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Alex Asigno
Third generation R6
Yamaha announce the launch of the third generation YZF-R6, which is undoubtedly the most radical and advanced new middleweight supersport ever produced. In addition to its new engine, chassis and bodywork, the third generation R6 features a sophisticated new Yamaha Chip Controlled Throttle (YCC-T) developed from our MotoGP bikes. This new ‘fly-by-wire’ throttle technology represents a first for the motorcycle market, and its debut on the new R6 is one of the most exciting developments in the middleweight supersport category for many years. Seven years of success
Originally launched in 1999, the first R6 made its presence felt immediately in the European marketplace. With its class-leading engine and chassis designs and aggressive R-series styling, the first generation R6 model proved to be the most exciting performer on twisty roads, and became the industry standard for middleweight high performance machinery. Its reputation as the number one 600 was to be confirmed when it won the World Supersport Championship in the year 2000. The new third generation YZF-R6 has been developed specifically to meet the changing demands and requirements of the new generation of riders who are looking for even more extreme performance. Many of these riders are looking for a high performance middleweight that delivers the most exciting engine and chassis performance, combined with the ability to perform well in practical day-to-day riding situations. There is a growing element of riders who, as well as wanting a high performance road machine, are also looking for a high-tech 600 with an advanced specification that will deliver extreme performance for track and race use. Featuring a great deal of technology based ontechnical feedback that has come from our Moto GP-winning YZR-M1, the all-new YZF-R6 is set to redefine the parameters of the 600 supersport class, and looks ready to stake its claim as the definitive high performance middleweight for 2006 and beyond.
Alex Asigno

The Istanbul Otodrom track

By Alex Asigno in Archives

The Istanbul Otodrom track was finished earlier this year and succesfully inaugurated by the F1 circus, coming weekend it is up to the MotoGP boys to attack this new venue. The circuit is one of Herman Tilke's creations, the famous designer who also created the Sepang, Bahrain and Shanghai tracks. It can seat 130.000 spectators and is situated in the Asian part of Turkey, about 80 km's east from Istanbul.Circuit: Istanbul Otodrom Circuit: Istanbul Otodrom Country: Turkey Track length: 5378 m Opened: 2005 Circuit tel: +90 (216) 418 5222 Circuit web site: http://www.turkeygrandprix.com The track runs anti clockwise and is 5378 metres long with an average width of 15 m. It consists of 14 corners of which six are right turns and eight are to the left. The first part of the circuit is tight and technical, while the second part is open and fast featuring a backside straight with what looks to be a very exciting high speed kink in it. The riders are then slowed down by a chicane before they hit the relatively short 655,5 m start and finish straight.     Interesting is that the track runs over four level sections with rising and descending grades. With a new tack and not knowing what to expect both Valentino Rossi and Colin Edwards will attack the race with a different base set-up on each bike. The bikes will start with a neutral setting enabling to experiement with various set-up direction. During Friday the crew and rider will then decide which machine feels most comfortable and will then start to make changes to come up with the ideal setting for the race.
Alex
Home hero Ben Spies put in a superhuman effort today, coming back from ninth place to take a hard fought podium spot for the Grand Prix of Indianapolis. Starting from second on the grid the Texan rider was caught up in first a bottle neck of riders in turn one, then came together with Andrea Dovizioso in turn four, dropping him back to ninth as he fought to stay on the bike. Despite the setback Spies went on to deliver one of the star performances of the day, taking an impressive number of overtakes and setting some of the fastest laps of the race. He finally took the chequered flag in third place and stood on the podium to a huge applause from the US crowd. Team mate Jorge Lorenzo’s race was a battle not with his competitors but with the resurfaced Indianapolis track. The reigning World Champion continued to be plagued with a rapidly wearing front tyre causing critical control issues from as early as lap four. Lorenzo battled on regardless, having made a great start he eventually had to relinquish position to team mate Spies and crossed the line in fourth, pushing to stay ahead of Dovizioso to the line. The results of today see Lorenzo’s gap to Casey Stoner in first extended to 44 points with six races remaining. Team mate Spies picks up 16 points, moving up to fifth in the standings, just five points behind Dani Pedrosa in fourth. The team now head across the Atlantic with no break to the Grand Prix of San Marino at Misano next weekend.

Ben Spies - Position 3rd - Time +10.603
“My actual start wasn’t too bad, just a couple of people got into turn one too hot and I got bottled in. I think Dovi came across in front of me in turn four and I was just glad to stay on the bike. I never even saw him. After that happened we just had to pluck away and not get ahead of ourselves. We rode well but just needed to be up there in the first four turns. I rode as fast as I could; it was tough to pass out there as we couldn’t get it done on the straight so we had to figure out some different spots. I was happy to be able to do that and still run good pace at the end.”

Jorge Lorenzo - Position 4th - Time +16.576
“It's a shame; I thought I could reduce my gap with Casey at Indy but since the first practice I have had many problems with the asphalt and the front tyre. I've tried everything with my team to fix it, but we couldn't. After four or five laps the front tyre was destroyed. I saw the other three front riders and their tyres were perfect. I don't know if it was because of the track and I’m not the only one complaining. Now the Championship is much more complicated, but hope is the last thing you can lose. Next weekend we ride again at Misano, I looking forward to forgetting this result."

Wilco Zeelenberg - Yamaha Factory Racing Team Manager
“A disappointing weekend, fourth place I think was the maximum we could get out of it. It was clear that even one lap more might have meant finishing fifth; the front tyre was completely gone, that’s basically the whole story. It was also disappointing that Ben was not able to fight for the win. He did a fantastic sixteen last laps but the first ten were very hard for him after the start. I think he could have fought with Casey. Anyway, third and fourth we have to swallow and we will look to Misano.”

Massimo Meregalli - Yamaha Factory Racing Team Director
“I think the race could have had a different final result, but the start compromised it. Ben made some great passes, I don’t think he could have done better under the circumstances. He did a good job, there’s nothing bad I can say. Jorge unfortunately fought all weekend with tyre management. He still managed to get fourth place and more valuable points for the Championship. Everything is still open and for sure he is a really tough rider and will go to Misano with good expectations.”

Consistent Edwards delivers another top ten in Indianapolis
Colin Edwards extended his impressively consistent run of results in the 2011 MotoGP World Championship this afternoon, the Monster Yamaha Tech 3 Team rider racing to a hard fought seventh position at the iconic Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

The Texan made a fast start from the second row of the grid but as the pack jostled for position in the tight first section of the 2.62 miles track, Edwards was bumped back to eighth.

He was involved in an exciting early battle with factory riders Alvaro Bautista, Ben Spies and Valentino Rossi before the field began to stretch out at the halfway stage of the 28-lap encounter.

With temperatures reaching close to 30 degrees, Edwards was left in a personal duel with Spaniard Bautista until lap 23 when a big front-end slide cost him crucial time. With his front tyre starting to push more and more, Edwards decided to slow down his pace to secure a deserved seventh place, which moves him into eighth place in the World Championship standings ahead of Marco Simoncelli on 84-points.

Cal Crutchlow's reward for a weekend in which he worked tirelessly to improve the front-end feeling with his Monster Yamaha Tech 3 YZR-M1 machine was his best finish since the Catalunya race in early June.

He maintained a consistent pace throughout the race having led Loris Capirossi, Toni Elias, Randy de Puniet and Hiroshi Aoyama in a frantic opening few laps. And a series of strong laps in the final stages saw him snatch 11th from Marco Simoncelli on the final lap to end his recent run of disappointing results.

Colin Edwards - Position 7th - Time +36.690
“I thought I got a fantastic start but the problem is the Yamaha is lacking a bit of grunt. I needed Fred Flinstone behind giving me a push to go faster, so I had a few people come by me on the run to the first corner. The first few laps I felt I could go faster but with Bautista sitting in front of me, I'd get close and then coming out of the corner he would just grab a few metres on me. In the twisty stuff at the end of the lap I was gaining it all back and at the last corner I almost ran into him. But by the time we got to the first corner he'd pull a few bike lengths on me again. I really wanted to beat Bautista but he started to ride really well in the second half of the race. I was on his back wheel and looking for an opportunity to make an overtake but I lost the front at the end of the back straight and that was a warning just to back off and take seventh. The front tyre lost a fair bit of grip in the last few laps though I wasn't the only one to have a problem. But I was top non-factory rider, I got another top ten and I moved up another place in the Championship, so it wasn't a bad afternoon's work. We go to Misano now and see if we can fight for the top six."

Cal Crutchlow - Position 11th - Time +57.184
“Firstly I want to say a big thanks to all my guys in the Monster Yamaha Tech 3 Team. They never gave up all weekend, even when we were struggling a little bit and it might sound silly but I don't think any of us in the garage have ever been so pleased to get an 11th place. After the bad recent run it was important to finish the race and I did that. The result wasn't the best but my speed at the end of the race was really good and I'm happy about that, so there are a lot of positives to take to Misano. At the end of the race I was lapping faster than Jorge Lorenzo. I was a long way behind him but that still gives me a lot of encouragement. Like a lot of people I had a few issues with the front tyre and in the early part of the race it wasn't easy but I never gave up and pushed right to the end. This result at least gives us something to build on for the next races, starting at Misano, which is a track that at least I don't have to learn. I've needed to finish races to gain some experience and I'm glad we did because I learned a lot this afternoon and gave the Team a lot of good feedback to hopefully improve the bike in Misano.”

Herve Poncharal - Monster Yamaha Tech3 Team Manager
"I am very happy with the performance of Colin and Cal today and I think both of them got the best result we could have hoped for. Colin rode full of determination and I think at some stage he could have passed Bautista, but it was difficult. It was very wise from Colin not to push anymore with five laps to go as he had a big lead over the riders behind. This puts him in eighth position in the Championship standings and he passed Marco Simoncelli, who is one of the fastest riders in MotoGP. He deserved to have a strong race in front of his home crowd and he has been pushing all weekend and I want to thank him for that. Cal was a lot better than in previous races and he did a good, solid job. At the beginning he struggled but he got a lot better throughout the race lap and at the end he was faster than the group in front of him. That race was just what he needed after the bad period to clear of his mind a little bit. I believe he had a great race and that will put him back on the track. We go to Misano now where he knows the track and that will be another positive. Today he has learnt a lot and he was faster at the end of the race than at the beginning and this experience helps him prepare for next year.”
Alex
Monster Energy Yamahas Steven Frossard finished third overall a well-received Matterley Basin for the Grand Prix of Great Britain and the thirteenth stop of fifteen on the FIM Motocross World Championship schedule. The Frenchman posted his sixth podium result on the factory YZ450FM and has moved up to second position in the MX1-GP standings in what is just his first term in the category and his first as part of the decorated works set-up.

The weekend began well for the team with Frossard feeling comfortable on the excellent racing surface in southern England. The 24 year old fought with Christophe Pourcel for pole position across the spectacular jumps and carved, soft mud that permitted different, grippy line choice before settling for second position without risk in the final two laps.

Bright skies greeted race-day and Frossard led almost all of the opening moto ahead of Pourcel. He had collided with a fence post and ripped off the right radiator shroud earlier in the sprint and this had an effect on his riding. 183 broke too hard into a tight right turn four laps from the flag and was passed by his countryman. He then went on the attack but was able to draw up to the rear wheel of the former world champion.

Frossard led the first fifteen minutes of the second moto until a dramatic crash between Billy Mackenzie and Tanel Leok led to the race being stopped. On the restart Frossard worked his way into third and then demoted Pourcel to reach second place. Sadly Antonio Cairoli was beyond reach. With his brace of runner-up positions Frossard earned the lower step of the rostrum but was consistently quick and close to victory all through the event.

The team were at full strength in the UK thanks to the transfer of 2010 MX3 World Champion Carlos Campano to the awning. The Spaniard fills David Philippaerts saddle for the final three events of the series and got off to a positive start by equalling his best ever moto result. Campano was motivated, strong and aggressive. He had some bad luck in the first moto when he slipped off on the first corner but set some impressive lap-times to recover back to fifteenth. In the second race he started brilliantly and was pressuring Shaun Simpson for second place until the premature halt. In the third moto the 25 year old from Sevilla rode to sixth position to match a previous best obtained in 2009. Campano was tenth overall.

Anthony Boissiere, currently fifteenth in the MX1 standings, was able to post scores of tenth and ninth for a very solid seventh overall at Matterley; it was the Frenchmans highest classification of the year.

Frossard trails world champion Tony Cairoli by 82 points but with Clement Desalle and Evgeny Bobryshev set to miss the rest of the season through injury he defends a gap of 62 over Max Nagl in fourth. Grand Prix meetings in Germany (Gaildorf) and Italy (Fermo) remain and a maximum of 100 points still to win.

Steven Frossard, 3rd position:

Yesterday I had a great race with Christophe and it was a lot of fun to ride like this. This is the best track this year. In the first moto I made the holeshot and had a little problem with my arm and I also broke the radiator shroud when I hit a post. It affected my riding a little bit. I led for thirty minutes but made a mistake in one of the corners and then pushed really hard to try and win the moto. I made a great start in the second moto and went to the front but after fifteen minutes we had to stop. We went again and I was third but I think I pushed a bit too much and felt tired. Cairoli was fast and I couldnt catch him. In the beginning I was trying to think GP by GP but now my goal is to finish second. It is a bit difficult because everyone says I will finish there, so I want to keep focussed. I am happy with the way the championship is going but at the start of the year I was close to Antonio and Desalle but lost points through some mistakes. I am learning and will improve on this for next year.

Carlos Campano, 10th position:

Im happy. In the first race I had a crash on the first corner and was far behind but I found a good rhythm and could come back to fifteenth. I felt good on the bike and the track and was motivated for the second moto. I started ahead and slotted into third. I was on the point of taking second but then they stopped the race. I hoped I might be able to make the same start but it didnt really happen. I got stuck behind Goncalves and Barragan and Nagl caught us. I finally passed Goncalves and pushed hard to get behind Nagl but could get him at the end. I think this was an important forward step and I loved the bike and the track. I dont notice so much difference with the factory bike and my YZ450F but at the end of the motos when the track is really rough then I can really attack the other riders and I am far less on the limit compared to the other. It means less mistakes. I have to thank the team for all their work. They didnt put any pressure on me and I did the best I could. I had a lot of problems this year and I am really grateful for this opportunity.
Alex

Motorcycle Breakdown Cover

By Alex in Other

Essentials of Motorcycle Breakdown Cover
When your motorcycle breaks down, especially if you are in a remote location, you are not alone if you have excellent motorcycle breakdown cover.
First, and perhaps most important, is roadside rescue. Waiting out in the elements after a breakdown, especially in unfamiliar territory, is very unpleasant, to say the least. Most policies for motorcycle breakdown guarantee only a 40 minute wait for a rescue, and most bikes can be fixed roadside. Most classic motorcycle breakdown coverage plans will send a mechanic to you, if you are only a mile or less from home, and fix your bike on the spot. If that cannot be managed, then your bike will be taken to the nearest garage.
Motorcycle breakdown cover on a bike that cannot be fixed roadside will ensure that you are not stranded, and that you, your bike, and passengers are taken to a local garage service to repair your bike. The best motorcycle breakdown cover will take you and your party on to your destination or back home, or else put you all up in a hotel.
The best motorcycle breakdown cover will insure other drivers on your bike, not just you. This gives you peace of mind when someone else rides your bike. If you yourself drive many different bikes, perhaps it is a good idea to cover yourself as well. If you become injured in a motorcycle accident, some breakdown covers for motorcycles in the UK will even pay to have a driver return your bike to your home.
If you are stranded, motorbike breakdown cover can also contribute a fair amount to pay for vehicle hire until your bike is repaired. Key cover can even replace your house keys in the event that they are lost or stolen.

European Breakdown Cover
For European breakdown cover you can add to your home policy a special single trip cover, with roadside assistance, return home guarantee, and English speaking operators to help you with any breakdown you may experience while on the continent, and your cover begins on the day of the trip, from home, to the ferry across and back home again. You could also buy European coverage that will cover multiple trips to Europe.
European cover is available for both car and motorbike breakdown, and most are available 24 hours every day, and can deliver replacement parts, trip continuation, replacement vehicle, and even bed and breakfast expenses. If necessary, the return of your entire party to home in the UK can be covered.
Be aware that some policies do not cover a motorcycle of more than a certain size engine. If you have a bike with a larger engine, you would do well to search around for a policy that has no limitation or upper limit on engine size.
Alex

Choosing Motorbike Insurance

By Alex in Other

Choosing Motorbike Insurance
Motorcycle insurance is compulsory on all public roads because without it the biker will be liable for bodily injury and property damage.
Although it’s possible to get cheap motorbike insurance by simply getting Third Party Motorcycle coverage, there are many more options to choose from for better coverage.

Types Of Motorcycle Insurance
Comprehensive motorcycle insurance, this costs more but offers the most coverage. In the event of an accident, it not only covers both the motorcyclist and their motorcycle but it also covers other people injured by the collision and any damage to their property.
Third Party Fire and Theft Motorcycle Insurance is for both fire and theft coverage. In the event of an accident, it also covers you for personal injury, as well as other people who may be injured and their property. However, it does not cover your motorcycle.
Third Party Motorcycle Insurance offers basic coverage, excluding fire and theft.

Motorbike Insurance Quotes
It’s always a great idea to get insurance before you ride your motorbike.
Although a motorcycle dealer may offer you a quote, usually these policies are not as good as those you can get from finding an insurance agency on your own because dealerships rarely work with the best insurance companies.
In shopping for the best motorcycle insurance, begin by asking your current car and home insurance agent if they also offer motorcycle insurance.
Besides asking your current insurer, you can look for motorcycle insurance online, a motorcycle magazine, or the phone book. Incidentally, if you have a Yamaha, do an online search for “Yamaha motorbike insurance” for some great price quotes.

Top 5 Questions to Ask an Insurance Provider
When seeking an insurance provider, what are some pertinent questions to ask?
Here is a quick list of the top five questions you may want to ask your provider to get the best coverage at the lowest premiums.
1. What is the difference between the various types of insurance policies? Your goal is to get a very clear understanding on what is covered and what is not covered under each type of insurance. If you have an older bike, possibly a vintage model, check into the benefits of classic motorcycle insurance.
2. If I get comprehensive insurance, is it enough, or can I get something that is more thorough, covering all possibilities?
3. How do I make claims?
4. What happens to my premiums if I have an accident and need to make a claim?
5. Can I get a package deal by combining my motorcycle insurance with my other insurances and how much will my discount be?
Alex

Tonus wins MX2 British Championship

By Alex in MX2-GP

Bike it Cosworth Wild Wolf Yamaha’s Arnaud Tonus has won the high profile MX2 Maxxis British Championship in his first campaign on the YZ250F and gave the British team their second consecutive crown on UK soil.

The stylish Swiss won all three 20 minute motos last weekend in Scotland to toast his first major title after team-mate, defending champion and main rival Zach Osborne had to return to his native USA last month with a shoulder injury.

From twenty-one motos through the seven of eight rounds run so far Tonus has missed the podium only once from the races he has completed and notched nineteen top three finishes. This fantastic consistency on a range of terrain and diverse circuits up and down the UK and Northern Ireland allowed the twenty year old to make a significant contribution in his first term as a Yamaha rider.

“I knew coming into the weekend that there was a chance I could win it and to take all three motos and get the championship felt so good,” said Tonus, who will compete in the team’s home event this weekend at Matterley Basin, Winchester for the thirteenth round of fifteen on the GP schedule. “It is a shame it could not have gone to the final round wit Zach as it has been a good battle all season but I’m really happy, and also the team because they have worked very hard for a long time this year. It is fun to be with them and to ride that bike so I must give a big thanks to Steve and all the guys.”