Suzuki to Spotlight 2020 KATANA with Exclusive, First-Ever U.S. Demo at IMS Long Beach
The V-STROM 1050 Series will also make its North American Debut Along with the Full 2020 Lineup, “Discover the Ride”, and More
Brea, CA (November 14, 2019) – As one of the original exhibiting partners of the Progressive International Motorcycle Shows (IMS), Suzuki Motor of America (SMAI) is excited to return for all eight IMS stops for its 38th consecutive year. Kicking off the series at the Long Beach Convention Center on November 22nd, consumers and industry enthusiasts will have the exciting opportunity to ride the new, iconic 2020 KATANA for its first-ever demo in the United States. In addition, the all-new V-STROM 1050 series will make its electrifying North American debut alongside the full 2020 lineup of motorcycles, ATVs, and scooters.
Recently unveiled at the EICMA motorcycle show in Milan, Italy, Suzuki’s all-new V-STROM 1050 will hit the West Coast with its bright colors, updated electronics, and adventure capabilities. Media and consumers will get a first-hand look at this new adventurer that pays homage to the legendary DR Big and Dakar Rally bike.
Exclusive to IMS Long Beach attendees, licensed riders will have a chance to be the first group of riders to swing a leg over the new KATANA. This limited, boutique-style demo will only be available Saturday, November 23rd and Sunday, November 24th on a first come first served basis. Consumers are encouraged to get there early to ensure a ride of a lifetime! For more information on a KATANA demo near you, contact your local dealer.
Suzuki is also participating in “Discover the Ride” during the full IMS tour. This initiative offers new riders an opportunity to discover the best Suzuki motorcycle to start on including models like the Boulevard S40, GSX250R, SV650, and VanVan. Riders will get $250 towards the purchase of a new Suzuki motorcycle as well as a $100 reimbursement on approved motorcycle riding courses. New on Two Wheels? Make sure to check out Suzuki’s “Discover the Ride” display and get riding.
Other display standouts include MotoGP racer Alex Rins’ Team Suzuki ECSTAR GSX-RR and M4 ECSTAR Suzuki’s Bobby Fong’s MotoAmerica championship-winning GSX-R600. With several victories won throughout the year, attendees will be able to get up close and witness the proven performance and technology of each bike.
Bobby Fong’s MotoAmerica Supersport Championship-winning M4 ECSTAR Suzuki GSX-R600. Photo by Brian J. Nelson.
In addition to the V-STROM 1050, Suzuki will display its full lineup of 2020 models featuring the legendary KATANA in a new solid black along with the iconic silver that matches the look of the original, the adventure-ready V-Strom 650XT Adventure, and the beloved café-race style SV650X. Suzuki will also bring the next level of ruggedness to the IMS floor with its new KingQuad with Rugged Package that includes newly designed accessories to tackle any outdoor adventure.
Use promo code “SUZ20” to get $3 off 1-day tickets purchased online.
Consumers can learn more about Suzuki’s full 2020 motorcycle, ATV, and scooter lineup by visiting www.suzukicycles.com. The press can learn more about Suzuki products and media support by contacting a Suzuki PR representative.
Ducati Riding Experience: enrolment open for the 2020 courses
Enrolment is open for the 2020 courses of DRE Enduro, DRE Road and DRE Rookie; the agenda for the DRE Racetrack Academy will soon be available too
The big new entry for this coming season is the DRE Rookie Academy, a course dedicated to young riders between the ages of 18 and 24 years
Thanks to the confirmed success of the format the DRE events are becoming ever more international
Borgo Panigale (Bologna, Italy), 14 November 2019 – After having concluded a successful 2019 schedule, the world of the Ducati Riding Experience is preparing to face a coming season full of new initiatives and increasingly international projects. Enrolment for the 2020 DRE Enduro, DRE Road and DRE Rookie courses is in fact now open. Professional instructors, unforgettable locations and the opportunity to ride your favourite Ducati – these are the features that distinguish the various Academies, a whole range of unique and exclusive experiences.
The big new entry for the coming season is the DRE Rookie Academy, a new course dedicated to young riders between 18 and 24 years of age who ride reduced-power motorcycles. An avant-garde educational programme aimed at teaching riding techniques in order to increase the skills of the participants and help them to release their full potential as motorcyclists.
One of the most long-standing courses of the Ducati Riding Academy has been confirmed once again this year: DRE Enduro, two days in a beautiful natural context, riding a Multistrada, in order to learn and improve off-road riding techniques.
A new course which began in 2019 and has become a fully-fledged official riding course is DRE Road: a course designed by Ducati for all riders who wish to increase their awareness, improving their levels of safety when riding. Participants can choose a model from the Ducati range and put themselves to the test while learning the safest way to deal with every type of corner and having fun at the same time.
The 2020 schedule is soon to be released also for the DRE Racetrack Academy, the course where education, fun and adrenaline are combined together with the most beautiful and high-performance bikes of the Ducati Panigale range, which will complete the programme of the Ducati Riding Experience for the coming season.
The DRE format has been a success at international level too and in fact the complete range of courses has been carried out in Asia by the DRE Academy APAC, while DRE Enduro has taken place in the USA and Holland for riding fans. Worldwide, over 1400 motorcyclists took part in the Ducati Riding Academy courses during 2019.
In addition to the activities of the Academy, Ducati dedicates a great deal of attention to the field of travelling with its riding experiences: Dream Tour and Adventure Tour. These formats are also becoming ever more international, as can be seen by the new Spiti Valley Dream Tour initiative, which took place between August and September in India, on a route to discover the magnificent peaks of the Himalayas.
Redding and Davies capitalise on Rea absence to top Aragon Test
Final three hours see most of the day’s action, with Ducati dominating the timesheets
Scott Redding (ARUBA.IT Racing – Ducati) set the pace ahead of his teammate Chaz Davies on the final day of testing at Aragón
The battle lines for the 2020 MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship have begun to be drawn after two days of testing at the Spanish circuit of MotorLand Aragon. Despite the heavily limited dry track time on both Wednesday and Thursday, the visit to the Alcañiz circuit has allowed us a first glimpse into what awaits the Championship next year, with nine top WorldSBK riders participating over the course of both days.
Many questions naturally remain unanswered; one that does not is whether Scott Redding (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) can adapt to this new chapter in his career. The Gloucestershire rider, who was suffering from food poisoning hours before the test was due to start, finished day two at the top of the timesheets. One of just three riders to go out on wet conditions as well, Redding clocked in a best time of 1’49.929 after 60 laps, beating teammate Chaz Davies by two tenths of a second – both faster than Rea’s best time from the day before.
Chaz Davies (7). Photo courtesy of Dorna WorldSBK Press Office.
Leon Camier (BARNI Racing Team) was the first WorldSBK rider to set out in the morning and occupied first place on the timing sheets until the final three hours of running, yet his day was over nearly as quickly as it started. A slip at Turn 9 left the English rider feeling significant pain in his left shoulder – the same one he had surgery on last July – which prompted a quick visit to Alcañiz hospital. Thankfully, Camier was back in his garage a couple of hours later, although the day was over for him with just four laps completed.
Leon Camier (2). Photo courtesy of Dorna WorldSBK Press Office.
That was four more than Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) made on Thursday. The reigning Champion already opted to skip the wet hours of Wednesday testing, and with improvements uncertain for the afternoon both the team and he decided to reschedule their programme for Jerez.
Alex Lowes (22). Photo courtesy of Dorna WorldSBK Press Office.
That left Alex Lowes (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) as the only rider waving the Kawasaki flag on day two. The 2019 bronze medallist already mentioned the day before that 25 dry laps were “not enough to understand the bike completely”, so Thursday’s inclement weather will not have helped. Heading onto the track shortly before 2 pm, Lowes nonetheless managed 50 laps and improved his performance from the day before, closing the gap with the leading riders and even dipping into the 1’50s. Jerez will hopefully give the 29-year-old more time to work on a set-up suited to his riding style.
Michael van der Mark (60). Photo courtesy of Dorna WorldSBK Press Office.
Over to his old colleagues in Yamaha, Michael van der Mark (Pata Yamaha Official WorldSBK Team) continued his calm approach to pre-season while he awaits the 2020 YZF R1. A small crash at Turn 11 was the only blotch on an otherwise positive day in Spain, with 20 timed laps completed.
Toprak Razgatlioglu (54). Photo courtesy of Dorna WorldSBK Press Office.
Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pata Yamaha Official WorldSBK Team) meanwhile – testing with two bikes and a teammate for the first time in his career – was still focused on getting more laps under his belt yet managed to improve his fastest lap from Wednesday by six tenths of a second, finishing the day as best Yamaha and fourth overall. With two riders of a similar build and both relying strongly on front-end feeling, much of the work on both sides of the Pata Yamaha garage has been in the same direction, in terms of set-up.
Garrett Gerloff (31). Photo courtesy of Dorna WorldSBK Press Office.
On the GRT Yamaha side of things, Garrett Gerloff topped his efforts from day one by a full seven tenths of a second, propelling him into sixth on the timesheets and only 0.05s behind van der Mark’s fastest time. The US rookie, testing Pirelli tyres for the first time on Wednesday, has lauded the performance of the front compound while also finding the rear tricky to understand in these early stages. Going by his Thursday improvements, the 24-year-old is a quick learner – although a nasty, late crash at Turn 2 will keep him on his toes for next time (rider OK).
Federico Caricasulo (64). Photo courtesy of Dorna WorldSBK Press Office.
Closing the timesheets from the other side of the garage, Federico Caricasulo (GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Junior Team) nonetheless closed the gap with the more experienced riders in front of him, dropping into the 1’52s. The Italian youngster has been working on electronics and his riding style, as he makes the steep jump from Supersport machinery to WorldSBK – not just in terms of power, but set-ups, braking and weight.
Ana Carrasco (Kawasaki Provec WorldSSP300) was the sole non-WorldSBK rider who took to the Aragon tarmac, putting in 55 laps on day two with a best time of 2’09.070 – half a second quicker than on Wednesday.
The next test on their radar will be in Jerez, in two weeks’ time – one final meet-up before enjoying a well deserved winter break.
Aragón Test Day Two Unofficial Times:
Scott Redding (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) 1’49.929 – 60 laps
Chaz Davies (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) 1’50.185 – 30 laps
Alex Lowes (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) 1’50.653 – 50 laps
Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pata Yamaha Official WorldSBK Team) 1’50.657 – 36 laps
Michael van der Mark (Pata Yamaha Official WorldSBK Team) 1’51.088 – 20 laps
Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK), no time recorded – 0 laps
More, from a press release issued by Kawasaki:
Rea And Lowes Complete First Joint Test Sessions
Alex Lowes at speed on his new Kawasaki ZX-10RR. Photo courtesy of Kawasaki Motors Europe.
Jonathan Rea and Alex Lowes have completed successful tests at Motorland Aragon in Spain, in changeable track conditions, as the new KRT pairing took their first steps toward the 2020 FIM Superbike World Championship season.
Five-time World Champion Rea set a best lap time of 1’50.416 on day one of the test before opting to sit-out the wet start to day two, and ultimately the entire second day itself.
Rea had already tried some new set-up ideas and components on his championship-winning machine, and now looks forward to the next tests in Spain at the end of this month.
Lowes, taking part in his first tests on the official KRT Ninja ZX-10RR, took to the circuit each day and eventually reduced his best lap time to 1’50.653 when the weather improved this afternoon.
The 5.077km long Aragon circuit, in the north of Spain, provided a wide variety of different track conditions for the riders and the team’s technical staff to deal with over these first two days of winter testing, accelerating Lowes’ familiarity with his new machine.
After the completion of the Motorland Aragon tests the next track outing for Rea and Lowes will be another two-day test session, to be held at the Jerez de la Frontera circuit between 28 and 29 November.
Jonathan Rea, stated: “We have been a bit unlucky with the weather and the only track time we could use was in the afternoons. Even in windy and cold conditions we were able to be fast and we have a consistent understanding of some new components in our test plan. While we have nothing revolutionary to try we will continue to evaluate some ideas that we have to improve our ZX-10RR in the next tests at Jerez, where we hope to find consistent conditions to complete our test plan.”
Alex Lowes, stated: “It was a good test and great to get out on the bike. With the weather conditions we got one full day out of two days on track, but today was good. I am adapting to the bike really well and, more importantly, adapting to the team really well. They understand my comments and going forward that will be a big help to improve the bike set-up. I really enjoyed the bike and I feel that is a more natural way to ride for me. It was really positive and I am really happy to have started the next chapter with the KRT team. I am really happy and a big thank you to all the team for welcoming me at the first test.”
Pere Riba, Crew Chief for Jonathan Rea, stated: “We had a good test in general. The first day it started out wet, and then it was cold and very windy. In the end we put in some real priority items into the schedule yesterday because I knew it was going to rain again today and our time was going to be limited. We tried the biggest items and we will try them again in Jerez. The results were positive and Jonathan was fastest yesterday – and the most consistent – because he did many laps inside the 1’50s. He has a good feeling with the bike the way it is now. At Jerez we will have another two days to work with and I hope it will be dry to continue working for the new season.”
Marcel Duinker, Crew Chief for Alex Lowes, stated: “This test was a very nice experience. Of course the weather took away 50% of our track time but everybody is smiling, so this shows that everything was positive. I am impressed by the way Alex is building up his speed. He is able to give us very clear and to the point feedback. This is the way we need to work so that was very nice. He was able to go into the 1’50s fairly easily today. We are fully in schedule. He used a Q tyre to give Alex the first impression of what it does with this bike, just for information for the future. He understands how to extract more from it already. I am a happy man and that was a very pleasant first test with Alex.”
Jorge Lorenzo has announced his retirement from racing, effective following this weekend’s MotoGP race at Valencia.
He made the surprise announcement during an afternoon press conference at Valencia. More to follow.
More, from a press release issued by Dorna:
The Spaniard announces his retirement from MotoGP™ after 18 seasons of stunning racing
Thursday, 14 November 2019
After 18 seasons in the MotoGP™ paddock, five-time World Champion Jorge Lorenzo (Repsol Honda Team) has announced his retirement. The Spaniard was joined by Dorna Sports CEO Carmelo Ezpeleta in a Press Conference at the Circuit Ricardo Tormo in Valencia to break the news, bringing the curtain down on an incredible career.
Jorge Lorenzo (right) with Dorna CEO Carmelo Ezpeleta (left) at a press conference today in Valencia. Photo courtesy of Dorna/www.motogp.com.
Lorenzo made his debut in the 125cc World Championship in 2002, missing the first day of his first Grand Prix because he was still too young. But his 15th birthday fell on qualifying day and the young Spaniard headed out to do the first laps of what would go on to become one of the most successful careers of all time. By his fourth race he had scored his first points, and his best finish that year was seventh, taken in Rio de Janeiro. A year later in Rio, he would win his first Grand Prix.
From there the momentum would grow. Three wins and four further podiums in the 125cc World Championship the following year saw him finish fourth overall, setting solid foundations for a move onto 250cc machinery in 2005. There he took six podiums as a rookie, and his first titles were just around the corner as he began 2006 with back to back wins. He’d wrack up another six by the end of the year, taking his very first World Championship after a stunning season that announced him as a serious force to be reckoned with. In 2007 he stayed in the class to defend the crown and did so, this time with an incredible nine wins. From there, MotoGP™ beckoned with Yamaha.
There are few better ways to make a splash in the premier class than taking pole for your first race, and that’s exactly what Lorenzo did – setting a new lap record that stood for ten years. He was on the podium in both of his first MotoGP™ races too before taking to the top step for the first time on only his third appearance. That was at Estoril, as he beat two men he’d continue to compete with for years to come: Dani Pedrosa and Valentino Rossi, then his teammate. Injury struggles and crashes would mar the rest of 2008 for Lorenzo as Rossi lifted the crown, but 2009 saw the Spaniard bounce back and make his first run at defeating the then eight-time World Champion on the other side of the garage. Rossi was victorious, but 2010 would turn the tables.
Lorenzo took podiums in the first 12 races of that year, only one of which was a third place. Seven were wins. By Malaysia, it was match point and the number 99 wrapped it up with another podium, becoming a MotoGP™ World Champion for the first time. He also rounded out the season with another two wins to make it nine victories overall in one of the most impressive seasons ever put together.
2011 was more difficult. As great rival Casey Stoner took back to the top, the bad luck that had hit Rossi the year before hit Lorenzo, and the Spaniard ceded the title fight after a crash at Phillip Island. But 2012 saw him back in the running from the off as he won the season opener, and he took podiums in every single race bar two – including six wins. At Phillip Island, he was crowned a two-time MotoGP™ World Champion, and then came 2013: a new era in the premier class.
In 2013, Stoner retired, Rossi returned to Yamaha and Marc Marquez made his debut in MotoGP™. The year became the reigning Champion vs the rookie, with the battle going all the way down to Valencia and the season finale. Marquez would ultimately come out on top, but Lorenzo would do everything he could to take him on – and some career-defining moments and races were created on the way.
The journey to the final round wasn’t a smooth one for the number 99. The first hurdle was a collarbone broken on Thursday at the TT Circuit Assen. Lorenzo had already put in a number of iron man-esque performances in his career, but this was another level. After having the collarbone plated after the crash, the number 99 returned to the track to race – and came fifth. It was a stunning statement of intent that he wouldn’t go down without a fight.
The next hurdle, however, came soon after. Another big crash at the Sachsenring damaged the collarbone once again and Lorenzo was forced to forfeit the round, but he was back by Laguna Seca and back on the podium at Indianapolis. Silverstone then staged one of the greatest races of all time as he and Marquez traded provisional pole on Saturday and duelled it out to the line on Sunday. Lorenzo was a man on a mission and a stunning move from the number 99 put him back on the top step and back in the game. Drama for Marquez in Australia saw the rookie disqualified for making a mandatory pit stop at the wrong time – and as the number 93 took home a 0, Lorenzo won. By the season finale, all Lorenzo could do to try and take the crown was win the race, and that he did. It wasn’t quite enough, but the season was an instant classic.
2014 saw Marquez hit top gear, with Lorenzo only winning his first race of the season at Aragon and the momentum remaining with the number 93. But 2015 would flip the form book once again as Lorenzo became the only man to beat Marquez to the crown so far – and the only other name on the trophy since 2011. The season was Lorenzo vs Rossi and one of the most dramatic ever, although it was Marquez and Rossi in the spotlight for a number of incidents. The biggest of which was at Sepang as the two clashed, leaving the Italian with the penalty of starting the season finale from the back of the grid. And Lorenzo? He would aim to take his third premier class crown from pole, and did so with his seventh win of the season.
2016 was another slightly tougher year, but the Spaniard once again took a slew of wins and podiums. And the last win of the season at Valencia was also his last with Yamaha as nine seasons together came to an end after 44 wins, 107 podiums and 39 pole positions. From now, Lorenzo would race in red…
His switch to Ducati was tougher at first, although a first podium wasn’t long in coming as he took third on home turf at Jerez. Flashes of speed shone through but it wasn’t till Aragon that Lorenzo was back on the rostrum, taking another third place, and he was close to the win at a wet Sepang later in the season. A warning shot for his rivals came at the same venue at the start of 2018 as Lorenzo smoked the lap record in testing.
It would take a few more races of speed that the ‘Spartan’ struggled to convert into podiums before a switch suddenly seemed to flick – and what a place for everything to come together. Mugello, Ducati’s home Grand Prix, had seen Lorenzo master its curves on many a Sunday. And in 2018 he did so once again for an emotional first win in red, destroying the opposition. Was this the start of something? Another win at Catalunya said it may well be.
Another of Lorenzo’s best races came later in the season as he won a stunning showdown at the Red Bull Ring in Austria, taking victory from Marquez by only just over a tenth. His final win so far, it was also another rider-defining display of excellence.
After crashes at Aragon and Buriram, injury would then strike again, however, and a difficult period followed. For 2019 though, Lorenzo was back and took on another new challenge as he moved to partner Marquez at Repsol Honda and once again began to adapt to another new bike. But injury struggles struck again, and broken vertebrae interrupted the season, necessitating a long recovery. Although the five-time World Champion once again showed his mettle as he returned to race, Lorenzo has now announced his retirement – bowing out on home turf, and one of the venues he has ruled more than many.
18 seasons, 68 wins, 152 podiums, 69 pole positions and 37 fastest laps: that’s five-time World Champion Jorge Lorenzo, one of the true greats. He will also be inducted as a MotoGP™ Legend next season at the Spanish Grand Prix at Jerez.
WATCH: Click here to see the full Press Conference as Lorenzo announces his retirement in Valencia, joined by Dorna Sports CEO Carmelo Ezpeleta
Jorge Lorenzo: “Thank you very much to everyone who accepted my invitation and attended this press conference, it really means a lot to me and makes me very happy. I always thought there are four significant days in the career of a rider. Your first race, your first win, your first Championship and then the day you retire. Well, as you may imagine, I’m here to tell you this day has arrived for me. I want to announce this will be my last race in MotoGP, and that at the end of this race I will retire from professional racing.
“I was 3 years old when everything started. Almost 30 years of complete dedication to this sport, my sport. The ones who worked with me, know how much of a perfectionist I am, how much hard work and intensity I put into this. Being like this requires a high level of motivation, that’s why after nine unforgettable years with Yamaha (without a doubt the most glorious of my career) I felt I needed a change if I wanted to maintain this high commitment to my sport. Moving to Ducati gave me that big boost I needed and even though the results were bad I used that extra motivation as fuel to not give up and finally win that special race at Mugello, in front of all the Ducati fans. After that, when I signed for Honda I got similar feeling, achieving one of the dreams of every rider: to be an official HRC factory rider.
“Unfortunately, injuries came soon to play an important role in my season, being unable to ride in normal physical conditions. This, plus a bike that never felt natural to me, makes races very difficult. Anyway, I never lost the patience and I kept fighting, just thinking that was a simply matter of time and that after all things would get into the right place. But, as I started to see some light I had this bad crash at the Montmelo test, and some weeks later that ugly one in Assen. At that point I had to admit, that when I stopped rolling into the gravel, the first thought that came into my mind was ‘What am I doing here? Is this really worth it? I’m done with it.’ Some days later after reflecting a lot about my life and career I decided to give it a try. I wanted to be sure I was not making an early decision.
“The truth is from that crash, the hill became too high for me, and even if I try I couldn’t find the motivation and patience to be able to keep climbing it. You know, I love this sport, I love to ride, but above all things I love to win. I understood, that if I’m not able to fight for something big, to fight for the title or at least to fight for victories I cannot find the motivation to keep going specially at this stage of my career. I realised that my goal with Honda, at least in a short time, was not realistic. I have to say I feel very sorry for Honda, specially for Alberto, who really was the one who trusted me and gave me that opportunity. I remember that day in Montmelo when we meet and I told him “Don’t make a mistake signing the wrong rider Alberto, trust me and you will not regret it’. Sadly, I have to say that I disappointed him, so I did to Takeo, Kuwata, Nomura San and all my team, who I have to say they always treat treat me in a exceptional way. However, I really feel this is the best decision for me and for the team, Jorge Lorenzo and Honda cannot be here just to score some points!
“Coming back to my beautiful and successful career, I have always said I’m a very lucky guy. Sometimes I feel a bit like the movie ‘One in a Billion’, the documentary about the only Indian who ever came to the NBA. During my career I raced against dozens and dozens of exceptional riders of my generation, some of them even more talented than I am. Some of them have not been as successful as me, but specially most of them did not even make it to the World Championship, having to go to work in normal jobs. That’s why I feel so lucky to be able to achieve much more than I ever imagined I could achieve when I first started. And yes, it’s true, I always worked very hard, but without being at the right place at the right time, and especially without the help of many people who worked with me through my career, would have been impossible for me to achieve what I have done.
“That’s why I would like to thank sincerely all of this people. Specially Carmelo and Dorna for the treatment and for making MotoGP so great. Derbi, Aprilia, Yamaha, Ducati, Honda, specially Giampiero Sachi, Gigi Dall’Igna, Lin Jarvis and Alberto Puig. Obviously my mother for bringing me to this world. My father, for showing me the passion for this sport and all the sacrifice he has made for me during these years. My fans and my fan club for the unconditional love through all these years. Thank you to all the people of work with me as a personal team, with specially mention to Albert Valera, for being always honest and loyal. So this is it, with all my heart, I really wish you all the best, professionally and personally. Thanks for all.”
More, from a press release issued by Repsol Honda:
Jorge Lorenzo announces retirement from MotoGP
The Valencia GP will be the five-time World Champion’s last race in the MotoGP World Championship as the 32-year old announced his retirement ahead of his 297th Grand Prix start.
After 18 years of racing at the highest level, Jorge Lorenzo has today announced his retirement from racing ahead of the Valencia GP. With five World Championships, 152 podiums, 68 wins, 69 poles and 37 fastest laps, Lorenzo boasts one of the most impressive and consistent careers in Grand Prix racing. After a bruising campaign in 2019, Lorenzo has decided to draw an end to his Grand Prix career.
Debuting on his 15th birthday on the second day of practice at the Spanish Grand Prix in 2002, Jorge Lorenzo has spent his entire life racing. A first Grand Prix win came just over a year later with his famous ‘Por Fuera’ move in Rio de Janeiro in 2003. After a total of four wins in the 125cc class, ‘The Spartan’ moved to the 250cc championship and soon took back-to-back titles in 2006 and 2007, his butter-smooth style perfectly suited to the intermediate class. His formidable consistency saw him take 29 podium finishes in three years, including 17 wins and earned him a factory seat in the MotoGP class.
Lorenzo’s start to life in the premier class was nothing short of amazing as he took three-straight pole positions and converted them to three consecutive podium finishes, including a first win in his third MotoGP race. Although some heavy falls would halt his title challenge, Lorenzo established himself as a star of the future as he ended his debut season in fourth place.
2009 saw the soon-to-be World Champion never finish a race lower than fourth and Lorenzo carried this consistency through to 2010 and a debut MotoGP World Championship. Finishing all 18 World Championship rounds in the top four, only twice off the podium, Lorenzo put in a dominating performance to take his first of three premier class crowns. With 383 points, Lorenzo set a new record for points scored in the premier class – a record which would stand for almost a decade. The championship was Spain’s second in the premier class, Alex Criville the only Spanish rider to have previously won.
In 2011 Jorge Lorenzo went toe-to-toe with Casey Stoner, the pair trading wins throughout the season. Unfortunately, an injury in Australia forced Lorenzo to miss the final three races of the season – his efforts during the course of the year still enough to earn him second place in the championship with an impressive 260 points. There was no stopping Lorenzo in 2012 as he took three wins from the first five races and missed out on the top two steps on the podium just once in the first 17 races. Again, his consistency was unmatched and Lorenzo marched to a fourth World Championship, his second in the premier class. His final World Championship came in 2015 as he overcame a season-long challenge from both Marc Marquez and Valentino Rossi to clinch the title at the last round in Valencia.
After conquering three championships, Lorenzo made the decision to change manufacturer and in two years took seven podiums and three wins, joining a prestigious club of riders to win on two different manufacturers.
Taking up a new challenge for 2019, Jorge Lorenzo joined the Repsol Honda Team as he set his sights on becoming the first rider to win on three different manufacturers in MotoGP. Unfortunately, a pre-season training crash saw the Mallorca native miss the majority of testing and spend the opening races playing catch up. Despite making constant improvements aboard the Honda RC213V, a heavy crash in Assen saw Lorenzo suffer breaks to his T6 and T8 vertebrae, ruling him out of four Grands Prix and affecting him throughout his return.
Lorenzo leaves the MotoGP World Championship with a number of incredible achievements to his name including: the second most podium finishes in the premier class (114), the second highest amount of pole positions across all classes (69), the fifth most successful rider in terms of wins in the premier class (47) and the third highest point scorer of all time (2896) in the premier class.
The Repsol Honda Team wish Jorge Lorenzo all the best in his future.
Jorge Lorenzo
“I want to announce this will be my last race in MotoGP, and that at the end of this race I will retire from professional racing. I was 3 years old when everything started. Almost 30 years of complete dedication to this sport. Everyone who has worked with me knows how much of a perfectionist I am, how much hard work and intensity I put into this. Being like this requires a high level of motivation, when I signed for Honda I had an incredible feeling of motivation, achieving one of the dreams of every rider: to be an official HRC factory rider. Unfortunately, injuries came to play an important role in my season, being unable to ride in a normal way. I started to see some light but I had this bad crash in the Montmelo test, and some weeks later that ugly one in Assen. The truth is from that crash, the hill became too high for me, and even if I tried, I couldn’t find the motivation and patience to be able to keep climbing it. I’m disappointed with that, I want to say sorry to Alberto Puig, to Takeo, Kuwata, Nomura and all my team, who I have to say have always treated me in an exceptional way. I would like to sincerely thank everyone at Honda for their support and understanding and also extend my thanks and gratitude to everyone who has been there through my career.”
Yoshishige Nomura
HRC President
“It is with great sadness that we say goodbye to Jorge Lorenzo, he has been one of the strongest champions in the last decade that we have fought against and now worked with. The chance to have Lorenzo in Repsol Honda Team colours was something truly unique and 2019 was full of promise. Unfortunately, he suffered a lot of bad luck with injuries before the season started and also during the season with his fall in Assen. As a result, he wasn’t able to recover the confidence he once had and we will sadly be ending our cooperation early as he retires from racing. We at Honda Racing Corporation would like to wish him all the best for the future.”
BRANDON PAASCH FINISHES TOP 15 IN FIM CEV REPSOL MOTO2 EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIP AT CIRCUIT DE VALENCIA
Brandon Paasch went to Valencia last weekend [Nov. 9-10] to test himself against the best riders in the FIM CEV Moto2 European Championship, taking the next step in his international racing career. Partnering again with Baiko Racing Team and AGR Racing, Brandon was determined to show he deserves to race in one of the most competitive series in the world.
Carrying the confidence of his championship season in the British Superbike HEL Performance Moto3 GP series, he adapted to the speed and performance of the Kalex-framed 600cc race bike during practice sessions on Thursday. He worked closely with his team to find a good baseline setup, and then they began to adjust the bike to extract the best performance possible. Additionally, Brandon tweaked his own riding style and body position as he learned the new characteristics of racing a Moto2 bike. He continuously pushed his braking markers deeper and his acceleration points earlier, improving in every session he rode.
Brandon knew that finding a groove and staying in the fast group would be critical in both qualifying sessions. The first session proved to be a bit of a traffic jam, as every rider was pushing hard to get to the top of the timing sheets. A steady approach by Brandon saw him set a time inside the Top 20, out of a total of 32 riders. A few more adjustments by the team, and some analysis of his riding technique, gave Brandon critical insights into how to improve for the second qualifying session. At the end of the final qualifying session, Brandon had dropped almost 0.5 seconds off his previous time to set the 16th fastest lap in combined qualifying. This meant Brandon would start on Row 6, in a good position to make a strong start for the first corner.
At the green flag, Brandon launched his Kalex Moto2 bike into the front pack for the first corner. Battling with some of the season regulars, he put together good passes and moved into 9th spot on Lap 1, just off the leading pack. Over the next couple laps, a slight gap separated the first eight riders from Brandon’s group, leaving him to battle for the final Top 10 spots. But some slight fatigue and pain from a dislocated shoulder suffered in a crash during warm-up dropped him back a few spots during the latter stages of the race. Despite staying in the group for the final quarter of the race and matching the group’s lap times, Brandon finished 12th to tally 4 points in his first ever FIM CEV Moto2 European Championship race.
“Overall, that was a pretty good weekend racing the Kalex Moto2 bike with Baiko and AGR. It definitely was an adjustment after riding a Moto3 GP bike all season in BSB, and it has more power and better handling than the 600 I raced at Daytona. So, it was a bit of an eye-opener to get out there with the top guys in FIM CEV. But I felt good right away mixing it up on the track with them.
“Practice on Thursday was good to get used to the bike and reset my markers around the track. I was a little nervous for qualifying, and it was definitely a bit of a crazy scene out there with everyone trying to cut fast laps, especially at the end. My goal was to be inside the top 15 for qualifying; unfortunately, I just missed that by a tenth of a second.
“For the race on Sunday, I was determined to make up for dropping the bike in the morning warmup. The temps were pretty cool, the wind was strong, and I don’t think I put enough heat in the front tire, so I slid off. The whole team at Baiko Racing stepped up and rebuilt the bike and got me on the grid for the start of the race. I pretty much saw red when the green flag dropped, and I hammered one of my best starts to get up to 9th place. I felt a bit of the pain from my dislocated shoulder, and I just wasn’t able to physically keep on the pace. No excuses, and I’m sorry to the team that I made that mistake. But I’m so thankful to Anscari and all the mechanics for getting me back out there to race.
“I definitely learned a lot, and much thanks to Edgar Pons for sharing his insights on the bike and the track. I’ve got some good notes to take away and study. Thanks again to Baiko and AGR and Anscari for this great opportunity. And I wouldn’t be here without my sponsors that have supported me all season long, I really appreciate all of you. To my family, friends, and fans – I’m excited to take this next step, and I’ll have an announcement for my 2020 season soon.” (Brandon Paasch)
“That was a very good weekend for us. With Edgar Pons taking the championship, it was a strong weekend for all our riders. Brandon showed that he’s come a long way from last year, and he impressed us with his focus and improvements in every session. I know Brandon learned a lot from Edgar, but he also showed his own style that is adapting well to the Kalex Moto2 bike. My thanks to the team that pulled together to rebuild the Kalex after warmup and put Brandon out on the grid. I’m happy with his results, and I look forward to working with Brandon in the future.” (Anscari Nadal, Team Owner)
Fans and supporters can subscribe and follow Brandon for more updates on YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter:
– YouTube: search for Brandon Paasch and subscribe to his channel
Brandon Paasch is sponsored by Electronic Concepts, luxeStar VIP, Classic Car Club of Manhattan, NJMiniGP, Evolve GT, Arai, and Spidi. Coaching and training provided by Birdhouse Training.
The Baiko Racing Team competes in the FIM CEV Repsol series in both Moto2 and Moto3, fielding a number of American riders over the years. Their rider Edgar Pons is the 2019 FIM CEV Repsol Moto2 European Champion. More information can be found at baikoracingteam.com/en.
MotoAmerica Superbike racer/team owner Kyle Wyman underwent successful surgery on his spine November 6 at the O’Connor Hospital, in San Jose, California, to correct damage he’s been dealing with – and symptoms that have been getting worse — throughout much of his road racing career.
“This has been a little bit of a saga,” Wyman exclusively told Roadracingworld.com. “It really goes back 12 years. When I was 17, I broke my neck and back in a big crash flat tracking in the backyard at the house when I was training for the Springfield TT in my first full season of Pro flat tracking.
“I fractured a bunch of vertebrae. I was just thrown in a collar by the local doctor and sent on my way. As a result, I’ve had neck issues for the better part of a decade. Some people see that I rotate my neck a lot and crack my neck a lot, but I just have had stuff out of whack, bones that were broken and healed naturally out of place, stuff like that.
Kyle Wyman. Photo by Brian J. Nelson.
“The next big event was when I crashed in Turn One at Barber [at the end of the 2017 MotoAmerica season] and broke my T6 [vertebra]. I would argue that I never really healed from that for over a year. I struggled with that a long time.
Kyle Wyman, after crashing into Roadracing World Action Fund Airfence at 104 mph in Turn One at Barber Motorsports Park. Photo courtesy of beIN SPORTS USA.
“All these issues had me doing a lot of compensation with how I move my neck and how I ride the bike.
“Then the first time I really noticed that I had a nerve thing going on was at the [2019] Daytona 200 during the red flag. I almost missed the restart because I was using an electrical cord to stretch my shoulder because I had all this radiating pain down my arm.
“I was confused by it, but Daytona’s always a struggle for me because you’re always in a full tuck looking straight up.
“That was the first time I noticed I had some radiating pain and numbness in my left arm.
“That was kind of complicated by stuff, like breaking my ankle in my burnout crash at the end of the Daytona 200. And I had a crash at Road America where I just rode off and tipped over really awkwardly in the gravel trap. I fell straight on my neck.
Kyle Wyman (33) in action at Barber Motorsports Park in 2019. Photo by Brian J. Nelson.
“And then driving straight across country in the rig going west to Utah put me down for the count for a week. I was stuck in bed in the race trailer. I couldn’t move my head, couldn’t do anything. I wasn’t really sure what was going on.
“Every race I was getting acupuncture at the track to be able to ride. I really couldn’t do anything. I couldn’t ride a bicycle or train or anything.
“Then of course I went to Laguna and I had that crash where I broke my scaphoid. I had four weeks of recovery from that. So essentially I didn’t train from before Laguna to the end of the season because I couldn’t do anything with the way my arm and neck were.
“At the last race of the year at Barber, I couldn’t even turn my head to the right to look behind me coming out of the pits to see who was coming.”
Wyman said when the symptoms started to affect his everyday life off the motorcycle he knew he had to take action and get some help to investigate and hopefully fix his issues.
“After the season, I started going around to a bunch of different doctors to try and see what was going on,” said Wyman. “I ended up getting an MRI and seeing that I had a pretty big herniation in my C6/C7 disc, which was pressing on my spinal cord and pressing on my nerve outlet causing all of the numbness and pain in my left arm, shoulder, chest, [and] hand.
“What I was getting from the doctors was unanimous: I needed surgery. I needed some sort of structural correction. There was no other way out. The disc was so degenerated and compressed and herniated they had to do surgery.
“I was told I should do the artificial disc replacement, which I had never heard of before. They take out the whole disc, take it off the spinal cord, and then they put an artificial one in there that is basically like a ball joint. A lot of the time I spent between the end of the season and getting the surgery was trying to find who has done this surgery.”
Kyle Wyman, post-surgery. Photo courtesy of Kyle Wyman.
Wyman’s favorite orthopedic surgeon, Dr. Maury Harwood, referred him to a colleague, Dr. Edward Rustamzadeh (https://premierbrainspine.com/), a neurosurgeon who performed the surgery last week.
“I woke up from surgery and everything was gone, all of my symptoms were gone instantly. It was pretty amazing,” said Wyman. “I need a couple of months for the bone to grow into the implant and seat and everything, but I’m going to be better than ever. I’m going to be better than I was when I broke my neck 12 years ago, which is exciting.
“So I’ve got a couple of months [of recovery]. I can’t get on a bike for 10-12 weeks. I look at the calendar and wish I would’ve done it a little bit sooner, but at least I’m going to be able to train for a long time before I ride.
“But I already feel like a new person. The signals from my brain are getting to everything now. So it’s a big deal.”
Chicken Hawk Racing Now Accepting Racer Resumes for 2020 Sponsorship!
Chicken Hawk Racing is proud to be a supporter of up and coming privateer racers since 1993. Do you have what it takes to be a Chicken Hawk Sponsored Rider?
Join the ranks of top racers competing in the AMA Superbike, WSBK, and MotoGP paddocks.
We are now accepting racer resumes for 2020 Sponsorship consideration now through December 31, 2019. Please email your resume to [email protected] or
send via snail mail to:
Chicken Hawk Racing, Inc.
54 Elizabeth St. #10
Red Hook, NY 12571
Sponsorship letters will be sent out late December to those requesting sponsorship.
Ducati Streetfighter V4 elected the ‘Most Beautiful Bike’ at EICMA 2019!
36.7% of voters declared Ducati’s new super-naked bike to be the ‘queen’ of the Show
Ducati wins the fifteenth edition of the prestigious award for the tenth time
The 77th edition of EICMA, the world’s most important trade fair of the sector, closes with great success
Milano – The Streetfighter V4 has been selected as “Most Beautiful Bike of the Show” at EICMA 2019, the world’s most important trade fair of the sector. The verdict was decreed by the general public, which participated in large numbers, crowding the pavilions of the Milan-Rho International Fair in its five days of opening, and who voted at the Show or online.
The “Vote and win the most beautiful bike of the Show” competition, organized by the Italian magazine Motociclismo in collaboration with EICMA, reached its fifteenth edition this year, and for Ducati this is the tenth victory. Over 14,500 enthusiasts expressed their favorite and the Streetfighter V4 was the most voted motorcycle by both visitors to the Fair and users of the Motociclismo site. The new super-naked Ducati took first place with 36.7% of voters and a considerable advantage over the second-placed bike.
The ballot of the votes received took place on Sunday 10th November, the final day of the Show, and was followed by the official ceremony outside on the stage of MotoLive in the presence of Giacomo Casartelli, Executive Director of EICMA and the Editor-in-Chief of Motociclismo Federico Aliverti, who presented the prestigious award.
The award for the Borgo Panigale Company was picked up by Andrea Ferraresi, Ducati Design Center Director: “We are particularly proud to receive this award in a competition where all the manufacturers participate with their flagship models and the general public of EICMA, the most important motorcycle fair in the world, has elected the Streetfighter V4 as the most beautiful”.
The ceremony for the “Most Beautiful Bike of the Show” was the last act of an intense week of exhibition and events that saw over half a million visitors at EICMA, an increase compared to 2018, confirming the positive signs of recovery coming from the motorcycle sector.
Right from the first day of opening the public crowded the Ducati stand. First among the three totally new bikes to be presented is the Streetfighter V4, the super-naked with high and wide handlebars, 178 kg in weight, Desmosedici Stradale 1,103 cc engine with 208 hp, biplane wings and a latest generation electronic package. The result of this “The Fight Formula” is an exaggerated, modern and technological Ducati naked with an aggressive and exciting design. A bike that does nothing to hide top-of-the-segment performance, but which guarantees enjoyment and fun even in daily use.
In addition to the “queen” of the Show, the completely renewed Panigale V2 and the 2020 version of the Panigale V4, the most sold sports bike in the world in the last two years.
Five new versions have also been introduced for 2020: the Multistrada 1260 S Grand Tour, the Diavel 1260 in the new “Dark Stealth” livery and the Diavel 1260 S in “Ducati Red”, the Monster 1200 “Black on Black” and finally the Scrambler Icon Dark. Interest and great acclaim also surrounded the two Scrambler DesertX and Scrambler Motard concepts, which polarized the attention of the public, as well as for the three new Ebikes presented by the Borgo Panigale company in collaboration with Thok: the exclusive MIG-RR Limited Edition, the MIG-S and the E-Scrambler.
McGuinness And Johnson To Ride PBM Ducatis At Macau Grand Prix
English rider John McGuinness will team up with Australian counterpart David Johnson for the Paul Bird Motorsport team to ride the factory-backed PBM Ducati Panigale V4 Rs with backing once again from the Tak Chun Group at the 53rd Edition Macau Grand Prix next weekend.
The 2019 British Superbike champions took victory with Glenn Irwin in 2017 on only his second visit to the 6.12km Circuito Da Guia aboard the Tak Chun Racing by PBM-branded Ducati following a third place the previous year.
Last year, the team again scored a podium with Martin Jessopp on the Tak Chun PBM Ducati whilst 23-times TT winner John McGuinness, making his comeback from injury, claimed tenth on his return to the Lake District-based team.
Lancastrian McGuinness, who won this year’s Classic Senior TT for a second successive year, sampled victory in Macau for Paul Bird’s team back in 2001 whereas Johnson, from Adelaide, claimed his first TT podium with third in this year’s Superstock race. His best result in Macau was last year when he finished seventh.
Both riders will ride identical versions of the Tak Chun Group by PBM Ducati Panigale V4 Rs which took Scott Redding to the British Superbike Championship crown this year with team-mate Josh Brookes finishing second.
This year’s event takes place from 14th to 16th November and for further information, please visit www.macau.grandprix.gov and www.pbmuk.net.
Kawasaki to be First Japanese Motorcycle Manufacturer to Include Bosch’s Advanced Rider Assistance System
Kawasaki Heavy Industries, Ltd has announced that the advanced rider assistance system developed by the Bosch company is to be included in future Kawasaki motorcycles – a first for a Japanese motorcycle manufacturer.
Bosch’s Advanced Rider Assistance System is composed of three elements: ACC (adaptive cruise control), forward collision warning and blind spot protection. These form a comprehensive system for motorcycle safety and feature the same ADAS (advanced driver assistance system) technology used in automobiles. The underlying technology in this cutting-edge system is Bosch’s radar sensor, brake system, engine management system and HMI (human machine interface), which all work together to boost safety and comfort for motorcycle riders.
An illustration of Bosch Advanced Rider Assistance System components. Image courtesy of Kawasaki UK.
In-house accident research by Bosch has shown that advanced rider assistance systems can prevent one in seven motorcycle accidents. This is thanks to the assistance system’s electronics constantly monitoring the motorcycle’s surroundings and responding to potentially dangerous situations faster than humans can react.
Kawasaki has strived toward the goal of being “Fun and Rewarding to Control” with rider safety and comfort at the forefront, through the development and use of rider support systems such as KTRC (Kawasaki TRaction Control) and KIBS (Kawasaki Intelligent anti-lock Brake System). With the adoption of this Bosch system, the aim is to offer even more riders the ability to enjoy Kawasaki motorcycles in a safe way.
Geoff Liersch, President of the Bosch Two-Wheeler and Powersports Business Unit said, “Bosch continues to make riding safer, more efficient and fun around the world, and we are honored to supply Kawasaki as first Japanese manufacturer, with the complete advanced rider assistance systems.”
Yuji Horiuchi, President of the Motorcycle & Engine Company in Kawasaki Heavy Industries, Ltd., commented, “We are glad to announce that our motorcycle will be equipped with Bosch’s advanced rider assistance systems, which gives more safety and comfort to riders. With the support of these systems, we are confident that Kawasaki can offer “Fun and Rewarding to Control” to even more riders.”
Advanced Rider Assistance System features
ACC (adaptive cruise control)
Riding in heavy traffic and maintaining the correct following distance to the car in front takes a great deal of concentration and can be strenuous for the rider. ACC adjusts the vehicle speed to the flow of traffic and maintains the necessary safe following distance. This can be effective in preventing rear-end collisions caused by insufficient distance to the vehicle in front. And not only does ACC offer riders more convenience, it also allows them to concentrate more on the road, particularly in high-density traffic.
Forward collision warning
Bosch has developed a collision warning function for motorcycles to reduce the risk of rear-end collisions and to mitigate the potential consequences. If the system detects that another vehicle is dangerously close and the rider does not react to the situation, it warns the rider by way of an acoustic or optical signal.
Blind-spot detection
A radar sensor monitors the motorcycle’s surroundings and assists the rider in changing lanes safely. The system checks if there are any objects in areas that are typically difficult for the rider to see, and whenever there is a vehicle in the rider’s blind spot, the technology warns them by way of an optical signal – for example, in the rear-view mirror.
Editorial Note: No date has yet been set for the introduction of the ADAS system on Kawasaki machines or, as yet, which machines it will be featured on.
A 2020-model Suzuki KATANA. Photo courtesy of Suzuki Motor of America, Inc.
Suzuki to Spotlight 2020 KATANA with Exclusive, First-Ever U.S. Demo at IMS Long Beach
The V-STROM 1050 Series will also make its North American Debut Along with the Full 2020 Lineup, “Discover the Ride”, and More
Brea, CA (November 14, 2019) – As one of the original exhibiting partners of the Progressive International Motorcycle Shows (IMS), Suzuki Motor of America (SMAI) is excited to return for all eight IMS stops for its 38th consecutive year. Kicking off the series at the Long Beach Convention Center on November 22nd, consumers and industry enthusiasts will have the exciting opportunity to ride the new, iconic 2020 KATANA for its first-ever demo in the United States. In addition, the all-new V-STROM 1050 series will make its electrifying North American debut alongside the full 2020 lineup of motorcycles, ATVs, and scooters.
Recently unveiled at the EICMA motorcycle show in Milan, Italy, Suzuki’s all-new V-STROM 1050 will hit the West Coast with its bright colors, updated electronics, and adventure capabilities. Media and consumers will get a first-hand look at this new adventurer that pays homage to the legendary DR Big and Dakar Rally bike.
Exclusive to IMS Long Beach attendees, licensed riders will have a chance to be the first group of riders to swing a leg over the new KATANA. This limited, boutique-style demo will only be available Saturday, November 23rd and Sunday, November 24th on a first come first served basis. Consumers are encouraged to get there early to ensure a ride of a lifetime! For more information on a KATANA demo near you, contact your local dealer.
Suzuki is also participating in “Discover the Ride” during the full IMS tour. This initiative offers new riders an opportunity to discover the best Suzuki motorcycle to start on including models like the Boulevard S40, GSX250R, SV650, and VanVan. Riders will get $250 towards the purchase of a new Suzuki motorcycle as well as a $100 reimbursement on approved motorcycle riding courses. New on Two Wheels? Make sure to check out Suzuki’s “Discover the Ride” display and get riding.
Other display standouts include MotoGP racer Alex Rins’ Team Suzuki ECSTAR GSX-RR and M4 ECSTAR Suzuki’s Bobby Fong’s MotoAmerica championship-winning GSX-R600. With several victories won throughout the year, attendees will be able to get up close and witness the proven performance and technology of each bike.
Bobby Fong’s MotoAmerica Supersport Championship-winning M4 ECSTAR Suzuki GSX-R600. Photo by Brian J. Nelson.
In addition to the V-STROM 1050, Suzuki will display its full lineup of 2020 models featuring the legendary KATANA in a new solid black along with the iconic silver that matches the look of the original, the adventure-ready V-Strom 650XT Adventure, and the beloved café-race style SV650X. Suzuki will also bring the next level of ruggedness to the IMS floor with its new KingQuad with Rugged Package that includes newly designed accessories to tackle any outdoor adventure.
Use promo code “SUZ20” to get $3 off 1-day tickets purchased online.
Consumers can learn more about Suzuki’s full 2020 motorcycle, ATV, and scooter lineup by visiting www.suzukicycles.com. The press can learn more about Suzuki products and media support by contacting a Suzuki PR representative.
Action from a DRE Road event. Photo courtesy of Ducati.
Ducati Riding Experience: enrolment open for the 2020 courses
Enrolment is open for the 2020 courses of DRE Enduro, DRE Road and DRE Rookie; the agenda for the DRE Racetrack Academy will soon be available too
The big new entry for this coming season is the DRE Rookie Academy, a course dedicated to young riders between the ages of 18 and 24 years
Thanks to the confirmed success of the format the DRE events are becoming ever more international
Borgo Panigale (Bologna, Italy), 14 November 2019 – After having concluded a successful 2019 schedule, the world of the Ducati Riding Experience is preparing to face a coming season full of new initiatives and increasingly international projects. Enrolment for the 2020 DRE Enduro, DRE Road and DRE Rookie courses is in fact now open. Professional instructors, unforgettable locations and the opportunity to ride your favourite Ducati – these are the features that distinguish the various Academies, a whole range of unique and exclusive experiences.
The big new entry for the coming season is the DRE Rookie Academy, a new course dedicated to young riders between 18 and 24 years of age who ride reduced-power motorcycles. An avant-garde educational programme aimed at teaching riding techniques in order to increase the skills of the participants and help them to release their full potential as motorcyclists.
One of the most long-standing courses of the Ducati Riding Academy has been confirmed once again this year: DRE Enduro, two days in a beautiful natural context, riding a Multistrada, in order to learn and improve off-road riding techniques.
A new course which began in 2019 and has become a fully-fledged official riding course is DRE Road: a course designed by Ducati for all riders who wish to increase their awareness, improving their levels of safety when riding. Participants can choose a model from the Ducati range and put themselves to the test while learning the safest way to deal with every type of corner and having fun at the same time.
The 2020 schedule is soon to be released also for the DRE Racetrack Academy, the course where education, fun and adrenaline are combined together with the most beautiful and high-performance bikes of the Ducati Panigale range, which will complete the programme of the Ducati Riding Experience for the coming season.
The DRE format has been a success at international level too and in fact the complete range of courses has been carried out in Asia by the DRE Academy APAC, while DRE Enduro has taken place in the USA and Holland for riding fans. Worldwide, over 1400 motorcyclists took part in the Ducati Riding Academy courses during 2019.
In addition to the activities of the Academy, Ducati dedicates a great deal of attention to the field of travelling with its riding experiences: Dream Tour and Adventure Tour. These formats are also becoming ever more international, as can be seen by the new Spiti Valley Dream Tour initiative, which took place between August and September in India, on a route to discover the magnificent peaks of the Himalayas.
Scott Redding (45). Photo courtesy of Dorna WorldSBK Press Office.
Redding and Davies capitalise on Rea absence to top Aragon Test
Final three hours see most of the day’s action, with Ducati dominating the timesheets
Scott Redding (ARUBA.IT Racing – Ducati) set the pace ahead of his teammate Chaz Davies on the final day of testing at Aragón
The battle lines for the 2020 MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship have begun to be drawn after two days of testing at the Spanish circuit of MotorLand Aragon. Despite the heavily limited dry track time on both Wednesday and Thursday, the visit to the Alcañiz circuit has allowed us a first glimpse into what awaits the Championship next year, with nine top WorldSBK riders participating over the course of both days.
Many questions naturally remain unanswered; one that does not is whether Scott Redding (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) can adapt to this new chapter in his career. The Gloucestershire rider, who was suffering from food poisoning hours before the test was due to start, finished day two at the top of the timesheets. One of just three riders to go out on wet conditions as well, Redding clocked in a best time of 1’49.929 after 60 laps, beating teammate Chaz Davies by two tenths of a second – both faster than Rea’s best time from the day before.
Chaz Davies (7). Photo courtesy of Dorna WorldSBK Press Office.
Leon Camier (BARNI Racing Team) was the first WorldSBK rider to set out in the morning and occupied first place on the timing sheets until the final three hours of running, yet his day was over nearly as quickly as it started. A slip at Turn 9 left the English rider feeling significant pain in his left shoulder – the same one he had surgery on last July – which prompted a quick visit to Alcañiz hospital. Thankfully, Camier was back in his garage a couple of hours later, although the day was over for him with just four laps completed.
Leon Camier (2). Photo courtesy of Dorna WorldSBK Press Office.
That was four more than Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) made on Thursday. The reigning Champion already opted to skip the wet hours of Wednesday testing, and with improvements uncertain for the afternoon both the team and he decided to reschedule their programme for Jerez.
Alex Lowes (22). Photo courtesy of Dorna WorldSBK Press Office.
That left Alex Lowes (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) as the only rider waving the Kawasaki flag on day two. The 2019 bronze medallist already mentioned the day before that 25 dry laps were “not enough to understand the bike completely”, so Thursday’s inclement weather will not have helped. Heading onto the track shortly before 2 pm, Lowes nonetheless managed 50 laps and improved his performance from the day before, closing the gap with the leading riders and even dipping into the 1’50s. Jerez will hopefully give the 29-year-old more time to work on a set-up suited to his riding style.
Michael van der Mark (60). Photo courtesy of Dorna WorldSBK Press Office.
Over to his old colleagues in Yamaha, Michael van der Mark (Pata Yamaha Official WorldSBK Team) continued his calm approach to pre-season while he awaits the 2020 YZF R1. A small crash at Turn 11 was the only blotch on an otherwise positive day in Spain, with 20 timed laps completed.
Toprak Razgatlioglu (54). Photo courtesy of Dorna WorldSBK Press Office.
Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pata Yamaha Official WorldSBK Team) meanwhile – testing with two bikes and a teammate for the first time in his career – was still focused on getting more laps under his belt yet managed to improve his fastest lap from Wednesday by six tenths of a second, finishing the day as best Yamaha and fourth overall. With two riders of a similar build and both relying strongly on front-end feeling, much of the work on both sides of the Pata Yamaha garage has been in the same direction, in terms of set-up.
Garrett Gerloff (31). Photo courtesy of Dorna WorldSBK Press Office.
On the GRT Yamaha side of things, Garrett Gerloff topped his efforts from day one by a full seven tenths of a second, propelling him into sixth on the timesheets and only 0.05s behind van der Mark’s fastest time. The US rookie, testing Pirelli tyres for the first time on Wednesday, has lauded the performance of the front compound while also finding the rear tricky to understand in these early stages. Going by his Thursday improvements, the 24-year-old is a quick learner – although a nasty, late crash at Turn 2 will keep him on his toes for next time (rider OK).
Federico Caricasulo (64). Photo courtesy of Dorna WorldSBK Press Office.
Closing the timesheets from the other side of the garage, Federico Caricasulo (GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Junior Team) nonetheless closed the gap with the more experienced riders in front of him, dropping into the 1’52s. The Italian youngster has been working on electronics and his riding style, as he makes the steep jump from Supersport machinery to WorldSBK – not just in terms of power, but set-ups, braking and weight.
Ana Carrasco (Kawasaki Provec WorldSSP300) was the sole non-WorldSBK rider who took to the Aragon tarmac, putting in 55 laps on day two with a best time of 2’09.070 – half a second quicker than on Wednesday.
The next test on their radar will be in Jerez, in two weeks’ time – one final meet-up before enjoying a well deserved winter break.
Aragón Test Day Two Unofficial Times:
Scott Redding (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) 1’49.929 – 60 laps
Chaz Davies (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) 1’50.185 – 30 laps
Alex Lowes (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) 1’50.653 – 50 laps
Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pata Yamaha Official WorldSBK Team) 1’50.657 – 36 laps
Michael van der Mark (Pata Yamaha Official WorldSBK Team) 1’51.088 – 20 laps
Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK), no time recorded – 0 laps
More, from a press release issued by Kawasaki:
Rea And Lowes Complete First Joint Test Sessions
Alex Lowes at speed on his new Kawasaki ZX-10RR. Photo courtesy of Kawasaki Motors Europe.
Jonathan Rea and Alex Lowes have completed successful tests at Motorland Aragon in Spain, in changeable track conditions, as the new KRT pairing took their first steps toward the 2020 FIM Superbike World Championship season.
Five-time World Champion Rea set a best lap time of 1’50.416 on day one of the test before opting to sit-out the wet start to day two, and ultimately the entire second day itself.
Rea had already tried some new set-up ideas and components on his championship-winning machine, and now looks forward to the next tests in Spain at the end of this month.
Lowes, taking part in his first tests on the official KRT Ninja ZX-10RR, took to the circuit each day and eventually reduced his best lap time to 1’50.653 when the weather improved this afternoon.
The 5.077km long Aragon circuit, in the north of Spain, provided a wide variety of different track conditions for the riders and the team’s technical staff to deal with over these first two days of winter testing, accelerating Lowes’ familiarity with his new machine.
After the completion of the Motorland Aragon tests the next track outing for Rea and Lowes will be another two-day test session, to be held at the Jerez de la Frontera circuit between 28 and 29 November.
Jonathan Rea, stated: “We have been a bit unlucky with the weather and the only track time we could use was in the afternoons. Even in windy and cold conditions we were able to be fast and we have a consistent understanding of some new components in our test plan. While we have nothing revolutionary to try we will continue to evaluate some ideas that we have to improve our ZX-10RR in the next tests at Jerez, where we hope to find consistent conditions to complete our test plan.”
Alex Lowes, stated: “It was a good test and great to get out on the bike. With the weather conditions we got one full day out of two days on track, but today was good. I am adapting to the bike really well and, more importantly, adapting to the team really well. They understand my comments and going forward that will be a big help to improve the bike set-up. I really enjoyed the bike and I feel that is a more natural way to ride for me. It was really positive and I am really happy to have started the next chapter with the KRT team. I am really happy and a big thank you to all the team for welcoming me at the first test.”
Pere Riba, Crew Chief for Jonathan Rea, stated: “We had a good test in general. The first day it started out wet, and then it was cold and very windy. In the end we put in some real priority items into the schedule yesterday because I knew it was going to rain again today and our time was going to be limited. We tried the biggest items and we will try them again in Jerez. The results were positive and Jonathan was fastest yesterday – and the most consistent – because he did many laps inside the 1’50s. He has a good feeling with the bike the way it is now. At Jerez we will have another two days to work with and I hope it will be dry to continue working for the new season.”
Marcel Duinker, Crew Chief for Alex Lowes, stated: “This test was a very nice experience. Of course the weather took away 50% of our track time but everybody is smiling, so this shows that everything was positive. I am impressed by the way Alex is building up his speed. He is able to give us very clear and to the point feedback. This is the way we need to work so that was very nice. He was able to go into the 1’50s fairly easily today. We are fully in schedule. He used a Q tyre to give Alex the first impression of what it does with this bike, just for information for the future. He understands how to extract more from it already. I am a happy man and that was a very pleasant first test with Alex.”
Jorge Lorenzo (99). Photo courtesy of Repsol Honda.
Jorge Lorenzo has announced his retirement from racing, effective following this weekend’s MotoGP race at Valencia.
He made the surprise announcement during an afternoon press conference at Valencia. More to follow.
More, from a press release issued by Dorna:
The Spaniard announces his retirement from MotoGP™ after 18 seasons of stunning racing
Thursday, 14 November 2019
After 18 seasons in the MotoGP™ paddock, five-time World Champion Jorge Lorenzo (Repsol Honda Team) has announced his retirement. The Spaniard was joined by Dorna Sports CEO Carmelo Ezpeleta in a Press Conference at the Circuit Ricardo Tormo in Valencia to break the news, bringing the curtain down on an incredible career.
Jorge Lorenzo (right) with Dorna CEO Carmelo Ezpeleta (left) at a press conference today in Valencia. Photo courtesy of Dorna/www.motogp.com.
Lorenzo made his debut in the 125cc World Championship in 2002, missing the first day of his first Grand Prix because he was still too young. But his 15th birthday fell on qualifying day and the young Spaniard headed out to do the first laps of what would go on to become one of the most successful careers of all time. By his fourth race he had scored his first points, and his best finish that year was seventh, taken in Rio de Janeiro. A year later in Rio, he would win his first Grand Prix.
From there the momentum would grow. Three wins and four further podiums in the 125cc World Championship the following year saw him finish fourth overall, setting solid foundations for a move onto 250cc machinery in 2005. There he took six podiums as a rookie, and his first titles were just around the corner as he began 2006 with back to back wins. He’d wrack up another six by the end of the year, taking his very first World Championship after a stunning season that announced him as a serious force to be reckoned with. In 2007 he stayed in the class to defend the crown and did so, this time with an incredible nine wins. From there, MotoGP™ beckoned with Yamaha.
There are few better ways to make a splash in the premier class than taking pole for your first race, and that’s exactly what Lorenzo did – setting a new lap record that stood for ten years. He was on the podium in both of his first MotoGP™ races too before taking to the top step for the first time on only his third appearance. That was at Estoril, as he beat two men he’d continue to compete with for years to come: Dani Pedrosa and Valentino Rossi, then his teammate. Injury struggles and crashes would mar the rest of 2008 for Lorenzo as Rossi lifted the crown, but 2009 saw the Spaniard bounce back and make his first run at defeating the then eight-time World Champion on the other side of the garage. Rossi was victorious, but 2010 would turn the tables.
Lorenzo took podiums in the first 12 races of that year, only one of which was a third place. Seven were wins. By Malaysia, it was match point and the number 99 wrapped it up with another podium, becoming a MotoGP™ World Champion for the first time. He also rounded out the season with another two wins to make it nine victories overall in one of the most impressive seasons ever put together.
2011 was more difficult. As great rival Casey Stoner took back to the top, the bad luck that had hit Rossi the year before hit Lorenzo, and the Spaniard ceded the title fight after a crash at Phillip Island. But 2012 saw him back in the running from the off as he won the season opener, and he took podiums in every single race bar two – including six wins. At Phillip Island, he was crowned a two-time MotoGP™ World Champion, and then came 2013: a new era in the premier class.
In 2013, Stoner retired, Rossi returned to Yamaha and Marc Marquez made his debut in MotoGP™. The year became the reigning Champion vs the rookie, with the battle going all the way down to Valencia and the season finale. Marquez would ultimately come out on top, but Lorenzo would do everything he could to take him on – and some career-defining moments and races were created on the way.
The journey to the final round wasn’t a smooth one for the number 99. The first hurdle was a collarbone broken on Thursday at the TT Circuit Assen. Lorenzo had already put in a number of iron man-esque performances in his career, but this was another level. After having the collarbone plated after the crash, the number 99 returned to the track to race – and came fifth. It was a stunning statement of intent that he wouldn’t go down without a fight.
The next hurdle, however, came soon after. Another big crash at the Sachsenring damaged the collarbone once again and Lorenzo was forced to forfeit the round, but he was back by Laguna Seca and back on the podium at Indianapolis. Silverstone then staged one of the greatest races of all time as he and Marquez traded provisional pole on Saturday and duelled it out to the line on Sunday. Lorenzo was a man on a mission and a stunning move from the number 99 put him back on the top step and back in the game. Drama for Marquez in Australia saw the rookie disqualified for making a mandatory pit stop at the wrong time – and as the number 93 took home a 0, Lorenzo won. By the season finale, all Lorenzo could do to try and take the crown was win the race, and that he did. It wasn’t quite enough, but the season was an instant classic.
2014 saw Marquez hit top gear, with Lorenzo only winning his first race of the season at Aragon and the momentum remaining with the number 93. But 2015 would flip the form book once again as Lorenzo became the only man to beat Marquez to the crown so far – and the only other name on the trophy since 2011. The season was Lorenzo vs Rossi and one of the most dramatic ever, although it was Marquez and Rossi in the spotlight for a number of incidents. The biggest of which was at Sepang as the two clashed, leaving the Italian with the penalty of starting the season finale from the back of the grid. And Lorenzo? He would aim to take his third premier class crown from pole, and did so with his seventh win of the season.
2016 was another slightly tougher year, but the Spaniard once again took a slew of wins and podiums. And the last win of the season at Valencia was also his last with Yamaha as nine seasons together came to an end after 44 wins, 107 podiums and 39 pole positions. From now, Lorenzo would race in red…
His switch to Ducati was tougher at first, although a first podium wasn’t long in coming as he took third on home turf at Jerez. Flashes of speed shone through but it wasn’t till Aragon that Lorenzo was back on the rostrum, taking another third place, and he was close to the win at a wet Sepang later in the season. A warning shot for his rivals came at the same venue at the start of 2018 as Lorenzo smoked the lap record in testing.
It would take a few more races of speed that the ‘Spartan’ struggled to convert into podiums before a switch suddenly seemed to flick – and what a place for everything to come together. Mugello, Ducati’s home Grand Prix, had seen Lorenzo master its curves on many a Sunday. And in 2018 he did so once again for an emotional first win in red, destroying the opposition. Was this the start of something? Another win at Catalunya said it may well be.
Another of Lorenzo’s best races came later in the season as he won a stunning showdown at the Red Bull Ring in Austria, taking victory from Marquez by only just over a tenth. His final win so far, it was also another rider-defining display of excellence.
After crashes at Aragon and Buriram, injury would then strike again, however, and a difficult period followed. For 2019 though, Lorenzo was back and took on another new challenge as he moved to partner Marquez at Repsol Honda and once again began to adapt to another new bike. But injury struggles struck again, and broken vertebrae interrupted the season, necessitating a long recovery. Although the five-time World Champion once again showed his mettle as he returned to race, Lorenzo has now announced his retirement – bowing out on home turf, and one of the venues he has ruled more than many.
18 seasons, 68 wins, 152 podiums, 69 pole positions and 37 fastest laps: that’s five-time World Champion Jorge Lorenzo, one of the true greats. He will also be inducted as a MotoGP™ Legend next season at the Spanish Grand Prix at Jerez.
WATCH: Click here to see the full Press Conference as Lorenzo announces his retirement in Valencia, joined by Dorna Sports CEO Carmelo Ezpeleta
Jorge Lorenzo: “Thank you very much to everyone who accepted my invitation and attended this press conference, it really means a lot to me and makes me very happy. I always thought there are four significant days in the career of a rider. Your first race, your first win, your first Championship and then the day you retire. Well, as you may imagine, I’m here to tell you this day has arrived for me. I want to announce this will be my last race in MotoGP, and that at the end of this race I will retire from professional racing.
“I was 3 years old when everything started. Almost 30 years of complete dedication to this sport, my sport. The ones who worked with me, know how much of a perfectionist I am, how much hard work and intensity I put into this. Being like this requires a high level of motivation, that’s why after nine unforgettable years with Yamaha (without a doubt the most glorious of my career) I felt I needed a change if I wanted to maintain this high commitment to my sport. Moving to Ducati gave me that big boost I needed and even though the results were bad I used that extra motivation as fuel to not give up and finally win that special race at Mugello, in front of all the Ducati fans. After that, when I signed for Honda I got similar feeling, achieving one of the dreams of every rider: to be an official HRC factory rider.
“Unfortunately, injuries came soon to play an important role in my season, being unable to ride in normal physical conditions. This, plus a bike that never felt natural to me, makes races very difficult. Anyway, I never lost the patience and I kept fighting, just thinking that was a simply matter of time and that after all things would get into the right place. But, as I started to see some light I had this bad crash at the Montmelo test, and some weeks later that ugly one in Assen. At that point I had to admit, that when I stopped rolling into the gravel, the first thought that came into my mind was ‘What am I doing here? Is this really worth it? I’m done with it.’ Some days later after reflecting a lot about my life and career I decided to give it a try. I wanted to be sure I was not making an early decision.
“The truth is from that crash, the hill became too high for me, and even if I try I couldn’t find the motivation and patience to be able to keep climbing it. You know, I love this sport, I love to ride, but above all things I love to win. I understood, that if I’m not able to fight for something big, to fight for the title or at least to fight for victories I cannot find the motivation to keep going specially at this stage of my career. I realised that my goal with Honda, at least in a short time, was not realistic. I have to say I feel very sorry for Honda, specially for Alberto, who really was the one who trusted me and gave me that opportunity. I remember that day in Montmelo when we meet and I told him “Don’t make a mistake signing the wrong rider Alberto, trust me and you will not regret it’. Sadly, I have to say that I disappointed him, so I did to Takeo, Kuwata, Nomura San and all my team, who I have to say they always treat treat me in a exceptional way. However, I really feel this is the best decision for me and for the team, Jorge Lorenzo and Honda cannot be here just to score some points!
“Coming back to my beautiful and successful career, I have always said I’m a very lucky guy. Sometimes I feel a bit like the movie ‘One in a Billion’, the documentary about the only Indian who ever came to the NBA. During my career I raced against dozens and dozens of exceptional riders of my generation, some of them even more talented than I am. Some of them have not been as successful as me, but specially most of them did not even make it to the World Championship, having to go to work in normal jobs. That’s why I feel so lucky to be able to achieve much more than I ever imagined I could achieve when I first started. And yes, it’s true, I always worked very hard, but without being at the right place at the right time, and especially without the help of many people who worked with me through my career, would have been impossible for me to achieve what I have done.
“That’s why I would like to thank sincerely all of this people. Specially Carmelo and Dorna for the treatment and for making MotoGP so great. Derbi, Aprilia, Yamaha, Ducati, Honda, specially Giampiero Sachi, Gigi Dall’Igna, Lin Jarvis and Alberto Puig. Obviously my mother for bringing me to this world. My father, for showing me the passion for this sport and all the sacrifice he has made for me during these years. My fans and my fan club for the unconditional love through all these years. Thank you to all the people of work with me as a personal team, with specially mention to Albert Valera, for being always honest and loyal. So this is it, with all my heart, I really wish you all the best, professionally and personally. Thanks for all.”
More, from a press release issued by Repsol Honda:
Jorge Lorenzo announces retirement from MotoGP
The Valencia GP will be the five-time World Champion’s last race in the MotoGP World Championship as the 32-year old announced his retirement ahead of his 297th Grand Prix start.
After 18 years of racing at the highest level, Jorge Lorenzo has today announced his retirement from racing ahead of the Valencia GP. With five World Championships, 152 podiums, 68 wins, 69 poles and 37 fastest laps, Lorenzo boasts one of the most impressive and consistent careers in Grand Prix racing. After a bruising campaign in 2019, Lorenzo has decided to draw an end to his Grand Prix career.
Debuting on his 15th birthday on the second day of practice at the Spanish Grand Prix in 2002, Jorge Lorenzo has spent his entire life racing. A first Grand Prix win came just over a year later with his famous ‘Por Fuera’ move in Rio de Janeiro in 2003. After a total of four wins in the 125cc class, ‘The Spartan’ moved to the 250cc championship and soon took back-to-back titles in 2006 and 2007, his butter-smooth style perfectly suited to the intermediate class. His formidable consistency saw him take 29 podium finishes in three years, including 17 wins and earned him a factory seat in the MotoGP class.
Lorenzo’s start to life in the premier class was nothing short of amazing as he took three-straight pole positions and converted them to three consecutive podium finishes, including a first win in his third MotoGP race. Although some heavy falls would halt his title challenge, Lorenzo established himself as a star of the future as he ended his debut season in fourth place.
2009 saw the soon-to-be World Champion never finish a race lower than fourth and Lorenzo carried this consistency through to 2010 and a debut MotoGP World Championship. Finishing all 18 World Championship rounds in the top four, only twice off the podium, Lorenzo put in a dominating performance to take his first of three premier class crowns. With 383 points, Lorenzo set a new record for points scored in the premier class – a record which would stand for almost a decade. The championship was Spain’s second in the premier class, Alex Criville the only Spanish rider to have previously won.
In 2011 Jorge Lorenzo went toe-to-toe with Casey Stoner, the pair trading wins throughout the season. Unfortunately, an injury in Australia forced Lorenzo to miss the final three races of the season – his efforts during the course of the year still enough to earn him second place in the championship with an impressive 260 points. There was no stopping Lorenzo in 2012 as he took three wins from the first five races and missed out on the top two steps on the podium just once in the first 17 races. Again, his consistency was unmatched and Lorenzo marched to a fourth World Championship, his second in the premier class. His final World Championship came in 2015 as he overcame a season-long challenge from both Marc Marquez and Valentino Rossi to clinch the title at the last round in Valencia.
After conquering three championships, Lorenzo made the decision to change manufacturer and in two years took seven podiums and three wins, joining a prestigious club of riders to win on two different manufacturers.
Taking up a new challenge for 2019, Jorge Lorenzo joined the Repsol Honda Team as he set his sights on becoming the first rider to win on three different manufacturers in MotoGP. Unfortunately, a pre-season training crash saw the Mallorca native miss the majority of testing and spend the opening races playing catch up. Despite making constant improvements aboard the Honda RC213V, a heavy crash in Assen saw Lorenzo suffer breaks to his T6 and T8 vertebrae, ruling him out of four Grands Prix and affecting him throughout his return.
Lorenzo leaves the MotoGP World Championship with a number of incredible achievements to his name including: the second most podium finishes in the premier class (114), the second highest amount of pole positions across all classes (69), the fifth most successful rider in terms of wins in the premier class (47) and the third highest point scorer of all time (2896) in the premier class.
The Repsol Honda Team wish Jorge Lorenzo all the best in his future.
Jorge Lorenzo
“I want to announce this will be my last race in MotoGP, and that at the end of this race I will retire from professional racing. I was 3 years old when everything started. Almost 30 years of complete dedication to this sport. Everyone who has worked with me knows how much of a perfectionist I am, how much hard work and intensity I put into this. Being like this requires a high level of motivation, when I signed for Honda I had an incredible feeling of motivation, achieving one of the dreams of every rider: to be an official HRC factory rider. Unfortunately, injuries came to play an important role in my season, being unable to ride in a normal way. I started to see some light but I had this bad crash in the Montmelo test, and some weeks later that ugly one in Assen. The truth is from that crash, the hill became too high for me, and even if I tried, I couldn’t find the motivation and patience to be able to keep climbing it. I’m disappointed with that, I want to say sorry to Alberto Puig, to Takeo, Kuwata, Nomura and all my team, who I have to say have always treated me in an exceptional way. I would like to sincerely thank everyone at Honda for their support and understanding and also extend my thanks and gratitude to everyone who has been there through my career.”
Yoshishige Nomura
HRC President
“It is with great sadness that we say goodbye to Jorge Lorenzo, he has been one of the strongest champions in the last decade that we have fought against and now worked with. The chance to have Lorenzo in Repsol Honda Team colours was something truly unique and 2019 was full of promise. Unfortunately, he suffered a lot of bad luck with injuries before the season started and also during the season with his fall in Assen. As a result, he wasn’t able to recover the confidence he once had and we will sadly be ending our cooperation early as he retires from racing. We at Honda Racing Corporation would like to wish him all the best for the future.”
Brandon Paasch (96) at speed at Valencia. Photo courtesy of Baiko Racing Team.
BRANDON PAASCH FINISHES TOP 15 IN FIM CEV REPSOL MOTO2 EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIP AT CIRCUIT DE VALENCIA
Brandon Paasch went to Valencia last weekend [Nov. 9-10] to test himself against the best riders in the FIM CEV Moto2 European Championship, taking the next step in his international racing career. Partnering again with Baiko Racing Team and AGR Racing, Brandon was determined to show he deserves to race in one of the most competitive series in the world.
Carrying the confidence of his championship season in the British Superbike HEL Performance Moto3 GP series, he adapted to the speed and performance of the Kalex-framed 600cc race bike during practice sessions on Thursday. He worked closely with his team to find a good baseline setup, and then they began to adjust the bike to extract the best performance possible. Additionally, Brandon tweaked his own riding style and body position as he learned the new characteristics of racing a Moto2 bike. He continuously pushed his braking markers deeper and his acceleration points earlier, improving in every session he rode.
Brandon knew that finding a groove and staying in the fast group would be critical in both qualifying sessions. The first session proved to be a bit of a traffic jam, as every rider was pushing hard to get to the top of the timing sheets. A steady approach by Brandon saw him set a time inside the Top 20, out of a total of 32 riders. A few more adjustments by the team, and some analysis of his riding technique, gave Brandon critical insights into how to improve for the second qualifying session. At the end of the final qualifying session, Brandon had dropped almost 0.5 seconds off his previous time to set the 16th fastest lap in combined qualifying. This meant Brandon would start on Row 6, in a good position to make a strong start for the first corner.
At the green flag, Brandon launched his Kalex Moto2 bike into the front pack for the first corner. Battling with some of the season regulars, he put together good passes and moved into 9th spot on Lap 1, just off the leading pack. Over the next couple laps, a slight gap separated the first eight riders from Brandon’s group, leaving him to battle for the final Top 10 spots. But some slight fatigue and pain from a dislocated shoulder suffered in a crash during warm-up dropped him back a few spots during the latter stages of the race. Despite staying in the group for the final quarter of the race and matching the group’s lap times, Brandon finished 12th to tally 4 points in his first ever FIM CEV Moto2 European Championship race.
“Overall, that was a pretty good weekend racing the Kalex Moto2 bike with Baiko and AGR. It definitely was an adjustment after riding a Moto3 GP bike all season in BSB, and it has more power and better handling than the 600 I raced at Daytona. So, it was a bit of an eye-opener to get out there with the top guys in FIM CEV. But I felt good right away mixing it up on the track with them.
“Practice on Thursday was good to get used to the bike and reset my markers around the track. I was a little nervous for qualifying, and it was definitely a bit of a crazy scene out there with everyone trying to cut fast laps, especially at the end. My goal was to be inside the top 15 for qualifying; unfortunately, I just missed that by a tenth of a second.
“For the race on Sunday, I was determined to make up for dropping the bike in the morning warmup. The temps were pretty cool, the wind was strong, and I don’t think I put enough heat in the front tire, so I slid off. The whole team at Baiko Racing stepped up and rebuilt the bike and got me on the grid for the start of the race. I pretty much saw red when the green flag dropped, and I hammered one of my best starts to get up to 9th place. I felt a bit of the pain from my dislocated shoulder, and I just wasn’t able to physically keep on the pace. No excuses, and I’m sorry to the team that I made that mistake. But I’m so thankful to Anscari and all the mechanics for getting me back out there to race.
“I definitely learned a lot, and much thanks to Edgar Pons for sharing his insights on the bike and the track. I’ve got some good notes to take away and study. Thanks again to Baiko and AGR and Anscari for this great opportunity. And I wouldn’t be here without my sponsors that have supported me all season long, I really appreciate all of you. To my family, friends, and fans – I’m excited to take this next step, and I’ll have an announcement for my 2020 season soon.” (Brandon Paasch)
“That was a very good weekend for us. With Edgar Pons taking the championship, it was a strong weekend for all our riders. Brandon showed that he’s come a long way from last year, and he impressed us with his focus and improvements in every session. I know Brandon learned a lot from Edgar, but he also showed his own style that is adapting well to the Kalex Moto2 bike. My thanks to the team that pulled together to rebuild the Kalex after warmup and put Brandon out on the grid. I’m happy with his results, and I look forward to working with Brandon in the future.” (Anscari Nadal, Team Owner)
Fans and supporters can subscribe and follow Brandon for more updates on YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter:
– YouTube: search for Brandon Paasch and subscribe to his channel
Brandon Paasch is sponsored by Electronic Concepts, luxeStar VIP, Classic Car Club of Manhattan, NJMiniGP, Evolve GT, Arai, and Spidi. Coaching and training provided by Birdhouse Training.
The Baiko Racing Team competes in the FIM CEV Repsol series in both Moto2 and Moto3, fielding a number of American riders over the years. Their rider Edgar Pons is the 2019 FIM CEV Repsol Moto2 European Champion. More information can be found at baikoracingteam.com/en.
Kyle Wyman (33) in action at New Jersey Motorsports Park. Photo by Brian J. Nelson.
MotoAmerica Superbike racer/team owner Kyle Wyman underwent successful surgery on his spine November 6 at the O’Connor Hospital, in San Jose, California, to correct damage he’s been dealing with – and symptoms that have been getting worse — throughout much of his road racing career.
“This has been a little bit of a saga,” Wyman exclusively told Roadracingworld.com. “It really goes back 12 years. When I was 17, I broke my neck and back in a big crash flat tracking in the backyard at the house when I was training for the Springfield TT in my first full season of Pro flat tracking.
“I fractured a bunch of vertebrae. I was just thrown in a collar by the local doctor and sent on my way. As a result, I’ve had neck issues for the better part of a decade. Some people see that I rotate my neck a lot and crack my neck a lot, but I just have had stuff out of whack, bones that were broken and healed naturally out of place, stuff like that.
Kyle Wyman. Photo by Brian J. Nelson.
“The next big event was when I crashed in Turn One at Barber [at the end of the 2017 MotoAmerica season] and broke my T6 [vertebra]. I would argue that I never really healed from that for over a year. I struggled with that a long time.
Kyle Wyman, after crashing into Roadracing World Action Fund Airfence at 104 mph in Turn One at Barber Motorsports Park. Photo courtesy of beIN SPORTS USA.
“All these issues had me doing a lot of compensation with how I move my neck and how I ride the bike.
“Then the first time I really noticed that I had a nerve thing going on was at the [2019] Daytona 200 during the red flag. I almost missed the restart because I was using an electrical cord to stretch my shoulder because I had all this radiating pain down my arm.
“I was confused by it, but Daytona’s always a struggle for me because you’re always in a full tuck looking straight up.
“That was the first time I noticed I had some radiating pain and numbness in my left arm.
“That was kind of complicated by stuff, like breaking my ankle in my burnout crash at the end of the Daytona 200. And I had a crash at Road America where I just rode off and tipped over really awkwardly in the gravel trap. I fell straight on my neck.
Kyle Wyman (33) in action at Barber Motorsports Park in 2019. Photo by Brian J. Nelson.
“And then driving straight across country in the rig going west to Utah put me down for the count for a week. I was stuck in bed in the race trailer. I couldn’t move my head, couldn’t do anything. I wasn’t really sure what was going on.
“Every race I was getting acupuncture at the track to be able to ride. I really couldn’t do anything. I couldn’t ride a bicycle or train or anything.
“Then of course I went to Laguna and I had that crash where I broke my scaphoid. I had four weeks of recovery from that. So essentially I didn’t train from before Laguna to the end of the season because I couldn’t do anything with the way my arm and neck were.
“At the last race of the year at Barber, I couldn’t even turn my head to the right to look behind me coming out of the pits to see who was coming.”
Wyman said when the symptoms started to affect his everyday life off the motorcycle he knew he had to take action and get some help to investigate and hopefully fix his issues.
“After the season, I started going around to a bunch of different doctors to try and see what was going on,” said Wyman. “I ended up getting an MRI and seeing that I had a pretty big herniation in my C6/C7 disc, which was pressing on my spinal cord and pressing on my nerve outlet causing all of the numbness and pain in my left arm, shoulder, chest, [and] hand.
“What I was getting from the doctors was unanimous: I needed surgery. I needed some sort of structural correction. There was no other way out. The disc was so degenerated and compressed and herniated they had to do surgery.
“I was told I should do the artificial disc replacement, which I had never heard of before. They take out the whole disc, take it off the spinal cord, and then they put an artificial one in there that is basically like a ball joint. A lot of the time I spent between the end of the season and getting the surgery was trying to find who has done this surgery.”
Kyle Wyman, post-surgery. Photo courtesy of Kyle Wyman.
Wyman’s favorite orthopedic surgeon, Dr. Maury Harwood, referred him to a colleague, Dr. Edward Rustamzadeh (https://premierbrainspine.com/), a neurosurgeon who performed the surgery last week.
“I woke up from surgery and everything was gone, all of my symptoms were gone instantly. It was pretty amazing,” said Wyman. “I need a couple of months for the bone to grow into the implant and seat and everything, but I’m going to be better than ever. I’m going to be better than I was when I broke my neck 12 years ago, which is exciting.
“So I’ve got a couple of months [of recovery]. I can’t get on a bike for 10-12 weeks. I look at the calendar and wish I would’ve done it a little bit sooner, but at least I’m going to be able to train for a long time before I ride.
“But I already feel like a new person. The signals from my brain are getting to everything now. So it’s a big deal.”
Chicken Hawk Racing Now Accepting Racer Resumes for 2020 Sponsorship!
Chicken Hawk Racing is proud to be a supporter of up and coming privateer racers since 1993. Do you have what it takes to be a Chicken Hawk Sponsored Rider?
Join the ranks of top racers competing in the AMA Superbike, WSBK, and MotoGP paddocks.
We are now accepting racer resumes for 2020 Sponsorship consideration now through December 31, 2019. Please email your resume to [email protected] or
send via snail mail to:
Chicken Hawk Racing, Inc.
54 Elizabeth St. #10
Red Hook, NY 12571
Sponsorship letters will be sent out late December to those requesting sponsorship.
A Ducati Streetfighter V4 S on display at the EICMA show in Milan, Italy. Photo courtesy of Ducati.
Ducati Streetfighter V4 elected the ‘Most Beautiful Bike’ at EICMA 2019!
36.7% of voters declared Ducati’s new super-naked bike to be the ‘queen’ of the Show
Ducati wins the fifteenth edition of the prestigious award for the tenth time
The 77th edition of EICMA, the world’s most important trade fair of the sector, closes with great success
Milano – The Streetfighter V4 has been selected as “Most Beautiful Bike of the Show” at EICMA 2019, the world’s most important trade fair of the sector. The verdict was decreed by the general public, which participated in large numbers, crowding the pavilions of the Milan-Rho International Fair in its five days of opening, and who voted at the Show or online.
The “Vote and win the most beautiful bike of the Show” competition, organized by the Italian magazine Motociclismo in collaboration with EICMA, reached its fifteenth edition this year, and for Ducati this is the tenth victory. Over 14,500 enthusiasts expressed their favorite and the Streetfighter V4 was the most voted motorcycle by both visitors to the Fair and users of the Motociclismo site. The new super-naked Ducati took first place with 36.7% of voters and a considerable advantage over the second-placed bike.
The ballot of the votes received took place on Sunday 10th November, the final day of the Show, and was followed by the official ceremony outside on the stage of MotoLive in the presence of Giacomo Casartelli, Executive Director of EICMA and the Editor-in-Chief of Motociclismo Federico Aliverti, who presented the prestigious award.
The award for the Borgo Panigale Company was picked up by Andrea Ferraresi, Ducati Design Center Director: “We are particularly proud to receive this award in a competition where all the manufacturers participate with their flagship models and the general public of EICMA, the most important motorcycle fair in the world, has elected the Streetfighter V4 as the most beautiful”.
The ceremony for the “Most Beautiful Bike of the Show” was the last act of an intense week of exhibition and events that saw over half a million visitors at EICMA, an increase compared to 2018, confirming the positive signs of recovery coming from the motorcycle sector.
Right from the first day of opening the public crowded the Ducati stand. First among the three totally new bikes to be presented is the Streetfighter V4, the super-naked with high and wide handlebars, 178 kg in weight, Desmosedici Stradale 1,103 cc engine with 208 hp, biplane wings and a latest generation electronic package. The result of this “The Fight Formula” is an exaggerated, modern and technological Ducati naked with an aggressive and exciting design. A bike that does nothing to hide top-of-the-segment performance, but which guarantees enjoyment and fun even in daily use.
In addition to the “queen” of the Show, the completely renewed Panigale V2 and the 2020 version of the Panigale V4, the most sold sports bike in the world in the last two years.
Five new versions have also been introduced for 2020: the Multistrada 1260 S Grand Tour, the Diavel 1260 in the new “Dark Stealth” livery and the Diavel 1260 S in “Ducati Red”, the Monster 1200 “Black on Black” and finally the Scrambler Icon Dark. Interest and great acclaim also surrounded the two Scrambler DesertX and Scrambler Motard concepts, which polarized the attention of the public, as well as for the three new Ebikes presented by the Borgo Panigale company in collaboration with Thok: the exclusive MIG-RR Limited Edition, the MIG-S and the E-Scrambler.
John McGuinness (4) on a PBM Ducati at Macau in 2018. Photo courtesy of Paul Bird Motorsport.
McGuinness And Johnson To Ride PBM Ducatis At Macau Grand Prix
English rider John McGuinness will team up with Australian counterpart David Johnson for the Paul Bird Motorsport team to ride the factory-backed PBM Ducati Panigale V4 Rs with backing once again from the Tak Chun Group at the 53rd Edition Macau Grand Prix next weekend.
The 2019 British Superbike champions took victory with Glenn Irwin in 2017 on only his second visit to the 6.12km Circuito Da Guia aboard the Tak Chun Racing by PBM-branded Ducati following a third place the previous year.
Last year, the team again scored a podium with Martin Jessopp on the Tak Chun PBM Ducati whilst 23-times TT winner John McGuinness, making his comeback from injury, claimed tenth on his return to the Lake District-based team.
Lancastrian McGuinness, who won this year’s Classic Senior TT for a second successive year, sampled victory in Macau for Paul Bird’s team back in 2001 whereas Johnson, from Adelaide, claimed his first TT podium with third in this year’s Superstock race. His best result in Macau was last year when he finished seventh.
Both riders will ride identical versions of the Tak Chun Group by PBM Ducati Panigale V4 Rs which took Scott Redding to the British Superbike Championship crown this year with team-mate Josh Brookes finishing second.
This year’s event takes place from 14th to 16th November and for further information, please visit www.macau.grandprix.gov and www.pbmuk.net.
A computer-generated image of a Kawasaki motorcycle being ridden in challenging traffic conditions. Image courtesy of Kawasaki UK.
Kawasaki to be First Japanese Motorcycle Manufacturer to Include Bosch’s Advanced Rider Assistance System
Kawasaki Heavy Industries, Ltd has announced that the advanced rider assistance system developed by the Bosch company is to be included in future Kawasaki motorcycles – a first for a Japanese motorcycle manufacturer.
Bosch’s Advanced Rider Assistance System is composed of three elements: ACC (adaptive cruise control), forward collision warning and blind spot protection. These form a comprehensive system for motorcycle safety and feature the same ADAS (advanced driver assistance system) technology used in automobiles. The underlying technology in this cutting-edge system is Bosch’s radar sensor, brake system, engine management system and HMI (human machine interface), which all work together to boost safety and comfort for motorcycle riders.
An illustration of Bosch Advanced Rider Assistance System components. Image courtesy of Kawasaki UK.
In-house accident research by Bosch has shown that advanced rider assistance systems can prevent one in seven motorcycle accidents. This is thanks to the assistance system’s electronics constantly monitoring the motorcycle’s surroundings and responding to potentially dangerous situations faster than humans can react.
Kawasaki has strived toward the goal of being “Fun and Rewarding to Control” with rider safety and comfort at the forefront, through the development and use of rider support systems such as KTRC (Kawasaki TRaction Control) and KIBS (Kawasaki Intelligent anti-lock Brake System). With the adoption of this Bosch system, the aim is to offer even more riders the ability to enjoy Kawasaki motorcycles in a safe way.
Geoff Liersch, President of the Bosch Two-Wheeler and Powersports Business Unit said, “Bosch continues to make riding safer, more efficient and fun around the world, and we are honored to supply Kawasaki as first Japanese manufacturer, with the complete advanced rider assistance systems.”
Yuji Horiuchi, President of the Motorcycle & Engine Company in Kawasaki Heavy Industries, Ltd., commented, “We are glad to announce that our motorcycle will be equipped with Bosch’s advanced rider assistance systems, which gives more safety and comfort to riders. With the support of these systems, we are confident that Kawasaki can offer “Fun and Rewarding to Control” to even more riders.”
Advanced Rider Assistance System features
ACC (adaptive cruise control)
Riding in heavy traffic and maintaining the correct following distance to the car in front takes a great deal of concentration and can be strenuous for the rider. ACC adjusts the vehicle speed to the flow of traffic and maintains the necessary safe following distance. This can be effective in preventing rear-end collisions caused by insufficient distance to the vehicle in front. And not only does ACC offer riders more convenience, it also allows them to concentrate more on the road, particularly in high-density traffic.
Forward collision warning
Bosch has developed a collision warning function for motorcycles to reduce the risk of rear-end collisions and to mitigate the potential consequences. If the system detects that another vehicle is dangerously close and the rider does not react to the situation, it warns the rider by way of an acoustic or optical signal.
Blind-spot detection
A radar sensor monitors the motorcycle’s surroundings and assists the rider in changing lanes safely. The system checks if there are any objects in areas that are typically difficult for the rider to see, and whenever there is a vehicle in the rider’s blind spot, the technology warns them by way of an optical signal – for example, in the rear-view mirror.
Editorial Note: No date has yet been set for the introduction of the ADAS system on Kawasaki machines or, as yet, which machines it will be featured on.
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