DUCATI XEROX TEAM COMMENCE THE FINAL CHAMPIONSHIP COUNTDOWN AT ASSEN Assen (Netherlands), Thursday 1 September: The legendary Van Drenthe Circuit Assen TT is the venue for the final run-in as the 2005 World Superbike Championship enters its conclusive phase, with four rounds to be held in the space of six weeks. The Assen track has always been favourable for the Italian manufacturer, which has won 18 of the 26 races held there since 1991 and the Ducati Xerox Team pairing of James Toseland and Régis Laconi aim to add to that impressive total this weekend. Ducati Corse Superbike technical director Ernesto Marinelli explains the particular nature of the Assen track, which has been slightly modified in view of major reconstruction work that will radically modify the circuit for the future. This year’s changes involve the De Bult and Ruskenhoek curves, which now bring the lap distance down to 5.997 km. “Assen is a circuit where you need really good handling, there are a lot of important changes of direction during the lap so the bike must be made to handle easily to cope with these changes. It is quite a fast circuit as well because of the esses and long fast curves. We have always gone pretty good here but as always every year is different and we will for sure have to work hard right from the start of the weekend”. With the title virtually in the hands of Troy Corser (Suzuki), who has an advantage of 110 points over Chris Vermeulen (Honda) and 130 over Laconi, the 30 year-old Frenchman wants to score his first Superbike win on Dutch soil to add to the three victories he has claimed this year and will be chasing the young Australian hard for the runner-up slot. “For me the most important thing now is to win as many races as possible and try and catch Vermeulen for second place” declared Laconi. “It’s still possible to win the championship, but I think now I have to fight for second place with Chris. I’ve never won a race at Assen so now is the time to start because these two races are very important for the rest of the season. The best thing about Assen is the grip of the track and the banking of the corners, which is such a good feeling, and some very fast changes in direction. It is a track that we never have anywhere else, one of the best in the world, that’s why it is so unique!” Toseland has already won at Assen, the 24 year-old British rider thrilling the packed grandstands last year with a win in race 1 and a second place in race 2 after a superb scrap with Vermeulen. Toseland is lying sixth in the standings, with one win to his name this season, but a 183 point gap from the leader means that he will have to relinquish the number 1 plate on his Ducati 999 at the end of the year. “I’ve had a bit of time to think about things in August and come to terms with losing my championship. It was difficult after being on a high after winning it last year” commented Toseland. “That’s been a difficult challenge but now all I want to do is concentrate on these last four rounds, starting with Assen. That means coming as high as possible and winning as many races as I can and putting myself in a good position for next year!. It’s been a bit disappointing, Ducati haven’t won the championship either so it’s not been easy. I nearly had two wins here last year so I like Assen. It’s the length of the circuit that I love as well as the banking and the corner speed. All these factors make it a great race circuit, a real motorcycle circuit and all riders enjoy racing around here”. CHAMPIONSHIP POINTS (after 8 of 12 rounds): Riders – 1. Corser (Suzuki) 344 ; 2. Vermeulen (Honda) 234 ; 3. Laconi (Ducati Xerox) 214 ; 4. Kagayama (Suzuki) 172 ; 5. Haga (Yamaha) 167 ; 6. Toseland (Ducati Xerox) 161; etc. Manufacturers – 1. Suzuki 353 ; 2. Ducati 257 ; 3. Honda 250; 4. Yamaha 208; 5. Kawasaki 143; 6. Petronas 18.

Superbike & Supersport World Championships 2006 Provisional calendar The 2006 Road Racing World Championship Superbike and Supersport provisional calendar is the following: DATES, CIRCUIT COUNTRY 2/25/2006, Doha – Qatar 3/5/2006, Phillip Island Australia 3/19/2006, (*) 4/30/2006, Valencia Spain 5/14/2006, Monza Italy 5/28/2006, Silverstone Great Britain 6/4/2006, (*) 6/25/2006, Misano San Marino 7/23/2006, Brno Czech Republic 8/6/2006, TBA 9/3/2006, Assen Netherlands 9/11/2006, Eurospeedway Lausitz Germany 9/17/2006, (*) 10/1/2006, Imola Italy 10/8/2006, Magny Cours France (*) Dates booked for further events

Motorcycling Australia has selected six riders to compete as wildcards in the 125cc and 250cc classes at the 2005 Polini Australian Motorcycle Grand Prix at Phillip Island, including 15-year-old sensation Blake Leigh-Smith. Leigh-Smith, an Australian junior long track champion in 2004, recently made his national 125cc debut at Winton Motor Raceway (Vic), and promptly won two of the three races in testing conditions. Subject to final ratification from the FIM and the MotoGP Commission (which applies to all the wildcards), Leigh-Smith will now hit the international arena on October 14-16 less than two months after his Winton heroics! The six wildcards are as follows: 125cc Blake Leigh-Smith, 15, Runaway Bay, Qld, Honda RS125 Brent Rigoli, 16, Mittagong, NSW, Honda RS125 Brett Simmonds, 22, Blackmans Bay, Tas, Honda RS125 250cc Mark Rowling, 33, Turramurra, NSW, Yamaha TZ250 Mick Kelly, 27, Irymple, Vic, Honda RS250 Ben Ried, 28, North Melbourne, Vic, Yamaha TZ250 Simmonds, Rigoli, Rowling and Ried were all wildcards in 2004.

VERMEULEN AND MUGGERIDGE AIMING FOR ‘HOME’ SUCCESS The 2005 World Superbike championship resumes this weekend at Assen in Holland, one of the most popular events on the SBK calendar and the home race for the Winston Ten Kate Honda team that is based just to the south of the historic racing venue. Winston riders, Chris Vermeulen and Karl Muggeridge, are looking forward to putting in some strong performances over the weekend in front of some 900 team sponsors and guests. The Australian duo, currently lying in second and eleventh places in the series respectively, will be watched along with the rest of team in the Winston Ten Kate Honda garage from a specially-constructed viewing platform. Ronald ten Kate – team manager: “The home round for the team will also be like a home round for Chris and Karl since they have been with us for such a long time now. Chris won at Assen last year after an epic battle with James Toseland so, with our track knowledge, we’ll be hoping at least for similar results this weekend. The track has been changed but the majority of the corners are the same so I don’t think it will take the riders very long to get used to the new layout. They’ve seen the problems that the changes have created from the MotoGP race there earlier in the year so they’ll know how to approach it.” Chris Vermeulen – championship position 2nd, 234 points: “I like Assen and I’ve had some success there in the past with a win and a fourth in Superbike last year and pole position in Supersport in 2002 and 2003. The track’s good but I’m a little worried about the changes they’ve made – I think it takes away some of the character of the place which has hosted world championship racing for such a long time. It should still be fast and flowing though, which suits my style and the bike’s so I’m looking forward to going back there. We need to get the bike working a little better to beat Troy (Corser) but we all know that we have the potential. I don’t see any reason why we shouldn’t be going for eight wins from the remaining eight races but it’s going to be tough to stop Troy with the points lead that he has. Assen is going to be a really important event for the team, who have a lot of guests coming over the weekend, so I’ll be trying to put on a good show for everyone with some strong performances.” Karl Muggeridge – championship position 11th, 85 points: “Although I haven’t raced the Superbike there, I think Assen will suit the bike. It seems that the faster and more flowing the circuit, the better we can get the bike working. It’s difficult to compare with Chris’s results from last year but at least we should have a good base setting to start from – something we were lacking a little at the beginning of the season. I like all the circuits but I think I’m at last learning what we need to get the bike working properly. I was up there at Brands Hatch, making the kind of progress we’ve been trying to achieve all season. Starting from second on the grid was good but we’re still learning about getting the bike to work over race distance. We certainly learned some in race one at Brands and softened it up a bit for race two but then I messed up and crashed on the second lap. My hand is a lot better after a three week rest though, and I’m in good shape, so looking forward to Assen and to putting in a couple of good results for the team.” Championship points after eight of 12 rounds: 1 Troy Corser AUS (Suzuki) 344, 2 Chris Vermeulen AUS (Winston Ten Kate Honda) 234, 3 Regis Laconi FRA (Ducati) 214, 4 Yukio Kagayama JPN (Suzuki) 172, 5 Noryuki Haga JPN (Yamaha) 167, 6 James Toseland GBR (Ducati) 161, 7 Chris Walker GBR (Kawasaki) 130, 8 Pierfrancesco Chili ITA (Honda) 111, 9 Andrew Pitt AUS (Yamaha) 95, 10 Norick Abe JPN (Yamaha) 88, 11 Karl Muggeridge AUS (Winston Ten Kate Honda) 85. Assen World Superbike event schedule: Friday 2 September – 10.30-11.30 free practice, 14.15-15.15 qualifying; Saturday 3 September – 11.00-12.00 qualifying, 14.45-15.45 free practice, 16.00 Superpole; Sunday 4 September – 09.20-09.40 warm-up, 12.00 race one (16 laps – 95.952km), 15.30 race two (16 laps – 95.952km). World Supersport Championship – event preview Round nine – Assen, Holland (2-4 September 2005) CHARPENTIER GUNS FOR ASSEN GLORY Winston Ten Kate Honda’s Sébastien Charpentier heads to Assen in Holland for round nine of the 2005 World Supersport championship this weekend knowing that the title is within his grasp. The French rider can clinch his first world championship at his team’s home round and become the first rider in World Supersport championship history to win with three rounds of the series to spare. Charpentier’s Winston team-mate, Katsuaki Fujiwara, still retains second place in the championship, however, and knows he must beat Charpentier to keep his title hopes alive. Both riders will be aiming for good results in front of an anticipated 900 team guests for the home round of the Winston Ten Kate Honda team. Ronald ten Kate – team manager: “Sébastien has the chance to grab the title with three rounds to spare, which, as well as being our fourth consecutive championship, would be magnificent for the team. But we’re not going to let that possibility affect the way we approach this weekend. We will prepare in exactly the same way as we have prepared for the eight rounds so far this season – working to improve the bike in whatever areas we can find over the weekend and aiming for a race win on Sunday. We’ll see how it goes for the race but we have already made the decision that no team orders will apply because Kats is still Sébastien’s biggest rival for the title. Although we’re not focusing too much on the possibility, success on Sunday would be really special for the team and a nice bonus for all the guests we have coming.” Sébastien Charpentier – championship position 1st, 190 points: “I like the circuit at Assen but some of the GP riders were not so positive about the changes for this season so we’ll have to see what the new layout is like. For sure, the championship is possible for me this weekend and I’m in very good physical condition. We know how strong the bike is and how well the team has been working all through the season, so I am hoping for a win or at least a podium finish. My approach to the weekend will be exactly the same as before and, although I cannot help thinking about the championship, when I am inside the box and inside my helmet, there is only one thing I am concentrating on: that is riding as well as I can and trying to get the best from a very good bike.” Katsuaki Fujiwara – championship position 2nd, 116 points: “This is my first time at Assen on the Honda but I think it will suit the bike. Although I know there have been some changes for this year, we will have to see what effect they have on the track’s character. I like the circuit and took pole position for my first Supersport race there in 2001 and finished in third behind Chris Vermeulen and Karl Muggeridge a year or so later. My back is much better after my crash in Japan last month; although it was a little sore after the race at Brands Hatch, I don’t expect any problems this weekend. I will have to be in good shape because I know I have to beat Sébastien in Assen to stop him winning the championship; as ever, I will be riding to the best of my ability, especially in front of all the guests that will be there for the team’s home race.” World Supersport Championship points after eight of 12 rounds: 1 Sébastien Charpentier FRA (Winston Ten Kate Honda) 190, 2 Katsuaki Fujiwara JPN (Winston Ten Kate Honda) 116, 3 Kevin Curtain AUS (Yamaha) 109, 4 Fabien Foret FRA (Honda) 85, 5 Michel Fabrizio ITA (Honda) 82, 6 Stephane Chambon FRA (Honda) 68, 7 Broc Parkes AUS (Yamaha) 60, 8 Gianluca Nannelli ITA (Ducati) 56, 9 Javier Fores ESP (Suzuki) 52, 10 Tauto Lauslehto FIN (Honda) 42. Assen World Supersport event schedule: Friday 2 September – 09.35-10.20 free practice, 13.15-14.00 qualifying; Saturday 3 September – 10.00-10.45 free practice, 13.45-14.30 qualifying; Sunday 4 September – 09.50-10.10 warm-up, 13.20 race (16 laps, 95.952km).

AMA FORMULA XTREME SERIES DOWN TO THE WIRE AT ROAD ATLANTA Yates looking to win AMA Superstock title at home PICKERINGTON, Ohio (Aug. 31, 2005) — Never have the pole and lap leader points meant so much as they will in the Labor Day weekend’s Lockhart Phillips USA Formula Xtreme Series finale at Road Atlanta. The situation is this: if Miguel Duhamel is perfect and scores the maximum amount of points by winning the pole, leading the most laps and winning the race he will win his second straight Formula Xtreme title. Anything less than that and series leader and Honda teammate Jake Zemke is set to take home his first AMA National number one. While Zemke and Duhamel are taking it right down to the wire in Formula Xtreme, things aren’t quite as tight in the Repsol Lubricants Superstock Series. Georgia’s own Aaron Yates needs only a 14th or better finish to secure his third AMA road racing championship. Duhamel earned his seventh AMA road racing title last year by winning the Formula Xtreme Series, but he was pushed the entire season by teammate Zemke. This year it was Zemke who took over the Formula Xtreme points lead in April after winning round three at California Speedway and has been chased by Duhamel most of the summer. Last weekend in Virginia, Duhamel put himself in a position to control his own destiny by winning every available point after an exciting duel with Zemke. This weekend if Duhamel can pull off the same feat he’ll win an eighth AMA championship and become the first rider to win two straight Formula Xtreme titles since Kurtis Roberts in 1999 and 2000. “I don’t have any options right now — I’ve got to do whatever I’ve got to do,” stated the veteran Duhamel. “I have to win everything I can.” Road Atlanta means a great deal to Zemke. He has been a leading contender in Formula Xtreme for five years. He’s led the championship, is tied as the winningest rider in the history of the series, but has yet to earn the top prize. “Hats off to Miguel, he rode great and his crew did a great job,” said Zemke after losing in the tight battle last weekend. “At the end of the day we just didn’t have it for him, but we’ll come back swinging next week in Atlanta.” The battle for third in AMA Formula Xtreme is coming down to the final race as well. Privateer Danny Eslick emerged this year from the flat track ranks and proved himself a worthy road racer with MPTracing.com Suzuki. The Oklahoman is ranked third, but a crash last week in Virginia has allowed Aussie Ben Attard, of Attack Kawasaki, to within six points of Eslick going into Road Atlanta. The top finishing non-factory rider is an important point of pride in the Formula Xtreme class and Eslick and Attard would both like to earn that designation. In Repsol Lubricants Superstock Yoshimura Suzuki’s veteran Aaron Yates came back to the class after a nine year absence and he’s right back where he left off, the top rider in the series. In 1996 Yates won the AMA 750 Supersport championship in his first year as a factory Suzuki rider. While Yates was gone the class became Repsol Superstock and the bikes were bumped up to 1000cc displacement, but that didn’t bother the rider from Milledgeville, Ga. He’s won five of the nine races en route to building his 21-point lead over Yamaha’s Jason DiSalvo. Yates would like to go out with a victory at his home track this week, but he implied that at Road Atlanta he may play a more conservative game in order to ensure his third AMA road racing title. “I definitely feel a little more comfortable,” said Yates after taking the victory last weekend in Virginia. “It’s really good to come out with a win. Next week we’ll see, there might be some of the other guys out there mixing it up.” Road Atlanta’s Lockhart Phillips USA Formula Xtreme Series race will be televised on SPEED Channel, Tuesday, Sept. 6 at 2 p.m. EST. For additional information on the event call (800) 849-RACE or visit www.roadatlanta.com.

Ben Attard signs with Sidi boots and Spidi leathers-gloves! Motonation is glad to announce that top AMA Formula Extreme and Supersport rider Ben Attard has reached an agreement with Motonation in which he will continue his relationship with Sidi boots (Ben has worn Sidi boots for his entire time in the USA) and begin a relationship with Spidi leathers/gloves (both via Motonation) for the upcoming 2006 and 2007 seasons. Motonation exclusively represents Sidi and Spidi in the USA. See the complete line at www.motonation.com More, from another press release from Motonation: Starting September 1st Motonation the importer for Sidi boots and Spidi leathers will start accepting resumes for the 2006 racing season thru Sponsorhouse. Or you can email your resume to [email protected] For those that like to do it the old fashion way send your resumes to Motonation Attn: Kyle Smith/Rider Support 1100 N. Magnolia Ave Ste. A El Cajon, Ca 92020

The Can-Am Challenge Series sponsored by Infinity GP Racing, will hold their final at Shannonville Motorsports Park this upcoming Labour Day weekend Sept 2-4th, which coincides with Parts Canada Superbike finals as well. Dempsey has dominated the 125 Championship and has a 70 point lead with Crook looking for his first Championship Title in the 250 Championship In the G.P. 125 class, fans should expect to see John Dempsey, who earned this year’s championship at Mosport a few weekends ago, demonstrate how he climbed to the top of the points standings to take the number one plate with 229 points. Alex Welsh, the 17 year old rider with 159 points, leads third place Matt Cooper by 28 points; Cooper (131), Mark White (130) and Joe Melchionda (129) are all separated by one point, which should make for a spectacular season finale! Spectators can expect to see Welsh challenge Dempsey hard for a position on the final podium of the season; Cooper, who’s had a season of highs and lows, is also a strong contender. White’s consistency and experience should not be ignored in this last race; Melchionda will have to overcome some Shannonville demons to put him in contention for the podium. Young Calgarian John-Ross MacRae will be looking for another Shannonville round podium; the Can-Am also looks forward to having 14 year old Brett McCormick with us again; the Canadian Mini Road Racing champ took like a duck to water in his first 125 race at Mosport, finishing in sixth place. Rumor has it that Alex Welsh will be spotted on the 250 grid, riding an Infinity sponsored RS250; Welsh has proven more than a few times to be a threat to anyone’s plans for a top three finish, and if the rumor proves to be true, this should make for an interesting weekend as far as the young and upcoming rider is concerned. In the 250 class, John Crook leads the championship with 179 points, followed by Nick Colley at 140 points. Gord MacKay will most certainly be looking for a scrap; the two points that separate him from Colley should provide fans with a great race to look for on Sunday. The top three riders will most likely be joined by Andre Kipin, who will be making his second appearance with the Can-Am this year; Kipin snatched up two second place finishes at the double-header round at Shannonville. Alain Brault, consistently the fastest in qualifying sessions this season, had some bad luck early in the season is predicted to be well under the same blanket that should cover this group of riders in the series’ final battle on the track. The Can-Am Challenge Series would like to encourage spectators to come out to watch these two-stroke G.P. machines at Shannonville this Labor Day Weekend; there are future Canadian champions grooming their talents in the 125 class, and the thoroughbred 250s are something to see as the riders will smoothly push these finicky racing machines to their limits around the demanding 4.03 kilometer Long Track.