Category: Superbikes

1. Ducati and Aruba together in the Superbike World Championship‏

   Posted on 9:38am Saturday 10th Jan 2015

   • The agreement between Ducati and the important Italian web company will last three years

   • A new version of the Ducati Panigale and new regulations closer to production models for the 2015 Superbike World Championship

   • "Aruba.it Racing – Ducati Superbike Team" is the name of the team, the only official Ducati outfit to compete in the Superbike World Championship

   Borgo Panigale/Arezzo (Italy), 8 January 2015: Ducati and Aruba confirm the signing of a three-year agreement that will see their joint participation in the 2015 Superbike World Championship with the “Aruba.it Racing – Ducati Superbike Team”. This is a partnership agreement that sees Aruba directly involved in the management of the official Ducati team as well as in the role of title sponsor.

   Aruba, based in Arezzo, is Italy’s leading web hosting and cloud services company and has consolidated its activities in Europe with a network of Data Centres in France, Germany, the UK and the Czech Republic. The Tuscan firm has decided to take on this new challenge in collaboration with Ducati as it shares a significant number of values with the Bologna-based manufacturer, ranging from the technological avant-garde in their respective sectors, to the ability to offer the excellence of “Made in Italy”, operating with passion and competence to guarantee the satisfaction of their users and clients across the world. Important affinities that, combined with Ducati’s long-time experience and success in Superbike and the passion that Aruba has for sport, have contributed to the birth of this prestigious partnership.

   Ducati Corse will continue to be responsible for the development and preparation of the Ducati Panigale R bikes with which the team will compete in the upcoming championship. Ducati and Aruba have made the decision to continue collaboration with Feel Racing, the technical and logistical structure that has long been linked to Ducati. Aruba will be responsible for certain organizational aspects of the team and also, together with Ducati, for team communication and marketing activities.

   Chaz Davies and Davide Giugliano will continue as official riders for the second consecutive year, with Serafino Foti confirmed in the role of Team Manager. Ernesto Marinelli will continue to be the Ducati Corse Superbike Project Director and Technical Director of the team. Aruba will be represented at the tracks by Luca Scassa. The 31-year old rider, who hails from Arezzo and has sixty Superbike races under his belt, will also be one of the team’s official test riders.

   Claudio Domenicali, CEO of Ducati Motor Holding S.p.A, stated: “It’s with great pleasure that we can announce this important agreement with Aruba that guarantees a solid work platform for Ducati in the Superbike World Championship over the next three years. While fully respecting our philosophy of using racing to test and continuously improve the product that we offer to our fans, the new “Aruba.it Racing – Ducati Superbike Team” will be able to count on a profoundly evolved version of the Panigale in 2015, which will also be available to our fans and be even more powerful, lightweight and electronically cutting-edge. For Ducati, races have strategic importance, and the Superbike World Championship allows us to demonstrate, on track, just how high-performing and fast a twin-cylinder can be. With the new 2015 regulations, which stipulate that the bikes competing must be even closer to production models, we believe we have everything we need to be very competitive. With its 14 Riders’ titles and 17 Manufacturers’ titles, Ducati has an extraordinary history of successes and victories in the Superbike World Championship and, with this agreement, we think that we have laid the foundations from which to build on this unique record of achievement. I therefore wish Chaz and Davide lots of luck and extend a warm welcome to Aruba.”

   Stefano Cecconi, CEO of Aruba S.p.A, commented: “We are very proud of this partnership in which we have great faith, and that will allow us to manage, together with Ducati, an official team with two very competitive riders. We have taken the decision to enter the world of racing because it links in many ways to our world and shares some of the same fundamental pillars, such as the continuous quest for maximum performance and ever increasing reliability, and a constant focus on safety. We will take on this new challenge with the same commitment and with the same passion that we show our clients each day. This is why we have chosen our Data Centre IT1 in Arezzo, the symbol and heart of technological development for our group, as the setting for the official presentation of the team.”

   The new team will be officially presented to the press in early February, with a dedicated event that will take place at the Aruba Data Centre in Arezzo. Further details will follow in the coming days.

   Ducati Motor Holding S.p.A.

   Founded in 1926, Ducati has been producing sport-inspired motorcycles since 1946. Today, their motorcycles are characterized by performance engines with Desmodromic valve actuation, innovative design and avant-garde technology. Covering several market segments, Ducati's range of motorcycles is divided into model families which include: Diavel, Hypermotard, Monster, Multistrada, Scrambler, Streetfighter and Superbike. These authentic icons of “made in Italy”, together with an extensive range of associated accessories and technical and lifestyle apparel, are distributed in over 80 countries around the world, with concentration on the European, North American and Asia-Pacific markets. In addition to the Bologna factory located in the Borgo Panigale area, Ducati has a plant in Thailand, which opened in 2011 and assembles motorcycles for the Asian market, and, since 2012, another in Brazil that assembles motorcycles for South America. In 2013 Ducati delivered 44,287 motorcycles to customers, an all-time company record.

   Ducati competes in both the World Superbike and MotoGP World Championships. In Superbike Ducati has won 17 Manufacturers' titles and 14 Riders' titles and in 2011 passed the historic milestone of 300 race victories. Ducati has participated in MotoGP since 2003, winning both the Manufacturers' and Riders' titles in 2007.

   www.ducati.com

   ARUBA S.p.A.

   Aruba S.p.A, founded in 1994, is the Italian market leader for data center, webhosting, email and domains. The company manages 2 million domains, over 6 million email accounts and a total of more than 2 million customers. The company is present in the main European markets such as France, England, Germany, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Poland and Hungary. Aruba has also gained massive experience in dedicated servers, housing and collocation, managed services, security services and smart cards. Since 2011, it has been expanding its product portfolio with fast-growing Cloud services and in 2014 Aruba became the official Registry of the domain ".cloud".

   www.arubacloud.com

2. Jamie Hamilton joins Burrows Engineering Racing for 2015 campaign

   Posted on 10:00am Sunday 28th Dec 2014

   Northern Ireland based road racing team owner John Burrows has moved quickly to replace Dan Kneen who moved to pastures new after spearheading the team's 2014 Irish Superbike title winning efforts.

   Burrows has confirmed that Ulsterman Jamie Hamilton, who has a wealth of experience despite only being 23-years-old, will be his rider for the 2015 Isle of Man TT Races fuelled by Monster Energy and other international as well as a full Irish championship campaign. He will race the team's Superbike, Supersport and Supertwin machines.

   Hamilton will bring an impressive CV with him to Burrows Engineering Racing. His initial successes came in the short circuit arena where he captured the 2009 British Superstock 600 title. Ironically, the man who finished fourth in that championship tussle was Manxman Kneen and the two men are destined to lock horns again next year on a regular basis.

   Since Hamilton vacated the short circuit world for a road-racing career he has left his mark at both national and international level. In 2012 he won the prestigious Best Newcomer award at the Isle of Man TT and has been on the rostrum at both the North West 200 and Ulster Grand Prix meetings thanks to his Supertwins efforts. In 2013 Hamilton completed a fine Irish title double, finishing top of the Supersport 600 and Supertwins points tables.

   Burrows spoke about his new arrival:
   "I'm delighted to have found a rider of Jamie Hamilton's calibre to lead Burrows Engineering Racing's national and international road campaigns in 2015. He's the ideal man for the job and it's a bonus that he's a local man too. He's a proven race and title winner and although 2014 didn't work out particularly well for him he showed what he is capable of on a number of occasions, especially at Bush where he scored four wins and denied my team two Superbike wins. Burrows Engineering Racing was at the forefront of road racing in 2014 and with Jamie onboard some very competitive machinery I'm confident we can again be a top privateer team and give the factory boys something to worry about in 2015. It's great to have all the team's 2015 plans sorted this far ahead of next year, everyone can get focused and have a happy Christmas. All our sponsors will be announced in due course, there will be some loyal and familiar names on the side of the bike as well as some exciting new ones."

   Jamie Hamilton said:
   "I'm very happy that I have secured a ride with one of the most professional teams in the sport of road racing. I was very impressed with what John and his team achieved in 2014 and I hope my efforts will bring more success for the team in the coming season. The bikes will definitely be ultra competitive and I'm confident that I'm capable of taking them to top results. Roll on Cookstown."

3. TAS RACING LAUNCH TYCO BMW FOR 2015 SEASON

   Posted on 7:03am Thursday 18th Dec 2014

   TAS Racing along with title partner Tyco Security Products will join forces with BMW Motorrad for the 2015 road racing season, becoming the German manufacturer's official representatives for the 2015 Isle of Man TT Races fuelled by Monster Energy and the other international road races.

   Guy Martin and William Dunlop have been retained and will spearhead Tyco BMW's assault at the 'big three' international road racing events as well as selected national races. The team will campaign the BMW S1000RR in the RST Superbike, RL360 Superstock and PokerStars Senior TT.

   Guy Martin achieved two podiums in the 2014 TT Races, finishing second in the Superbike race and following it up with a third place finish in the PokerStars SeniorTT while William Dunlop was running in a podium place in the Senior before crashing on the third lap.

   William Dunlop:

   "Moving to BMW Motorrad is an exciting change and one I'm looking forward to. We all saw what the BMW S 1000 RR was capable of achieving this season, so with the expertise of the guys at TAS Racing, I'm pretty sure we can do a good job in 2015. I got my first international Superbike win last year and I'd really like more next year as it's the class to do it in. We have a top team and I'm happy to be working with Guy again at the TT, where I think together we can be even stronger with this exciting new package."

   Guy Martin:

   "Moving to BMW Motorrad machinery is the reason I'm still racing next year and not retiring. I'll always give it my all and to be with a quality manufacturer like BMW is mega. I'm looking forward to getting on the bikes as soon as possible. It's a new bike and I've never ridden it before, but we all know its pedigree. TAS are the best team I've ever ridden for; they get me and I get them and we meet in the middle, which is why we've been successful and this new venture with BMW is just what we need going into next season."

   Philip Neill - Team Manager:

   "It really is a great honour for TAS Racing to be chosen by BMW Motorrad to spearhead their official racing efforts in 2015, and everyone involved has been very supportive in helping us put the correct package together. Although our agreement is with BMW Motorrad in the UK, the support we have received from BMW in Germany is already very encouraging. We will have full support from the factory both technically and personnel-wise next season to help us achieve our goals. On the rider line-up for 2015 TT Races, the Tyco BMW team manager added: "We put a lot of thought into our rider line up for 2015 and as always the goal is to win races both in British championship and also at International level on the roads. We fully expect to be championship contenders in British Superbike and the National Superstock class next season racing BMW's S 1000 RR, and on the roads I've every confidence that William and Guy will also benefit from riding top class Tyco BMW machinery."

   "The TT is extremely important to BMW, TAS Racing and all our sponsors, and of course we want to be successful on the Island. It has been a few years now since we have had a rider on that coveted top step of the podium and as you might expect that will be our goal in June with William and Guy. I don't want to build all our expectations around Guy and a TT win, although it is fair to say 2015 will give him a great chance of achieving his goal on the Tyco BMW. TT races are not easily won these days so I know Guy will be applying a one-hundred percent effort just as he does every year. Fingers crossed 2015 will be his year. On the other hand William has come of age on a Superbike and I wouldn't bet against him either at the TT next June."

   Lee Nicholls, BMW Motorrad Marketing and PR Manager, said:

   "It is with great pleasure that we can finally announce BMW Motorrad's support of the TAS Racing team for the 2015 Road Racing season. In 2014, BMW Motorrad had its most successful season of racing ever in the UK, which has enabled us to increase our support to both the British Superbike and Road Racing paddocks for 2015. The TAS Racing team will spearhead our assault on track, and on the roads, and will receive the full technical support from BMW Motorrad Motorsports in Munich within the framework of the BMW Customer Racing Strategy. As a company we are very much looking forward to working with Hector and Philip and his team and we are confident that together with the all-new S 1000 RR we will challenge for podiums and wins next year."

4. TITLE SPONSOR ANNOUNCED FOR KTM RC 390 CUP

   Posted on 7:05am Wednesday 17th Dec 2014

   Santander Consumer Finance UK has been announced as the new title sponsor of the upcoming KTM RC 390-powered race series, which will support the 2015 MCE Insurance British Superbike Championship.

   The Santander Consumer Finance KTM British Junior Cup will be open to riders 13-18-years old, and every rider will line up on an identical ‘Cup’ variation of the recently-launched KTM RC 390. The series gives equal opportunity and a level playing field for emerging talent. The series will be promoted by MSVR across eight events incorporating 20 points-scoring races. KTM UK already enjoys a successful relationship with Santander Consumer Finance UK - this division of the Spanish bank provides consumer finance for its network of dealers to allow its customers a broad portfolio of competitive finance for the purchase of new machines along with the option to include KTM PowerParts and PowerWear, under the ‘KTM Finance’ banner.

   Paul Munns, National Sales Manager – Leisure Finance, from Santander Consumer Finance UK, said: “We’re very excited to play a part in what will no doubt be a very exciting and successful championship. Santander Consumer Finance UK already enjoys a great working relationship with KTM UK and the opportunity to work with them to help bolster future motorcycle racing talent, while helping to promote this area of the business within the best domestic motorcycle racing championship, was an opportunity that couldn’t be missed.”

   In standard production form, the RC 390 is an exciting, light and practical sports bike with a 44hp, 375cc single-cylinder four-stroke engine housed in a steel trellis chassis and fitted with top-level components. The ‘Cup’ version, shown in its new race livery for the first time at Motorcycle Live in November, takes this already energetic machine and focuses it solely for track use, using a whole host of official KTM PowerParts that will also be publically available.

   The fully adjustable suspension package not only allows for individual set up for each race; it is also a valuable learning tool for suspension set-ups. The bike has adjustable foot pegs and handlebar levers to create personalised ergonomics, making it ideal for young racers who are still growing. Interested parties who would like more information on the race series next year, should email [email protected] and in the subject line put RC 390 Cup 2015 and include name, address, post code, age, riding experience and preferred KTM dealer. We will then
send details when they have been confirmed.

   For more information on the series visit www.ktm.com/gb or register at www.bsbteams.com

5. GBMOTO RACING ENTERS 'ROADS' CAMPAIGN WITH GARY JOHNSON AND KAWASAKI

   Posted on 8:01am Thursday 11th Dec 2014

   British Superbike Championship front-runners GBmoto Racing will be undertaking a Kawasaki backed campaign on the 'road' circuits in 2015, with Isle of Man TT winner Gary Johnson. The team is building Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10R race bikes in Superbike and Superstock specification to attack the Isle of Man TT Races as well as the North West 200 and Ulster Grand Prix events.

   Following their debut season as an officially supported Kawasaki team in the MCE British Superbike Championship in 2014, GBmoto are further strengthening their relationship with the Akashi based manufacturer by supporting their Road Racing programme. Signing the talented and ever popular Gary Johnson, the team will be building and running a new high spec ZX-10R Superbike, as well as a Superstock version for the three 'international' events. The team will undertake a full testing programme supported with Japanese technical personnel.

   Having previously ridden for the GBmoto Racing outfit in the final two rounds of the National Superstock 1000 Championship in 2011, Gary has gone on to establish himself as one of the strongest road racers in the world. After winning the 2005 British Supersport Cup Championship, he made his debut 'between the hedges' in 2007 - taking his first Roads podium just two years later with a stunning ride to third in the blue riband Senior TT, before following it up with a second place in Superbike race at the Ulster Grand Prix.

   Gary joined the illustrious list of TT winners in 2011, when he claimed his first win, taking the second Monster Energy Supersport race while further podiums came in the Superbike TT and Superstock race at the Ulster Grand Prix. A fuel problem prevented him from taking a second TT Supersport win in 2012, but he was able to secure two second places at the Ulster.

   2013 would prove to be his most successful season to date, with podiums coming at the North West 200, Isle of Man TT, Ulster Grand Prix and the Macau Grand Prix. He started 2014 even stronger, with two podiums at the North West 200, a second TT victory in the Supersport class, before a crash in the RL 360 Superstock race saw him break a collarbone, shoulder, and vertebrae. Bouncing back just five months later, Gary took a remarkable fourth place in the Macau Grand Prix.

   GBmoto are currently undergoing negotiations with existing and new sponsors to come on board for the 2015 Road Racing campaign, which will be a separate effort from their British Superbike team. Gary will get his first ride on the Kawasaki supported ZX-10R's when he joins James Ellison and James Westmoreland at their pre-season tests, which begin at Cartagena on the 5th March.

   Speaking from the new World Superbike circuit of Chang in Thailand after signing with GBmoto Kawasaki, Gary Johnson said,

   "This is a fantastic opportunity to be working with such a great team and so closely with a major manufacturer, I'm really happy.  I rode for GBmoto in 2011, they were one of the most professional teams I've ever worked with and they've obviously stepped up again since then. To see what they did this year in BSB by changing manufacturers and immediately getting podiums was incredible. Their infrastructure, bikes and kit is all mega and although this is their first time at the TT I know they will put all the right pieces in the right places, to be successful.

   He continued:

   "Hopefully I can bring my own experience to the team from both the events side and with a good reference point from riding a Kawasaki. I have to thank the guys who have worked so hard to help me in the last few years, it's because of them that I've been put in the shop window for this opportunity. With the support of GBmoto and Kawasaki and their testing schedule I'm the most confident I've ever been going into the TT Races and the other events, so bring it on!"

   GBmoto Racing Team Principal Mark Smith-Halvorsen added,

   "This is another big step forward for GBmoto and I'm incredibly proud that Kawasaki have chosen us to be a major part of their Road Racing campaign. The North West, Isle of Man TT and Ulster GP are three huge events in the world of motorcycling and ones I have followed closely, so I'm really excited to be heading there as a team next year.

   Gary was a natural option for the team. He has ridden for us before and we have enjoyed a good relationship that has grown ever since. He's proven that he is capable of beating the best on the roads and I believe if it wasn't for his injury this year then he would have added even further wins to his tally, so I'm confident with the level of support we will have that he can battle for victories in what is now a super competitive field.

   This was not a decision we've taken lightly and we want to arrive at the North West in the best possible shape. We have a full testing programme planned for Gary, which kicks off in March. In order to give him the best possible chance, we will be providing him with his own crew for the roads which will act independently of our BSB team. We are now liaising with the race organisers of the North West, TT and Ulster to ensure we are logistically prepared and can put on the professional show that people expect from GBmoto."

   To learn more about the team, visit www.gbmoto.com