The SEMA Show in Las Vegas is all about standing out from the crowd in a way or another and the 2009 edition turned out to be the ideal occasion for Azhar Hussain, TTXGP founder, to officially unveil the TTX02 electric racebike.
This is the 2010 production version of the exact same bike that won the 2009 TTXGP Isle of Man Electric Motorcycle TT race and it is powered by twin Agni 95 electric motors providing a great deal of torque just above idle and little under 100 horsepower at full blast. Energy (11 kWh) is supplied by three lithium ion battery packs and everything is housed in a KTM RC8 chassis, a good choice considering that the TTX02 is a 130 mph supersport motorcycle.
At least that is what we consider it to be (according to the official claims, of course), but Hussain refers to the TTX02 as being a "laptop on wheels." That is mainly due to the fact that each machine features a dash-mounted computer that runs on Linux, comes with its own dedicated IP address, on-board web server and connectivity to wireless networks, just to start your interest. For more information watch the two videos of the bike’s launch that we attached after the break or go to mavizen.com.
Having signed with Tech 3 Yamaha for 2010, Ben Spies will run his very first Yamaha MotoGP bike at Valencia during the final round of the MotoGP World Championship and his new team has just come up with this absolutely superb Sterilgarda paintjob for the occasion.
Spies won the 2009 World Superbike Championship for Yamaha, while his best result in MotoGP is a 6th place at Indianapolis in 2008, when he was racing for Suzuki.
In 1993, John Britten, a very ingenious engineer from New Zeeland came up with the Britten V1000. This was a 999cc racing motorcycle weighing 304 pounds (138 kg) and capable of reaching speeds in excess of 187.5 mph (300 km/h). While this information alone is impressive for the period, the amazing part is that Britten built the V1000 by himself in his garage.
Britten’s innovative ideas brought him the joy of seeing his creation competing against Japanese and European racing bikes of the time and actually winning. Sadly, he died of a vicious strain of malignant cancer just 3 years after completing the bikes, and the technology died with him. Considering that the Britten V1000 was ranked 6th Greatest Ever Motorbike in a Discovery TV show, we have reasons to believe that the motorcycle industry could have had a significant contribution from the respective direction.
The past weekend’s race at Sepang in Malaysia was entirely dominated by Casey Stoner, who obtained his second consecutive win since returning in the championship. Second place was adjudicated by Dani Pedrosa, but the most important place in this equation is the third, obtained by Valentino Rossi and which brings the Italian MotoGP star the seventh world title in the premier class and the ninth world championship overall. Congratulations!
The Autodromo do Parkalgar in Portimao, Portugal will show a statue of a victorious Craig Jones at the entrance now that the track’s owner Paulo Pinheiro has unveiled the provisional statue. This will be replaced by one made of stone in the near future to pay a tribute to the British rider who lost his life in an accident during the World Supersport round at Brands Hatch last season. Jones was competing for Parkalgar Honda.
During the last lap of the 2009 Australian GP, Casey Stoner – who had to withstand pressure from Valentino Rossi – achieved this amazing slide that we can’t get enough of.
For the third consecutive year, Casey Stoner won the Australian GP held at Phillip Island. Arriving 2 seconds behind the Ducati Marlboro Team rider, Valentino Rossi occupied second place, while Dani Pedrosa came in third. With Jorge Lorenzo out, Rossi now managed to set itself 38 points ahead of his teammate in the championship.
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Jorge Lorenzo was the first rider to pass the finish line on the Estoril circuit the past weekend during the Portuguese GP. He was followed by Casey Stoner and Dani Pedrosa. Race results after the break.
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This Sunday at the Estroil MotoGP round, Yamaha will be presenting their new FIAT Punto Evo graphics created by Aldo Drudi, FIAT’s reference designer, both for the Yamaha M1 bikes and the rider leathers. FIAT, Yamaha’s main MotoGP sponsor has recently launched the brand new Punto Evo model and the new liveries are made clean and pure by the predominant white color, in perfect accordance with the car’s Euro 5 engines. The initial layout wasn’t significantly modified, but the machines now stand aesthetically better and riders Valentino Rossi and Jorge Lorenzo are also enthusiastic about their new racing looks. Read the press release and check out more photos after the break.
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Ben Spies has had a great season with Yamaha and after setting one lap record after another, he is currently the leader of the SBK Championship. To honor that, CMC – a Yamaha dealer in UK – has created a Ben Spies replica R1 painted in the racing bike’s colours. The engine now breaths out through an Akrapovic exhaust system, which should also add a few horses although they don’t mention a precise number. Speaking of numbers, the bike costs £12,499 ($20,225).
