#AmericasGP Free Practice. The Gresini Racing MotoGP Team is back up to speed at the Circuit of The America in Austin, Texas, courtesy of an excellent performance by Enea Bastianini from already from the early minutes of this opening day of action. His fourth-quickest lap-time is the icing on the cake, as the pace shown in both Free Practice sessions bodes well for the rest of the weekend.

Fabio Di Giannantonio showed an interesting progression that took him all the way up to 18th place in day one, with a remarkable improvement across the two sessions. Great teamwork allowed him to constantly improved his feeling with the Desmosedici GP21 machine on one of the most demanding tracks on the calendar.

4th ENEA BASTIANINI #23 (2’02.284s)
“I was able to recover the feeling I had at the start of the year, which we basically missed only in Argentina. We’re surely competitive although there’s till work to do. We performed really well on the single lap and that’s very important ahead of tomorrow. We still need to focus on the braking area and on long corners – but as I said the overall set-up is already there. During my best lap I got distracted a little due to a crash at 11 by another rider, meaning we could have done even a little better. We still have to make a decision regarding tyres: I liked the harder option at the front-end, but it’s too early to choose.”

18th - FABIO DI GIANNANTONIO (2’04.367s)
“We started off quite badly this morning, but we worked well, and with some important changes to the bike I was able to get more confident aboard my Ducati. I need to avoid focusing too on lap-time performances and results and rather think about finding the best feeling aboard the bike… the rest will come.”

Today, in the Gresini pit-box there was a chance to do a little “time travel” between past and present with Toni Elias, who took part in quite a special photoshoot. 2006 and 2022 got together in the name of Fausto, to celebrate the last two MotoGP race wins by Gresini Racing.

SPECIAL GUEST – TONI ELIAS
“To be wearing those leathers again was absolutely fantastic. This is part of my life and surely a great memory, and I can still feel the emotions of a race that will surely remain in the history books. I would like to thank Gresini Racing for this moment, also because it’s important to celebrate Enea’s victory – maybe this is the best way to remember Fausto. This time is family to me, and it was a pleasure to share this moment with them.”

Take the comfort of a touring boot, the safety of a sports boot and the robustness of an MX boot – the result is the Touratech Destino Ultimate GTX. This unique motorcycle boot, developed by the clothing specialists at REV’IT!, combines innovative technologies in a completely new concept.
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Protection and mobility
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BOA Fit closure system: Robustness and comfort
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Specially developed Vibram sole
The Apex® sole, developed together with Vibram, offers functionality and comfort not only when riding but also when walking. It has different zones to fulfil different requirements. One area is specifically optimised for operating the foot brake lever, while another is responsible for providing strength and still others ensure the best possible walking comfort.

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The British Motor Museum is inviting visitors to step back in time when it hosts the ‘Classic and Vintage Commercial Show’ on 11 & 12 June. The show offers visitors a rare opportunity to reminisce about days gone by and relive the vintage era by seeing hundreds of pre-2002 commercial vehicles including trucks, vans and pick-ups.

The ‘Classic and Vintage Commercial Show’ is one of the largest shows of its kind in Europe and features a display of vehicles from vans such as Ford Transits, Morris Minors and J Types, to lighter lorries from Austin, Bedford, Dodge and Ford Thames, through to heavier lorries such as AECs, Atkinsons, ERFs, Fodens and Leylands.

2022 marks the Shelvoke and Drewry (SD) centenary and the show organisers want to celebrate this important milestone by gathering as many of these vehicles as possible. Shelvoke and Drewry was a Letchworth, Hertfordshire manufacturer of special purpose commercial vehicles. It was best known for its innovative waste collection vehicles that were the preferred choice of municipal authorities in the UK.

This year also celebrates 100 years of Scammell – another centenary at the show. This milestone is being celebrated with a Scammell display being put together by the Museum in conjunction with The Scammell Register and The Mechanical Horse Club.

Throughout the weekend there will be a large commercial vehicle related autojumble selling vehicle spares, photos, brochures, models, and other items. Inside there will be two large Indoor Model Shows, organised by Ashley Coghill and the National Association of Road Transport Modellers. Over 160 tables will showcase kit and scratch-built models of commercial vehicles and landscapes.

Tom Caren, Show Manager at the British Motor Museum stated “Whether you’re a fan of commercial vehicles, interested in vintage history or want to see the commercial vehicles that were on the roads in your youth, then this show is for you. We are expecting lots of vintage commercial vehicles from familiar marques to rare finds to take everyone on a fascinating nostalgia trip. Along with admiring many different types of commercial vehicles, there will also be some great bargains at the trade stands!”

Kelsey Media will be supporting the show and selling several of their publications including Classic & Vintage Commercials, Heritage Commercials and Vintage Roadscene.

Those wanting to take part in the show can enter their truck for FREE which includes entry for the driver and one passenger. Vehicle entries close on Thursday 9 June.

Camping is also available for those that want to make a weekend of it. Saturday advance show tickets cost £14.50 per adult, £9 per child, £12.50 per concession and £40 for a family. Sunday is the busiest day of the show and one of the 5 Annual Pass exempt event days. Advance tickets cost £18 per adult, £10 per child, £16 per concession and £46 for a family. Or visit on both days with an advance weekend ticket for £28 per adult, £17 per child, £24 per concession and £63 for a family.

To find out more information about the show please call 01926 895300 or visit the website at www.britishmotormuseum.co.uk/whats-on/classic-and-vintage-commercial-show

 Ace Cafe London and Carl Fogarty are supporting Childline on Sunday 24th April as part of the Federation of British Historic Vehicle Clubs’ Ride It & Drive It Day 2022

Carl said “‘Last year people from the Motorbike community came together and helped raise over £40,000 for the NSPCC’s Childline Service by taking part in the annual Drive It Day. For the first time ever we now have our very own Ride It Day. This April, you can buy a Ride It Day Rally Plate for just £10.00 and ride out with friends, or join an organised event, and once again help support vulnerable children and young people across the UK”

Buy a motorbike/car rally plate with 100% of the profit going directly to support local children:

Make a donation here to support Childline:

Post a photograph of your bike/car, displaying your rally plate, to Facebook and Instagram using #Acecafechildline and we’ll pick a worthy winner who will receive a special gift from the Ace!

Ace Cafe London invites all riders and drivers to support the NSPCC’s Childline, so let’s show that we care and do what we can to support Childline

See you at the Ace!

AFTER ALEIX ESPARGARÓ’S HISTORIC VICTORY IN ARGENTINA AND WITH MAVERICK VIÑALES IMPROVING RAPIDLY, APRILIA TACKLES THE TEXAS ROUND WITH CONFIDENCE

IT’S TIME FOR ANOTHER DEMANDING CHALLENGE FOR THE 2022 RS-GP, WHICH HAS PROVEN TO BE A WINNING BIKE

Aprilia arrives in Texas, the venue this weekend for the Grand Prix of the Americas, in unprecedented great form. Fresh from the historic victory earned by Aleix Espargaró in Argentina and with Maverick Viñales back to battling for the top spots, the Aprilia Racing team is preparing for the fourth round of the season with confidence, despite the treacheries of the Circuit of the Americas, one of the most demanding on the calendar and recently partially resurfaced.

Thanks to their outstanding performance in the first three Grand Prix races, Aprilia is also leading in the overall rider standings with Aleix Espargaró at 45 points, whereas Maverick Viñales has now moved up to 13 points.

During the MotoGP weekend in Austin, the North America Talent Cup will also be making its début. This is the single-brand series part of the “Road to MotoGP” path which races with the Aprilia RS 250 SP2 bikes. After the success enjoyed on the national level with the Italian FMI Aprilia Sport Production Championship, the “small” 250 from Noale, designed to make rider growth easy and gradual, has now embarked overseas - a testament to Aprilia Racing’s growing commitment to grooming young talent.

ALEIX ESPARGARÓ
“These past few days have been very emotional for me and I was extremely happy to receive so much affection from the fans and the entire paddock after the exciting win at Termas de Rio Hondo. But now it’s already time to think about the Austin race. We are well aware that it will be one of the most complicated ones for us, because we struggled a lot last year, but we’ll try to take full advantage of this positive moment, continuing to have fun. Up to now, we’ve been competitive on three very different tracks and even in Indonesia in the wet, a condition that I have never been particularly crazy about, the bike was truly fast. We have been consistent and this is demonstrated by the fact that we are also in the lead in the championship, but we are keeping our feet firmly planted on the ground. The important thing is to continue this trend without making mistakes.”

MAVERICK VIÑALES
“Aleix’s victory was a huge confidence booster for the entire team and for me, because I got back to battling to the top positions. We knew that the race in Argentina would be very important for us. We were seeking confirmation after the settings changes we tried in Indonesia, and we found it. Now I feel like I’ve found a good base to work on to improve even further and I can’t wait to get back in the saddle. Plus, the Circuit of the Americas is one of my favourite tracks, where I’ve always been fast. That said, we’ll keep going with the same mentality. We are aware that there is still much to learn and in Austin we simply want to make another step forward in terms of me adapting to the bike, because that is the only way we’ll be able to grow and improve further.”