correa and Brinton on the front row, and Surowiak and Foster on row 2, joined by Edmunds who was some 5 seconds adrift when the red flags came out.

Surowiak took a great launch from the line to take the lead, chased closely by Brown through turns 3 and 4, and Correa dropping down to 4th. Surowiak tried to pull the pin and break away, building a 0.3 second lead over Brown into the second lap. Brown, Correa and Brinton tightened up in the competition for the podium, exchanging places throughout the second lap.

Brinton took advantage of the slipstream to take the lead into lap 3 and Correa came flying up the outside through turns 1 and 2, demoting Surowiak to third.

By the halfway stage of the restarted race, Correa was back in the lead, setting up a familiar front battle with Brinton, Surowiak, Brown, and Foster.

Surowiak did a stellar job of snatching the lead, which he maintained for a solid two laps before Correa, in excellent form, cut up the inside heading into lap 7, and Brinton also siezing the opportunity to take a lunge for second.

Into the final lap of the race and Brinton piled the pressure on Correa, culminating in a brave overtake for the front. But the lead wasn’t to last for long as Correa took the inside line out of the final turn leading to a drag race to the line – Surowiak then able to dive past the pair to win by just 0.077 of a second. Correa took second and Brinton bounced back from Race 1 woes to stand on the third step. Brown and Foster rounded out the Race 2 top five.

RACE 3
The third and final race of the triple-header weekend was a far quieter affair but the racing at the sharp end was as tight and engaging as ever. Surowiak got a solid start to lead out of the first corner. Correa got outdragged by Brown whilst Frost launched himself from the third row into the fight at the front.

Through the final turn of the first lap Correa took a lunge up the inside of Brown but the Sencat Talent Team rider was having none of it and brushed him off before taking off down the straight after Surowiak.

An exchange of positions between Brown and Surowiak allowed Correa and Brinton to advance into the thick of the front four fight, with Correa eventually overtaking both Brown and Surowiak to lead.

Further back, some 4 seconds behind the lead group, Edmunds, Frost and Ollie Walker (Fibre Tec Honda) were rubbing shoulders, hoping to secure the final top 10 spots of the weekend.

Lucas Brown with the slipstream on the back straight of lap 7 overtook Correa with a late braking maneuver, taking the lead which he held until the home straight where Correa, once again, showed the straight line speed of his Honda engine.

But disaster struck for the American, a third podium was not going to be for Julian Correa as a technical problem with his bike brought an end to the race on the ninth lap, leaving Brown, Brinton and Surowiak to power down the straight without him, and the melee further back between Frost and Walker suddenly becoming a top 5 fight.

Brown saw this as an opportunity to pull the pin and try to make a break out at the front, but Brinton, who had one of the fastest single lap times of the weekend, was determined to take it down to the wire.

Down the straight into the penultimate lap, Brinton showed his straight-line speed, taking Surowiak and Foster with him in his wake, relegating Brown to the back of the lead group. Surowiak took the lead through the first two corners and Brown did a brilliant job of creeping up the inside of both Foster and Brinton. By turn 7, Brown regained the lead, but all four riders, clear from the rest, proved they were contenders for the top step.

The drag down the straight into the final lap saw Surowiak head into turn 1 first, going on to run wide at turn 6 allowing Brown to shoot through the inside to re-take the lead.

Brinton, meanwhile, had a plan of his own as he picked off Surowiak to go up into second out of the back straight and waited until the final corner to pounce on Brown but ran it deep allowing the Sencat Talent Team rider to recover his position for a thrilling four-rider sprint down to the finish line. Brown clinched the victory from Brinton by just 0.08 of a second and Foster snatched P3 from Surowiak on his BTC debut weekend.

After this victory, Brown leads the championship standings, 13 points ahead of a likely frustrated Correa. Surowiak is third, trailing by 20 points, with Frost in fourth and Brinton rounding out the top five, the pre-season favourite now 22 points behind.

The R&G British Talent Cup will return on May 19th for its first of two visits to Donington Park, promising more thrilling, down-to-the-wire racing on the Road to MotoGP™!

For more info checkout our dedicated British Talent Cup News page

Or visit the official British Talent Cup website britishtalentcup.com

©Words/Images are from official press release posted courtesy of britishtalentcup.com

Rev Up! Bristol Bike Nights Roar Back into Action This May

Frank Duggan

April 22, 2024

Calling all bikers! Mark your calendars and fire up your engines, because Bristol Bike Nights are back for another epic season, starting Friday, May 3rd at Fowlers Motorcycles!

This is much more than your average motorcycle meet. Bristol Bike Nights are legendary for bringing together hundreds of passionate riders on every kind of machine imaginable. It’s a feast for the senses, from gleaming chrome to the dark side and from scooters to superbikes, there’s a vibrant community spirit.

There will be opportunities to rub shoulders with motorcycle superstars – racing heroes and adventurous touring legends – who will be there to share their stories and inspire you.

Plus exclusive deals from top brands like Alpinestars and Weise, and a chance to win big in the free raffle.

At each event, one special motorcycle will be awarded ‘Bike of the Night’ by the organisers, and automatically entered into ‘Bike of the Season’, which will be announced at the final event in September.

And there’s more! Bristol Bike Nights are a sensory overload in the best way possible. Dig into burgers and hot dogs, crank up the music, and mingle with local clubs and charities.
Here’s what makes Bristol Bike Nights a must-attend:

Free entry for all bike nuts!
First Friday of every month from May to September (easy to remember!)
5:30 PM to 8:30 PM – perfect for kicking off your weekend.
Incredible atmosphere: Meet fellow riders, see amazing bikes, and enjoy good vibes
Guest stars, raffles, giveaways, and more!
Food, music, and local vendors

No booking required, just show up and join the fun! Fowlers Motorcycles are conveniently located at 2-12 Bath Road, Bristol BS4 3DR, just a 10-minute walk from Temple Meads Station.

For more details, visit.www.fowlers.co.uk

Bristol Bike Nights – Get ready for a two-wheeled blast this summer!

MV Agusta Offers Extra Incentives to Own a Piece of Motorcycle Art

Frank Duggan

April 22, 2024

Curate a new collection with MV Agusta’s spring promotion of a £2,000 trade-in contribution

Following the recently launched ‘We Care’ campaign – which invites MV Agusta owners to reconnect with the renewed UK dealer network – MV Agusta further commits to supporting its Official Dealer Network through a new sales campaign.

Active from 8th April 2024 and available until 30th June 2024, customers looking to part exchange their current motorcycle – regardless of manufacturer or model – will benefit from an additional £2,000 trade-in contribution towards a brand-new MV Agusta. Applying to all 2023 model year machines*, the new retail promotion includes iconic models such as the Brutale 800 R and RR, Brutale 1000 RR and RS, Dragster R, Dragster RC SCS, F3 R and RR, Rush, Superveloce and Superveloce S, and the Turismo Veloce Lusso SCS.

The opening of the 2024 riding season is the perfect opportunity to invite new riders to experience motorcycle art by increasing accessibility into the world of MV Agusta while reinforcing the customer-centric ethos at the heart of MV Agusta’s revitalised vision and renewed Official Dealer Network.

Discover more about MV Agusta here.
The full list of Official MV Agusta Dealers is available here.

*Promotion applies to all MY23 models, excluding Special Edition models. Models listed must be sold from existing dealer stock.

For more MV Agusta news check out our dedicated page MV Agusta News

or head to the official MV Agusta website www.mvagusta.com/

Gagne Turns The Tables To Win Steel Commander Superbike Race Two At Road Atlanta

Frank Duggan

April 22, 2024

Attack Performance Yamaha’s Jake Gagne turned the tables on the Steel Commander Superbike field on Sunday at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta with the three-time MotoAmerica Superbike Champion withstanding the constant pressure applied by the Tytlers Cycle Racing duo of Cameron Beaubier and JD Beach to take his first win of the season.

On Saturday, it was Beaubier winning the first race of the new season at Road Atlanta with Gagne right on his tail. On Sunday, the positions changed with Beaubier unable to find a way past the Yamaha on the final lap. Gagne’s margin of victory over Beaubier was just .119 of a second.

For Gagne the win was the 41^st AMA Superbike win of his career, and it came in dicey conditions with the entire field on full rain tires after wet weather lashed down on the track in Braselton for most of the day.

Third place went to an emotional Cameron Petersen with the South African getting on the podium after a difficult off-season rehabbing from surgery on his badly broken right wrist. There were times when Petersen wasn’t certain that his career would continue so the emotion of racing again and finishing on the podium was overwhelming.

Beach ended up fourth after reeling in Gagne and then battling with and leading the defending champion prior to a high-speed crash and slide through the wet grass in Road Atlanta’s iconic esses. Beach was quickly on his feet and running to his bike, which was on the other side of the track. He got the bike restarted and turned in the right direction and was back on the attack, eventually working his way up to fourth place.

Fifth went to Superbike class rookie Sean Dylan Kelly, giving the Floridian fourth- and fifth-place finishes in his debut in MotoAmerica’s premier class on the TopPro Racing BMW.

Real Steel Motorsports’ Hayden Gillim recovered from an off-track excursion to finish sixth, some 10 seconds behind Kelly and ahead of Warhorse HSBK Racing Ducati’s Loris Baz with the Frenchman still hurting from his Saturday crash.

Visit Indiana/Tom Wood Powersports’ Nolan Lamkin, Warhorse HSBK Racing Ducati’s Josh Herrin and Wrench Motorcycles Bobby Fong rounded out the top 10.

After the opening two races in the championship, Gagne and Beaubier are tied with 45 points apiece. Kelly is third with 24 points, two ahead of Fong and Beach who are tied on 22 points.

Gagne Turns The Tables To Win Steel Commander Superbike Race Two At Road Atlanta — The race came down to Jake Gagne (1) vs. JD Beach (95) vs. Cameron Beaubier (6) and ultimately Gagne vs. Beaubier with Gagne coming out on top. Photo by Brian J. Nelson

Jake Gagne – Winner

“Like these guys said, this morning’s warmup was crazy. It was almost at the point where there was a lot of standing water. So, I was able to get some good laps, but I think all of us had a little bit of a sketchy feeling. I think we knew going into the race here, it was nicely wet and no big puddles to worry about hydroplaning and all that. So, that was good. Got off to a really good start. I don’t remember when I got in the lead, but I think pretty early on. Then I felt really comfortable right away. I think I had a little gap for a couple laps, or five laps or something. Then I started getting reeled in. I could see pit boards flying. I could see Cam’s (Beaubier) and JD’s (Beach) pit boards, so I knew it was those guys coming at that point. Like Cam said, it was a fine line. I was going back and forth between pushing when I could but also no matter what, the most important thing was to get on the podium even if these guys wanted to push harder than me. I got lucky. Really lucky there when JD was in the lead. He was ready to take off. That’s when I had to push my hardest. Then he got screwed by that lapper. I went up the inside. So, it was a bummer for him because JD was riding really, really good. From then on, I think I was in the lead, and I knew Cam was right there. I didn’t know if it was Cam or JD, actually. Just tried to be smart on the last lap. I was kind of parking it in some of those turns. Going down into 10A I was really tight and kind of ran wide. I knew Cam was going to try to maybe square me up, but I just parked it in that second-to-last turn and kind of squared it up. So, he would have had to go around the outside if anything. But it’s good. Like I said, it was a really mentally tough race because we all wanted to push, but at the same time it was going to be really easy to throw it away. A podium would have been the most important, but we got a win so it’s awesome.

Cameron Beaubier – Second Place

“To be honest, I was pretty timid the first couple laps. I was pretty nervous going into that race just with the conditions. That was only my second time out on the BMW in the wet. I didn’t have the best feeling this morning. JD (Beach) came around me like I was standing still in the first section. He was ripping this morning. Made a couple TC changes just as the track was drying up a little bit. I really felt good. I felt so good there in the middle of the race when I was making my charge back. I was definitely taking some chances. I was kind of going back and forth in my head. I was like, ‘man, I feel good, like I’m catching these guys.’ But I was having a couple moments here and there. It seemed like once I caught up to JD and Jake (Gagne), it seemed like they started going faster. Especially when we got tangled up with those lappers a little bit. Jake got a little bit of a gap, and he was going. It seemed like that was the fastest part of his race. Towards the end, I would have really had to take a big risk to try to get him somewhere on the brakes. He did a super good job in the last section holding his line or blocking his line. He brought it home today. I’m stoked to have a 1-2 finish this weekend and start the season off strong. Looking forward to Barber.”

Cameron Petersen – Third Place

“Not a lot of people really know what I’ve gone through the last nine months. Even a month ago, I didn’t know if I was going to be able to make it through a race. It just feels really good to be back up here. Made the right decision with the surgery. Obviously, the people in my corner just really put the work in and made sure I was here, and in the right way. Tough day yesterday. First race back, after everything I’ve been through to come back and do that. But there was a lot of positives to take away from yesterday. I was kind of able to run the pace, and when I dropped back, I was able to close back into the front guys. It was unfortunate with the yellow flag. I don’t think one of us up here actually saw the yellow flag. It was just in a really shi**y position. So, when I had to drop back the two spots, it put me behind (Loris) Baz. I almost ran into the back of him going into turn two there. Today, great to get a podium. I had such a bad feeling this morning in the wet. The first three, four laps out there, I was dog slow. Then I kind of started to get into my rhythm and feel things out. Got a little bit lucky with some guys going down, but I’ll take it.”

Superbike Race Two

Jake Gagne (Yamaha)
Cameron Beaubier (BMW)
Cameron Petersen (Yamaha)
JD Beach (BMW)
Sean Dylan Kelly (BMW)
Hayden Gillim (Honda)
Loris Baz (Ducati)
Nolan Lamkin (BMW)
Josh Herrin (Ducati)
Bobby Fong (Yamaha)

For more news check out our dedicated MotoAmerica News page MotoAmerica News

Or visit the official MotoAmerica website motoamerica.com/

©Words/Images are from official press release posted courtesy of motoamerica.com/

Jacobsen, Herfoss Perfect At Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta

Frank Duggan

April 22, 2024

It was a breakthrough weekend for Rahal Ducati Moto. The brand-new Supersport team had some teething pains at Daytona, but it all came together for them at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta.

First, it was Corey Alexander who earned provisional pole in Friday’s first qualifying. Then, on Saturday, PJ Jacobsen got the team’s first victory of the season aboard his bright-yellow Ducati Panigale V2.

In Sunday’s Supersport race two, the riders faced an additional challenge of a fully rain-soaked racetrack. Jacobsen handled the conditions well, and in fact, the New Yorker led all 15 laps to get the double win. Alexander, who finished just off the podium in fourth on Saturday, was second for a one-two Ducati Rahal Moto finish. Altus Motorsports Suzuki rider Jake Lewis completed the podium in third.

“I feel like it was a very fast race,” Jacobsen said. “Between the three of us, I think our pace was super-fast, to be honest. I kept looking down at my lap timer, and I’m being caught instead of opening a gap, which is not a good sign. Then Corey (Alexander) has Jake (Lewis) doing the same behind him, so that’s not a good sign. So, you just keep pushing and pushing. I feel like our lap times were really fast. I felt like near the limit. I don’t know how they felt. But they were pushing me and kept pushing me. It was a really good race. If we were going out in superbike right now, we’d be out there doing the same thing, all three of us. I got the W again today so it’s really good to have it in the dry and in the wet. It’s kind of a perfect weekend. You don’t really get these. I guess I’m on a high right now. I’m just going to wait for the low weekend, but I’ll just keep on riding this out right now. The team has done a great job, the whole Rahal Ducati team. We have great sponsors, XPEL and Roller Die. It’s been great, and then having Richie come on board and also getting help from Bobby and Simone at Ducati Corse. So, it’s been a huge thing for the whole entire team. I think that we made a huge step with the right people behind us and getting everything organized and in the right direction. So, it’s been a really positive weekend for us over there.”

Jacobsen, Herfoss Perfect At Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta — Troy Herfoss ran away with the Mission King Of The Baggers race on Sunday at Road Atlanta and the win vaulted him into the championship points lead. Photo by Brian J. Nelson

Mission King Of The Baggers – All Herfoss

If those racing for the Mission King Of The Baggers Championship weren’t already worried about Troy Herfoss prior to the Road Atlanta round, they most definitely are now. Herfoss rode his S&S/Indian Motorcycles Challenger to a runaway victory in Sunday’s race held on drying pavement, beating his teammate Tyler O’Hara by 13.887 seconds.

The two factory Indian riders’ choice of using slick tires instead of full rains pretty much sealed the victory for Herfoss. The Australian took off from the start and motored away from the field, with O’Hara taking a bit more time to work his way to the runner-up spot.

Third place, and the first rider using rain tires, was the ever-popular Max Flinders on his Mad Monkey Motorsports Indian Challenger with the New Hampshire resident putting in maximum effort to keep RevZilla/Motul/Harley-Davidson’s Hayden Gillim behind him to score the final podium spot.

After three rounds and six races, Herfoss is now leading the championship by nine points over Harley-Davidson Factory Racing’s Kyle Wyman, who was fifth today.

“I was very confident it would be slicks, but I was unsure of the ruling whether I could start from pit lane,” Herfoss said. “We’ve got two bikes in Australia. I haven’t had a one-bike rule… Or one bike only. I don’t know if it’s a rule or not, but we’ve got one bike. So, that made me a little bit more cautious. But once we established, we had a lot of time to change the tires on the grid, I figured definitely I was going to go slicks but roll out in the wets. Take a nice slow lap, look at the track, get a bit of an idea of the guys going around pit lane. You can usually see what the confidence levels are like. It was slicks all the way. The only problem was two laps to go there was a couple of specks of rain. So, if the skies would have opened one to go, a big gap can come down. It was a weird race for me. I got a really big gap in the first two laps. The first lap especially, three seconds. Then it said five after lap two. I had already slowed down in my mind, and I assumed that everyone was on wets. Dane took the pit board down after the gap went out and just had the lap count. So, I was like, ‘Okay, the gap is going out a long way.’ Then when I hear Tyler’s (O’Hara) on slicks, I’m like, ‘Wow. I was way too cautious. He could have been coming fast.’ That’s what it was like. I’ve never been in that situation where I’ve literally gone off the start and in my mind, it was like, ‘Okay, I’ve won the race. Just don’t mess up.’ You’ve got no idea how nerve-racking that is when you’re in that position. How good is this? Indian one, two, and three. It’s a perfect weekend for me. I never would have dreamed that. A perfect weekend in this championship at all, let alone third weekend in the championship. So, it’s a real credit to the team that they can give me a bike that I can just concentrate on racing on and learning tracks. That’s the reason I’m able to be so competitive. So, I want to say thank you to them.

Junior Cup – Medina’s First

Sunday dawned with rain in the forecast, and the riders in Junior Cup were first up with their feature race, which was shortened by two laps due to the prodigious precipitation. Yandel Medina, who was third in Saturday’s race one, was hoping for a wet race, and that’s exactly what he got. And, he made the best of it, as the New York Safety Track Racing rider notched the first win of his MotoAmerica career. Meanwhile, Ryan Wolfe followed up his runner-up result on Saturday with another second-place finish in Sunday’s race two. BARTCON Racing’s Eli Block, who won both Junior Cup races in the rain at New Jersey Motorsports Park last year, rounded out the podium in third.

“You were just holding your breath for the whole race, especially being in the front,” Medina said. “I didn’t get passed the whole race. I was like, ‘Oh my gosh, nobody is passing me.’ I would just hear bikes right there in the end of 10A. I’m like, ‘Oh, they’re coming.’ I was thinking about yesterday when everybody just swooped in with the draft. But other than that, it was just keep your head down and go. I didn’t know what was going on. I tried to communicate, but my team didn’t understand what I was trying to say. But it all went well. I’m happy. Finally got first place. Everything went well. I’m happy with the results.”

BellissiMoto Twins Cup – Doyle In the Wet

South African Dominic Doyle has paid his dues in the BellissiMoto Twins Cup Championship. Doyle, who raced for a different team last year and finished fourth in the 2023 Twins Cup Championship, got the win in Sunday’s race two aboard his Giaccmoto Racing Yamaha YZF-R7.

British rider, by way of Canada, Jack Roach powered his Wrench Motorcycles Yamaha to second place, albeit a little over three seconds behind Doyle. Twins Cup Championship leader Gus Rodio completed the podium in third after finishing second on Saturday aboard his Rodio Racing – Powered By Robem Engineering Aprilia.

“I got an okay start,” Doyle said. “Jack (Roach) came around me. I just tried to see what kind of pace the other guys had. I felt like I could roll up on them a little bit. So, I made the move in the last turn and kind of just put my head down and tried to ride my own race and click off the same laps I was doing in warmup, like 50, 51. I could kind of stay in that range. I saw my pit board. Got up to about sixth. I came down to three, so I just tried to stay on the same pace. It went back up to four and I had two laps to go. So, I just kind of cruised around and rode my own race. No real problems. Had one little problem in turn one going up the hill. Lost the rear a little bit. But pretty smooth race other than that.”
For more info checkout our dedicated MotoAmerica Support Series News page motoamerica-support-series-latest-news/

Or visit the official MotoAmerica website motoamerica.com/

©Words/Images are from official press release posted courtesy of motoamerica.com/

Rios proves experience isn’t everything in FIM JuniorGP opening round

Frank Duggan

April 21, 2024

Dramatic first podiums and emotional returns to the top step of the rostrum abound in the FIM JuniorGP™ World Championship opener.

The curtains finally lifted on the 2024 FIM JuniorGP™ World Championship in the Motor Valley and Emilia-Romagna round at the Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli, and the Championship opener delivered on everything it promised in the previous day’s qualifying, with stars old and new shining throughout.

Stealing the spotlight early on, precocious talent Jesus Rios (MRE Talent) sealed his status as a contender for the FIM JuniorGP™ World Championship title with not one but two wins in Misano, delivering the double gold on his debut. The first Moto2™ European Championship race of the 2024 campaign saw Alberto Surra (Team Ciatti – Boscoscuro) claim first place with an accomplished ride. Meanwhile, in the first of the day’s two European Talent Cup races Giulio Pugliese (Aspar Junior Team) took victory in dramatic fashion. In the second, Marco Morelli (MLav racing) sealed an emotional first win in the class since 2020. The final winner of the day came in the Stock™ European Championship, with the familiar face of Lorenzo Dalla Porta (Yamaha GV Racing) returning to the top of the rostrum.

FIM JuniorGP
Race 1 of JuniorGP™ delivered drama right from the start, with Maximo Quiles (Team Estrella Galicia 0,0) stalling on the grid. With one of the preseason favourites falling out of contention, Alessandro Morosi (Aspar Junior Team) and Marcos Uriarte (Aspar Junior Team) took advantage. Claiming P2 and P3 respectively, the duo ensured ecstatic scenes in the Aspar box. It was a race in which the lead was contested throughout. With just four laps to go Ruche Moodley (Finetwork Team) collected Rico Salmela (Liqui Moly Husqvarna Intact GP) while the latter was at the head of the pack, leaving both to lament a missed opportunity.

The second JuniorGP™ race of the day offered as much excitement as the first. While Rios made it two wins from two at the first time of asking, he was joined on the Race 2 podium by Adrian Cruces (Finetwork Team) and Cormac Buchanan (AGR Team). Unfortunately for both Moodley and Salmela, the duo came together once again in Race 2. This time around it was Salmela who highsided, his bike taking out Moodley who was completing a long lap penalty.

Moto2 European Championship
Following Surra in Moto2™ ECh were Roberto Garcia (Fantic Cardoso Racing) in P2 and Alberto Ferrandez (Finetwork Team) in P3. It was a hotly contested race with reigning MotoE™ World Champion Mattia Casadei (Team Ciatti – Boscoscuro) falling just short of joining his Team Ciatti teammate on the podium, finishing in fourth.

European Talent Cup
In Race 1 of the ETC Marco Morelli found himself edged back into second place by Giulio Pugliese by a margin of just 0.009 seconds. The duo vyed for first throughout the closing stages of the encounter, while David Gonzalez (AC Racing Team) had a sudden loss of pace towards the end of the race and had to settle for third.

Gonzalez joined Morelli once again on the podium in Race 2 of the ETC, this time able to pressure the leader right until the dying moments, eventually taking second. The two-time podium finishers were joined by Leonardo Zanni (Mir Racing Finetwork Team), who was made to work for the third step on the rostrum by Valentin Perrone (Frando Racing VHC Team) and an inspired Kerman Tinez (Mir Racing Finetwork Team) who finished P5 and P6 respectively.

Stock European Championship
Just behind Stock™ ECh race winner Lorenzo Dalla Porta came newcomer to the class Andy Verdoia (Team Honda Laglisse) and completing the podium in the final race of the day was Dino Iozzo (IUM Motorsports). Iozzo will rue the circumstances that saw him concede the race lead, with Adrian Rodriguez (SF Racing)’s crash resulting in a red flag and a restart, after which Dalla Porta seized the initiative.

Round 1 of the FIM JuniorGP™ World Championship sated appetites for the time being, but with so much talent on display, all eyes will be on the Circuito do Estoril in Portugal for Round 2 on May 5th!

You can also find all the results, videos, photos and information regarding the championship on the official website: www.fimjuniorgp.com

For more info checkout our dedicated FIM JuniorGP™ news page superbike-news.co.uk/cev-repsol/

©Words/Images are from official press release posted courtesy of https://www.fimjuniorgp.com/en

Sanchez Makes Perfect Comeback to the Top Step in Assen

Frank Duggan

April 21, 2024

Spanish rookie Gonzalo Sanchez made an excellent return to the top step of the podium in the second race of the FIM Yamaha R3 bLU cRU World Cup at the TT Circuit Assen after a disappointing DNF in Race 1.

Race 1 winner Marc Vich made the best launch from the line and took an early lead, pulling a gap of one second over the pack before the end of the first lap, but Sanchez was quick to catch his compatriot and make his own bid for the race win. By lap four the Spanish duo had pulled a gap of 3.8 seconds over their rivals, who were in a big group ranging from third to 11th. This group swapped places many times over the course of each 4.5km lap and was more hectic than the relative calm at the front with Vich and Sanchez.

Saturday’s winner Vich held firm for the bulk of the 10-lap race, using his experience and track knowledge to put in smooth and quick laps. Although he led on laps two and three, Sanchez preferred to sit behind his rival, following his lines and waiting for the optimum moment to make a move on a circuit he has never ridden before. This moment came on the last corners of the final lap of the legendary Dutch track when he slipped past Vich. The 15-year-old rookie managed to defend his position into the Gert Timmer chicane and take his third win of the season.

After earning 25-points on Saturday Vich added to his impressive haul with second, just +0.018 behind Sanchez. Brazil’s Eduardo Burr came through for another rostrum result in third after a tremendous group battle. Takumi Takahashi was fourth and Dorian Joulin took fifth after a penalty for Dawid Nowak on the final lap.

The Netherlands’ Indi Schunselaar had a disappointing end to his home race weekend when he suffered a crash at Turn 17 on the third lap.

Round 3 of the FIM Yamaha R3 bLU cRU World Cup will take place at Misano World Circuit from June 14th-16th.

Gonzalo Sanchez
Race 2 Winner
“I’m back in business! I’m so happy to be back on the top step, especially after yesterday which was hard with the crash. Yesterday evening I spent a lot of time with my team working on the strategy, I had confidence in myself and I pushed very hard during the whole race and this is the result! It wasn’t easy because I have never been to this circuit before, but I studied and did everything I could to learn it in the wet and dry. I need to thank everyone who makes it possible for me to be here, and especially those who support me even in the hard times.”

Razgatlioglu and Bautista share honours at the Cathedral

Frank Duggan

April 21, 2024

Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) and Toprak Razgatlioglu (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) shared the spoils on Sunday in Assen.

In the ten lap Tissot Superpole Race Bautista led the field home after a stunning comeback ride saw him come through the field to take the lead from Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) on the penultimate lap.

Starting from pole position, Bautista led the majority of the first half of Race 2 but with spots of rain in the air the field closed up. Razgatlioglu choose this as his moment to pounce but with Bautista retaking the lead before Remy Gardner (GYTR GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Team) and Andrea Locatelli (Pata Prometeon Yamaha) mixed it in.

The Turkish moved into the lead for the final six laps but was under pressure throughout the closing stages. Bautista would finish less than a second behind the race winner with Gardner able to claim his first career podium. Andrea Iannone (Team GoEleven) finished in fourth position ahead of Locatelli.

When WorldSBK returns to action there will be just six points separating Bautista and Razgatlioglu with Bulega a further eight points adrift after a difficult weekend. The Italian finished Race 2 in eighth position.

WorldSBK Race 2 Results
1. Toprak Razgatlioglu (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team)
2. Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) +0.625s
3. Remy Gardner (GYTR GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Team) +1.022
4. Andrea Iannone (Team GoEleven) +3.120s
5. Andrea Locatelli (Pata Prometeon Yamaha) +3.217s
6. Sam Lowes (ELF Marc VDS Racing Team) +5.174

Championship Standings
1. Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) 123 points
2. Toprak Razgatlioglu (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) 117 points
3. Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) 109 points

WorldSBK Tissot Superpole Race Results
1. Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati)
2. Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) +2.686s
3. Alex Lowes (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) +7.403s
4. Remy Gardner (GYTR GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Team) +7.551s
5. Jonathan Rea (Pata Prometeon Yamaha) +8.177s
6. Andrea Locatelli (Pata Prometeon Yamaha) +9.114s

P1 | Toprak Razgatlioglu | ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team
“Grid position isn’t important because it’s the race that matters. I enjoyed this race. At the start there was a bit of rain. I stayed close just to watch the guys and understand what to do. I needed a good pace and I passed people step by step and finally I was in the lead! We made a mistake in the Superpole Race with the tyre so I used the SC0 tyre in the afternoon and it worked well. I want to say thanks to my team’s hard work this weekend because finally we have won in Assen! I’ve never won here before and also for BMW they hadn’t won here. I’m very happy today!”

P2 | Alvaro Bautista | Aruba.it Racing – Ducati
“I’m really happy with how the whole weekend has been. To finish all three races on the podium in these conditions is a pleasure. Race 1 was really tricky and I enjoyed the Superpole Race a lot. There was some light rain in the afternoon and it was a bit difficult. I tried to keep a little bit of margin and I think second position was good. I’m really happy and we are building my confidence with the bike.”

P3 | Remy Gardner | GYTR GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Team
“It’s been two years without a podium for me so yeah I’ve definitely had some really hard times. Obviously, everyone knows my GP story and then we didn’t get a podium last year when I moved to WorldSBK. It’s been a big challenge for me and I just want to say thank you to my girlfriend and my team and everyone that has believed in me. Finally it’s so good to be back on the podium again and I can’t wait to go to the next race already.”

For more info checkout our dedicated World Superbike News page World Superbike News

Or visit the official World Superbike website WorldSBK.com

©Words/Images are from official press release posted courtesy of <WorldSBK.com/a>

Dutch delight for van Straalen

Frank Duggan

April 21, 2024

In front of a home crowd Glenn van Straalen (Pata Yamaha Ten Kate Racing) proved to be the star of the Supersport field by claiming his first career victory.

In difficult conditions the Supersport field started the 18 lap race as rain started to fall around the 4.555km circuit.

While some riders opted to pit immediately at the end of the first lap some waited to change to wet tyres. The majority of the field, including the eventual winner, pitted a lap later and van Straalen gradually made his way through the field before taking the lead with just over four laps remaining. By keeping a cool head van Straalen became the first home winner at the Dutch Round in the Supersport class since Michael van der Mark in 2014.

By finishing second Adrian Huertas (Aruba.it Racing WorldSSP Team) is now the Championship leader although just three points separate the top four in the standings. Niki Tuili (EAB Racing Team) finished third to claim his first podium of the season.

WorldSSP Race 2 Results
1. Glenn van Straalen (Pata Yamaha Ten Kate Racing)
2. Adrian Huertas (Aruba.it Racing WorldSSP Team) +1.352s
3. Niki Tuuli (EAB Racing Team) 2.944s
4. Niccolo Antonelli (Ecosantagata Althea Racing Team) 4.167s
5. Bahattin Sofuoglu (MV Agusta Reparto Corse) +10.872s
6. Kaito Toba (PETRONAS MIE Racing Honda) +19.361s

Championship Standings
1. Adrian Huertas (Aruba.it Racing WorldSSP Team) 86 points
2. Stefano Manzi (Pata Yamaha Ten Kate Racing) 85 points
3. Yari Montella (Barni Spark Racing Team) 84 points

P1 | Glenn van Straalen | Pata Yamaha Ten Kate Racing
“It was difficult to know when to make your pitstop but the grip in the wet was really good. I had a really good rhythm on the rain tyre and I was making some really good lap times. The gap was getting smaller to the riders in front. At the end of the race, when I was leading, I saw what the gap was and it wasn’t easy! I had to stay focused on the race and take it corner by corner to get to the end. It’s really amazing to win here. It feels so good!”

For more info checkout our dedicated World Supersport News page superbike-news.co.uk/world-supersport/

Or visit the official World Superbike website worldsbk.com

©Words/Images are from official press release posted courtesy of <WorldSBK.com/a>

Yoshimura SERT Motul fights back to win EWC opener

Frank Duggan

April 21, 2024

Yoshimura SERT Motul made it back-to-back FIM Endurance World Championship victories with a fighting first place in the 24 Heures Motostoday, as the 10th EWC season promoted by Warner. Bros Discovery Sports began with plenty of unmissable action.

The Suzuki-powered team’s triumph in the 47th edition of the Le Mans-based race followed on from its victory in last September’s title-deciding Bol d’Or. But while the contribution of riders Gregg Black, Dan Linfoot and Étienne Masson was key to its Circuit Bugatti success, the squad’s path to glory was eased when Karel Hanika crashed shortly before the 16-hour mark while leading by four laps.

What was shaping up to be the perfect start to Yamalube YART Yamaha EWC Official Team’sEWC title defence ended as a case of what might have been. The Austrian outfit set new lap records in both qualifying and the race and led comfortably until Hanika’s uncharacteristic error in cold conditions, which dropped it back to third place behind runner-up BMW Motorrad World Endurance Team.

“It’s always good to finish the race but the objective is to win,” Black said. “We won in 2021 and 2022 but those races were a bit easier because we could relax towards the end. We were quite fast with YART but with the crash we dropped quite far back and had to push all the way to the end. BMW and YART had issues and we ended up leading the race when on paper we thought maybe we would finish third or second. But we made no more mistakes and kept pushing. In the end we only had one lap over BMW so we couldn’t relax. It’s amazing to be back on the first step [of the podium here], just amazing. Dan, Étienne, the whole team have done such great work all winter, we showed our speed and got our revenge from last year. It’s just awesome.”

For Linfoot, his maiden EWC victory was the perfect way to begin his career as a Yoshimura SERT Motul rider. “The last stint you were over-thinking everything, you hear every noise of the engine, you short shift early, you downshift with some space,” Briton Linfoot said. “It was tough but I rode under the limit, found a nice rhythm and kept my head. It’s amazing, I’m speechless, my first race with the team, in the team’s home race. I’m just so thankful to everybody for accepting me into the team, helping me with everything I need. It’s just an incredible day.”

Hanika injured his shoulder in his Sunday morning crash and the decision was taken for his team-mates Niccolò Canepa and Marvin Fritz to complete the race as a pair.

“I’m really sorry for my team because I blame myself, I should be more careful in these conditions,” the Czech said. “To be honest I don’t really know the reason of the crash, we have to analyse. My team-mates did an amazing job to take us back to the podium position but it’s a big shame we couldn’t fight for the win. I probably could have continued but it would be a bit risky with my shoulder. The condition of it is not the best, so we decided to continue this way [with two riders].”

Like YART, Yoshimura SERT Motul had to make up for lost time, the team fighting back to take third from Kawasaki Webike Trickstar shortly after 03h00 having earlier dropped out of the lead fight when a traction control issue caused Black to crash nearing the end of the third hour.

Yoshimura SERT Motul Team Director Yohei Kato said at the time: “In the pit box we missed a fuel reset and Gregg tried to reset but made a wrong button. The traction control didn’t work well and he had a high side. But all three riders have shown a great performance so we will catch up soon.”

There was an emotional win in the Dunlop-equipped FIM Endurance World Cup category with National Motos Honda gaining revenge for its agonising Bol d’Or retirement last September when it was on course for the Superstock title only to stop with 20 minutes remaining. Chromeburner-RAC41-Honda finished second followed by 3ART Best of Bike after the #36 Yamaha was hastily repaired after a crash nearing the final hour.

“We are very happy because the last year at the Bol d’Or we lose the race after 23 hours,” said Swiss Sébastien Suchet, who along with his brother Valentin and Frenchman Guillaume Raymond, claimed top honours in the Dunlop-equipped Superstock class. “For this year we wanted to finish the race and we win. The Bol d’Or was very difficult but now we are all happy, for my team and my team-mates and for the next race we will push again to the maximum.”

Reiterberger, who was partnered to second place by Illya Mykhalchyk and BMW Motorrad World Endurance Team newcomer Sylvain Guintoli, said: “We had a problem with the exhaust but second is still a very good position for us and we didn’t give up. It was unbelievably cold [during the night], colder than last year. I had a glove under my glove and a heat vest under the suit but it was still super-super cold, the visor was frozen and I really didn’t feel the fingers under braking so I break like I feel.”

Behind the overall top three, Kawasaki Webike Trickstar held third for a time, dropped back with gear selector and exhaust issues before moving ahead of Tati Team Beringer Racing for fourth with three hours remaining.

Although it wasn’t the record-setting sixth 24 Heures Motos victory KWT rider Grégory Leblanc craved, fourth spot still represented a strong start to KWT’s second EWC season with new recruit Christian Gamarino achieving his best EWC finish to date on his step up to the championship’s headlining class, after he helped Team 33 Louit April Moto win the FIM Endurance World Cup in 2023.

For Tati Team Beringer Racing, meanwhile, fifth among the Formula EWC outfits was a positive beginning to its new-for-2024 Honda alliance although a long pitstop after midday caused concern. Team Bolliger Switzerland enjoyed a fine run to sixth followed by BMRT3D maxxess Nevers on its graduation to Formula EWC level. Motobox Kremer Racing took eighth with KM99 ninth and Wójcik Racing Team EWC completing the top 10 after both suffered several delays. Mana-Au Competition, Maco Racing and Honda Viltaïs Racing were non-finishers.

Following home the Superstock top three, Junior Team Le Mans Sud Suzuki placed fourth followed by TCP Racing on its debut as a permanent EWC entrant. TRT27 AZ Moto, which included Isle of Man TT legend Michael Dunlop in its line-up, was next among the all-season Superstock teams on its maiden EWC appearance with Honda power followed by JMA Racing Action Bike. Team 18 Sapeurs Pompier CMS Motostore, Team 202 and Team Players were all delayed by crashes but crossed the line following extensive repairs.

Team Aviobike by M2 Revo and Wójcik Racing Team STK were not classified due to technical issues, while Tecmas-MRP-BMW Racing Team, ADSS97, Team Étoile, Team Slider Endurance, Honda No Limits, Pit-Lane Endurance, Uniserv Moto82 Team, Team Racing 85 by Soleane and Team 33 Louit April Moto all retired.

How F.C.C. TSR Honda France dropped out of the EWC victory chase
F.C.C. TSR Honda France was firmly in the victory fight when Mike Di Meglio crashed early in the second hour of racing, ending the team’s chances of a repeat 24 Heures Motos win in the process. “I was taking care but we have no grip on the rear,” Di Meglio said. “I was not pushing because with the full tank of fuel at the start [of the stint] you need to manage the braking so I was taking care of when to overtake the guys but I lose the front. It’s not good to start like this but we keep calm.”

Rea makes emotional return to racing after serious injury
Despite falling twice, Gino Rea described his return to racing for the first time since he suffered serious injuries in a crash practicing for the Suzuka 8 Hours in 2022, as a “positive” experience. The Honda-powered Wójcik Racing Team rider said: “In general it’s positive because I felt good, the head was good and my riding was good and my pace was okay. Unfortunately, I crashed on the first lap, it was totally unexpected, I had a problem with my brakes on the first lap. I was trying to adjust it on every corner but I didn’t quite get the feeling. I went to brake, but I had no brake and down I went. But thank you for everyone who supported me through my rehab. If it wasn’t for you I wouldn’t be here.”

Alt: Honda Viltaïs Racing “didn’t deserve” early retirement
Florian Alt said his Honda Viltaïs Racing team “didn’t deserve” the engine failure that robbed it of a possible podium finish in the second hour of the 24 Heures Motos. The top independent team in the FIM Endurance World Championship had been in third place during the early stages of the race. “I’m really, really not happy because we didn’t deserve it, we didn’t have any issues in the test, we didn’t have any issues last year and this time it was some material which was not in our hands,” German rider Alt said. “I am really sorry for the mechanics, they did an amazing job, they rebuilt the engine in two hours to try to continue but actually it was impossible. We were so fast, it was bad luck but we come back.”

Title-winning Team 33 Louit April Moto out of luck
There was early disappointment for Team 33 Louit April Moto, which was beginning the defence of its FIM Endurance World Cup title in Le Mans but was forced to retire with a mechanical failure shortly after 19h30. Guillaume Antiga, part of its four-strong Kawasaki-powered line-up, said: “After the crash of my team-mate Flavio [Ferroni] the radiator is broken and the bike temperature is too much and it’s not possible to continue the race.”

WHAT’S NEXT?
Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium hosts round two the EWC season, the 8 Hours of Spa Motos, from 6-8 June.

For more info check out our dedicated Endurance World Championship News page Endurance World Championship

or visit the official Endurance World Championship website fimewc.com

Ryan Vickers Secures Double Victory at Circuito de Navarra Inc. Support races round up!

Matt Anthony

April 21, 2024

Bennetts British Superbike Championship

Ryan Vickers Claims Victory in Thrilling Season Opener

The 2024 Bennetts British Superbike Championship kicked off in spectacular fashion at Spain’s Circuito de Navarra, with Ryan Vickers (OMG GRILLA Yamaha Racing) securing a hard-fought victory in Race 1.

Vickers, who started from pole position, managed to hold off a determined challenge from his teammate Kyle Ryde, crossing the line just 1.364 seconds ahead after 20 laps of intense racing. Danny Kent (McAMS Racing Yamaha) completed the podium, a further 0.788 seconds behind Ryde.

Glenn Irwin (Hager PBM Ducati) and Rory Skinner (Cheshire Mouldings BMW Motorrad) rounded out the top five, with Christian Iddon (Oxford Products Racing Ducati), Tommy Bridewell (Honda Racing UK), and Max Cook (Completely Motorbikes Kawasaki) in close pursuit.

The race saw several impressive performances throughout the field, with Charlie Nesbitt (MasterMac Honda) and Jason O’Halloran (Completely Motorbikes Kawasaki) completing the top ten.

Leon Haslam (ROKiT Haslam Racing BMW Motorrad) and Peter Hickman (FHO Racing BMW Motorrad) finished 11th and 12th, respectively, after battling their way through the field.

Further down the order, Billy McConnell (C&L Fairburn / Look Forward Racing) and Andrew Irwin (Honda Racing UK) secured 15th and 16th positions, while Franco Bourne (Rapid Honda) and Dean Harrison (Honda Racing UK) completed the top 18.

The race was not without incident, as several riders failed to finish, including Louis Valleley (NP Racing Kawasaki), Alex Olsen (Cumins by Team IWR Honda), Lewis Rollo (IN Competition / SENCAT Aprilia), Tom Neave (STAUFF Fluid Power Kawasaki), Josh Brookes (FHO Racing BMW Motorrad), and Storm Stacey (LKQ Euro Car Parts Kawasaki).

Race 2

The second race of the 2024 Bennetts British Superbike Championship at Spain’s Circuito de Navarra saw Ryan Vickers (OMG GRILLA Yamaha Racing) claim his second victory of the weekend, solidifying his position as the early championship leader.

Vickers managed to hold off a determined challenge from Danny Kent (McAMS Racing Yamaha), crossing the line just 0.277 seconds ahead after another 20 laps of intense racing. Kyle Ryde (OMG GRILLA Yamaha Racing) completed the podium, 1.177 seconds behind his teammate.

Leon Haslam (ROKiT Haslam Racing BMW Motorrad) put in an impressive performance to finish fourth, ahead of Christian Iddon (Oxford Products Racing Ducati) and Jason O’Halloran (Completely Motorbikes Kawasaki).

Max Cook (Completely Motorbikes Kawasaki) and Glenn Irwin (Hager PBM Ducati) secured seventh and eighth positions, respectively, while Charlie Nesbitt (MasterMac Honda) and Peter Hickman (FHO Racing BMW Motorrad) completed the top ten.

Josh Brookes (FHO Racing BMW Motorrad) bounced back from a disappointing Race 1 to finish 11th, followed by Lee Jackson (MasterMac Honda) and Andrew Irwin (Honda Racing UK).

Billy McConnell (C&L Fairburn / Look Forward Racing) and Storm Stacey (LKQ Euro Car Parts Kawasaki) secured 14th and 15th positions, while Franco Bourne (Rapid Honda) and Alex Olsen (Cumins by Team IWR Honda) completed the top 17.

The race saw several riders fail to finish, including Dean Harrison (Honda Racing UK), Tommy Bridewell (Honda Racing UK), Rory Skinner (Cheshire Mouldings BMW Motorrad), Danny Buchan (DAO Racing Kawasaki), Fraser Rogers (TAG Honda), Louis Valleley (NP Racing Kawasaki), and Lewis Rollo (IN Competition / SENCAT Aprilia).

Quattro Group British Supersport & GP2 Championship

Round 1 of the 2024 Quattro Group British Supersport and GP2 Championships at Circuito de Navarra provided thrilling racing action.

In the Sprint Race, Luke Stapleford (Macadam Triumph Racing) claimed victory, narrowly defeating Davey Todd (Powertoolmate Ducati) by 1.538 seconds. Jack Kennedy (Honda Racing UK) completed the podium, just 0.417 seconds behind Todd. Brad Perie (Gearlink Kawasaki) and Rhys Irwin (Astro-JJR Suzuki) rounded out the top five.

The GP2 class saw Jack Nixon (Kramer Racing) secure the win, finishing 12th overall, followed by Owen Jenner (Kramer Racing) in 22nd place. Lucca Allen (Team FR89) and Cameron Dawson (Gearlink Kawasaki) both failed to finish the race.

Benjamin Currie (Oxford Products Racing Ducati) was given a Ride Through Equivalent Time Penalty of 28 seconds, relegating him to 11th position, despite setting the fourth-fastest lap of the race.

The Feature Race provided even more excitement, with Benjamin Currie making a stunning comeback to claim victory by just 0.024 seconds ahead of Luke Stapleford. Davey Todd completed the podium, 4.081 seconds behind the leading duo.

Brad Perie and Jack Kennedy secured fourth and fifth places, respectively, while Alastair Seeley (Binch Pro Yamaha) impressed with a sixth-place finish.

In the GP2 class, Owen Jenner took the win, finishing 15th overall, followed by Lucca Allen in 19th and Owen Mellor (Nykos Racing) in 20th. Jack Nixon, who had won the Sprint Race, unfortunately failed to finish the Feature Race.

The race was not without incident, as several riders failed to finish, including Matt Truelove (Truelove Brothers Racing), Harvey Claridge (Go Racing Developments / Nova), Morgan McLaren-Wood (Josh Davis Motorsport), Cameron Dawson, Eugene McManus (ROKiT Haslam Racing Ducati), James McManus (ROKiT Haslam Racing Ducati), Rhys Irwin, and Dave Grace (Dave Grace Racing).

ABK Beer 0% BMW Motorrad F 900 R Cup

The ABK Beer 0% BMW Motorrad F 900 R Cup provided a day of exciting racing action at Spain’s Circuito de Navarra.

The Last Chance Qualifying (LCQ) race saw Paul Young (R&G) claim victory, ahead of Kate Walker (FHO Racing) and Tyler Viveiros (Army Motorcycle Road Race Team). Young’s best lap of 1:50.378 was enough to secure the win and the fastest lap of the race.

In the main race, Nikki Coates (Team Art of Racing / Ernie Coates Trackdays) emerged victorious after a thrilling battle with Mason Johnson (Johnson Racing). The pair were separated by just 0.002 seconds at the finish line, with Coates setting a best lap of 1:47.077 to secure the win. Johnson, who led for much of the race, had to settle for second place, despite setting a new lap record of 1:47.036.

Thomas Strudwick (Case Moto) completed the podium in third, 0.891 seconds behind the leading duo. Christian Smith (SCH Motoprep / Bathams Racing) and Barry Burrell (Halliwell Jones) rounded out the top five.

Further down the field, several riders made notable progress, including Paul Young, who climbed from 27th on the grid to finish sixth, and Michael Rutter (Bathams Racing), who moved up from ninth to seventh.

The race also saw its share of incidents, with several riders failing to finish. Kate Walker, who had impressed in the LCQ race, retired after 11 laps, while Joe Walton (KBP Racing), Gary Ford (72 Racelife), and Dave Crampton (Dave Crampton Racing) also failed to see the checkered flag.

James Ellison (Back On Track Powered by HSO), Kieran Smith (Bowker Motorrad / Bathams Racing), Robert Varey (Stanford Fastline), James O’Mara (BRP Racing), Jamie Hanks-Elliott (FHO Racing), and Steven Brogan (Team SBR Belgrave Motors) were among the other non-finishers.

As the ABK Beer 0% BMW Motorrad F 900 R Cup riders reflect on their performances at Circuito de Navarra, they will be looking to build on the experience gained and lessons learned as the season progresses. With close racing and a competitive field, fans can expect more thrilling battles in the upcoming rounds of this exciting one-make series.

R&G British Talent Cup

The R&G British Talent Cup provided two exciting races on Sunday at Spain’s Circuito de Navarra, with close battles and impressive performances throughout the field.

In Race 2, Filip Surowiak (Team City Lifting / RS Racing) claimed a hard-fought victory, edging out Julian Correa (Microlise Cresswell Racing) by just 0.077 seconds. Amanuel Brinton (Kovara Projects / RS Racing) completed the podium, a mere 0.002 seconds behind Correa. Lucas Brown (SENCAT Talent Team / Mortimer Racing) and Mason Foster (BRP Racing) rounded out the top five, with Surowiak setting the fastest lap of the race with a 1:49.157.

Race 3 saw another thrilling battle, with Lucas Brown taking the win by just 0.008 seconds ahead of Amanuel Brinton. Mason Foster secured third place, 0.071 seconds behind the leading duo, while Filip Surowiak had to settle for fourth, 0.100 seconds off the pace. Ryan Frost (Fibre Tec) completed the top five.

Further down the field, several riders made notable progress, including Ollie Walker (Fibre Tec), who climbed from 11th to seventh in Race 2, and Jack Burrows (Burrows Engineering / RK Racing), who moved up from 14th to ninth in Race 3.

The races also saw their share of incidents, with Julian Correa, Tyler King (Microlise Cresswell Racing), and Charlie Barnes (SENCAT Talent Team / Mortimer Racing) failing to finish Race 3. Iwan Jones (Jones Brothers Racing) retired from Race 3 after 10 laps, while Raheesh Khatri (Wilson Racing) did not start the final race of the weekend.

Amanuel Brinton set the fastest lap of Race 3 with a 1:49.499, underlining his strong performance throughout the weekend.

After 16 hours: YART’s night riders lose Le Mans EWC lead after crash

Frank Duggan

April 21, 2024

Yamalube YART Yamaha EWC Official Team’sdominance of the FIM Endurance World Championship season-opening 24 Heures Motos is over after a heavy crash for Karel Hanika just when it looked set to reach the 16-hour points-paying mark in front.

Having claimed EWC title gold in 2023, YART riders Niccolò Canepa, Marvin Fritz and Karel Hanika were four laps ahead of the BMW Motorrad World Endurance Team trio of Sylvain Guintoli, Illya Mykhalchyk and Markus Reiterberger prior to the final eight hours of unmissable EWC racing getting under way.

As was the case after eight hours, points were handed out to the top 10 in both Formula EWC and Superstock following 16 hours of action. But it was Yoshimura SERT Motul that bagged the 10 points for taking an unlikely lead as BMW completed a longer pitstop and YART’s mechanics spent 18 minutes repairing the damaged #1 Yamaha.

Suzuki-powered Yoshimura SERT Motul had demoted Kawasaki Webike Trickstar for third shortly after 03h00 during its charging recover after a traction control issue caused Gregg Blackto crash nearing the end of the third hour.

The YART, BMW and Kawasaki teams were classified in second, third and fourth respectively after 16 hours, although YART has subsequently slipped to fourth.

Honda-powered Tati Team Beringer Racing is fifth behind the delayed YART team to make it five different motorcycle manufacturers in the top five after 16 hours.

Team Bolliger Switzerland is in sixth place among the Formula EWC squads followed by BMRT3D maxxess Nevers, which is stepping up to the EWC’s top tier in 2024.

Motobox Kremer Racing is eighth with its all-German rider line-up followed by F.C.C. TSR Honda France, which continues to fight back following Mike Di Meglio’s heavy crash in the second hour. Wójcik Racing Team EWC was the 10th best Formula EWC team after 16 hours.

Having held third on Saturday evening, KM99 dropped out of contention due to lengthy pitstops shortly before and after midnight. Maco Racing was delayed by a crash at 03h22.

Superstock superstars headed by National Motos Honda
Having led after eight hours to score 10 points, FIM Endurance World Cup pole-sitter National Motos Honda picked up another 10 points by reaching 16 hours in front in the Dunlop-equipped Superstock division following a strong display from the French squad’s riders Guillaume Raymond and the Suchet brothers Sébastien and Valentin. “It’s difficult to ride but our objective is to finish so we don’t push,” Sébastien Suchet said.

Chromeburner-RAC41-Honda continues to occupy second place with 3ART Best of Bikemoving up from fifth after eight hours to third spot with 16 hours. The Yamaha team benefitted from a race-ending crash for Team Slider Endurance and a delay for Team Aviobike by M2 Revo, which is giving the Aprilia make its EWC return this season.

Tecmas-MRP-BMW Racing Team has fought back to fourth in class after Hannes Soomercrashed heavily at 22h35. Behind the recovering Team Aviobike by M2 Revo, Junior Team Le Mans Sud Suzuki is sixth with EWC newcomer TCP Racing seventh despite a crash at 05h36. JMA Racing Action Bike is the next best-placed permanent Superstock team followed by TRT27 AZ Moto and Team 18 Sapeurs Pompiers CMS Motostore, which was delayed by a heavy crash at 04h16.

ADSS97’s pursuit of a top 10 finish ended in the 15th hour following engine failure. Team Étoile, which is competing in the EWC for the first time, was third in class when Yudai Kameicrashed at high speed through the Garage Vert corner at 04h43. Honda No Limits was forced to retire at 02h00 following an earlier crash for Alexis Masbou. Team Players, Team 202 and Wójcik Racing Team STK all lost time with crashes, including two for Gino Rea, who is making his return to racing after suffering serious injuries in a crash while practicing for the Suzuka 8 Hours in 2022. The Honda-powered Wójcik outfit has also been delayed by electronic issues.

“I’m really, really not happy because we didn’t deserve it, we didn’t have any issues in the test, we didn’t have any issues last year and this time it was some material which was not in our hands,” German rider Alt said. “I am really sorry for the mechanics, they did an amazing job, they rebuilt the engine in two hours to try to continue but actually it was impossible. We were so fast, it was just bad luck but we will come back for sure.”

For more info check out our dedicated Endurance World Championship News page Endurance World Championship

or visit the official Endurance World Championship website fimewc.com

Beaubier Over Gagne And Fong In Road Atlanta Superbike Thriller

Frank Duggan

April 21, 2024

In a titanic battle that began with as many as seven riders fighting at the front and ended with three, Tytlers Cycle Racing’s Cameron Beaubier came out on top with a pass on Attack Performance Yamaha’s Jake Gagne with two laps to go in a thrilling Steel Commander Superbike season-opening race at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta on Saturday.

The win was the 60^th Superbike victory of Beaubier’s career and it came with the five-time MotoAmerica Superbike Champion biding his time and sitting behind Gagne and Wrench Motorcycles’ Bobby Fong for the last third of the race. Beaubier planned to make his move with three laps to go, but instead had to wait until the penultimate lap. He made the move and made it stick, beating three-time MotoAmerica Superbike Champion Gagne to the line by .240 of a second in what was his comeback race from the injuries he suffered last year at Pittsburgh International Race Complex.

For many, Fong was the surprise of the weekend with the Wrench Motorcycles Yamaha YZF-R1-mounted Fong earning pole position in the morning Q2 session, then running at the front for the duration and ending up third and just .332 of a second from race-winner Beaubier.

TopPro Racing Team’s Sean Dylan Kelly was an impressive fourth in his MotoAmerica Superbike debut. The Floridian was quick from the get-go and didn’t put a foot wrong – even as he battled in the heated pack at the front in the first portion of the race. Kelly was just 3.5 seconds behind Beaubier and .7 of a second ahead of Warhorse HSBK Racing Ducati’s Josh Herrin.

Herrin was at the front of the Superbike pack early in the race, battling primarily with Fong for the top spot as the others hooked in behind the lead duo. Fong made a pass on the inside of Herrin early in the race, but it was the second time that he made the same move in the final corner that ended up going horribly wrong for Herrin. With the door open enough for his Yamaha to fit through, Fong made the move in the final corner and the result was Herrin running off the track on the exit.

Beaubier Over Gagne And Fong In Road Atlanta Superbike Thriller — The battle for the Superbike win came down to Gagne (10) vs. Fong (5) and Beaubier (60)
Photo by Brian J. Nelson

By the time he rejoined the racetrack, Herrin was well back and forced to do an admirable job of moving forward again with passes on Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki’s Richie Escalante, Tytlers Cycle Racing’s JD Beach, and Warhorse HSBK Racing Ducati’s Loris Baz.

Herrin ended up fifth with Baz sixth, Beach seventh and Escalante eighth with the top eight separated by under six seconds. Real Steel Motorsports’ Hayden Gillim and Thrashed Bike Racing’s Max Flinders rounded out the top 10.

After crossing the finish line just .6 of a second apart, Baz and Escalante were involved in a big crash together at the end of the front straight after both crossed the finish line.

Two of the series stars had bad days with Brandon Paasch crashing his Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki out of the race after just two laps and Attack Performance Yamaha’s Cameron Petersen crashing, remounting, and finishing 15^th to at least salvage a championship point. Petersen was running near the front when he was penalized two spots for passing under a waving yellow flag. After doing so, Petersen crashed but was able to remount and finish the race.

Quotes

Cameron Beaubier – Winner

“I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t pretty over motorcycles after Pittsburgh. Sitting at home hurt, but all of us share this passion. Got motorcycles in our blood. A couple months go by and then you start getting hungry. The team posted the date for the first test and then you got something to work towards. Then after that, I was just itching to go racing. We got a couple good tests under our belt. Felt really good at the test. Made some good progress with the bike, with the Tytlers guys. Big hats off to them. They worked their butts off all off-season to elevate our game. Yesterday didn’t necessarily start out great, throwing the bike down the road in the second practice. But today was awesome. We didn’t make it easy, Jake (Gagne) either, on ourselves, starting on the second row of the grid, just with how stacked the field is right now. Like Jake said, it’s pretty awesome to race with all these guys. I was only two or three tenths off, and I was back in fifth in qualifying. That hasn’t been the case so much in the past years in MotoAmerica Superbike. So, it’s pretty cool. Just happy to be back and happy to feel healthy. Jake was setting a good pace up there in front. I think we were all kind of in management mode. The track was pretty greasy. We were sliding around. I feel like it would have been pretty risky to go any faster. I was just trying to bide my time. Bobby (Fong) was making it really difficult because he was so late on the brakes. I kept catching him on the back straightaway and had to roll out a little bit. I would catch him at the worst spot, going into the kink, and then he would brake super deep down into 10. So, I was kind of stuck there. I was just biding my time until the last few laps. I was able to make a couple good passes. Jake and I went back and forth that last lap and was able to bring it home. It’s a good feeling.”

Jake Gagne – Second Place

“Yeah, definitely. It was cool. Going into the race, starting second row, having fast guys in front, fast guys behind, it’s a whole different story than last couple years. I keep saying it, but there’s so much speed in this Superbike class now. It’s pretty cool to be a part of. It was one of those days. All I wanted to do was get a clean start, but you never really know what kind of pace guys are going to have, especially that second half. I was actually kind of surprised. I wasn’t sure. Bob (Fong) passed (Josh) Herrin. He went off and then Bob ran a little wide and then I was in the lead. I wasn’t sure who was behind me, honestly. I knew Bobby was there. I figured Cam (Beaubier) was there. But I think it was pretty slick out there. The Dunlops held up well with the heat of the track. This place gets really greasy. I’m happy. The bike was working really, really good. Kind of like last year, I was just struggling with such bad arm pump half the race. I just felt like a sitting duck. Just shows you how good this Yamaha is working. It was a fun race. I knew somebody was going to try to pass me. Second-to-last lap, Cam came up the inside somewhere. We went back and forth a couple of times. It was a good race and a good way to start the year.”

Superbike Race One

Cameron Beaubier (BMW)
Jake Gagne (Yamaha)
Bobby Fong (Yamaha)
Sean Dylan Kelly (Yamaha)
Josh Herrin (Ducati)
Loris Baz (Ducati)
JD Beach (BMW)
Richie Escalante (Suzuki)
Hayden Gillim (Honda)
Max Flinders (Yamaha)

For more news check out our dedicated MotoAmerica News page MotoAmerica News

Or visit the official MotoAmerica website motoamerica.com/

A Day Of Close Racing And Firsts In MotoAmerica Support Class Battles At Road Atlanta

Frank Duggan

April 21, 2024

Close racing was the order of the day as the MotoAmerica Championship began its 10^th season of racing with the four support classes ending the day with a combined margin of victory of just 1.5 seconds (for an average of .389 of a second) at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta on Saturday.

Winners on the day included a few firsts. For starters there was a first-time winner in the Junior Cup class with Matthew Chapin scoring his debut MotoAmerica win, and the Rahal Ducati Moto team nabbed its first-ever Supersport victory with PJ Jacobsen riding the team’s Ducati Panigale V2 to victory.

Additionally, Troy Herfoss won the Mission King Of The Baggers race in his first visit to Road Atlanta, and Rocco Landers rode a Suzuki GSX-8R to victory in the BellissiMoto Twins Cup race for the new bike’s first Twins Cup win.

A Day Of Close Racing And Firsts In Motoamerica Support Class Battles At Road Atlanta — Troy Herfoss (1) beat Kyle Wyman (33) and Hayden Gillim (1) to win the Mission King Of The Baggers on Saturday at Road Atlanta. Photo by Brian J. Nelson

Mission King Of The Baggers – Aussie, Aussie, Aussie

S&S/Indian Motorcycle’s Troy Herfoss continues to impress with the Australian winning his second Mission King Of The Baggers race of the year at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta on a sunny Saturday.

Herfoss, who earlier in the day won the three-lap Mission King Of The Baggers Challenge, sat behind Harley-Davidson Factory Racing’s Kyle Wyman for four of the eight laps before making a pass on the championship points leader and taking the victory, albeit by just .615 of a second.

Third place went to RevZilla/Motul/Vance & Hines Harley-Davidson’s Hayden Gillim with the Kentuckian earning his first podium finish of the season in the fifth Baggers race of the year.

Herfoss’s win over Wyman cut a 10-point lead in half and the pair are now separated by just five points.

“It is a really enjoyable track. Like I keep saying, it’s a lot to learn, but the Indian Challenger has got a great base setting. I can roll out and I don’t have to think about the bike. I can learn the track. It’s just really important to be patient at the moment. The first session I was a little bit frustrated after the P1 session. I just feel like I sort of peaked in the middle of the session and then I was probably a little bit closer than I thought I would be in the first few laps, and then I got out and got excited. As we all know, these bikes are so big, you can’t over-ride them. So, that was a bit frustrating. I just had to reset there. It probably halted progress for us. It’s funny. I’m sitting here with a Challenge win and a race win and I’m criticizing myself. It’s such a long year. Kyle (Wyman) just seen me for three laps, and the race continues. These guys are both watching me in the races. I crossed the line first in this one and there’s 13 races to go. They know a bit more about me and I know a bit more about them. It will just be like a chess match all year the way it’s going. When I signed up for this there was a lot of DNFs, and consistency would win it. This year it’s like raw speed and consistency is what you need. It’s an elite championship, and all these guys, especially the guys next to me here are putting in a big effort, and so am I.”

Motoamerica Support - Road Atlanta - Sunday Morning — Avery Dreher crashed out of the lead in the Junior Cup class, handing victory to Matthew Chapin. Photo by Brian J. Nelson

Junior Cup – A First For Chapin

Saturday’s racing started off with MotoAmerica’s entry-level riders, who always put on a great show in the Junior Cup Championship. There are a lot of new faces in Junior Cup this year as several riders have moved up to other race classes. However, Bad Boys Racing’s Avery Dreher, who is also racing in the BellissiMoto Twins Cup Championship, is defending his 2023 Junior Cup Championship. And, for a while, it looked like the rider of the number-one Kawasaki was going to win the race. Unfortunately, after extending his lead to a comfortable distance, he made a mistake and crashed out. That left a gaggle of riders to fight for the win, and fight, they did.

BARTCON Racing’s rookie rider Matthew Chapin prevailed with the first win of his young career by .072 of a second over polesitter Ryan Wolfe, who notched his first career podium aboard his Wolfe Racing Kawasaki. Third place went to New York Safety Track Racing’s Yandel Medina for the second podium of his career.

“I was stuck in the back of the pack the whole time,” Chapin said. “People were just dive-bombing me. I couldn’t really get anything done. But I knew if I was patient, I could get the draft because I’m a lot smaller than everybody else. I don’t weigh lot, so I knew I could draft into the line. I passed Ryan up the inside at the end. He came back on the outside, and I think it was in turn 11, I passed him back up the inside for the win. I’m so pumped right now. Words can’t even express it. I’m so pumped.”

BellissiMoto Twins Cup – Suzuki’s First With the GSX-8R

The Suzuki GSX-8R has joined the fray in the highly competitive BellissiMoto Twins Cup Championship, and in race one, RevZilla/Motul Vance & Hines Suzuki rider Rocco Landers brought home the bike’s first MotoAmerica win by .769 of a second over Rodio Racing – Powered By Robem Engineering Aprilia rider Gus Rodio. Rodio was followed across the finish line by his teammate and third-place finisher Alessandro Di Mario.

“I knew I was decent in the first sector because the (Suzuki) just brakes and turns like a total dream,” Landers said. “I just tried to sit there and try to get by them and see if I could lead through the first sector and see what happened. Eventually I was able to. I wasn’t really looking back, but based off the fact that I didn’t have anyone come flying by me down the back straight, I figured it somewhat worked out. The bike is fast as heck as soon as you get it into sixth gear, but I knew I had to really work for it. Up until there, we’re working towards making that power happen. It’s sick to get a win in the third race on this thing, second weekend. The team works so hard, my whole crew. We haven’t started a session with the same setup we had the session before since we got on the thing. The progress that we’ve made is amazing. The thing is so much different than it was when we rolled it out of the truck at Daytona. But it’s going to be quite a season with these guys with how good they’re riding. We’ll see where it goes.”

Supersport – Jacobsen Gives Rahal Victory #1

With 44 riders entering to race in Supersport at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta and several former Superbike riders joining the class for the 2024 season, we knew the competition level would be at an all-time high. Saturday’s Supersport race one did not disappoint as it was definitely one of the most exciting races of the day.

Vision Wheel M4 ECSTAR Suzuki rider Tyler Scott looked to have the race in hand, but he unfortunately suffered a big crash in the esses, which took him out of the race. At the front of the pack, N2 Racing/BobbleHeadMoto’s Blake Davis got his Yamaha in the lead, but Rahal Ducati Moto’s PJ Jacobsen overtook Davis and crossed the finish line just .103 of a second ahead of Davis.

Meanwhile, Mathew Scholtz, who had electrical problems with his Strack Racing Yamaha on Thursday and only managed to qualify 11th, knifed his way through the pack and actually led the race for a short time before bringing his bike home in third place for the final spot on the podium.

“First, I really want to just say thanks to the Rahal Ducati Moto Team, XPEL, and Roller Die,” Jacobsen commented. “Basically, Richie Alexander, everybody in the whole team for just turning things around since Daytona. It’s a brand-new team. Graham has done a great job, and so has Ben (Spies). I just really want to thank them for putting this whole program together and getting things even more on track from Daytona. So, it’s been really good to progress. We had some testing and stuff. The team is super organized. It’s a really good environment over there, so I’m really happy to be a part of what whole program.

“But getting into the race now, I was kind of nervous. First race of the year, and stuff like that. Everybody is super close here in pace. But I was trying to manage being in front for a while there, and then Tyler passed me, Blake passed me. Then I was going to sit behind them and see them do some work and see what they had. But, unfortunately, Tyler (Scott) crashed, and I was really nervous because he crashed, and he was kind of tumbling through, and I didn’t want to hit him. So, I had my hands up. I thought a red flag was going to come out, but unfortunately it didn’t. It was because the bike was in the middle of the track. So, it was kind of scary for everybody behind me, because I was the first one to approach that after Blake (Davis). I was just really worried about Tyler and his body kind of being right there. It was kind of sketchy. Hopefully he’s all right and everything. Tyler is a great kid. We’ve been trying the whole race and stuff. Bike was riding great. My teammate, Corey, was riding super, super great. Then (Mathew) Scholtz came past with two laps to go. I was like, ‘Man, this guy! What is he doing?’ I was like, ‘Okay, I got to turn it up again.’ I’m just trying to hang onto Blake here and now I’ve got Scholtz. So, it was good. I kind of knew some spots where Blake was struggling a little bit, and I knew if I didn’t get the draft like someone did on the inside of me on that last lap there that I would have had a go at Blake, and I knew kind of where to get him. So, when he passed me in 10A, I kind of knew that I could have had a really good go in the last corner in 12. I was going for it at that point. I was eyeing it up for a few laps in the middle of the race. It was a really good race, and everybody has been riding super good. I think Supersport is going to be pretty interesting this year. There’s a lot of fast talent in that class.”

For more info checkout our dedicated MotoAmerica Support Series News page motoamerica-support-series-latest-news/

Or visit the official MotoAmerica website motoamerica.com/

Both rookies and veterans shine in Motor Valley and Emilia-Romagna qualifying

Frank Duggan

April 20, 2024

Mercurial weather asked questions of the riders in the opening round of the FIM JuniorGP™ World Championship

Qualifying for the much-anticipated FIM JuniorGP™ World Championship got underway at the Motor Valley and Emilia-Romagna round under ominous skies. Threatening to burst throughout, the clouds at the Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli finally broke as the morning’s practice sessions drew to an end, although the sun did manage to shine sporadically during proceedings on Italy’s Adriatic coast.

As the only rider to break into the 1:41s, Jesus Rios (MRE Talent) claimed pole position in the FIM JuniorGP™ World Championship on a sensational debut in the class, recording a lap time of 1:41.953. In the Moto2™ European Championship Alberto Surra (Team Ciatti – Boscoscuro) started the 2024 campaign as he left off last year, securing pole as he looks for a fifth consecutive podium finish in Moto2™ ECh. Meanwhile, in the European Talent Cup Marco Morelli (MLav Racing) sealed pole for the first time in the class with a time of 1:45.379 in Group B’s Q2 session, doing so in assured style as he pursues a second win in the ETC. And in the Stock™ European Championship experience made the difference during qualifying, with former Moto2™ World Championship rider and Moto3™ World Champion Lorenzo Dalla Porta sealing pole position.

FIM JuniorGP
In JuniorGP™ the two Finetwork Team riders complete the front row, with just 0.012 seconds separating Adrian Cruces (Finetwork Team) in P2 from Ruche Moodley (Finetwork Team) in P3. Cruces edged ahead of his teammate but found himself three tenths of a second behind polesitter Rios as he looks to build upon the impressive form that saw him achieve more points than any other rider in the second half of the 2023 season, including an impressive win and second place finish in Valencia in the final event of the campaign. Moodley meanwhile, although less experienced at this level, looks well-equipped to compete this year.

The fight for the second row was just as competitive as the first for the first. P4 was taken by Cormac Buchanan (AGR Team). Despite missing out on the front three by a hundredth of a second, the New Zealander is well placed to aspire for his first podium in JuniorGP™. The margins were just as tight further back, with Rico Salmela (Liqui Moly Husqvarna Intact GP) and Casey O’Gorman (Team Estrella Galicia 0,0) claiming P5 and P6 respectively.

Moto2 European Championship
The home advantage appeared to make all the difference in Moto2™ ECh qualifying, with polesitter Surra’s Italian compatriots following the Turin-born rider onto the front row. Francesco Mongiardo (Fantic Cardoso Racing) secured P2, while reigning MotoE™ World Champion Mattia Casadei (Team Ciatti Boscoscuro) joins his teammate to make up the front three.

European Talent Cup
After Morelli in the European Talent Cup came David Gonzalez (AC Racing Team), who finished top of Q2 in Group A, and will look to strike further up the rankings after finishing seventh in the Championship last year. Making up the front row is Giulio Pugliese (Aspar Junior Team), who is still chasing his first podium at this level.

Stock European Championship
Following Dalla Porta onto the front row in Stock ECh are Dino Iozzo (IUM Motorsports), who finished fourth in the class in 2023 and will look to add to his four podium finishes last year when beginning from P2, and France’s Andy Verdoia (Team Honda Laglisse), who will look to make an immediate impact in the class from P3.

With qualifying concluded, the excitement of race day is on the horizon. The action begins at 11:00 (UTC+2) with the first JuniorGP™ race of the 2024 season, the first ETC race is scheduled for 12:00 (UTC+2), and the Moto2™ ECh race is set for 13:00 (UTC+2). JuniorGP™ returns for Race 2 at 14:00 (UTC+2) and is followed by the second ETC race of the day at 15:00 (UTC+2). The thrilling Motor Valley and Emilia-Romagna round concludes with the Stock ECh race due to begin at 16:00 (UTC+2). Race day brings a veritable feast to the Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli, make sure you don’t miss out!

For more info checkout our dedicated FIM JuniorGP™ news page superbike-news.co.uk/cev-repsol/

After 8 Hours: YART in the lead of Le Mans EWC season opener

Frank Duggan

April 20, 2024

FIM Endurance World Championship title-winning Yamalube YART Yamaha EWC Official Team leads the 24 Heures Motos at the eight-hour mark following an action-filled and unmissable start to the 2024 season in Le Mans.

Although Yoshimura SERT Motul’s Gregg Black led away following the spectacular running start in front of the packed grandstands at 15h00, Niccolò Canepa was ahead after four minutes and remained in front up until the first round of pitstops some 50 minutes later.

While it was a relatively calm opening hour for the leading runners – apart from a brief fall for F.C.C. TSR Honda France’s Josh Hook, a trip through the gravel for Randy Krummenacher (TATI Team Beringer Racing) and myriad position changes – hour two was anything but.

Mike Di Meglio crashed the F.C.C. TSR Honda France #5 entry heavily at Chemin Aux Boeufs after 65 minutes of racing, while there was early heartbreak for Honda Viltaïs Racing when Steven Odendaal pitted with what transpired to be terminal engine failure.

Gregg Black, who was leading at the time, then crashed on the exit of ‘S’ du Garage Bleu just before 18h00 due to a reported traction control issue and several minutes were lost in the pits while repairs to the damaged #12 Suzuki were made.

KM99’s Randy de Puniet, who was in third place at the time, fell at Raccordement just after 19h00 but maintained his third place prior to pitting for repairs.

But there were no such dramas for the pole-sitting #1 YART Yamaha, which reached the eight-hour mark leading from BMW Motorrad World Endurance Team and Kawasaki Webike Trickstar. And by leading after eight hours, Austria-based YART bagged 10 bonus points to add to the five it scored after qualified on pole with a new lap record charge from Canepa on Thursday afternoon.

“It’s not so bad,” Hanika said following his first night stint. “I was feeling very well with the bike and also with the tyres, maybe better than the sessions before. It’s very difficult to be constant with the pace because of all the traffic. In these conditions, especially in the dark, you must be really carefully not to be too excited when overtaking the [lapped riders] so it’s better to wait for one more corner. Sometimes the lap time is jumping up and down but when I am alone I feel comfortable, we’re managing the gap and the bike feels great.”

Behind Kawasaki Webike Trickstar, which includes FIM Endurance World Cup winner Christian Gamarino in its line-up, Yoshimura SERT Motul is fourth after eight hours followed in the Formula EWC ranking by Tati Team Beringer Racing, KM99, Team Bolliger Switzerland, category newcomer BMRT3D maxxess Nevers, Motobox Kremer Racing and Maco Racing. The top 10 in both Formula EWC and Superstock score interval points.

How F.C.C. TSR Honda France dropped back in EWC victory chase
F.C.C. TSR Honda France was firmly in the victory fight when Mike Di Meglio crashed early in the second hour of racing. This is what the Frenchman had to say afterwards. “I was taking care but we have no grip on the rear. I was not pushing because with the full tank of fuel at the start [of the stint] you need to manage the braking so I was taking care of when to overtake the guys but I lose the front. The race is still long, it’s not good to start like this but we keep calm.”

National Motos Honda heads the Superstock chargers
Category pole-sitting team National Motos Honda has built on his qualifying form by leading the Superstock-based, Dunlop-equipped FIM Endurance World Cup after eight hours of racing, followed by Chromeburner-RAC41-Honda, Team Slider Endurance, Team Aviobike by M2 Revo, 3ART Best of Bike, new EWC squad Team Étoile, Honda No Limits, TRT27 AZ Moto, ADSS97 and Junior Team Le Mans Sud Suzuki.

But there was early disappointment for Team 33 Louit April Moto, which was beginning the defence of its FIM Endurance World Cup title in Le Mans but was forced to retire with a mechanical failure shortly after 19h30. Guillaume Antiga, part of its four-strong Kawasaki-powered line-up, said: “After the crash of my team-mate Flavio [Ferroni] the radiator is broken and the bike temperature is too much and it’s not possible to continue the race.”

Tecmas-MRP-BMW Racing Team, which claimed the Superstock pole, dropped back following a crash at 22h35.

Rea makes emotional return to racing after serious injury
Despite falling twice, Gino Rea described his return to racing for the first time since he suffered serious head injuries in a crash practicing for the Suzuka 8 Hours in 2022, as a “positive” experience. The Honda-powered Wójcik Racing Team rider said: “In general it’s positive because I felt good, the head was good and my riding was good and my pace was okay. Unfortunately, I crashed on the first lap, it was totally unexpected, I had a problem with my brakes on the first lap. I was trying to adjust it on every corner but I didn’t quite get the feeling. I went to brake, but I had no brake and down I went. But thank you for everyone who supported me through my rehab. If it wasn’t for you I wouldn’t be here.”

For more info check out our dedicated Endurance World Championship News page Endurance World Championship

or visit the official Endurance World Championship website fimewc.com

Superbike NewsMotorcycle Industry and Racing News

UrbanObserver

Subscribe to newsletter

Superbike NewsMotorcycle Industry and Racing News

Movies

TV Shows

Music

Celebrity

Scandals

Drama

Lifestyle

Health

Technology

Company

Movies

TV Shows

Music

Celebrity

Scandals

Drama

Lifestyle

Health

Technology

Company

Henry and Fuzz return to Quest for some serious shed searching

Vespa World Days 2024 has come to a close, after the bustling town of Pontedera played host to the annual gathering that draws Vespa enthusiasts from around the globe.

A star-studded weekend awaits visitors at Stafford in October as motorcycle legends Carl Fogarty and Frankie Chili have been announced as guests.

Ducati unlocks the secrets of adventure riding with the new Sweet Lamb DRE Adventure Academy.

Winners of the 1980 350cc World Championship fielding Jon Ekerold on a two-cylinder, two stroke Bimota YB3 machine, success was also achieved in TT Formula 1 with legend Virginio Ferrari aboard a YB4R taking the Championship honours in1987.

After helping reduce lap times in 2023, race-proven pressure measurement solutions from Druck, a Baker Hughes business, is set to help Hawk Racing achieve further success ahead of the 2024 British Superbike season.

The evolution of a metropolitan icon. The FGTR helmet by Milanese brand Momodesign gets a makeover.

Bank Holiday Monday 27th May Depart Cafe: 10.30am

Hej! Days Taking Place at Dealers 10th – 12th May.

The R&G-distributed Denali D7 PRO lights are the brand’s highest-performing and most feature-rich driving light yet, offering motorcyclists exceptional illumination, ensuring that they can not only see the entire road ahead but are also unmissable by other drivers.

Bonhams|Cars Spring Stafford Motorcycle Sale achieves £3 million with an industry-leading 95% sell through rate.

AA-rated textile riding jacket for junior riders from Duchinni Youth.

Mondello Park kicked off the long awaited return of Irish Motorcycle Racing, with a thrilling Principal Insurance Superbike Championship season opener at Mondello Park on April 20th and 21st.

A fiesta like no other awaits as the hillsides of Jerez prepare to come alive with MotoGP™

David Alonso (CFMOTO Gaviota Aspar Team) hit back in a big way at COTA, disappearing at the front for a statement win and putting himself back within just two points of Championship leader Daniel Holgado (Red Bull GASGAS Tech3).

Three races, three different winners. Moto2™’s unpredictability continued at the Americas GP as Sergio Garcia (MT Helmets – MSI) claimed a debut win in the class, with the Spaniard now heading to the Circuito de Jerez – Angel Nieto atop the Championship table.

Bank Holiday Monday 27th May
Depart Cafe: 10.30am