A new road safety program called RoadSet is targeting school children from Year Nine with plans to ramp up motorcycle awareness.
The free online interactive teaching program, launched by the Australian Road Safety Foundation, is designed to help young people become better road users.
RoadSet program
RoadSet combines original animation with “gamified” interactions to deliver engaging content in 10 modules that are age-appropriate.
ARSF founder and CEO Russell White says the Progressive Web App is a first step in teaching the next generation of road users.
Russell White
“We need to remember that safety isn’t just about drivers, but about all road users, and that includes children on bikes, skateboards, scooters or simply walking on foot,” he says.
“Our aim for RoadSet is to re-boot things in the road safety educational space and get younger road users thinking about these issues earlier.
“For example, in the module on cycling, we cover topics like wearing the right protective gear, being seen, having an awareness of what is going on around you and what other people might do that could increase risk.
“If we can embed that sort of mindset early, that same philosophy should continue on if the person starts riding a motorbike.
“As we expand the program content further, we will be adding more specific information about motorbikes.”
Kids don’t ride bicycles
Russell points out that kids these days don’t ride bicycles as much was they used to and therefore don’t have the road-craft skills nor awareness of their vulnerability when they reach the age of getting a learner’s licence.
He’s right. School bike racks used to be full in my school days. Now there is hardly a bicycle in sight!
“Riding did teach younger road users a degree of situational awareness and some core fundamental skills. These skills did translate into later life,” Russell says.
“Not experiencing those basic things does create a learning gap and a range of additional issues that they need to process as they learn the mechanics of operating a vehicle.”
If more children rode bicycles they might not only have more awareness of motorcycles, they might also grow up to become riders themselves.
This is the basis of an American program called All Kids Bike program which is striving to get every child to learn to ride a bicycle in kindergarten PE class.
Russell says they have held discussions with high schools and community groups about RoadSet and report “fantastic feedback and really strong interest in getting involved”.
“Our goal is to reach every Year Nine student across the country,” he says.
While it has not committed to the entire amount of the loan, it is committed to draw at least $US150m (about $A215m).
The company believes the loan is consistent with its intentions regarding liquidity.
Piaggio Group loans
Now the Italian Piaggio Group which produces Aprilia, Moto Guzzi and Vespa has secured a loan for €60 million (about $A97m, $US67m).
That’s 20% more than their annual net income.
The money will be put towards restarting after the COVID lockdown, as well as research and development.
Piaggio says they will focus their R&D efforts on reducing fuel consumption and emissions and increasing the number of new models.
Comment on loans
The world seems to be going into debt over the pandemic crisis and motorcycle companies are not immune.
It’s good news when they direct loans into R&D.
However, it’s a concern when businesses go into debt to help them survive a crisis.
In the wake of the COVID lockdown, many motorcycle companies are now reporting a huge bounce in sales in June.
In fact, the KTM Group, which includes Husqvarna and Gas Gas, has reports its biggest June in history.
KTM Group Australia/New Zealand MD Brad Hagi says there is “still a long way to go before this crisis is over”.
“This recent sales spike has not only seen existing and former riders return to riding, it has also seen new riders enter our sport, to experience the unique freedom it offers, and that is a real positive for the industry long term,” he says.
The Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries has reported that the dive in car sales has now slowed thanks to the easing of restrictions.
FCAI chief executive Tony Weber attributes the slight recovery to the easing of COVID-19 restrictions, end-of-financial-year sales and government incentives.
In fact, some dealers tell us buyers have been accessing their superannuation to buy their dream bike!
Similar incentives exist in other countries around the world which are reporting similar strong sales results.
Extent of Forkner’s internal injuries from SLC7 revealed
Section: Competition
250SX West contender outlines injuries sustained at series finals.
Image: Octopi Media.
An extensive list of internal injuries have been detailed by Austin Forkner after his title-ending crash at the 2020 Monster Energy Supercross finals in Salt Lake City.
Forkner had been in contention or the 250SX West championship when he went down in the Showdown main event, effectively enabling Dylan Ferrandis (Monster Energy Star Yamaha) to cruise to a second-straight crown.
“It’s about two weeks out from my crash now and basically, what happened was where I went over the ‘bars and got smashed into the berm, I actually ended up breaking my pancreas in half,” the 21-year-old said.
“I broke like a third of my pancreas off and basically damaged a bunch of my internals – my liver and kidney – just basically damaged all of my insides and messed up my spleen really bad to the point they had to take part of my pancreas, that like third of my pancreas and my whole spleen completely out.
“A lot of just internal damage, didn’t end up having anything broken, but the pain from that was… I feel like I have a pretty good knowledge on pain – I’ve hurt myself a few times – but this was by far the most painful thing I have ever experienced.
“It was brutal, definitely the toughest six or seven days I was in the hospital, they were horrible. I feel a lot better now, just getting to the point where the pain is settled down and my body is started to settle down.”
An updated 2020 FIM Motocross World Championship calendar has been issued with a much-anticipated return to racing following a four month break due to the COVID-19 outbreak. The common goal has remained to preserve the maximum number of events in order to make a credible Championship, supporting all the stakeholders with the aim of saving the jobs of everyone in our sport.
Now even if the situation has not yet become completely clear with regards to COVID-19 MXGP starts to see the light at the end of the tunnel, and with the calendar announced MXGP will concentrate a very intense championships into three months for all classes.
The season will resume with a triple race in Kegums for the MXGP of Latvia, Riga and Kegums, with the first event scheduled on the 8-9 of August, followed by a mid-week special on the 11-12 of August, and the final Latvian stop concluding on the 15-16 of August. The Latvian circuit will undergo changes for each event, providing the riders with three completely different racetracks. As it stands, in Latvia there will be a total of 1,000 spectators permitted, with a promise that if the situation improves, numbers will be increased.
The updated calendar will unfortunately see the cancellation of the MXGP of Czech Republic, the MXGP of Sweden and MXGP of Finland from the 2020 MXGP calendar with all being postponed to 2021.
The MXGP of Germany, previously as TBA, as well as the MXGP of Indonesia and Asia scheduled to be held in November have been also postponed to 2021 while the MXGP of Emilia Romagna changed the venue hosting a double-race in Faenza – MXGP of Italy and MXGP of Emilia Romagna – and an additional race in Mantova for the MXGP of Lombardia have been included together with a triple race in Lommel, Belgium as the Monster Energy MXGP of Flanders, MXGP of Limburg and MXGP of Lommel.
The 2020 MXGP Calendar then foresees the MXGP of Trentino scheduled at a later date and the MXGP of Patagonia-Argentina as penultimate and final event respectively. The MXGP of Russia and the MXGP of Portugal are part of the FIM Motocross World Championship calendar as TBC for the moment depending on the ongoing national conditions.
Unfortunately, the Monster Energy FIM Motocross of Nations in Ernée, France has been postponed to 2023 due to the high restrictions for COVID-19 which forbid mass public gatherings in France. Infront Moto Racing are now working with Steve Dixon to bring the 2020 Monster Energy FIM MXoN to Matterley Basin (UK); the event, which is nearly three months away will conform to the outdoor event guidance regulations.
From September onwards, at almost every event spectator number limits will be in place, but organisers hope that by then the situation will be much better, and they will be able to welcome larger crowds. Every country has different protocols concerning the COVID-19 restrictions, therefore prior to each event we will inform all the stakeholders, media and fans concerning the specific restrictions they will need to follow.
With many events running consecutively one after the other, in order to provide the riders with a better recovery period, the MXGP and MX2 race action will be concentrated into one day, with free/timed practice taking place in the morning and the main races starting from 1200 into the afternoon. Whereas the day before each event the European Championship and/or the Women’s World Championship will be run.
At the Monster Energy FIM MXoN the participants will take points for the MXGP and MX2 World Championships, Infront Moto Racing and FIM are working on the regulations keeping in mind the format, the principle and the soul of the MXoN to be maintained.
As always, fans will be able to follow all the race action of each MXGP, MX2, European and Women’s Championship race on the MXGP-TV.com.
2020 MXGP Calendar
MXGP Points Standings
Herlings, J.NED KTM 94
Gajser, Tim SLO HON 85
Cairoli, A. ITA KTM 68
Desalle, C. BEL KAW 60
Paulin, G. FRA YAM 58
Coldenhoff, G. NED GAS 56
Jasikonis, A. LTU HUS 53
Prado, Jorge ESP KTM 47
Seewer, Jeremy SUI YAM 42
Van Horebeek, J. BEL HON 39
Evans, M. AUS HON 34
Simpson, Shaun GBR KTM 31
Jonass, Pauls LAT HUS 26
Jacobi, Henry GER YAM 23
Bogers, Brian NED KTM 23
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Team HRC ready to start their engines in MXGP
After a break of what will be five months by the time of the next gate drop, Team HRC are set to resume the MXGP season on August 9th at the Latvian track in Kegums, an hour south of Riga. In what is a much-changed calendar from the before the COVID-19 outbreak, this new schedule looks set to include multiple rounds at the same venue, midweek races, and an all-new one-day format.
This is a major step forward for a campaign where reigning world champion Tim Gajser was on the podium at the only two rounds held so far. With two moto wins out of the four races, the Honda CRF450RW rider was in a strong position before the postponement of the season and he’ll be looking to come back where he left off in Kegums, for what is scheduled to be three races in seven days.
Tim Gajser
“I was really surprised to see the new calendar, especially to do three races in Kegums and also three races in Lommel, in the deep sand. It is how it is though, so I know I need to work hard in the deep sand between now and then and try to get as ready as possible. I’m just looking forward to going racing again after such a long break. I miss the races, the weekends at the race tracks so I’m excited to get back to it. I’m not sure how this one-day format will work completely but it will mean that track time is much more critical and we need to be ready to work on bike setup quickly and efficiently. Thankfully I know I have a really good team around me so I’m confident we can cope. Really though, I am just happy that they have released a calendar and we are going racing in one month’s time.”
Tim Gajser on the podium at round one earlier this season – Bavo Image
For his Aussie team-mate Mitch Evans, this break has allowed him to recover from the shoulder injury which he sustained in Valkenswaard at round two, and with a further five weeks until the first moto, he’ll be hoping show the speed that saw him finish third in the first moto of the year in Great Britain.
Mitch Evans
“I’m happy to see the new calendar come out. It looks like it should go ahead finally, at least I’m optimistic that it should be getting back racing soon. The one-day format will be a new thing for the MXGPs, but for me it is just like racing in Australia where we have practice and qualifying in the morning and then two motos in the afternoon, so I should feel at home with it. At the moment, with my injury, I’ve had one day back on the bike and I did some flat-track riding. I’ll do this for the first month and then see the surgeon at the end of July and then hopefully get the all-clear to start racing after that. Obviously, it’ll mean I’ll only having one week to really get ready on a normal track, to see how my shoulder feels before we go racing in Latvia, so I’m not sure if I’ll be 100% by then, as we’ll have to see how the shoulder keeps progressing. Hopefully it holds up well and feels good when I’m riding and then we’ll make a decision before that weekend. I’ve never had an injury like this, with this much time off the bike so it’s been tough. I’m really happy to be back on the bike though and getting back into normal training and with an exact date in mind, to build towards and see the rest of Team HRC, the fans and the MXGP paddock again.”
Tim Gajser and Mitch Evans
Austin Forkner injury update
Austin Forkner had a major crash in the Monster Energy AMA Supercross finale at Salt Lake City and this week revelead just how series his injuries were. The 21-year-old Missouri native had to have his spleen removed and also lost a third of his pancreas along with numerous other injuries to internal organs, including major bruising to his liver and kidneys. Forkner said it was by far the most painful thing he has have ever experienced and that the fist five or six days I was in hospital were horrible. He opens up about the injuries in this social media post.
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Jesse Dobson joins Serco Yamaha
Only days after Jesse Dobson was officially released from his contract with RecoveR8 KTM the talented 23-year-old Queenslander has confirmed he will race under the Serco Yamaha banner for the remainder of the 2020 season, competing at the Australian Motocross Championships on the teams’ YZ250F in the MX2 division Dobson will join current Serco Yamaha Team member Aaron Tanti to form a strong team for the 2020 racing season.
Jesse Dobson
“2020 has been a crazy year already but I’m glad to have found a home for the remainder of the year. I have test rode the bikes and met everyone in the team and racing can’t happen fast enough for me as I’m desperate to fly the Serco Yamaha flag and be surrounded by a great race team. This year I hit the reset button a little on my career and knew I had to change a few things to reignite my racing. This lead me back to the MX2 class and now to Serco Yamaha and I have a really positive vibe about it all and look forward to being apart of such a successful and long established team.”
Jesse Dobson
Dobson comes into the Serco Yamaha fold to cover the loss of Dylan Walsh. The logistics of running a New Zealand based rider during a season interrupted by Covid-19 proved too much and both parties agreed to move on and explore other avenues.
“First of all, I would like to thank Dylan (Walsh) for his efforts during the start of the year and racing the New Zealand Motocross Championships with our support. When the Covid lock down came and international travel proved difficult, we acknowledged that it would be difficult to continue and Dylan has since left to explore options in the US,” explains Serco Yamaha owner, Gavin Eales. “We then assembled a bit of a list of the available riders and Jesse Dobson was the stand out. He has great speed and experience, is Queensland based and very determined to get his career back on track. Our initial test with him proved successful so now we are full steam ahead with him and hoping to get some local racing under our belts before the Australian Motocross Championship kicks off in the coming months.”
2020 GasGas Australian Trial Championships Entries Open
Entries are now open for the 2020 GasGas Australian Trial Championships to be held at Bangor, Southern Flinders Ranges, South Australia, on September 26 and 27, 2020.
The Championships will be run by the Keyneton Motorcycle Club and held at Mungeree Homestead, “Hogan Family Property”, Survey Road, Bangor, Southern Flinders Ranges, South Australia.
The 2020 GasGas Australian Trial Championships will offer competition in all classes and returning in 2020 is the Mini Trial, a support class on a shortened course of 10 sections, with 3 laps each day – for all riders aged 4 to 9-years-old on mini wheeled bikes.
Camping is available to competitors and officials at the venue from 8am Thursday 24th to Monday 28th September. Please contact Tyler Hogan on 0429 665 240. Showers available with a gold coin donation.
COVID-19 requirements and restrictions will be in place, please refer to supplementary regulations for further information.
YZ bLU cRU FIM Europe Cup’s Postponed Till October 2020
Due to the existing COVID-19 pandemic, Yamaha Motor Europe, Infront Moto Racing and FIM Europe have agreed to postpone the 2020 YZ 125, 85 and 65 bLU cRU FIM Europe Cups which were scheduled to take place at the Monster Energy FIM Motocross of Nations in Ernée, France on the weekend of September 27th to a later date, which is likely to be in October. The exact date and location of the event will be announced when more information is available.
A record 286 young riders are signed up to the 2020 YZ bLU cRU FIM Europe Cup across the YZ65, YZ85 and YZ125 classes. This year, the number of national championships bLU cRU riders will participate increased from 17 to 21 as Yamaha continues to expand its pool of talent across the continent.
2020 will mark the fourth edition of the highly popular YZ125 bLU cRU FIM Europe Cup and the second edition of the YZ85 and YZ65 bLU cRU FIM Europe Cups which were introduced at the start of 2019.
As was the case in 2019, the top three finishers of each SuperFinale race, as well as two wildcard riders, will automatically be invited to the bLU cRU Masterclass at the end of the year. The winner of the 125, 85 and 65 categories in the Masterclass will have the fantastic opportunity to earn support from Yamaha Motor Europe next year, following in the footsteps of last year’s winners: Latvian Mairis Pumpurs, who won the YZ125 class and now races for the MJC Yamaha Official EMX125 Team, as well as our 85cc and 65cc winners Dex Kooiker from The Netherlands and Freddie Bartlett from Sweden, who now have added support from Yamaha Motor Europe.
2020 Lima Half-Mile Postponed
Due to COVID-19 regulations in the areas surrounding Allen County Fairgrounds in Lima, OH, the promoters of the Lima Half-Mile have had to postpone its doubleheader race dates scheduled for Friday, July 31 and Saturday, August 1, 2020.
American Flat Track is working closely with the promoter, Allen County Fairgrounds and the local health officials to help secure a date that will accommodate its current schedule and provide the best experience for its fans, competitors and staff.
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More Speedway GP events cancelled
Due to ongoing global health concerns and crowd restrictions in Russia and Germany in light of COVID-19, the 2020 Russian FIM Speedway Grand Prix and 2020 Aztorin German FIM Speedway Grand Prix have been cancelled.
The events were scheduled to take place at Anatoly Stepanov Stadium on August 29 and Teterow’s Bergring Arena later this year respectively.
Following discussions with the Anatoly Stepanov Stadium and Bergring Arena, we are pleased to announce that both the Russian FIM Speedway Grand Prix and the Aztorin German FIM Speedway Grand Prix will return in 2021.
The Aztorin German FIM Speedway Grand Prix will take place on Saturday, May 22, while the Russian FIM Speedway Grand Prix’s timing will be announced at a later date.
Czech Republic National series
Red Bull KTM Factory Racing restarted their engines with two ‘warm-up’ appearances in the initial rounds of the 2020 Czech national motocross series where current MX2 FIM World Championship leader Tom Vialle celebrated a victory and a runner-up podium finish.
The MX2 crew of Vialle and Rene Hofer (with EMX European Championship rider Liam Everts also in competition) travelled to the Czech Republic for the first two rounds of six in the domestic contest. The events at the Dalecin and Kaplice circuits were some of the first in Europe to take place after wide international lockdown restrictions in the wake of the COVID-19 outbreak.
Vialle flew to a 1-1 set of moto wins at Dalecin on his works KTM 250 SX-F while Hofer was also fast to gain 2nd place overall at the hard-packed opener. The Frenchman and Austrian had last competed at the Grand Prix of the Netherlands at Valkenswaard on March 8th.
Rene Hofer
A week later at Kaplice Vialle ran MX2 Grand Prix rival Jago Geerts close for victory: the gap was less than a second between the two riders in the second moto. Vialle lifted the red plate again on the podium thanks to a 2-2 scorecard as Hofer rode securely to 5th position overall (having qualified fastest) and Everts made the top ten with 10th spot.
The Czech outings helped both 18-year olds get back into a race groove ahead of the MXGP series reconvening in Latvia on August 9.
Tom Vialle
Tom Vialle
“A pretty good weekend again and I’m happy with the week we’ve had here in the Czech Republic. The track was really good for passing, even if there were a lot of lappers from pretty early in the race and there was only really one line: you had to be patient and ended up losing some time, so that made things tricky. I had the best lap-time in both motos and had a great feeling on the bike. In the end it was good training. Now we’ll have a small break before working in Belgium this next month and then the GPs start again!”
Czech Republic MX2
Czech Republic MX2 Championship standings
Tom Vialle, KTM, 94 points
Rene Hofer, KTM, 76
Richard Sikyna, KTM, 74
Jago Geerts, Yamaha, 72
Michael Sandner, KTM, 60
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Yamaha to host Facebook Live reveal of 2021 Motocross Range
Yamaha Motor Australia has announced it will present the 2021 Yamaha motocross range during a special Facebook Live event at 10 am on Friday, 10 July.
YMA will present all the MX models from the YZ65 through to the YZ450F allowing viewers to get a close look at the full range just hours after the international embargo is lifted.
Viewers can interact with the live stream via the comments sections and will be encouraged to ask questions and generate further online discussion about the new releases.
Following the broadcast, a copy of the presentation will be hosted on the Yamaha Motor Australia Facebook page.
An event has been set up on the Yamaha Motor Australia Facebook page, allowing people to register their intention and receive a reminder when the stream is about to go live.
Click Facbeook logo below for the event page or click get reminder to be notified when broadcast starts
An Australian-designed clean two-stroke motorcycle engine could soon become a reality after attracting the interest of a Melbourne-based investor group.
“I have some investor interest which is at their lawyers now for an agreement, so fingers crossed,” says Basil, a former South African motorsport engineer.
“My guesstimate for agreements to be all checked, amended and signed by their lawyers then ours, is two to four weeks.
“However, with the world as it is there are more reasons than ever to be let down.
“The investor group are in Melbourne and the new border closure will dash the present plans — once the contracts are signed — for one of them to drive up and collect all the bits for re-testing in Melbourne before Mk 2 V-twin is produced.”
Basil says he is confident the investor group will build the engine, although he would prefer a motorcycle or automotive company bought the company for a “pittance” with a royalty paid to CITS shareholders for each engine produced.
Two-stroke advantages
Basil says his CITS engine is more powerful, lighter, smaller, cheaper, more economical and with lower emissions than any four-stroke engine.
CITS uses direct injection, but has a by-pass valve that replaces the throttle and provides progressive cylinder deactivation ensuring minimised pumping losses.
It also uses a typical four-stroke’s oil sump and does not mix the oil with the fuel in the combustion chamber like normal two-stroke engines. CITS therefore eliminates total-loss lubrication of a typical two-stroke.
“CITS technology is applicable to any engine application from V-twins of 25 to 125kW up to V12s of over 1000kW for hospital generators etc,” he says.
Aussie-designed two-stroke CITS engine
The prototype was built on an 800cc V-twin Suzuki Boulevard crankcase with adapted Rotax 800 E-TEC parallel twin-cylinder jackets and heads.
Basil says the CITS engine would be most suitable in motorcycles because it is compact, economical, lightweight, powerful and cheap to build.
Two-stroke future
Tough pollution laws have forced two-stroke motorcycles out of the market in recent years in favour of four-strokes.
However, two-stroke technology is not totally dead.
KTM has a raft of direct-injection two-strokers for enduro and motocross.
The opening pole position in FIM Moto3™ JWCh went to David Salvador (Cuna de Campeones) whose time of 1:44.591 in the first qualifying session went unbeaten in the afternoon. Pedro Acosta (MT-Foundation 77) came within a tenth of a second of his first ever pole, qualifying second, with Diogo Moreira (Estrella Galicia 0,0 Junior Team), the only Brazilian rider in the field, claiming third on the grid for his first ever race in the class.
Riding a Harley-Davidson Livewire from the Mexican border to the Canadian border doesn’t sound like a bad way to ring in the ol’ 5-0.
Begin Press Release:
HARLEY-DAVIDSON® ELECTRIC MOTORCYCLE OWNER MAKES HISTORY WITH FIRST U.S. BORDER-TO-BORDER JOURNEY
Change in Plans for 50th Birthday Celebration Leads to Historic Memories
MILWAUKEE (July 6, 2020) – In the past few months, the world has found new ways to celebrate momentous life achievements. Riding motorcycles has been one such outlet – especially new motorcycles that are groundbreaking, like Harley-Davidson’s first electric motorcycle, LiveWire .
Diego Cardenas, a California resident, was hoping to spend June 30, 2020, in Spain celebrating his 50th birthday. This Spring, he knew he was going to need a new plan, but he wanted it to be something he was passionate about — a trip he could do that allowed him to maintain social distancing but also be memorable and unique. So, he set on a new plan, riding his LiveWire motorcycle from the U.S. Mexican border to the U.S. Canadian border using the West Coast Green Highway, WCGH. The WCGH is a network of electric vehicle DC fast charging stations located every 25 to 50 miles along Interstate 5 and other major roadways in Washington, Oregon, and California.
“I wanted to be a part of Harley-Davidson history and have my future grandkids be able to talk about how their grandfather was the first H-D electric motorcycle owner to do such a ride,” said Cardenas. “I wanted to show the world that electric charging infrastructure is growing and be an inspiration for others to try riding electric motorcycles like the LiveWire.”
On June 22, Diego started his epic trip from San Ysidro, CA. He rode over 1,400 miles and on his 50th birthday, June 30, he reached his goal by making it to the U.S. Canadian border town of Blaine, WA. Along the way, he did live social media reports of his progress and fans following along on his journey were able to meet him in person and cheer him on. He also made plenty of stops along the way to do a bit of sightseeing with his wife and eight-year old daughter who were along on the trip in a car.
“The trip was unbelievable, such a great journey,” said Cardenas. “The West Coast Green Highway is a really good idea, there are so many options that you can be confident you will get to where you need to go. Also, if you pull up and cannot use one charger, you have additional ones super close by. It’s darn awesome! Please spread the word, this is so doable. If you have an electric motorcycle, or any bike, just get out and ride during these challenging times. Do a road trip, it helps during these stressful times to free your mind and body to see new things.”
Cardenas’ journey can be found at this link, he also is the founder and creator of this page. His mission for the group is to bring together electric vehicle and non-EV riders to ask questions, get ideas and support the EV motorcycle riding community.
About LiveWire
The Harley-Davidson 2020 LiveWire is an all-new, all-electric motorcycle; an exhilarating and evocative new model designed to offer the rider a high-performance motorcycling experience infused with a new level of technology, and the premium look and feel of a Harley-Davidson product.
About Harley-Davidson Motor Company
Since 1903, Harley-Davidson has stood for the timeless pursuit of adventure and delivered freedom for the soul with an expanding range of leading-edge, distinctive and customizable motorcycles in addition to riding experiences and exceptional motorcycle accessories, riding gear and apparel. Learn more at h-d.com.
It is true that there has been tension between Andrea and Gigi, but, as I have said before, there is always tension, more or less. When you win, it’s easy for everyone to be happy, but when there are difficulties, tensions arise. But those tensions do not necessarily mean negativity, because in reality both have the same objective and from the tension positive things are also born and I think that the results are good in the end. Ducati and Dovizioso have been the only ones who have competed with HRC and Marquez in the Championship, who have imposed a monstrous level of performance on the rest. The only alternative to Marquez until today has been Ducati and Dovizioso and that has also been the result of tension.
“So I really went miles above and beyond anything that was going to be possible so I won that World Championship, and it was a case of saying, “look, I’ve done it all, I gave it everything I could for so many years… and more!” I mean, the motivation I had was uncompromising, the dedication off the charts… it was the perfect moment to say, “hey, thank you so much for everything. I’m taking the exit here.” Because I think also going out on a high at this point, it just carries you for the rest of your life. And I’m living that now. It’s still carrying me now with positivity. That last memory was the most beautiful. It forever will be. It just feels great, that was also the reason for doing it, that feeling it gives me for the rest of my life – the feeling of fulfilment, which I’ve kept. That’s worth so much.”
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