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CHRISTER MINIIN BLOWS HIS TOP This just posted by Christer on the Fagersjo-El website, under the headline "Killed By Death": The team has just arrived back from 3 days of testing in France
and the test was superb. Everything went really well and the bikes worked great
with only minor brake problems on one of the bikes. Ok, I'm not one to create controversy, so let's spell it out...Suzuki Sweden are the team formerly sponsored by Fagersjö-El and earned their inclusion as a permanent team this year by finishing 5th in the 2006 World Endurance Championship...Fagersjö-Elektriska AB now sponsor a different team, managed by Christer Miniin, who finished 3rd last year when he was riding with the British Phase One team. THEY'RE ALL TESTING ONE THING OR ANOTHER - AMADEUS X-ONE YAMAHA AT ALBACETE Firstly, congratulations to our resident two-wheeled sommelier Paolo Tessari on becoming a father for the second time!...so he was excused the test... Riccardo Ricci and American Will Gruy racked up over 700 kilometres in Spain, testing Pirellis on their brand-new Yamaha R1 (they were on Bridgestones last year). Even down at Albacete, they didn't see better than 10 degrees in testing - even so, Riccardo Ricci put in respectable 1 minute 37 second laps and a favourable 55 laps before needing a tyre change, whereas Will Gruy may have had a tougher time of it, adapting to the ballistic 1000cc after running a 600cc machine in the CMRA series back in America last year. They are also running Alessio Corradi in the Italian SuperSport Championship this year. The next test should be about now...and Paolo will be at this one - I'm waiting for pictures, guys...or I'll keep publishing this one of Paolo... ...or that VERY interesting one I have of Will Gruy...
THE WORD IS OUT - THERE'S A NEW PROMOTER FOR WORLD ENDURANCE Here's the Official Press Release from the FIM: The FIM has concluded an agreement with
sponsorship, PR and events agency
Capitalize
to promote the QMMF Endurance FIM World Championship. Capitalize will assist the
FIM in structuring the media relations and PR campaign for the Championship,
including a communication service to publicize the 2007 series from its London
base. THE FRENCH WORLD ENDURANCE SITE BID ALSO REJECTED
Well, it seems that everyone has been blind-sided by this - we all got it wrong and there's a brand-new player in the game. CAPITALIZE are the new series promoters; they'll be creating a whole new website plus doing all the other things promoters do... WARWICK NOWLAND BACK ONLINE Warwick has had a tough time in the off-season, suffering both a neck injury and a family crisis - we have all sent our best wishes to both Warwick and his father - but "Wokka" will be attending the two day Le Mans test...and his NEW WEBSITE is now online! YAMAHA AUSTRIA TESTING UPDATE A chilly 3°C testing at Le Mans on 20th and 21st March for Castrol Suzuki, Phase One, Diablo 666 Kawasaki, Team Kawasaki France and Yamaha Austria Racing Team, among others - this just in from Mandy Kainz at YART: "The bikes worked well from the beginning. Igor marked with low 1min 40.5sec the fastest YART lap-time of the test. Sebastien (Scarnato) liked the new bike from the beginning and this was really perfect news - but he crashed very hard later on the morning of the first day with a high-side and couldn't rejoin the test session after having a really painful injury to his shoulder. He sat out the second day. For the race in 4 weeks he should be ok. Damian likes the bike, but he need more laps to get confident with the bike and the track. Pierrot Lerat was fast at the beginning and lapped in the 1min43s." In 2 weeks time, the 3rd and 4th of April, they'll be back for the official 2 day test at the Bugatti circuit. Rider Damian Cudlin's Press Release: Damian Cudlin has completed his first test
on the machine he will contest this year’s World Endurance Championship, the
Yamaha Austria Racing Team’s 2007 R1, at the Le Mans circuit in the West of
France. After a tentative start on the first day of testing, Cudlin got to grips
with his new ride on the second day and posted very competitive times at the
days end.
LE MANS ENTRY LIST RELEASED Details on the 2007 Le Mans page HERE BMW STEALTHILY TESTING IN CARTEGENA Marcus Barth, Rico Penzkofer and Thomas Hinterreiter are currently testing the new R1200S-based BMW that will be entering selected World Endurance races this year. The bike seems to be based on the twin from the BMW Boxer Cup series but is reputedly 20kgs lighter than anything seen before in the R series. Unconfirmed lap times are looking impressive - a reported 1min 43sec on Day 1, putting it on a par with the top 600's. To put things in perspective, however, the top World Superbike machines lap at around 1min 37sec...though they wouldn't last in an Endurance race! UPDATE - BMW finished the test by slashing even more time...reportedly by another 3 seconds and just failing to break into the 1min 39sec bracket. In the words of an insider, this was a "very successful" test. Although they were sporting "stealth" unpainted carbon at the test, at the first round at Le mans in April, expect to see BMW going back to their roots on their colour scheme, mainly blue/white with a little red and loads of carbon. Check it out..
ANOTHER UPDATE - I've yet to receive an official press release but, even though he wasn't present at the test, you can be sure that Belgium's STEPHANE MERTENS (83 victories, 170 podiums, 27 years in competition) is out of retirement and will be riding the bike with Rico Penzkofer as reserve rider. They intend to compete in three World Championship 24 hour races, Le Mans, Oschersleben and the Bol d'Or, along with the 24 hours of Barcelona, with the intention of competing as a Permanent Team in the World Endurance Championship in 2008. THE IRISH AT LE MANS Here's a follow up to the news that former Projecteam Honda rider Roger Maher is putting together an all-Irish team for the Le Mans 24 hour race this year - now confirmed reports are that he has teamed up with Damien Mulleady and Hilton Hinks, with John Walsh as 4th rider with the bike being a Yamaha and entered into the Superbike class. QUICK...GRAB A TOP WORLD SUPERBIKE RIDER FOR YOUR TEAM! This just in from top Aussie World Superbike rider Steve Martin: Steve Martin was today unexpectedly
informed that his ride with the DFX Honda World Superbike team was no longer
available, due to lack of finances for the Italian squad.
PHASE ONE - PICTURES FROM THE 3 DAY DUNLOP TEST AT ALBACETE
PHASE ONE AGAIN - DIDIER VAN KEYMEULEN IN WORLD STOCKSPORT TESTING In the first day of the Pirelli winter test at Valencia it was a
chance for the Stocksport 1000 and 600 guys to start getting up to speed for the
2007 season. Claudio Corti set a new best lap of the Valencia circuit on his way
to becoming the fastest rider out of the 29 in attendance at this last
pre-season test, improving on the previous track record (set by Massimo Roccoli
in 2005) by 1.5 seconds. 2007 Phase One rider Didier Van Keymeulen had the distinction of being the top non-Italian rider and posting the 6th-fastest time after the 2nd session. That's the last time Didier will get to practice before the first round for the Stocksport boys at Donington in the UK at the end of March. Although Marko Rohtlaan, now riding with Azione Corse on a Honda CBR1000RR, is also on the list of Permanent Riders in the 2007 Stocksport1000 championship, he wasn't at the test.
AUSSIE WARWICK NOWLAND KNOCKED BACK This press release just in from Warwick: Just as the 2007 Endurance season is about to start, Phase One Yamaha star, Warwick Nowland, has been stalled by a neck injury and a family crisis. Spending most of the off-season in Australia, the injury appeared without incident. “ It’s basically a disc in my cervical spine that is inflamed and pushing against a nerve. That causes a lot of referred pain to my left arm, lungs and upper back”. After treatment in Sydney, Warwick was
scheduled to fly to London on Tuesday evening for specific diagnosis by Dr
Louise Chiasson. Dr Chiasson has proven invaluable in maintaining Warwick’s
fitness for Endurance racing over the past 2 years. With bags packed, Warwick
was set to leave the sunshine when he received a phone call. For the last 6
weeks, Warwick’s father has been unwell and last night his conditioned worsened.
Doctors advised Warwick to delay travel plans until further notice. “I’m really sorry for the team that I
won’t be there but I know the guys will get a lot of work done with Glen and
Didier. I spoke to our team manager Roy Hood last night and they understand I
have to look after my Dad”. We all wish Warwick and his family all the best and hope his
father gets well soon. It's also rumoured that this is the machine which will be available to the public in 2009 - and hopefully, I'll get some pictures as soon as I can. THE NEW WORLD ENDURANCE CHAMPIONSHIP - AND HERE'S THE LOGO...
The final Permanent Teams List has now been published...and Race Corporation got it all right - Scott Smart is confirmed as third rider for Kawasaki France. It seems that Primo no longer have a partnership with Verboven but have teamed up instead with a Belgian team, Red Fox (I seem to remember that they used to run a Ducati). I still don't know if they have a website yet...or if the new QERT Team has one - but updates on those as soon as I get them. Another Qatari team, Team Pitstop, are still planning to at least do the Qatari round - more info from them as soon as it arrives. Moto 38 seem to have a new colour scheme...from what we can see on a wet testing day at the Bresse track in France, it's red-based now, whereas before they were primarily blue.
YAMAHA AUSTRIA - THE STRONGEST CHALLENGE YET
The team managed by former Superbike racer Manfred Kainz is looking to mount it's strongest challenge yet for the World Endurance Championship. It's been kept well under wraps for many months but the news has finally been released that former Phase One rider Damian Cudlin has moved to Austria and joined Frenchman Sebastien Scarnato and Slovenian Igor Jerman in the Yamaha Austria team. Speaking from his new base in Austria, Cudlin said
“I’m really excited about riding for YART this year and I
just can’t wait for the season to begin. I’ve known Mandy for a couple of years
now and I really think I’ll fit in well with this team. They do the job at the
race track whilst having a laugh along the way, which is the way I like it. My
team mates are very fast, and YART is the strongest growing force in the WEC, so
to be a part of this crew feels great. I’m sure I’m in for some good times and
good results with YART in 2007.” In a late development, Thomas Hinterreiter has taken up a lucrative offer to race for BMW this year - and Manfred Kainz has been able to secure Frenchman Pierrot Lerat Vanstaen as spare rider for the team. On top of all this, the team has been successful in bringing on-board one of the great names associated with Yamaha - and the No.7 will now also be a Loctite Yamaha!
KAWASAKI FRANCE - A BIT OF A HICCUP IN THE TEAM...
News has reached us that Kawasaki France rider, Spain's Ivan Silva is off to race for the D'Antin-run QERT team - who are getting factory Kawasakis. That leaves the door open for another rider...and former British Superbike race winner and MotoGP rider Scott Smart will be his replacement. Scott is very well-known for his meticulous set-up skills and spent a great season with Stuart Hicken's Hawk Kawasaki team, finishing 4th in the British Superbike Championship in 2004 before moving on to Crescent Suzuki and Vivaldi racing...and he's just been confirmed as back in the Hawk Racing team in BSB for the 2007 season. Lately he's also been doing co-commentary duties (as has Warwick Nowland) for the official coverage of World Superbikes alongside regular commentator Jonathan Green. QATAR NOW HEADLINE SPONSORS OF WORLD ENDURANCE So, the FIM have released something official regarding World Endurance - and not only a team (or more than one?) in the World Endurance Championship, but a new Permanent Team and the entire Championship now sponsored by the Qatar Motor & Motorcycling Federation. Today (7th March) in Doha, Qatar, the
President of the FIM Road Racing Commission, Mr Claude Danis, and the President
of the Qatar Motor & Motorcycling Federation, Mr Nasser Khalifa Al-Attiyah,
confirmed the agreement reached between the Federation Internationale de
Motocyclisme and the Qatar Motor & Motorcycling Federation concerning the
Endurance World Championship. During the press conference held in the presence
of representatives of the international media (present for the Grand Prix of
Qatar) and of the national media, the following presented: BRITISH HMRC ENDURANCE CHAMPIONSHIP 2007 There's a new endurance championship underway in the UK this year, the HMRC Endurance series - 6 rounds of 6 and 8 hour races at Snetterton, Knockhill in Scotland, Pembrey, Rockingham and Silverstone. For those who want extra, it's a perfect way to keep the "edge" for the World Endurance scene. It looks like youngster and 2006 Rookie of the Year Alex Cudlin is racing with one of the best teams in the UK, GB Moto, for at least one round - possibly Snetterton on the 8th of April...and former World Champion and ex-lap record holder at the Knockhill circuit, my co-commentator Roger Bennett will be racing at his favourite Scottish track, again with GB Moto. ...and I thought he had retired. Whenever a rider says he's retired, just say "...yeah....SUUUURE...." If you want more details or even want to enter as a rider or complete team, go HERE for more details. REMEMBERING BRUNO - THE BRUNO BONHUIL TROPHY
Under the impulse of Ludivine Bonhuil and of Christophe Guyot (GMT94), the
Trophy Bruno Bonhuil will reward a pilot or a team reflecting the same
professional values that Bruno himself had. Besides performance, this rider or
team will be judged on their capacity to communicate and their ability to
promote via the press, internet, etc, along with their promotion at the racing
venues - the presentation of the bikes, layout of the pit boxes, presence of the
pilot at autograph signings, etc.. EUROSPORT BENELUX - IT'S GONNA BE ANOTHER SUZUKI Now, this one was supposed to be an MV Agusta story - but the MV importer in the Netherlands just didn't have enough "space" in their activities for 2007, so the team have had a lot of help from the Dutch Suzuki importer and they'll be running the new GSXR1000 K7. Remember also that the new team is a coming together of the old Eurosport team and Niggi Schmassmann's Innodrom team...and at 47 years old, Niggi still has a passion for racing!
A QATARI TEAM IN WORLD ENDURANCE? There seems to be quite a bit of interest from Pit Stop Motorcycles in Qatar (near the airport, so no problems with noise!) who have expressed an interest in fielding a team in World Endurance - and not just for the Doha round. There are pretty strong rumours that they will be aiming to compete in some European rounds but are still "gathering information" at present. Watch this space.
Team Pitstop - 2nd and 3rd in Qatar National Road Racing Championship (QNRRCH) Superbike class, 3rd and 10th in Supersport. MACO MOTO RUMOURS Maco Moto are one of the teams who have managed to once again get permanent team status. It's good news for the Slovakian team, following on from 4 straight years as a permanent team. The team is being managed by MARTIN KUZMA, riders are JAROSLAV CERNY with his second year in the team, new rider TOMÁŠ MIKŠOVSKÝ and former Shell Academy rider ĎAMIAЙ RŎWLEŶ - and we sincerely hope that the stunning Denisa Gresko will still be with the team. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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