Motorcycles that are as representative of the ’90s as dial-up and mom jeans.
Source: MotorCyclistOnline.com
Image: Russell Colvin.
Team Australia has taken out the International Challenge at the Visit Phillip Island International Island Classic, while it was Steve Martin who reigned supreme in the individual standings.
Australian riders finished at the pointy end in this morning’s International Challenge six-lapper, with experience coming to the fore in the shape of elder ‘statesmen’ Martin and Shawn Giles, who finished first and second ahead of day one hero and fellow Suzuki Katana rider Aaron Morris.
The local domination allowed Australia to build its buffer ahead of Team USA and New Zealand heading into the fourth and final race. Martin, the former world endurance champion and soon-to-be 51-year-old, showed he still has what it takes in race three, finishing a whisker in front of three-time Aussie superbike champion, 46-year-old Giles, also on the Katana.
Morris, who hails from Newcastle, looked set for another victory before he erred on his final run to the line, allowing Martin and Giles the opportunity to fly past. Morris struggled with his machine today, with the Katana jumping out of fourth gear. Melbourne’s Jed Metcher on the T-Rex Honda came in fourth, followed by USA’s Larry Pegram.
American did not give up in race four in quest for a win, showing why he is a four-time AMA Superbike champion with a resounding win in the fourth and final six-lapper at the Phillip Island Grand Prix circuit. Finishing more than four seconds in front of Martin in second, the top five was rounded out by New Zealand’s Alex Phillis, Metcher and Giles.
With three race wins to the Australians over the four six lap battles, the defending champions Team Australia walk away with the title once again finishing on 676 points, ahead of America on 634 points and NZ on 460 points. In individual standings, it was experience over youth in the end, when Melbourne‘s Martin taking out the Ken Wootton Perpetual Trophy. Morris was second ahead of Hayes.
Source: CycleOnline.com.au
Reed ninth as Cianciarulo storms to 250SX West victory.
Image: Supplied.
Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Cooper Webb has taken ahold of the 450SX points lead after securing back to back victories at Oakland’s fourth round of the Monster Energy AMA Supercross and FIM World Championship.
The number two put on a stellar display to narrowly edge out teammate Marvin Musquin (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing), just 0.760s separating the duo across the line.
Blake Baggett (Rocky Mountain ATV/MC KTM) was third followed by Eli Tomac (Monster Energy Kawasaki) and former points leader Ken Roczen (Team Honda HRC), who now sits two points behind Webb. Australia’s Chad Reed (JGRMX Yoshimura Suzuki Factory Racing) wound up ninth in the main event.
In the 250SX West division, Adam Cianciarulo (Pro Circuit Monster Energy Kawasaki) claimed his second win of the season, boosting him to second in the championship standings.
Monster Energy Yamalube Yamaha Star Racing dup Dylan Ferrandis and red-plate holder Colt Nichols closed out the podium, as Shane McElrath (TLD Red Bull KTM) and Jacob Hayes (CycleTrader Rock River Yamaha) were fourth and fifth respectively. The AMA Supercross series heads to San Diego next weekend round five.
Source: MotoOnline.com.au
Lars Jansson and the control of metal
Source: MotorCyclistOnline.com
Image: Russell Colvin.
Newcastle’s Aaron Morris backed up his dominance in qualifying on Friday to go from pole position today to take victory in the two International Challenge races at the Visit Phillip Island International Island Classic.
While Morris was unstoppable, Team USA flexed their muscle with Josh Hayes breathing down the back of the Aussie front runners and being backed by reliable performances from his team mates.
Race one started with drama and a red-flag two laps in when Team USA scalp Jason Pridmore high-sided at turn 11, falling heavily and taking other riders out in the crash.
Australia’s Beau Beaton came unstuck, and both he and Pridmore were taken to the medical centre with injuries. Conscious, both were transported to the hospital for observation and will not return to the grid this weekend. For the race one re-start, polesitter Aaron Morris improved his start and stuck with the front runners, but it was Jed Metcher on the Honda Harris, and Suzuki riders David Johnson and Alex Phillis who headed the field by Southern Loop.
While the Australians Metcher and Johnson led early, team-mate Morris overhauled them aboard his Katana by lap three and held the lead through to the chequered flag. It was a solid victory, 1.2 seconds in front of Metcher. Team USA’s hot shot Josh Hayes came in third, impressive for his first visit to the circuit and his third day on the bike.
David Johnson, last year’s Ken Wootton Trophy winner for best individual performance, took fourth, with Australia’s Shawn Giles in 5th – and Suzuki rider Alex Phillis crossing the line for the New Zealanders in sixth, the best performer from the Kiwi squad.
For the second International Challenge race mid-afternoon, it was American Hayes – the four times AMA Superbike champion – who took the early lead after an impressive start. He was fiercely pursued though by a host of riders including race one winner Aaron Morris, Melbourne’s Jed Metcher and for the USA Larry Pegram.
Morris broke away early in lap two on the Katana and with him was Metcher on the Harris, leaving Hayes and Pegram in their wake. Metcher though tumbled at Lukey Heights with a front end issue, and Morris was away with clear track, building a four-second lead to take his second chequered flag in dominant fashion to complete a perfect day.
Completing the race two podium was former world endurance champion, Australia’s Steve Martin, in second, with Paul Byrne third for the locals – while Josh Hayes was fourth for the US on the Yamaha FJ.
Hayes is the dark horse and should not be underestimated. As he learns the track, he’s starting to play hard ball and is likely to terrorise the leading riders even further tomorrow. With today’s two wins, Australia’s Morris leads the individual leader board with a perfect scorecard on 80 points, but Hayes just trails him, with 75 points to his name.
At the end of day one, Australia leads the table on 326 points, with Team USA trailing by only 15 points on 311 points, with New Zealand on 253 points. Phillis was the best performer for the Kiwis today, sitting fourth on the Ken Wootton table for individual glory – while three times British superbike champion, John Reynolds, is finding his pace and took a 10th and 8th spot today and is in 6th place overall.
Defending Ken Wootton trophy holder, Adelaide’s Dave Johnson had gear box problems in race one, and did not compete in race two due to electrical problems. He plans to be back on track in the morning, after his mechanics work some magic overnight.
Source: CycleOnline.com.au
Image: Russell Colvin.
In blistering heat, Australia has kicked off the defence of their International Challenge crown at the 2019 Visit Phillip Island International Island Classic in good shape at the grand prix circuit, topping qualifying for the weekend’s four historic bike races against formidable outfits from the Team USA and New Zealand.
Newcastle’s 26-year-old Aaron Morris, a newcomer to Team Australia, nailed pole position with a 1m37.341s lap on his 1982 Suzuki Katana – but on his heels was a fired up Jason Pridmore from the USA with a 1m37.642s time. The duo were the only two racers to break into the 1m37s in the searing heat that saw the track temperature near 60 degrees around midday.
The International Challenge field of world class riders representing Australia, New Zealand and the USA, will face four, six lap races over the weekend, and is the headline event of the 26th International Island Classic.
As defending champion, Australia ended the day with seven riders in the top 10 including Paul Byrne on the Suzuki, defending champion David Johnson and 2016 winner, Jed Metcher. Team USA flexed its muscle and landed three in the top 10 – Pridmore, the four times AMA Superbike champion Josh Hayes and the super experienced Larry Pegram.
New Zealand’s best performer was Alex Phillis who came in 11th, immediately followed by Jay Lawrence and John Reynolds on the Carl Cox prepared Suzukis. It is Morris’s first time with the Australian team, and despite only doing a few laps in both qualifying sessions, dominated with blistering times in extreme conditions.
The first qualifying session was held in stifling conditions at the apex of the day’s heat. Thankfully, for the life of many motorcycles, conditions improved for the afternoon with the air and track temperature dropping considerably to allow faster lap times.
Jason Pridmore who is making his second visit to Phillip Island, is in fine form and after his experience in 2018 now knows what is needed to take out the International Challenge. Happy with second fastest Pridmore, like Morris, only did three laps in the second qualifying session before parking his bike – saving his machine for what counts in racing tomorrow.
Holder of the 2018 Ken Wootton Perpetual Trophy, Adelaide’s David Johnson qualified fourth. He is in threatening form, and looked in a good position to snatch pole, before a mistake in the third last corner curtailed his charge.
The 26th International Island Classic presented by Visit Phillip Island is one of the worlds’ great historic bike meets, attracting over 450 bikes and riders from across the globe, competing in 56 races over the weekend.
Source: CycleOnline.com.au
This bike is apparently in high demand
Source: MotorCyclistOnline.com
No matter what you ride, come experience the joy of vintage motorcycles without the pressures of racing.
Begin press release:
February 21, 2019, AHRMA is sponsoring an open trackday at Roebling Road Raceway, near Savannah, Georgia.
Racers from any racing organization, trackday riders and AHRMA racers are invited to enjoy the friendly AHRMA paddock and this fast and sweeping road course on Thursday, with sessions tailored for everyone.
This event kicks off AHRMA’s first national road race of the season with the customary AHRMA members practice following on Friday, then 2 full rounds of road racing Saturday and Sunday.
AHRMA will also offer its Fast and Safe Roadracing School at this event. Pass the school on Friday and race the weekend! To register for the school contact Andrew Cowell at 910-431-2956 or email our membership office: [email protected].
Come on out and have some fun with us!
For further information, please visit www.ahrma.org/event/roebling-road-raceway/.
The post AHRMA Announces Roebling Road Open Trackday appeared first on Motorcycle.com News.
A few tips to make your next motorcycle adventure seamless
Source: MotorCyclistOnline.com
Aruba.it Racing – Ducati fourth fastest in Spanish two-day test.
Image: Supplied.
WorldSBK newcomer Alvaro Bautista has discovered promising changes in his Ducati Panigale V4 R following the first official pre-season test at Jerez in Spain this week.
The Aruba.it Racing – Ducati rider finished up fourth overall on the timesheets with a personal best of 1m39.620s, marking a positive start to his transition to the Superbike category after years of challenging the MotoGP World Championship.
“It’s been a couple of positive days,” Bautista declared. “After the winter break, it was important to get back on track, in order to readjust to the speed but also to get accustomed to the new bike. The new tarmac made it a bit more difficult for us. The grip was very low and so were the temperatures, so we couldn’t find a good feeling in day one.
“Today, however, we managed to work better. The track improved and it was warmer outside. We’re still focusing on riding position and the base setup in general. We tried some changes that I’ve liked, and now we’ll make more evaluations at Portimao, a track that I don’t know, so it’ll be very interesting.”
The Spanish ace will be out on track again in Portimao, Portugal, for two more days of testing with the WorldSBK contingent, scheduled for 27-28 January.
Source: CycleOnline.com.au