Star guests Trevor Nation and Brian Crighton will be at the Classic Bike Guide Winter Classic show in Newark on January 6-7, 2024, for all things Norton and more.

Nation and Crighton were a crucial part of the Norton resurgence in the late 1980s and early 90s culminating in both the 750cc Supercup Championship and the British F1 title.

Having emerged from the caretaker shed at Norton, Crighton evolved into the rotary genius that was part of the racing phenomenon, to which Nation contributed strongly to with wins in the proddie class on both 750cc and 1000cc machines. In doing so, the duo played a substantial part in the Norton team, which achieved its first win at Cadwell park in 1988 on the development bike, the RC588.

Show-goers will get to see these racing legends in action as they discuss their current projects and reminisce about their past glories together. Joining them will be two of the iconic John Player Special racing bikes that propelled Norton to great success back in the 1980’s and 90’s, with both guests on hand to fire up the bikes Nation once rode in the show’s very own fire up area.

Mortons Media Group’s Exhibitions manager Nick Mowbray said: “The team and I are absolutely delighted to have two of Norton’s former icons and two rotary machines joining them. Newark is always a great way to start the year, but this year we are delighted to be accompanied by two biking favourites and the machines they made famous.”

The Classic Bike Guide Winter Classic Show has become a staple in the motorcycle calendar, attracting people from all over the UK. Held at Newark Showground, over the first weekend in January, it offers a welcome respite from the hectic holiday season with hundreds of stunning classic machines on display.

Buy your tickets in advance to the Classic Bike Guide Winter Classic show and save £2 per ticket. For more information on the show or to buy tickets please go to www.newarkclassicbikeshow.com  

• The new Langen LightSpeed was unveiled at Motorcycle Live – NEC
• ‘Best bike at the show’ according to many visitors
• Multiple orders taken for build slots for the new LightSpeed
• Reinforcing Langen as a leading bespoke, British motorcycle manufacturer
• Continued interest as remaining build slots fulfilled for The 2 Stroke
• New range of merchandise and a helmet partnership with Hedon revealed

Langen Technology Limited (Langen), one of the leading automotive engineering and development companies, specialising in hand built, limited production motorcycles, unveiled its new LightSpeed at Motorcycle Live at the NEC Birmingham this week.

The stunning new hypersport bike from Langen, Britain’s most exciting motorcycle manufacturer, was a big hit with visitors to this year’s show. In a specially created presentation experience inspired by Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama the assembled media and visitors were treated to an up close and personal view of the LightSpeed. A number of customer curated 2Strokes were also on display along with a chance to speak with Langen founder Christofer Ratcliffe and his team about the finer details of the machines and how the LightSpeed came into being.

The unique, class leading machine boasting a power to weight ratio of 1,000 bhp per tonne not only attracted the crowds but also had some reaching for their wallets to secure a build slot and VIN number, as only 185 of the Launch specification motorcycle will be available – each build individually commissioned for its owner. Whilst targeted for registration on UK roads, the LightSpeed is appealing to a global audience of enthusiasts and collectors of special automotive machines, with reservations being made from around the world.

Christofer Ratcliffe Founder and CEO of Langen comments: “I am overwhelmed with the response to the LightSpeed, in a show full of ‘off the peg’ bikes, to be able to offer something truly unique to our discerning customers with a range of personal options to make each LightSpeed as individual as the customer, it has made all the hard work over the last 12 months’ worth while. I can’t wait to see this pre-production prototype develop further as we move towards delivering the first builds to customers at the start of 2025”.

Discover more at: https://www.langenmotorcycles.co.uk/

A STOIC ALEIX FORGETS ABOUT HIS FRACTURED LEFT LEG AND FINISHES EIGHTH IN VALENCIA

MAVERICK, TENTH, PAYS THE PRICE FOR CHOOSING THE SOFT TYRE

FANTASTIC FIFTH PLACE FOR RAUL FERNANDEZ WITH THE BEST FINISH OF HIS CAREER

The final round of the 2023 season had Aprilia placing three RS-GP machines in the top ten. Aleix Espargaró, despite a fresh fracture to his left leg suffered one week ago in the Qatar GP, had a comeback ride from the twelfth spot on the starting grid all the way to sixth place. In the final battle, he finished eighth, a result beyond even the highest expectations, given his condition.

For Maverick Viñales, a protagonist throughout the weekend with pole position and the new track record, the race was conditioned by a questionable penalty levied for not having observed the black/orange flag condition during the warm-up session. Three positions on the grid, from first to fourth place, was the decision taken by Race Direction after Maverick had re-entered the track, with the approval of the marshals, and after verifying that there was nothing wrong with his RS-GP. The plume of white smoke which had alarmed the marshals was due to the evaporation of lubricant which had dripped onto the exhaust. In fact, the same RS-GP was then used in the race. His choice to go with the soft tyre at the rear, the only one on the grid to do so, further penalised Maverick who, after battling for podium positions in the opening stage, gradually lost positions in the finale.

Worth a mention is Raul Fernandez and his fantastic fifth place astride the Team RNF RS-GP, which is his best finish yet in his budding career.

Aprilia closes out its first season as a factory team with two victories by Espargaró (in the English GP and in Catalunya), and another podium from Aleix, as well as three podiums (all second place) for Maverick. In the Sprint Race, the Italian team took one win and two podiums. In 2023, Aprilia was the only team to have a one-two finish in a GP – the spectacular Barcelona race.

ALEIX
“It was extremely difficult today. I was in a lot of pain, especially in the second half of the race. The left-handers were a nightmare. I was unable to shift gears and the last three laps were terrible. In spite of it all, I am satisfied because up to five laps from the end, I stayed five or six seconds behind the leader. I was very fast, but in the last three laps I was losing as much as two seconds every lap. I’d like to end with a thought for my brother, Pol, who rode his last race today. He has always been a point of reference for me, and it was extremely emotional for me to share the track with him for the last time today.”

MAVERICK
“Unfortunately, we paid the price in the race for an unconventional decision. We chose the soft tyre because, looking at the data collected throughout the weekend, we had less spin and less wear than with the medium. Despite the spin being lower in the race, we had excessive wear which showed that this compound was not the right choice for 27 laps in a row.”

The final round of the season is also an opportunity to thank all those involved in Aprilia’s MotoGP project. From the team at the track, skilfully tackling an extremely demanding calendar without ever losing focus, to the Racing Department in Noale which supported the team’s efforts, presenting an innovative and fast RS-GP which is constantly being developed. And let’s not forget about the “world” that supports the MotoGP effort: the sponsors, the technical partners, and the fans who, supported and cheered us on throughout the 2023 season with impressive warmth. For all of them, we look forward to an even more thrilling and more competitive 2024 with Aprilia colours.

Maverick takes his first pole position on an Aprilia, with the track record, and finishes fourth in the Sprint Race

DEFENSIVE RACE FOR ALEIX, STRUGGLING WITH THE INJURY TO HIS LEFT LEG

It was a positive day for Maverick Viñales who, in the morning qualifiers, took his first pole position astride the RS-GP. He will start from the first spot on the grid tomorrow in the final GP of the season. He started well today in the Sprint Race, overtaking Bagnaia on the first corner. He led the short race confidently in the first four laps but then, having chosen a medium rear tyre, he was forced to give in to the higher performance of riders who had put on the soft. He stayed with the leading group to finish fourth, less than one second from the podium, and was the best of the riders who had opted for the same tyre.

After going straight through to the second qualifying session yesterday, Aleix had to reckon with physical fitness heavily conditioned by the fracture to his left fibula suffered less than one week ago in Qatar. He started from the fourth row and struggled to make up positions, finishing the race thirteenth.

ALEIX
"I obviously had to reckon with my injury. However, I must compliment the mobile clinic docs. They are incredibly talented and they did a great job making sure I wasn’t in too much pain. Sometimes we complain about things that are wrong with the championship but, in the same way, we need to acknowledge the positive aspects and the level of the Mobile Clinic is one of these. In spite of this, I did not have strength in the leg and it was hard to move about in the saddle which, on a track like Valencia, is highly penalising. In any case, after today’s Sprint Race, I’m more confident about being able to finish the long race. I want to make it to the finish line because everyone, from the fans to Aprilia, deserves it after this season."

MAVERICK
"It was a positive day and taking my first pole position with Aprilia was fantastic. We have no regrets for the Sprint Race. The decision to go with the medium tyre really seemed like the right choice. Instead, something unexpected happened and, at the end of the day, those who chose the soft had clearly better performance. This leaves us with a lot of doubts for the GP tomorrow because the soft tyre has demonstrated that it is consistent all the way to the final laps. However, I am pleased with the job we did. The bike worked extremely well, so we just need to fully analyse the data and take the right decision."