Yasmin Benefits From International Generosity

Over thirty thousand pounds raised at a benefit auction held last Sunday night (27th November) will be held in trust for eleven year-old Yasmin Scott, the daughter of motorcycle racer and journalist Ian 'Gus' Scott who lost his life at this year's Isle of Man TT races.

The scene of the auction - Club Amadeus in Northallerton, North Yorks - was packed to capacity with an equal amount of friends and fans of the
popular motorcycling celebrity all bidding on over ninety auction items sourced from the Industry and racing fraternity around the World.

Amongst the most prized items were: a VIP trip for two to the 2006 Macau Grand Prix (the highest bid paid at £1800), John McGuinness' TT
winning silver replica trophy (£800), Colin Edwards' Movistar Honda leathers (£1200), Neil Hodgson's Ducati Austin leathers (£1250) and other such notables as signed Valentino Rossi memorabilia, an Arai crash helmet signed by all the Moto GP stars and a lap in the course-open car at the start of the Moto GP race of the winner's choice.

As well as the hundreds of fans in the building, motorcycling celebrities turned out in force including Chris Walker, John McGuinnesss, James Whitham and Maria Costello leaving Brian Scott, Ian's father, to comment: ' I'd really like to convey our whole family's thanks and respect for the hundreds of people who
braved the freezing weather to attend. It was a graphic description of the respect Ian commanded throughout the industry, the racing paddocks across the World and through his work in the magazines. The North Yorkshire Road Racing Supporters Club did a magnificent job of coordinating the event and we are eternally grateful.'

Donations can still be made via www.gusscott.com

FUNERAL DETAILS FOR BRUNO BONHUIL

The funeral of Bruno Bonhuil will take place on Thursday 1st December 2005 in Reims, France.

You invited to participate in the procession of motorbikes that will leave as early as 8h30 from Pompes Funèbres Générales, 7 Rue  Roger Aubry, to go to the church of Saint-André, rue Jean Jaurès, where a mass will be celebrated at 9h30 in honour of Bruno. After the service, the family will meet all relatives, friends, and riders  for a warm and friendly light meal at a venue to be determined.

We will then accompany Bruno for a last goodbye at 17H at the Crématorium de Reims, avenue Maurice Plongeron, 51100 Reims. Please bring white flowers.

The whole family and the near ones of Bruno thank bottom of the heart, everyone who has left messages of affection for Bruno.

En Francais:

Vous êtes conviés à participer au cortège de motards qui partira dès 8h30 des Pompes Funèbres Générales, 7 rue Roger Aubry, pour se rendre à l'église de Saint-André, rue Jean Jaurès, où une messe sera célébrée à 9h30 en l'honneur de Bruno.

Après l'église, la famille réunit tous les proches, amis, pilotes et toutes autres personnes intimes ayant côtoyé Bruno, pour une collation chaleureuse et amicale - salle à déterminer.

Dans l'intimité, nous accompagnerons Bruno pour un dernier au revoir à 17h (Crématorium de Reims, avenue Maurice Plongeron, 51100 Reims).

Une stèle commémorative sera édifiée au cimetière paysager de la Neuvillette....  Fleurs blanches souhaitées.

Toute la famille et les proches de Bruno remercient du fond du coeur, toutes les personnes ayant témoigné de leur affection pour Bruno. C'est dans vos preuves d'amour que nous puisons le réconfort et la force... MERCI .

THANK-YOU.

WORLD SUPERBIKES - YAMAHA'S WSB LINE-UP...

Yamaha Motor France will enter the 2006 Superbike World Championship with a three-rider line-up that sees former Japanese 250cc champion Shinichi Nakatomi join the team's 2005 riders Norick Abe and Sebastien Gimbert.

SHINICHI NAKATOMI

Twenty-seven-year-old Nakatomi is an experienced R1 pilot, having ridden for Yamaha's YSP Racing Team in the Suzuka Eight-hour and Japanese JSB1000 championship since switching to four-strokes in 2003. Having never raced outside his native Japan, Nakatomi is looking forward to the adventure of racing in the world championships, experiencing the western culture and racing the YZF-R1 at world level.

Yamaha Motor France's squad will again be run by experienced tuner Martial Garcia, whose company is responsible, in conjunction with Yamaha's Japanese headquarters, for the development of Yamaha's YEC racing kit parts development programme for the YZF-R1 and YZF-R6. The team expects to use these parts as the base of their 2006 machines and will use the series as well as an opportunity to test and develop the 2007 range of customer race parts.

Completing the squad are Abe and Gimbert, both of whom are looking to improve on their Superbike rookie seasons in 2005. Experienced Grand Prix rider Abe ended his first Superbike season in 13th place but, having learned the circuits and the characteristics of the YZF-R1 and championship controlled Pirelli tyres, is looking to become a regular feature in the battle for podium finishes in 2006. Gimbert suffered an injury-plagued 2005 campaign but showed his speed early in the year with a lap record in Qatar and a sixth place in Valencia. The Frenchman will again also feature in Yamaha Motor France's squad at the classic 24-hour races of Le Mans and Bol d'Or.

Shinichi Nakatomi
"Although I still haven't finished the big task of winning the All-Japan JSB1000 title on the YZF-R1, I am going to start a new next season in world Superbike and try to focus everything I have learned over the past three years with Yamaha and do the best I can. I don't intend to use my first year in the championship just as a year for learning. I intend to go out there and race aggressively, and I hope to be up there in the race for the championship."

Norick Abe
"This year was my first season racing in the world Superbike series and there was a lot that I had to learn. But now, with this season of experience behind me, I am anxious to work on improving the things I wasn't able to do in the off-season and during the season this year so that I can approach the coming season better prepared. Our overseas tests will begin in December and my first aim is to do the best preparation possible during these tests."

Sebastien Gimbert
"I am looking forward to a second year in world Superbikes and also staying with the Yamaha Motor France team. My leg injury weakened my performances last season but now I am fully fit and feeling strong. The experiences of myself and the team will allow us to go to each circuit with invaluable knowledge and I believe that we can give a greater representation of our abilities."

RUMOURS OF MARCEL KELLENBERGERS' RETIREMENT - WRONG AGAIN...

The Swiss Bolliger team have sorted their rider line-up for 2006 with the main riders being David Morillon, Patrick Muff and Horst Saiger - and Marcel Kellenberger doing reserve duties. There were rumours that Marcel was hanging up his Arai (Shoei, AGV, whatever) at the end of 2005 - but it seems that Marcel has sorted his "poor racing brain" and decided that he hasn't had enough yet....

WORLD ENDURANCE - FIM Rule Change on Lights for Daytime Races

Wildcard Entries at Assen and Zolder are now much easier...
Following the 2005 FIM Biennial Session last month, an important change to the regulations for the 2006 FIM World Endurance Championship has been announced.
Article 1.7.2 “Lighting and Signalling” now only applies to races taking place partly at night, and the minimum weights for Superbike and SuperProduction machines have been adjusted.
The “Lighting and Signalling” regulation previously required all machines used in the FIM World Endurance Championship to carry front and rear lights – and a generator to power them – at all races. This is no longer necessary for races held entirely in daylight. Because of this, the minimum machine weights have also been adjusted.
Superbike class machines must weigh at least 165kg for races not taking place partly at night and 170kg for races taking place partly at night. SuperProduction machines must conform to their homologated dry weight minus 15kg for races not taking place partly at night and homologated dry weight minus 11kg for races taking place partly
at night.
The effect of this is that special “endurance” lighting is no longer required for motorcycles competing at the Assen 500km race or the Zolder 1000km race. This opens up the field at these two races for wildcard Superbike, SuperProduction and Superstock entries from local teams.
Lighting systems are still required (FIM Article 2.3.11) for the Le Mans, Oschersleben and Bol d’Or 24 hour races, and for the Albacete 8 hour and Suzuka 8 hour races, both of which finish after sunset.

WORLD SUPERBIKES - YAMAHAS PLANS FOR 2006

Noriyuki Haga and Andrew Pitt will race for the Yamaha Motor Italia squad in the 2006 Superbike World Championship, fulfilling the team's desire to retain the services of both its riders from the 2005 campaign.

Both men played an important role in developing Yamaha's YZF-R1 in its first year of world superbike competition with  Haga recording 10 podium finishes, including two wins, on his way to third place in the championship. Australian Pitt ended the year eighth in the standings with a best result of fourth in the opening race of the season in Qatar.

The Yamaha Motor Italia squad will again benefit from the official backing of Yamaha Motor Europe and for 2006 will use the updated YZF-R1 as the base for their world superbike contender. Preparations for the new season have already begun, with the first test of the 2006 season due to take place in Valencia on 14-15 November.

Noriyuki Haga
"I wanted to stay with Yamaha as we ended the year very strongly and I am very pleased that we have been able to agree terms. We had a good first year together and it would have been a shame not to take advantage of all the development work we carried out. Yamaha knows what it has to do to make the bike into a championship winner and it was important for me to know that I have the support needed for 2006. We came close to winning the title in 2000 and my motivation to become champion is still as strong as it ever was. Becoming world superbike champion is the goal I still have to achieve and I believe that Yamaha can give me what it takes to turn this dream into reality."

Andrew Pitt
"When I signed for last year we always knew that it would be 2006 before we could really see the benefits of our work, therefore I'm delighted to continue with the team and hopefully take advantage of the hard work we put in last year. I enjoy working with this team and we've seen that the bike can be a winner. We know what we have to do to take it to the next level and with a year's experience of the class, the bike and the Pirelli tyres I feel that I can show my true ability next year."

Laurens Klein Koerkamp - Racing Manager, Yamaha Motor Europe
"We were quite late in starting this project last year and I said that our objective would be to develop the bike and put ourselves in a situation where we were winning races by the end of the year. By the middle of the season we were well on track, and we have shown that we can compete with the best in the class. For 2006 we can take advantage of our year's knowledge. We now have base settings for each circuit we race on, a year's development work behind us and some chassis improvements from the new YZF-R1. The team will again be run by Massimo Meregalli and working with Andrew and Noriyuki gives us great stability. Our learning year is over and we now know exactly what is required to challenge for the title. It will not be easy, but ultimately it is our goal for 2006."

WORLD ENDURANCE - 98 HOURS in 2006