Fans will probably be missing one of the most popular teams in the World Superbike Championships for 2011. This came about as Ducati announced last August 27th that they would not be fielding a factory team for next season’s races.
According to the statement released by Ducati, the reason they are pulling out of the superbike championships is because they want to focus more on technology development for their products. They also added that, in order to further develop the latest iteration of Ducati’s bikes, they will have to pull out the resources used to manage the factory team and divert them to the company’s research and development department.
In the statement, Ducati President Gabriele Del Torchio also thanked riders Noriyuki Haga and Michel Fabrizio for their participation in the team. Both Haga and Fabrizio had been with the team for almost two years.
However, according to some Superbike observers, there are still several other reasons for the Italian motorcycle maker’s pullout from the competition.
With the occasion of Max Biaggi’s double win at the Monza WSBK round in Italy, Aprilia took the wraps off their all-new racing replica RSV4 superbike. The bike is destined for the racing track and can be used as an entry-level WSBK race machine as it offers a heck more performance over the production street version and also meets FIM regulations.
Claiming 200bhp and 92lb/ft of torque (that’s an impressive 20bhp and 7.4lb/ft over the production RSV4) from the 65-degree V4 motor, Aprilia sure seems to have done their homework when creating this proper Ducati Desmosedici RR competitor. But it is the ingenious stuff that makes the difference and in the case of the RSV4 Max Biaggi Replica this consists into: a six gear transmission with a multi-disk oil bath clutch with a mechanical anti-skipping system, ride-by-wire throttle control system, QuickShift assisted shifting, an Akrapovich 4-2-1 titanium exhaust and carbon fiber fairing.
All in all, the bike weighs in at 385.8 lbs (dry), which is definitely an achievement over the standard version’s 405.6 lbs. Still, we also have to mention the Ohlins suspension, Brembo brakes and Marchesini forged magnesium alloy wheels before hitting you with the price - 50,000 euros (US$64,142). The clearly exclusive bike is available in Biaggi’s Alitalia Aprilia livery or bare carbon.
Gigi Dall’lgna, technical and sport manager of Aprilia Racing says:
“With the RSV4 Biaggi Replica we offer the sports enthusiast a motorcycle which is as close as you can get to the RSV4 that Max rides on the track in World Superbike. In this project, which was developed in parallel to our re-entry into SBK, we poured out all of our knowledge and years of experience on tracks all over the world. This is the bike which came out of it, conceived and developed within Aprilia Racing to offer unique sensations to the shrewd user.”
Chris Vermeulen, who has recently underwent keyhole surgery has just started walking again and he’s already riding his trial bike in an attempt to recover his knee faster for the Assen race. Meanwhile, he’ll skip this weekend’s WSBK round in Valencia, so the video is more of a way to keep fans posted about his evolution.
Yamaha Motor USA has found a rather funny way to promote the Ben Spies and Colin Edwards team for the 2010 World Superbike Championship. Their latest video shows the two take on a road trip in Texas to bond before the new season. Just check it out.
With only two weeks left until the start of the first race in the 2010 World Superbike calendar, at Phillip Island in Australia, SBK organizers have released a 25-minute long preview of the 23rd season of the championship, which is expected to be one of the most spectacular so far. Enjoy!
