Innholdsfortegnelse for Vol 69 Issue 06 i Australian Motorcycle News

ONE OF MOTORCYCLING’S single greatest benefits is its ability to concentrate all your focus on riding the bloody things. Yep, there are times when you’re simply cruising, thinking about life in general and not consumed by throttle actions and body position. But when you need nothing but ‘in the moment’ bliss, there’s few other pastimes as rewarding as motorcycling. Head for somewhere distant... Lean it into a corner and soak up the endorphins I love working on bikes, reading about them, consuming MotoGP news and results, and watching new motorcycle models arriving in Australia. But nothing beats actually riding them, particularly when everything else seems like it’s going to hell in a handbasket. I have just climbed off a bike after a day obliterating knee sliders and worries all at…

Polish custom builder Game Over Cycles is selling its outrageous but multi-award-winning tattooed chopper. Called The Recidivist (means a repeat offender), the bike is covered in tattooed leather branded directly onto its tyres, tanks, seat and many other fittings. The sellers reckon they’ll get $1m-plus for what started out as a Twin-Cam 96 Harley-Davidson Heritage. “I started to have doubts… about my life, about my career. I think it’s human, it’s normal to have these kinds of doubts” Three-time MotoGP champion Jorge Lorenzo gets brutally frank about his recent spate of injuries…

AUSTRALIA’S FIRST FULL-sized electric motorcycle is ready for launch in November followed by the production of 49 units next year. Savic Motorcycles will release three variants of its C-Series, the Alpha, Delta, and Omega, at Wollongong’s Australian Motorcycle Festival on 8 November. Prices start from $10,999 for the 25kW Omega to $22,999 for the Alpha, which pumps out 60kW of power, 190Nm of torque and can accelerate from 0-100km/h in 3.9secs. First deliveries are scheduled for August 2020. The company has taken a slow and measured approach to a project that began in a Perth garage with a Yamaha YZF-R1 as a donor bike. Now based in Melbourne, it has developed a clean-sheet-design into reality and also secured funding for production. Its C-40 prototype was unveiled at Melbourne’s Moto Expo…

News AMCN had the world scoop on Honda’s highly anticipated RC30 replacement ahead of its official Paris debut. Honda made it clear that the RVF was specifically developed to reclaim Honda’s leading position in WSBK and endurance racing. History shows that the RC45 fell somewhat short of the mark. Sport Rumours coming out of the Laguna Seca GP round had Aprilia entering the premier class on a twin-cylinder 400cc machine. The new Aprilia was rumoured to be a development of the marque’s twin-crankshaft rotary induction 250cc GP bike and was expected to punch out 97kW (130hp). Bike test Despite a thumbs down from Ducati aficionados, Mike ‘Giancarlo’ Sinclair tested the firm’s new naked Monster and loved it. Obviously, motorcyclists around the planet did as well, as the Monster went on…

Never stop learning Props for your article The C Word in AMCN Vol 69 No 01. We spend much time berating motorists (sometimes rightly so), but often overlook our own shortcomings. I am a returning mid-life motorcyclist, having regained my mojo on a reliable old BMW K 75, before moving up to an R 1100. On my 49th birthday I was brought undone by the humiliating nightmare of target fixation. Spooked by a pothole mid-corner in Victoria’s Otways, I straightened up and found myself on the centreline staring at a 12-tonne towtruck coming the other way. By the grace of god, what should have been a fatal head-on collision downgraded to a side-swipe. I bounced off down the road while the beautiful Beemer went under the truck’s rear wheels, disintegrated,…

NICO BAKKER CELEBRATED his 44th year as Europe’s leading expert in the black art of motorcycle frame design and building this year. With unrivalled innovation, the list of features he has introduced to motorcycle design reads like a textbook of modern-day chassis technology. The 71-year old Dutchman was the first to fit monoshock rear suspension to a Grand Prix racebike; the first to use a rising-rate link on the rear end of any motorcycle; the first to employ upside-down forks for street use; the first to fit a single-sided rear swingarm to a four-cylinder roadbike (some years before Honda did so on the RC30); the first to offer a modern-day hub-centre roadbike for sale (years before Bimota’s Tesi); the first to build a shaft-drive motorcycle with a deltabox-type twin-spar aluminium…

Top 3 TV 1 MotoGP Rd13, IT LIVE Videopass, Fox 15 Sep 7pm (AEST) MotoGP heads to San Marino, IT for Round 13 and all of the action will be aired live on Videopass and Fox Sports. Moto3 kicks off at 7pm, followed by Moto2 at 8.20pm and MotoGP at 10pm. 10 Bold will air the MotoGP race. 2 MotoGP Rd14, ES LIVE Videopass, Fox 22 Sep 7pm (AEST) Just a week after Italy, MotoGP heads to Spain for Rd 14 at Aragon. The Moto3 lights go out at 7pm, Moto2 at 8.20pm and MotoGP at 10pm. It’s all live on Videopass and Fox Sports, and 10 Bold will air MotoGP only. 3 MXGP Rd20 LIVE MXGP-TV 16 September 2pm (AEST) Log on to mxgp-tv.com to catch all of the…

IT’S GREAT TO be able to say that roadracing is getting back to where it should be in Western Australia. We’ve gone through a lot of change over the past year. With Barbagallo Raceway open again for motorcycles and Collie Motorplex being extended to 2.66km, we now have two national-standard tracks for modern Superbikes. Not having Barbagallo available for two years really affected our sport over here. At one stage our state title rounds went from 120-plus entries down to just 40. We lost a lot of riders, including those who were just getting into the sport and were our future. While many have come back, some are waiting to see how this season pans out. I won the first of my four WA Superbike titles back in 2006 and…

TOM TOPARIS (Landbridge Yamaha) has not let his overseas racing commitments distract him to record a perfect result at Winton, taking both race wins and pole position to increase his championship lead to 85 points. Toparis has faced challengers throughout the year and this round it was Oli Bayliss (Cube Racing) who stepped up his pace to make the Goulburn local earn his victories. Race one was a sea of carnage after Reid Battye (Team Suzuki Ecstar) ran wide at turn two and highsided, taking out Nic Liminton (Yamaha Motor Australia), Jack Hyde (SSS Motorcycles) and Kiwi Richie Dibben (The Barracks) in the process. The race was red flagged, with neither Battye nor Liminton returning for the restart or race two. The restart was run over 12 laps and Toparis…

YANNIS SHAW (WRP Bridgestone) has broken through for a stunning round win not only for himself, but also Bridgestone tyres and Kawasaki. Shaw took the opening two races by the narrowest of margins, edging out a resurgent Seth Crump (Rock Oil – KTM Racing) and championship leader Max Stauffer (YRD) in race one. Race two also came down to the wire, with Stauffer and Crump both making good starts. A large leading pack eventually gave way to three riders; this time it was Hunter Ford (YRD) and Brandon Demmery (Rustic Flooring / Surefire Security) taking the fight to Shaw. After taking the lead at turn one on the final lap, Shaw pulled enough of a gap to hold off Ford and Demmery in a thriller. Race three saw another tight…

World SSP300 The World SSP300 championship was not decided at Portimao as Scott Deroue beat long time points leader Manuel Gonzalez in a thrilling last lap fifth. Reigning world champ Ana Carrasco was third in the race and three riders could still be crowned champion, although Gonzalez is 38 points ahead of Deroue and 47 ahead of Carrasco. Camier still mending Leon Camier was again missing from action for the Moriwaki Althea Honda team, as he continues to recover from surgery. If he does not get a podium-capable ride in WorldSBK next year, he may well head for BSB, where he would make a star-sized replacement for the outgoing Scott Redding, who will ride for Aruba.it Ducati in 2020 alongside Chaz Davies. Alex on the down low Where Alex Lowes…

Chang clanger The 2020 calendar for WorldSBK is as unsure in final make-up as it has been in many years, with some tracks still to confirm their participation or contract agreements. Thailand’s Chang round, which filled the slot in March in the past few years, is not going to be on the calendar after all, barring some miracle or other, and serious candidates for another Asian or non-European race are few and far between. GORDON RITCHIE MotoGP bounder Portimao? FIM President Viegas was first to publicly let slip the news that Portimao in Portugal is a MotoGP reserve circuit as of next year, and there is indeed a pre-agreement in place for the circuit to host a race in its own right in 2022. Should another MotoGP on the 2020…

Northern Ireland team owner Wilson Craig has passed away unexpectedly this month. The news broke through a post on the team’s Facebook page, posted by his son. “The suddenness of this event has left our family both heartbroken and lost. He will be remembered as a kind, gentle and generous man, with a passion for motorcycle racing that never dimmed. The sport brought him so much happiness over the years, and we hope that his involvement in the community was able to share some of this joy.” AMCN extends its condolences to his family and friends.…

AFTER A SECOND placing and a victory, Bartosz Zmarzlik has one hand on the Speedway GP title. Second in Germany and a win in Denmark have moved the Pole nine points clear, with only rounds at Cardiff and Torun remaining. Emil Sayfutdinov and Leon Madsen are fighting it out for what looks like, most likely, second place. Australia’s former world champ Jason Doyle is keeping touch. Six points in Germany (from a win, a second, a third and two lasts) and 11 in Denmark have put him in contention for a top-eight championship placing. The next round is the British SGP at Cardiff on 21 September.…

THE LIKELIHOOD OF an all-new Suzuki Hayabusa for 2021 is gathering , with a recent patent application clearly showing an unidentified motorcycle using an updated version of the ’Busa’s four-cylinder engine. A gamechanger when launched in 1999, the Hayabusa still has a strong following 20 years on and anyone who has been to Lake Gairdner’s annual Speed Week knows there is a lot of life left in the original 300km/h-plus design. The Hayabusa has gone off sale in Europe, due to tougher emissions laws, but continues to be available in Australia and the US. The current rideaway price of $18,990 gets you a lot of performance for the money, including titanium valves and race-quality pistons. Suzuki Australia told AMCN this week that it’s sold 100 Hayabusas this year, a typical…

Women on wheels Look out for our next issue, which has a focus on women in motorcycling. It has a 10-page feature on pioneering female Australian motorcyclists, the inside story of this year’s Women Riders World Relay, as well as various other themed pages throughout. HC Lap of your life Fans who buy tickets to next February’s WSBK season opener have a one-in-three chance to actually ride Phillip Island after the first day of action on the Friday. The first 750 three-day tickets purchased go in the draw for 250 rides. The winners will be advised by mid-October and told to be trackside on 28 February with their bike, helmet and gear ready to ride the circuit. HC Ride of your life Sydney’s World on Wheels Tours is offering an…

The whole Hog Motorcycle Holdings’ shares jump 3.41 percent after it buys Melbourne’s Northside Harley-Davidson, prompting a mention on ABC’s national television business news. Troy boy wonder After racing the Ducati V4 R in the recent Victorian titles, Troy Bayliss says he will ride it in the MotoGP support races at Phillip Island. Vale Jessi Valerie Thompson, the world’s fastest female motorcyclist (328.467mph), mourns the world’s fastest female on four wheels, Jessi Combs (398mph), who has died trying to beat her own record. Farewell legends Kiwi motorcycle legend Rod Coleman has died aged 93 while Les Williams, the UK Triumph tuner who created the legendary Slippery Sam Trident racer of the 1970s, has died aged 87.…

SYDNEY-BASED ELECTRIC scooter company Fonzarelli has teamed up with Adelaide innovator Simon Modra to launch Australia’s first electric motorcycle. Called the Fonzarelli NKD, the Honda-Grom-sized mini-motorcycle will retail for $9990 and be built to order. It has a claimed range of up to 120km and top speed of 100km/h. Modra, an architect, café owner, motorcycle enthusiast and Future Submarine design researcher at the University of South Australia, has created a compact charger to suit the mini-bike. Fonzarelli’s Design Director Wenley Andrews developed the NKD over 10 months. “I wanted it to be versatile where you could take it off-road into sand dunes and hills – and compact enough to put in the back of my Jeep,” he said.…

Congratulations Coby, you’ve scored a beaut Motul cap and T-shirt valued at $35, kindly supplied by our mates at Link International. Send an image and details about your two-wheeled pride and joy to access@amcn.com.au Rider Coby Harrison Ride 1979 XL500 He says I found this in a shed, a 1979 Honda XL500, completely untouched, original condition, unbelievable condition, actually. I do believe it may be the best in Australia. I’d just like to know if you can give me an idea on what I should insure it for, as I’m not sure of its value. We say Lovely! The hard bit is working out the value, Coby. The old “it’s worth whatever someone will pay” saying doesn’t help here, and Red Book only lists the new value. If you can’t…

ENGINE Capacity 134.7cc Type Single cylinder, four-valve Bore & stroke 54mm x 58.8mm Compression ratio 9.8 : 1 Cooling Air/oil-cooled Fueling Fuel injection with 28mm throttle body Transmission Five-speed Clutch Wet, multiplate Final drive Chain PERFORMANCE Power 9.5kW @8500 rpm (claimed) Torque 10.8Nm @7000 rpm (claimed) Top speed 117km/h (measured) Fuel consumption 3.3L/100km ELECTRONICS Type Not applicable Rider aides Not applicable CHASSIS Frame material Tubular steel Frame type Trellis Rake Not given Trail Not given Wheelbase 1215mm SUSPENSION Type Benelli Front: USD 41mm fork, nonadjustable, travel unknown Rear: Lateral monoshock, adjustable preload, travel unknown WHEELS & BRAKES Wheels Aluminium Front: 3.0 x 12 Rear: 3.0 x…

ENGINE Capacity 1649cc Type Transverse six-cylinder, four-stroke, DOHC, four valves per cylinder Bore & stroke 72mm x 67.5mm Compression ratio 12.2:1 Cooling Liquid Fuelling EFI, 52mm throttle body Transmission Six-speed Clutch Wet, hydraulically operated multi-plate, Final drive Shaft PERFORMANCE Power 118kW @ 7750rpm (claimed) Torque 175Nm @ 5250rpm (claimed) Top speed 250km/h-plus Fuel consumption Not given ELECTRONICS Type BMW Motorrad/Bosch Rider aides Dynamic Traction Control, Dynamic ESA, ABS Pro CHASSIS Frame material Tubular chromium-molybdenum steel Frame type Open cradle spaceframe, with engine as fully stressed member Rake 25° Trail 100mm Wheelbase 1635mm SUSPENSION Type WP, modified by HK Suspension Front: 48mm USD telescopic fork, fully adjustable Rear: BMW Paralever…

A LACK OF unbiased research and lack of reliable crash data is hampering efforts to change barrier types, locations, and opinions, while also fuelling stories like the cheese cutter myth. As with any field that relies on rigorous research methods, credible data is required to determine if a section of road is safer with a barrier, than it is without. A 2012 Victoria Parliamentary Inquiry into Motorcycle Safety found the lack of crash data reliability a major concern, with the inquiry stating: “without reliable data on road furniture, traffic flows, crash sites, road maintenance and repairs and more, the real cost of roads and road trauma cannot be l ll concluding that, “Road safety initiatives and infrastructure planning can’t be done effectively.” Australian-based t id f the argument is tainted…

Show time 14 SEPTEMBER Salubrious Day in the Dirt, Archer Falls Airfield, 1253 Neurum Rd, Woodford, Qld. Gates open 8am. Dirt drags, car, truck and bike show. Trophies, food, drinks, joy flights, bar and band til late. $10 entry; kids free; onsite camping $5. No dogs, no fires, no BYO and no aggro. For more information phone Scott on 0417 427 016. 14 SEPTEMBER Eudlo Car & Bike Show, Eudlo State School, 2 Highlands Rd, Eudlo, Qld. Gates open 10am-6pm. Bands, bars, stalls, kid’s zone, raffles and prizes. General entry $2; vehicle entry $5. For information or stall enquiries email Syamy at eudlocarandbikeshow@gmail.com or see @eudlocarandbikeshow on either Facebook or Instagram. 14 SEPTEMBER Moto Fest, Wauchope Showground, 93a High St, Wauchope, NSW. Swap meet, show ’n’ shine, gymkhana, trade/exhibition sites,…

THE BRITISH GP was fascinating at a deeper level as well as the raw excitement of a battle won by inches at the last gasp – the fourth-closest margin in the history of racing. That a (relatively) slow bike like the Suzuki, ridden by a (relatively) inexperienced MotoGP rider like Alex Rins, could beat the great maestro Marc Marquez on his all-conquering Honda was almost entirely unexpected. And yet, to some keyboard commentators, in spite of no more engineering or mathematical training than an earwig, it was easily explicable. Apparently, it is because of the engine architecture. The in-line Suzuki engine has a longer crankshaft (actually wider, in terms of how it sits in the motorbike) than the V4 Honda. Of similar mass and spinning (backwards) at similar speeds, this…

“IT WAS A good result for us but the weather was so bad we went into the races with hardly any practice in the dry. I’m very glad to get two more wins, especially in the second race, it was insane! I knew Oli would be fast and I could see it on my pit board, +1, +1, he was there the whole time. It was good to race with him and it’s the first time we’ve had a proper battle – it was lots of fun. I go overseas now for BSB and the last race of IDM, then back to ASBK for Phillip Island.”…

Jonathan Rea (KRT) took two wins and suffered one defeat at the hands of the only rider who is anywhere near him in the championship standings during Round 10 of the WorldSBK Championship. Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Ducati) got the better of Rea in the final long race of the weekend, adding to his 4-2 scorecard, while struggling with an injured shoulder. Until now, fans have been deprived of a real Bautista versus Rea fight but in the final race, when number 19 carved his way through from sixth on lap one, the two big names of the series had a real, albeit short, face-off. Bautista had the better of Rea in the final race but was exhausted by the end, and Rea clawed back voraciously to get to within 0.sec…

FABIO QUARTARARO has ended the two-day Misano MotoGP test fastest, with the top seven riders separated by less than a second. Quartararo posted a fastest lap of 1m31.639s, 0.476sec quicker than Danilo Petrucci (Ducati Corse). Fabio’s Petronas Yamaha SRT teammate Franco Morbidelli was third, ahead the factory Yamaha of Valentino Rossi. Australia’s Jack Miller posted a 1m32.405s lap to finish fifth fastest for Pramac Racing, followed by Maverick Viñales (Monster Yamaha). Francesco Bagnaia on the second Pramac Ducati was seventh, followed by Takaaki Nakagami (LCR Honda) and Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia). Largely testing 2020 parts, including variants of Honda’s carbon fibre swingarm, current championship leader Marc Marquez rounded out the top 10. A still recovering Joan Mir (Suzuki) was 11th, ahead of the Reale Avintia Ducati of Tito Rabat and recent…

ON MAXIMUM POINTS from the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge and the Silk Way Marathon, all Briton Sam Sunderland (Red Bull KTM) needed to win the World Cross-Country Championship was a podium in the Atacama Rally in Chile, which finished on Sunday 8 September. And KTM were there to ensure he succeeded. Sunderland’s teammate Luciano Benevides was there in support but, more importantly, both Toby Price and Austria’s Matthias Walkner were back in Red Bull KTM colours after an eight-month layoff. The threat was double World Champion Pablo Quintanilla, also back from injury after his devastating disappointment at Dakar, and no doubt wishing to celebrate the rally victory on home ground. But Price was having none of it and showed his cards early after blitzing the Prologue for the choice of…

HE’S HELD A competition licence for 50 years and gives back to the sport as an official, contributor to MA seminars and a Post Classic Racing Association committee member. He’s Marcus de Caux – racer and restorer, the man with cartoon character Felix the Cat on his leathers. Born in Artarmon and educated at North Sydney Boys’ High, de Caux’s first mechanical interest was flying model aircraft with Warren Willing, Ron Burke (a twice Bathurst 250 Production race winner) and Clive Ikin. Marcus worked as a mechanic on Honda bikes and cars in a Mosman dealership, before opening Bridgeview Motorcycles in Willoughby with mate Bob Frankel to sell BMWs, Kawasakis and Suzukis. He later established a specialist business servicing Alfa Romeos, something he still does in his home workshop. De…

THE WINGLETS HAVE a steep angle of attack, helping keep the front end down under acceleration and adding downforce during braking and cornering. On other wing-equipped bikes, those positives are countered by the disadvantage of additional drag on the straights, blunting acceleration and top speed. So we can expect the new ’Blade’s wings to be active and retractable? No such problem here because when the Honda hits the straights, the winglets simply retract into the bodywork, and they do it using a remarkably simple, compact and lightweight system. Each of the winglets has a pivot at its front, while the rear edge slides in a reinforced channel. As a failsafe, the winglets are sprung to default into the extended position, only retracting when servos – one for each side –…

Spectrum Support, a Sydney-based organisation helping carers of those with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), is hosting The Great Weekender ride over 18-20 October. It starts from the Opera House and loops to the Hunter Valley and back to Sydney along the coast. Cost is $1500 and includes luxury accommodation, meals, beverages, entertainment and insurances. Visit www. sscharityride.com.au Down in Victoria, participants are gearing up for Bendigo’s Motopostie GP on 1 December. Over $6k has already been raised for the Bendigo Health Cancer Centre’s Wellness Program, which supports recovering cancer patients. The aim is $100k. Visit www.hazeldenes. com.au/motopostie.Elsewhere, it's just a couple of weeks until the Distinguished Gentleman's Ride kicks off in a city near you.…

THE DRYSDALE POSTIE trike we reported on earlier this year now looks to have international potential. Designer and developer Ian Drysdale has completed tests with Australia Post and is preparing to take the first pre-production OzPOD machine to Amsterdam for the International Postal Expo in October. “I went over to the International Postal Expo in Hamburg last year and everyone had a cheque book in their back pocket and all the exhibitors had a spring in their step,” he told AMCN. Electric trikes have a huge future as a general urban delivery vehicle in Europe, India, China and Asia, and Drysdale’s invention fits the bill. The OzPOD is a ground-up design with a 50km/h speed, can carry 150kg of cargo and has a 700-litre volume capacity. It can stop, start,…

IN THE LATE 1980s former racer Igor Akrapovic opened a small tuning shop in Slovenia called Skorpion. They began making exhausts because they couldn’t afford Western aftermarket systems. The exhausts were first used in international competition in 1994 and in 1997 the company renamed itself Akrapovic. In 2000, Colin Edwards’ Castrol Honda SP-01 became the first world championship title-winner using an Akrapovic exhaust. “Colin was our first World champion out of the 128 such titles we’ve been able to win since then,” Igor said. “It was such a significant moment in the history of our company when he won the World Superbike Championship with us in 2000.” In 2004, the company started working with the car industry and in 2007 became involved in Formula 1. Now Akrapovic exhausts are used…

The pic that took 20 years Growing up racing cars in Venezuela, I always had enormous respect for the motorcycle riders. These were brave warriors that had the courage to tame fire-breathing monsters without having the safety of a roll bar or a harness. I used to keep informed by scouring any magazine that I could get my hands on, where the reporters made their exploits even more impressive. One of my favourites was the story of the Australian spray painter that could get everything out of his exotic Italian steed without ever missing his smile. Troy Bayliss was one of my favourites. Target fixation is a seemingly piddly error with horrendous potential In 2005, I withdrew most of my savings and embarked in the adventure of a lifetime, attending…

George Lynn, founder and editor of Australian Motor Cycle News in 1951, was a man of vision, at least in one sense. His eyesight was so poor that he had difficulty driving a car, and in the latter years before his death in March 1974, relied on others for his transport. Yet the man to which we owe this terrific masthead to believed passionately in motorcycle sport, and travelled extensively in Europe, where he forged contacts that assisted many aspiring Australian riders in their efforts to gain recognition and the precious starts in international events. He also harboured a dream to bring top talent to these shores, having witnessed the tour by English superstar Fergus Anderson in 1948/49, which had been organised and partly sponsored by Rex Tilbrook from Adelaide.…

AS I FIDDLED with the nut on my bashed-up 1980s Yamaha IT200 enduro, the anger boiled over. Why wouldn’t it undo? Why was I even bothering to fix an old paddock basher? What was the point of it all? I stood up and threw the socket to the floor, and walked around swearing some phrases not heard since the 1970s. Anger is a common reaction to the death of a friend or relative. A couple of years ago, in a column titled Death’s pretty final, I wrote about how us former Seventies longhairs know we’re getting old when we start to outlive our Seventies rock heroes. This time I want to write about the devastation people of our generation experience when someone half their age is taken in a motorcycle…

It was a controversial finish, ultimately allowing Mike Jones to extend his championship lead THE CHAMPIONSHIP IS on the line in the 2019 ASBK Kawasaki Superbike class and Team Suzuki Ecstar’s Wayne Maxwell has delivered when it matters, braving the low grip and cold conditions to score back-to-back round wins. The Desmosport Ducati Panigale FE of Mike Jones gave no quarter, sharing a win apiece with Maxwell and also claiming the Elite Roads Pole Position Award. Jones set the fastest-ever two-wheeled lap of the Winton circuit with an incredible time of 1m19.994s. After a month lay-off, the anticipation ahead of the opening race was high after tempers flared during testing, and controversial comments were being made about the capacity advantage of Jones’ 1285cc twin-cylinder Panigale FE. The drama ramped up…

YMF R3 Cup Brandon Demmeryreturned to the winners circle for the first time since a crash almost two years ago. Demmery produced a 1-3-1 result, with a 2sec victory in a tough race three the highlight. Race one on Saturday was red flagged after two laps. After qualifying second Benny Baker came off at turn six and his Warwick Nolan crew decided to withdraw him from the rest of the weekend. After a jump-start penalty in race one Hunter Ford won race two, with current lap record holder Max Stauffer second and backing it up with another second in race three. Several bLU cRU juniors also tried their hand at the R3 Cup with Jacob Roulstone and Reece Oughtred impressing with a strong points haul. Oceania Junior Cup Former dirt…

Tom Edwards WorldSSP300 Kawasaki ParkinGo Team Grid 26th, Race 11th, 16th overall Though unavailable for comment, Tommy Edwards’ 11th-place finish – almost 5.5 seconds behind eventual winner Scott Deroue – made him the highest finishing Aussie at Portimao. After qualifying in 26th, he dug dip to fight his way through to pick up five points. Tom Bramich WorldSSP300 Carl Cox – RT Motorsports by SKM Kawasaki Grid 24th, Race 28th, 32nd overall “We had a solid weekend with a poor race. Our lap times were competitive, [but] unfortunately in the race the passes I made cost too much time and caused me to lose touch with the group. It’s a shame because my lap times have held me in a good position.” Joel Kelso WorldSSP300 Nutec – RT Motorsports by…

MODERN-DAY WORLDSSP racing has two certainties; the Bardahl Evans Bros duo of Randy Krummenacher and Federico Caricasulo. Others have beaten them on occasion, but once again the pair had a private fight in the race, which ended with a red flag. With Krummenacher riding with a broken big toe on his left foot, it may have been a difficult race for him before he even started, but having a potential victory rubbed out by a red flag must have stung even more. Caricasulo was finally given the victory on the countback rules. Even though Krummenacher was actually leading when the flag came out, the Italian had led across the line earlier by a smidgeon, and was thus awarded the win. The importance was clear, as Caricasulo is now only 10…

Lucky escape for Falzon Yamaha Racing Team rider Daniel Falzon went into a high-speed lowside at the notorious turn two at Winton last weekend, his YZF-R1 impacting the air fence just moments before him. The impact forced the bike high into the air as well as lifting the air fence, allowing Falzon to pass underneath it and within centimetres of the concrete barrier. The slow-motion replay made everyone wince in the realisation at just how lucky the South Australian rider really was. MATT O’CONNELL Allerton still mending The difficult season for Maxima BMW and Glenn Allerton continued after the three-time champ withdrew from the fifth round of the Australian Superbike Championship at Winton last weekend. Allerton said he felt as if the wrist injury he sustained during Round Three in…

New Zealand rider Courtney Duncan wrapped up the Women’s Motocross World Championship with one round left to run. “What a day!” the 23-year-old said after winning the title-deciding moto by almost 13 seconds. “It’s indescribable right now. There were some big emotions after the race. So much gets built into this. “This goes way back to when I started when I was seven years of age – everything goes into this. “All my team, my sponsors, everyone back over home. I have a huge team at home, and everyone plays a huge part in this championship. It was definitely a team effort [and] I can’t thank everyone enough.” The title-claiming race win was the Kiwi rider’s eighth victory from nine attempts this season.…

Champions all Champion’s Ride Days sponsored three major awards. Harley Side (SS600) was named The Future Star of Tomorrow, Most Improved was Matthew Rindel (SS300) while Best Presented went to Lisa Campbell (BEARS). The Prez speaks “This round was a massive boost for the Preston Motorcycle Club and the Victorian Road Racing Championships,” said club president Travis Hardy. “Our current series sponsors were impressed with the support and we also added a few more sponsors over the weekend.” What a trophy! Mike Jones has added his name to one of Australia’s oldest and most prestigious trophies. The same age as AMCN, the Harvie Wiltshire Memorial was first run in 1951 and the trophy has some of Australia’s most famous motorcycle racers’ names engraved on it.…

Australian Motorcycle News road test photographs are posed for by skilled, professional riders under controlled circumstances. Attempting to imitate their actions may be dangerous. Australian Motorcycle News supports and endorses rider training and wearing protective riding gear. Especially if you’ve been promising to do wheelies around the bonfire at Pete’s house-warming party, only to find the bike idling over awaiting your arrival, eh, Sam? And we especially endorse protective gear if you think it’s a wonderful idea to jump on the back for more than a few backyard wheelies, eh, Kel? But AMCN endorses far more protective kit than bike gear if you decide to do a few laps of the back paddock at the same time Pete decides to light the mile-high bonfire with the assistance of some ‘premium’…