Innholdsfortegnelse for Vol 71 Issue 08 i Australian Motorcycle News

OFF-ROAD-STYLE scooters are poised to become the two-wheeled equivalent of those small SUVs you see populating the suburbs. Honda’s X-ADV was the first to add Adventure bike looks to the chassis and engine of its NC750-based Integra. Now Peugeot is developing a duo of Adventure scooters, which look like upping the ante when it comes to real off-road ability. A 125cc and 400cc version, based on the engine and transmission from the Metropolis, genuinely appear to be designed to get dirty. Our early spy shots show prototypes with high-rise suspension, an upside-down fork and radial front brake calipers, allied to an unusual rear suspension. Although the triangular-shaped swingarms, which also carry the engine-transmission units, appear similar to Peugeot’s normal scooters, there’s a vertical A-frame mounted where the rear coil-overs would…

This isn’t your average media test. Normally before you’re let loose on a new bike, you and a dozen others are shuffled into a room where you’re regaled with the features and specs in a bid to convince you the bike you’re about to ride is an unequivocal improvement over the outgoing equivalent. Not this time. I’m one of just three people standing in the pits of a tight and twisty track next to a machine I don’t even know the name of. Sure, I know it’s a Ducati Multistrada V4, and that it’s a higher-spec road-going version much like the firm’s Pikes Peak editions of years gone by. But I don’t know what it weighs, I don’t know its power and torque figures, other than what I can see…

Ninety minutes! That’s how long it took a Ducati tech to explain the features of the Multistrada V4 S to me. And that’s after I had already ridden the bike for a couple of days to familiarise myself with it. This fourth-generation Multistrada is an impressive bit of kit, and in V4 S trim as tested here it’s jam-packed with high-tech features including several riding modes, self-levelling semi-active Marzocchi Ducati Skyhook Suspension (DSS), Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC) and Blind Spot Detection (BSD), Ducati Cornering Lights, Vehicle Hold Control and much, much more. The good news is that none of this tech detracts from the riding experience, and once you learn how to operate the bike’s various functions using the joystick on the left handlebar, and all displayed on the bright…

DUCATI SAYS THE Multistrada’s V4 Granturismo engine has been designed for smoothness and record-breaking maintenance intervals, two traits not often associated with Ducati powerplants. The Euro-5 compliant engine is an 1158cc 90° V4 that makes a claimed 125kW of power at 10,500rpm and 125Nm of torque at 8750rpm. It has a counter-rotating crankshaft (for improved handling and agility) and crank pins offset at 70° resulting in a twin-pulse firing order that makes it feel a bit like a V-twin rather than a V4. The rear cylinder bank is deactivated at idle to minimise heat transfer to the rider and improve fuel economy. Fuelling is via four 46mm throttle bodies and the valves are spring operated rather than desmodromic. The change to springoperated valves extends the service interval for clearance checking…

You can travel on whatever motorcycle you like - don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. It all depends on the kind of trip you want and what motorcycle fits your needs. Some say you need to re-mortgage your house to buy a bank-busting, fully-loaded beast. And the other school of thought is that you need a stripped back, lightweight off-roader to throw down the Road of Bones. And while these people are arguing away, you meet a traveller in the middle of the Pamir Mountains on a clapped-out 125cc moped who’s just getting on with it. There’s no right or wrong answer. There’s just figuring out what you want and picking what suits that. And these considerations will help narrow down the options: ROAD VERSUS OFF-ROAD: If you’re focused on…

Ever since the first de Dion-Bouton tricycle hit the cobblestones, it provided the ideal means to discover whether the beer in the next county was better than the local brew. And possibly return in time for dinner. In 1900 Billy Elliot rode his de Dion from Melbourne to Sydney simply to test the claim that Reschs refreshes better than Carlton United’s brew. Not long after, Queenslander Will Peverill claimed a record for the longest motorcycle ride on earth; from Melbourne to Sydney and return. His mount was a belt-driven, Peerless powered Fafnir. And yes, Will preferred the XXXX. And there’s been some epic and admirable adventures in this country ever since. Like speedway champ Jeff Munro’s 1928 circumnavigation of Oz on a 500cc Ariel, Joy McKean’s 16,000km journey on a…

TYRES THAT FALL in the 70/30 road to off-road segment, like Metzeler’s Karoo Street, make similar claims to what the 90/10s do – excellent road grip and mileage for the punter who likes to go off road very occasionally. That’s true, but it’s obvious from the tread patterns – and the segment name – that they just lean a little further towards the dirt end of town. Adventure tyres are like a seesaw, if you give a little more at one end, say more off-road bias, then you lose a similar amount at the other end. And so it is with the 70/30s. Like the 90/10s, a carcass construction that resists punctures and favours on-road stability remains – it’s the tread and compounds where the main difference lies. These tyres…

Hillclimbs are about as spectacular as motorcycle racing gets. Held on a steep, sealed track with countless hairpins, or straight up the side of a snotty steep hillside, hillclimb racing has attracted large and whooping crowds for well over a century. In America during the 1910s and 1920s, it wasn’t uncommon for these events to attract tens of thousands of delighted spectators, all drunk on the delights of witnessing the savage cocktail of brute engine power, unforgivably steep angles and the acrobatics required to keep the whole thing in check as riders keep the throttle pinned in a bid to get to the top the quickest. In 1900, entrepreneurs George Hendee and Carl Oscar Hedstrom decided to build a motorised bicycle and introduce it to the world by launching it…

HOW POTENT IS a 85cc KTM Mini-motard? Ex-BSB racer turned Junior mentor Sam Clarke answered this question with an amazing performance at the recent final round of the Supermoto Club of WA’s club championship. He took on mainly 450cc rivals in the Open class, with two wins in four races. His first win was by half the length of the main straight of the Wanneroo International Kart Track!…

You’re the reigning British Superbike champion, but it’s no exaggeration to say defending the title this year has been fraught with difficulty. What’s been the problem? I can’t say with absolute certainty what causes it, but right from the very start of the season we’ve struggled with a lack of grip. Our bike is the same as Scott Redding’s (WSBK Ducati V4 R Panigale), but with a MoTeC ECU, so there was a factory update on the engine for 2021, same as his. Our team go to Italy at the start of the year and build the bike at the factory, minus the bits that they don’t need like the ECU and its dedicated wiring harness, but the majority of the bike, mechanically, is the same as what Redding would…

IT WAS ONLY a Friday-night practice session, but the moment 17-year-old Johnny Dewhurst witnessed the action at Tracey’s Speedway in Melbourne’s Maribyrnong, he was hooked. He scratched 50 quid together and bought a tired old JAP on which to join the then-thriving speedway scene. Just three years later he’d been talent spotted as a potential international recruit, receiving several attractive offers to race in Britain. However, Gordana, his even more attractive Austrian-born bride convinced him the Australian speedway scene was a far better career option, which is how Dewhurst became known as the King of Brooklyn when Tracey’s Speedway was absorbed into Melbourne’s suburbia in 1964. By then, the pair had welcomed a son they named Darren and commenced a full circuit of the speedways of Australia towing Johnny’s new…

A MAJOR REDESIGN of its Tiger 1200 to make it capable of attacking big-bore market leaders and the impending release of a LAMS-spec Tiger 660 means Triumph has declared war on the Adventure bike segment. Latest information teased by the British manufacturer confirms the Tiger 1200 is a clean-sheet redesign intended to go to the very top of the Adventure bike class. Meanwhile last week’s launch of its Tiger Sport 660 now clears the way for the last of Triumph’s LAMS-based trio to be finalised for production. Triumph won’t admit it but we got a leaked image from a dealer meeting last year, before the Trident 660 was launched, showing all the three models. If the roadbased Tiger Sport 660 is any indication, the off-road Tiger 660 will challenge the…

DUCATI HAS LAUNCHED the Multistrada V2 as a new entry level to its adventuresport road range but it has the retro DesertX dirt-roads blaster ready in the wings. Both cater to riders who think smaller is better than bigger but still want the latest rider tech. The V2 replaces the Multistrada 950 and has been tweaked to suit a wider range of riders, while its price keeps it in sight of buyers considering rivals such as BMW’s F 900 XR. The Multistrada 950’s 937cc V-twin engine is largely carried across with an identical 83kW at 9000rpm and 96Nm at 7750rpm, although new conrods, a revised clutch and clutch case, plus other minor changes make this engine 2kg lighter. Chassis and suspension are unchanged but the seat is 10mm lower at…

QIANJIANG, BENELLI’S CHINESE parent company, has filed patents for the styling of a new Adventure model using a 650cc V-twin engine that isn’t shared with anything in Benelli’s current range. Benelli’s existing parallel-twin TRK502 has been enjoying a sales boom in Italy this year, topping the Adventure segment for several months. Meanwhile, it has been developing a 750cc parallel-twin Adventure model, based on the Leoncino 800, and the Chinese market QJMotor SRT750 but it has yet to be officially launched. So you would have to think that a Benelli model based around this 650cc V-twin engine will appear. Its general design layout matches Suzuki’s SV650, including DOHC heads, so it will produce around 50kW. It’s bolted to a trellis-style frame in line with most of Benelli’s current models. Distinctive styling…

IT WOULD BE easy to say that Royal Enfield has introduced bold new colours on its 650cc twins for 2022 but there is more going on behind the scenes. The Interceptor 650 and Continental GT 650 are now Euro 5 compliant, meaning changes to the engine’s camshaft, electronic management system, ignition, intake and exhaust systems. RE says these changes have not altered current power and torque figures (35kW @ 7150rpm/52.3 Nm @ 5150rpm). Being Euro 5 gives RE a strong base for future development but at last week’s internet launch of the 2022 models, on sale in Australia now, officials stressed they would not expand the range to include other variants. They said the Interceptor and Continental GT will continue in their role as a blank canvas for customisers. Not…

ONLY THREE MONTHS after participating in a recordbreaking ride from Brisbane to Perth in March 1925, Edward Charles ‘Ted’ Clarke found himself in the Perth Bankruptcy Court. Under examination, Clarke claimed several of his creditors had sued him successfully and, for the past two years he’d been in an unsatisfactory financial situation. Of the 10 horses he was said to have sold, three were worthless, one had died and he did not know what happened to the rest. Besides, he could not provide details as his wife operated his bank account. Clarke readily admitted though, that although he was skint, he had purchased a Harley-Davidson motorcycle and sidecar using a £100 deposit advanced by his wife, and agreed to pay Mortlock Bros. £12 a month on the drip feed. Five…

Benelli’s TRK 502 and TRK 502X were, combined, the best-selling motorcycle in Italy in 2020. They look very similar, but the X has received a few teaks aimed at making it more suitable for off-road riding (see sidebar for differences between the two) and in doing so Benelli has brought a full-size adventure bike for those who don’t have tens of thousands of dollars to throw at one. The 502X is certainly a full-size adventure bike; it’s tall, looks ready for the dirty business and it’s quite handsome, with looks reminiscent of Ducati’s Multistrada and Triumph’s Tiger range. It’s also similar in weight to the current crop of adventure machines with a claimed weight of 213kg (dry). Fill the 20L tank to the brim and add fluids and you’re looking…

Yamaha’s flagship adventure bike arrived on the scene in 2010 and I remember it generating more than its fair share of excitement. I was right into adventure bikes at the time and in the lead up to its release, there was lots of chatter around the bike trade. My memory says the fanfare lasted for a time after its release and then the big Ténéré seemed to just fade from thought. Very little changed between the time of its release and the launch of the 2017 upgrade, which most noticeably now sported electronically adjustable suspension. The Super Ten’s looks were modestly updated, but apart from that and a few other minor changes, it retained the same 1199cc water-cooled parallel twin with 270-degree crank and steel tube backbone frame. The Super…

1 LIGHT ME UP Daytime Running Lamps (DRL) and Ducati Cornering Lights (DCL). The latter light up the inside line as the Multistrada tips into a corner. 2 STOP FAST Brakes are 330mm discs up front gripped by Brembo Stylema four-piston calipers and a single 265mm disc at the rear with a single-piston caliper. 3 GETTING THERE Fuel tank is 22-litres, which should result in a touring range of just over 300km. Fuel consumption on test was 6.7L/100km. 4 MMMM… WARM Seats are comfortable for rider and pillion alike. Rider’s seat is heated and height adjustable. Pillion gets their own heat controls. 5 ON THE LEVEL Semi-active Marzocchi suspension is controlled by the Ducati Skyhook Suspension (DSS) Evolution system with Auto-levelling function.…

Andrew Houlihan’s got a hell of a lot of healing to do and not much time to do it. At the end of July, the 52-year-old Albury local and all-round good bloke crashed his heavily customised KTM 890 R Rally while training. Cresting a rise at an estimated 160km/h, he hit not one, but two kangaroos, and snapped his bike in half. As well as four broken ribs and broken bones in his hand, he broke his neck, fractured an eye socket and punctured a lung which then collapsed. At a time when most other 50-something year olds would call time on an international racing career, this bloke used his time in hospital to start planning a one-off custom build he’s calling a KTM 890 Dakar R. And Dakar 2022…

The intrepid adventurer Ernest Hemingway wasn’t the first to acknowledge that “it’s good to have a destination but it’s the journey that matters.” However, even Ernie, who spent a night or two under canvas when he was blasting away at the African wildlife, never endorsed camping. That’s because there’s a far more engaging way to spend your evenings. Visualise the camper’s dream. A mild evening with the moon lighting up the ghost gums and the water burbling over the gibbers in the creek. The Milky Way above and the flicker of the campfire add ambience to the scene, as you sip a red from your enamel cup, drifting off to sleep on top of your swag. Then the squadrons of mosquitoes attack. If you’re lucky, you’ll have crawled into your…

PERSONAL CLOTHING: Pack light, small and smart. Wash your clothes more regularly and take less in the first place. Ditch all cotton and go for synthetics and wool instead as it’ll keep you both cooler and warmer when needs be, dry quicker and wick sweat and moisture away from your skin. Most clothing bulk comes from evening wear in colder temperatures. Consider using a lightweight, thermal down jacket that scrunches up into a small stuff sack. This can double up as your motorcycle thermal and your evening/camping jacket. There’s no point carrying a big woolly jumper for when you’re off the bike and using another thermal jacket for riding. ELECTRONICS: The important electronics are your mobile phone, charger and adapter. Your phone can be your sat-nav, translator, camera and used…

Not all adventure tyres are created equal, and I’m not talking about the difference in brand offerings, I’m talking styles. What style of tyre you choose can depend on what type of riding you do most, what riding you get the most enjoyment out of, how quick you like to ride on and off-road, how much cash you’re willing to throw away and, well, how big your ego is. I’m happy to exchange durability and road performance for off-road chops, but perhaps you do lots of two-up touring, ride to work each day, and venture down a fire trail every blue moon. You and I require a different type of tyre for our adventure bikes. So rather than bring you a tyre test in which we put a bunch of…

FOR THE TRUE adventurer, 60/40s are where it’s at, if you want your cake and want to eat it too. They are the best compromise between road and off-road performance, and they do both well. All the major brands’ offerings in this segment run a dirt-focussed knobby tread – that’s great for off-road riding, right? But how’s that going to roll on the street? Quite well, as it turns out. Compared to a motocross-style knobby, adventure tyres run very solid carcass constructions that improve sidewall stability, which is what allows the tyre to deal with the demands of heavy weights and big horsepower. So even a 60/40 tyre carries over a lot of technology from the sportsbike world. Although the tread-pattern blocks are large and have a sharper edge to…

WHEN IT COMES to quality, performance and that swanky street-cred factor, for a long time Dainese has been at the pointy end of the market, especially its higher-end stuff. But just like with motorcycles, where certain technology once reserved for higher-end machinery is starting to appear on more affordable bikes thanks to increased development and the lower cost of production, it’s a similar story for textiles and riding apparel. As regular readers would be aware, I’m really happy with my current mid-priced adventure jacket and pants. It’s proved hugely versatile in all sorts of weather, and the fit and comfort for my bigger build has been great – which is surprisingly hard to say these days. So I’m really keen to see how this new Dainese gear stacks up and…

AFTER A CRUSHING lights-to-flag victory in Austin, Marc Marquez showed yet again that he is still a force, even in his reduced physical state, as his right arm and shoulder continue to heal. He later revealed that a change to the right shoulder of his leathers has recently allowed him to move around on the bike. “In Aragon I was struggling with a lot of pain in the shoulder,” he said. “When you have pain, everything disturbs you. With Alpinestars we made the shoulder a bit bigger to have more mobility. Then we keep with that modification” On how his riding is still affected, Marquez added, “Still from the brake point to going in, still I don’t feel comfortable like always. I cannot slide the bike and turn. That was…

THE PENULTIMATE round of the British Superbike Championship was at Donington Park over 1-3 October, where McAMS Yamaha’s Tarran Mackenzie dealt a blow to Aussie teammate Jason O’Halloran’s title chances as he heads to the last triple header with a 10-point advantage. The duo struggled in the opening wet race however, as Gino Rea (Buildbase Suzuki) mastered treacherous conditions to score his first victory of the season, holding off Kyle Ryde (Rich Energy OMG Racing BMW) and Christian Iddon (VisionTrack Ducati). Sunday presented perfect sunshine for race two but O’Halloran, starting in 10th, became stuck in a mid-pack battle with the Irwin brothers and Bradley Ray (Rich Energy OMG Racing BMW). In contrast Mackenzie, who started 13th, steadily pushed forward and with six laps to run was closing on Rea…

BUILDING ON THE success of its Z900RS, Kawasaki has turned its Z650 into the retro-styled Z650RS. Two versions were unveiled, however only the LAMS-compliant version will be made abvailable in Australia. A classically circular headlight, twin analogue clocks, trad-style tank and Kawasaki’s signature duck tail seat unit triggers spectres of the original Z1 and Z650 models. Throw in some classic paint jobs – notably the pinstriped green option with gold wheels – and the transformation is complete. Such is the similarity to the Z650L, which also runs a 649cc water-cooled parallel-twin engine making 37.8kW of power at 8000rpm and 59Nm of torque at 6500rpm, that the Z650 has the same seat height and weighs just 1kg less at 187kg wet It arrives later this year with pricing to be announced.…

AFTER SHIPPING 12,500 Trident 660s since its launch earlier this year, Triumph has released the Tiger 660, an Adventure-Sports version. Adamant that it is not intended as an off-roader, Triumph has all but confirmed that a full-on Adventure version will follow. While the Tiger 660 is a relatively easy adaption of the Trident’s design, an Adventure version requiring longer suspension travel, a 19- or 21-inch front wheel and taller seat height will be a much more complicated exercise. Like the Trident, the Tiger 660 is a fresh approach to the Australian LAMS Adventure-sports market, offering the same crisp performance from its three-cylinder engine, segment-leading rider tech and, most importantly, the longest service intervals available. Long service intervals significantly reduce the cost of ownership, adding value to the already-competitive ride away…

AFTER A SIGNIFICANT cash injection Savic Motorcycles has announced it will be going into full production in Melbourne next year, making it the first electric motorcycle to be designed and built in Australia. Savic expects to have three models on the road by late 2022. The crucial funding came via investment from the Advanced Manufacturing Growth Centre under the Federal Government’s $30 million Commercialisation Fund. The co-investment of $657,000 from AMGC will be paired with funding contributions from Savic and its partners for a total project value of $1.14 million (including AMGC funds). Savic will offer three C-Series models: a 25-kilowatt Omega comparable to a 300cc), the 40kW Delta, and 60kw Alpha (roughly equivalent to a 1000cc bike). The Alpha has 200Nm of torque, powering it to 100km/h from a…

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Is there a better feeling in the world than trying to work out how to strap camping gear onto the back of a motorcycle? I love gathering together everything I’ll need to head bush for a couple of days and then having to work out how to secure it to something not much bigger than a dinner plate. These days, most people do it on something slightly more appropriate. An adventure-style bike with a luggage rack, a long, wide seat and a bevy of tie down points. But it wasn’t all that long ago that that luxury didn’t really exist. Adventure bikes for many were the bikes we owned – sportsbikes, tourers, cruisers and nakedbikes – we’d pile them up and head off down a muddy dirt road with mates…

AN INERTIAL MEASUREMENT Unit (IMU) manages the operation of the Multistrada V4 S’s Cornering ABS, Ducati Wheelie Control (DWC), Ducati Traction Control (DTC) and Cornering Lights (DCL). The IMU also communicates with the Ducati Skyhook Suspension (DSS) system, which analyses riding conditions and adjusts the fork and shock absorber instantly. The DSS also has an Autolevelling function that senses the load on the bike and autonomously adjusts the suspension in addition to the selected setting, whether that is rider only, rider with luggage, rider with passenger or rider with passenger and luggage. Within each of these preload settings, there are another 24 selectable preload settings from Low to High. There are four ride modes: Sport, Touring, Urban and Enduro. Sport mode provides full power and the quickest throttle response, as…

ONE OF ONLY 700 produced worldwide, KTM say its 890 R Rally is ‘a specialised motorcycle for a hardcore Adventurer’. The Austrian firm reserved 200 units for North America and the rest of the world had to share the remaining 500. They sold out in 48 hours. Houlihan’s once-intact practice bike started life as a rare but impressive bit of gear at Future Sport Motorcycles in Townsville, Queensland. With his first Dakar Rally behind him and his KTM 790 Adventure recently written off in a crash (something he seems to be making a habit of…), he was on the hunt for a new ticket to adventure. With his sights set on Dakar 2022, Andrew needed a bike that he could spend thousands of hours and tens of thousands of kilometres…

Going on a motorcycle adventure is one life’s finest experiences. It doesn’t matter if you’re quitting your job, selling everything you own and hitting the road or if you’ve only got a few days off work – travelling on your bike is visceral, life changing and deeply meaningful. And you’re probably grinning ear-to-ear just thinking about it. But, amidst all the day dreaming of dusty trails, foreign lands and the unknown is that sinking feeling of all the preparation you’ve got to do first. That block of boringness to push through before you can get to the good stuff. And that’s usually enough to put most people off. It shouldn’t. Preparing for a trip, regardless of how long it is, is half the fun. It just takes a little time…

It’s so easy to overpack a toolkit and take unnecessary weight. If you’re heading to a particularly remote place, the best advice is to take your bike to pieces (or as close to pieces as you feel comfortable with) before you set-off. Take anything apart that is likely to go wrong and also perform any services, changes and fixes that will likely need doing. For example, change your tubes, do an oil and coolant change, take your chain and sprockets on and off, replace your brake pads, etc. But don’t go to the extreme, there’s no point taking your engine apart as it’s incredibly unlikely you’ll be doing that in the Simpson Desert. As you perform all these jobs, put the tools you use into a box. By the time…

TYRES LIKE METZELER’S Tourance Next are a great choice for riders that spend the majority of their time on the road, but still like the occasional cruise along a dirt road. They offer many of the advantages of a sports-touring tyre, with the addition of deeper and more aggressive tread pattern for better off-road grip, as well as tougher carcass construction for better puncture resistance. The wider and deeper tread pattern f lexes more than it would on a sports-touring tyre, which generates heat, bringing the tyre up to operating temperature quickly. This also works to maintain the tyre temperature in wet and cold conditions. Unlike in a more dirt-focussed tyre, this style of tyre has a high silica content, which improves wet-weather grip and, combined with a tread pattern…

FOR THOSE THAT see tarmac as just a way of getting to the dirt or value off-grip over all other considerations, then a Rally style tyre may be for you. These tyres give you the best level of off-road grip for your adventure machine while still being legal on the road. They feature a greater sea-to-land ratio, meaning the knobs – which also have a sharper edge to bite into the dirt – are spaced further apart. They also run a stronger carcass for greater puncture resistance and bump absorption, and allow you to run lower pressures for a larger footprint that provides better grip. In wet conditions in areas with a high clay content, rally tyres can collect a significant amount of mud if you’re pushing through slowly. The…

APPLE RECENTLY put out a statement outlining that exposure to high-amplitude vibrations within certain frequency ranges, specifically those generated by high-power motorcycle engines, can degrade the performance of the iPhone camera system. Coincidentally, my iPhone 11 Pro Max camera failed on the same day this statement was released by Apple. I use a Quad Lock mounting system to attach my iPhone to bikes, and the vibes produced apparently messed with the optical image stabilisation (OIS) in said phone. Fortunately, I am pleased that Apple fixed it under warranty. To prevent this from happening again, I have added Quad Lock’s new Vibration Dampener to my mounting set up. The dampener fits between the Quad Lock handlebar mount and the phone mount, and it features a dual chassis suspension system with silicone…

THE FIM STEWARDS dished out their harshest penalty yet after the terrifying multi-bike collision which took three riders down in the US Moto3 grand prix in CoTA, and saw miraculous escapes for both Andrea Migno and championship points leader Pedro Acosta. Hours later, Deniz Öncü was notified he has been suspended from the next two races for causing the incident. The MotoGP field largely agreed with the penalty. “The movement of one rider that created all these things,” said Marc Marquez. “It’s a very strong penalty. “Of course it was not the intention of Oncu, but in the end they must go in that way if they want to stop these movements (on the straight).” Valentino Rossi was adamant the penalty was the right one. “He has to stay home…

ARTEM LAGUTA IS Russia’s first world champion in any discipline other than ice speedway after the two-night finale to the Speedway Grand Prix series at Torun, Poland, on 1 October. A congested scorechart on Friday saw Laguta and Tai Woffinden on 12, one point ahead of four riders – Emil Sayfutdinov, Bartosz Zmarzlik, Leon Madsen and Max Fricke (a win and four seconds). Fricke’s best showing contrasted Jason Doyle’s, who managed only a second, two thirds, a last and an exclusion. Woffinden and Maciej Janowski progressed from the first semi as Zmarzlik held off Fricke for third. Laguta then boosted his championship hopes by winning the second semi from Madsen and Lambert, who both passed Sayfutdinov. Laguta won the final. Round 11 on Saturday saw Laguta scoring only three points…

AFTER AN ARGENTINIAN WorldSBK round was confirmed recently, one other unforseen problem reared its ugly head at Portimao. Some teams had their flights there cancelled or rescheduled during the Portimao weekend, as the airlines reduce their capacity to Argentina now the country is tightening its border controls. With already limited flights to Argentina due to Covid, there are concerns there won’t be enough teams and personnel able to get to Argentina to host the penultimate race of the series. And the final round venue of Mandalika is not yet fully built… If we do see the season out in Europe, Estoril and Valencia have been spoken of as possible replacements.…