Victorian round to serve as qualifier for junior world championship team.
Image: Foremost Media.
Williams Event Management, the promoter of the Pirelli MX Nationals, will launch the bLU cRU 2-Stroke Amateur Nationals this weekend at Traralgon in Victoria.
The amateur series is set to play out over three rounds, consisting of junior and senior two-stroke categories designed to boost and showcase the next generation of Australian motocross racers.
Traralgon’s opener will also serve as a qualifier for Team Australia’s 2019 FIM Junior Motocross World Championship squad, attracting over 500 riders and crew for Sunday’s outing.
“It’s a great feeling to be heading back to the Latrobe Valley where 23 years ago we started our event management business,” said WEM director Kevin Williams.
“The Latrobe City Council has played a huge part in helping this significant sporting event come together smoothly, and we are also excited to be working with a great local club in the Traralgon Motorcycle Club. Their support and assistance in delivering this event has been tremendous.”
Round two will take place at the popular Coolum circuit in Queensland on 3 March before finishing up at Canberra in the Australian Capital Territory on 27 April.
Frenchman still progressing in transition to Red Bull KTM Factory Racing.
Image: Supplied.
Johann Zarco has discovered a direction with the Red Bull KTM Factory Racing RC16 following the opening day of the MotoGP testing at Sepang International Circuit in Malaysia.
The Frenchman was able to put two days of private testing at the venue to do good use earlier this week, confirming the set-up that he wants to pursue in the next two days of the official grand prix test.
Zarco, still in the early stages of his transition to the Austrian manufacturer, completed the opening day 20th on the timesheets, mentioning his feeling on the RC16 had dramatically improved.
“This morning I had a nice feeling and things were coming easy because we’d had two days of private testing,” Zarco explained. “We confirmed things on the bike and confirmed feelings instead of making big changes.
“It is a ‘long’ work and that’s why there is not big improvements all the time but compared to November when I started I had much more control and I can give clearer information. I’m positive because I know where we want to go. I trust the bike more and more.”
The number five returns to the circuit today for day two of three in the Malaysian test. The opening day was topped by reigning world champion Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team), followed by Alex Rins (Team Suzuki Ecstar) and Maverick Vinales (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP).
Australian contender 11th on the timesheets in Malaysia.
Image: Supplied.
Jack Miller has overcome a crash on the opening day of the 2019 MotoGP World Championship test at Sepang International Circuit in Malaysia.
The Pramac Racing rider wound up 11th on the timesheets aboard his Ducati Desmosedici GP19, completing 51 laps to finish seven tenths behind pace-setter Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team).
While the crash was minor, it forced the Australian contender to switch motorcycles for the remainder of the day, although he’s relatively satisfied with the progress made.
“I trained a lot during the winter break but riding a MotoGP bike in conditions like the ones we found today is something else,” Miller explained. “The feeling is good and I think the first day of testing was positive. It’s a shame about the small crash – without any particular consequences – that forced me to change bike. All things considered, I’m satisfied.”
The Queenslander will return to the Malaysian circuit today for day two of the three-day test, where he’ll endeavour to climb up in the times while developing the GP19 machine.
Rins and Vinales complete the top three as Miller winds up 11th.
Image: Supplied.
Despite still suffering the effects of surgery on his left shoulder during the winter break, Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team) has topped the timesheets on day one at the Sepang MotoGP test with a 1m59.621s time, 0.259s faster than Alex Rins (Team Suzuki Ecstar) in second and 0.316s quicker than third place Maverick Vinales (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP).
Marquez completed 29 laps on day one before stopping in the early afternoon to give his left shoulder a rest ahead of the next two days, with the reigning world champion heading for more physio in the afternoon.
Teammate Jorge Lorenzo sits out the test due to injury, but there were three Hondas in the top ten as Takaaki Nakagami (LCR Honda Idemitsu), fastest in Jerez, took seventh and Stefan Bradl (Honda Test Team) ended day one in P9, just under six tenths off Marquez.
LCR Honda Castrol rider Cal Crutchlow, meanwhile, returned from his ankle injury sustained at Phillip Island with a solid 51 laps on Wednesday, ending his first time back on a bike in P14 with a 2m0.681s.
Alex Rins was one of the big headlines of the day, able to put in a substantial 61 laps on board his 2019 GSX-RR and was fastest for some time until deposed by Marquez. He remained second after his earlier fast lap, however, and was the lead Hamamatsu machine by quite a stretch. Rookie teammate Joan Mir ended the day in P23, just behind veteran French test rider Sylvain Guintoli.
There were positive signs from Yamaha on the timesheets. Maverick Vinales ended the day in P3 after 63 laps with a best of 1m59.937s, with teammate Valentino Rossi in P6 after 56 laps and just over a tenth off Vinales. The Iwata marque are focusing on final decisions for their 2019 engine, the electronics and some chassis elements – and say comparing their times to competitors’ is a key point of interest after an intense winter of work.
New team on the block Petronas Yamaha SRT, meanwhile, had Franco Morbidelli just outside the top ten in P12 after 60 laps – only eight tenths off the top – with rookie teammate Fabio Quartararo a further half a second in arrears in P18 on tight timesheets.
Just behind Vinales, meanwhile, was the first of the Borgo Panigale machines – but it was Reale Avintia Racing’s Tito Rabat who took that honour. Less than half a tenth off Vinales and the last man under the two-minute barrier, the Spaniard impressed on his first day back on a MotoGP machine at fuller strength, having missed much of the latter part of last season following his crash at Silverstone.
Just behind him came the first of the Mission Winnow Ducati machines in the form of new arrival Danilo Petrucci, with the Italian just 0.003s ahead of Rossi after 54 laps. 2017 and 2018 runner up Andrea Dovizioso, meanwhile, ended day one of 2019 in P8 with a 2m0.197s.
Jack Miller wasn’t far off the second factory machine despite a small crash either, with the Aussie taking P11 – three tenths off ‘DesmoDovi’ and lead Alma Pramac Racing machine. Rookie teammate Francesco Bagnaia – reigning Moto2 Champion – made for close company too, impressing in P15 as the fastest debutant.
Completing the top 10 was an impressive day’s work for Pol Espargaro (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing), who put in a fitting 44 laps with a best of 2m00.313s despite a crash at the end. The Spaniard took the honours of lead Austrian machine by sixth tenths, although the second KTM on the timesheets was an equally stunning performance: rookie Miguel Oliveira of Red Bull KTM Tech 3, despite a brief technical issue.
The Portuguese rider finished the day in P16 and only just off fastest newcomer Bagnaia, making a big impression on day one after more difficult tests at Valencia and Jerez. Experienced test rider Mika Kallio was in P19, just ahead of Espargaro’s new teammate Johann Zarco as the Frenchman continued his adaptation in P20.
Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia Racing Team Gresini) was the fastest Noale machine in P13 and said the 2019 bike is a definite improvement, with the Spaniard putting in 55 laps to end the first day of the season just ahead of Crutchlow. New teammate Andrea Iannone was down in P21 and suffered a crash, ending the day 1.6 seconds off Marquez as he continues to get used to his new machinery.
One of the largest known collections of MV Agusta motorcycles will go up for auction on Saturday (February 9, 2019), including nearly every production model since 1945.
Almost 100 motorcycles and even scooters from an unnamed Italian family will go under the hammer at the Retromobile Show in Paris.
Retromobile says the bikes, which include production models, factory prototypes and racers, could sell for as little as €3000 (about $A4800) to much as €250,000 ($400,000).
Many of the bikes were built by MV legendary Agusta racing manager Arturo Magni.
The family collection was started by the current owner’s uncle.
He worked in the family’s MV Agusta garage and raced the bikes in the Giro d’Italia and the Milan-Tarento races.
He bought the bikes when they were worth very little and had to rent a disused factory near Monaco to store the collection.
Most of the bikes were restored by ex-MV Agusta mechanics with no thought to the cost.
All are in running condition and have certificates of conformity issued by the MV Agusta museum.
Every day, new technology is introduced to motorcycle gadgets to improve the riding experience and make it safer. More and more of the modern bikes have heated seats/grips, tire pressure monitors, rearview cameras, and more. Today, you can find some high tech accessories that will help you deal with discomfort, inconvenience, and weather. Even if you prefer the traditional route, there are several high tech gadgets that can elevate your experience. Below are some of the high-tech gadgets you can get to pimp up your ride.
1 Helmet Sound System
If you ride your bike regularly or for long distances, you’re likely to feel dull at times. Well, this can change with a helmet sound system which lets you listen to music and communicate. You can pick phone calls, connect with other riders via intercom, and follow GPS navigation using the helmet audio systems.When buying this gadget, look out for multi-device capability, sound quality, durability, battery life, and volume controls.
2 Motorcycle GPS Navigator
It’s never an option to use your smartphone for navigation while riding a bike unless you’re willing to stop and get off the road every time. That’s why you need a motorcycle GPS unit. A motorcycle GPS makes it easy for you to navigate while you focus on the road. In addition, the system offers extra features such as hands-free calling, streaming music, and alerts.
3 Rearview Camera
A rearview camera helps you to easily see what’s behind you, adding safety and convenience to your ride. Rearview cameras for motorcycles give you a rear vision that your rear mirrors can’t. The mini camera is usually placed on the bumper of your bike, giving you a perfect view of your rear. When buying a review camera, look out for key features like waterproof, night vision, and viewable angle.
4 Motorcycle Jacket Airbag
The motorcycle jacket airbag works in a more or less similar manner as the airbags in a car. When the system deploys the airbag, the air cushion inflates to protect the most vulnerable body parts such as shoulders, elbows, and the spine. You can use an airbag vest which can also serve as a reflective vest or get an airbag jacket. Modern airbags strike a balance between comfort, safety, and good looks.
5 Brake Free Helmet Light
The normal brake lights on your motorcycle work just fine. However, they are mounted low on your motorbike and are not easily noticeable in traffic. Brake Free Helmet Light mounts a smart brake light on the back of your helmet, making it easier for motorists to see you. It detects when you’re slowing down and responds accordingly to regular braking, engine braking, and emergency braking. It attaches to almost any helmet using a magnetic mount and uses LED lights that make it visible both day and night. It is a smart brake because it needs no wired installation or connected apps. The gadget is weather resistant and stays lit all the time, only becoming brighter when you brake.
Roadside signs, advertising billboards or electronic mobile signs on busy commuter routes advising motorists that lane filtering is legal would be an effective education campaign for motorists, say rider representatives.
Many riders tell us there is a lack of public education that lane filtering is now legal, sparking road rage toward motorcyclists.
So we contacted roads Ministers and departments in each state to find out exactly what advertising they have tried and have planned.
Despite rider impressions of a lack of public education there seems to have been a fair bit of activity.
Most seem to involve notices in registration reminders, radio ads, websites, social media and YouTube such as this.
State advertising
Tasmania is the most recent state to introduce lane filtering, starting in October 2018.
Tasmania Motorcycle Council president Paul Bullock says he raised the issue of advertising with the Road Safety Advisory Council in November.
“RSAC is about to run lane filtering advertisements between 18 March – 12 April 2019 and will include radio advertisement and access to the video from the online newspapers,” he says.
NSW says lane filtering will feature in this year’s Road Rules Awareness Week beginning on 8 April.
And Queensland is developing social media content for next month to educate drivers about lane filtering, including posts targeting drivers.
“These posts will be boosted to increase their reach beyond our 143,500 StreetSmarts social media followers,” a Main Roads spokesperson says.
VicRoads says they started with a community education campaign in 2015, followed by a refresher campaign in early 2018.
“Other advertising channels included metro and regional radio, video screening and social media,” a spokesperson says.
“The video that was produced had strong social media engagement and was viewed over 1 million times.
“To ensure ongoing behaviour change, VicRoads is currently developing additional collateral to communicate the rules to riders and the general public.”
So clearly there isn’t a lack of advertising education campaigns about lane filtering.
Roadside signs
Maybe the problem is that the ads are misguided as they do not seem to have made a big impact on the motoring public.
They’ve been sporadic at best and not exactly targeted where lane filtering is most likely to occur – on busy multi-lane roads that become congested in peak commuter times.
Roadside signs (like our Photoshopped image at the top of this article) in these locations would surely be the right message at exactly the right time and in the right location.
Yet there has been little if no roadside advertising advising motorists lane filtering is legal.
It should be noted that Victoria has signs in some no-filtering zones indicating the start and end of the zone. But that does not advertise that lane filtering is legal elsewhere.
Motorcycle Council of NSW chairman Steve Pearce says we need roadside signs like the ones that remind motorists to leave a 1m buffer with cyclists.
He suggests lane filtering laws be changed to put the onus on drivers like the cyclist buffer law.
“Under the cyclist buffer rule, the legal onus is on the driver to move over a metre, but there is no onus on the driver to make motorcyclists safe in the lane filtering rules,” he says.
“Drivers should be doing everything they can to make the rider safe. Moving over half a metre would mean nothing to them.
“When I lane filter, some people pull over, but some make it hard for you. That should be illegal.”
Former No 1 member of the Motorcycle Riders Association of Australia, Rodney Brown, agrees.
“Look at all the exposure pushbikes have received regarding leave a metre or so road space for them,” he says.
“Gee, we have had that rule pushed down our throat!
“What is the TAC (Traffic Accident Commission) doing with all of our motorcycle safety levy money?”
MRA Victoria spokesman Damien Codognotto says there is still millions of unspent safety levy money available.
“So there is no excuse for not running a campaign right now,” he says.
Tim Kelly from the South Australian Ride to Review group says there needs to be more awareness around the practice of lane filtering being legal.
“I’ve not experienced road rage whilst filtering, but I’ve had plenty of drivers try and make it hard but; that’s the way it was before legalisation,” he says.
“Signage is a good idea for main thoroughfares, or even those mobile billboards,” he suggests.
However, he says politics could quash any advertising campaign for lane filtering.
“It is important to note that this government was not in power when filtering was legalised,” he says.
Damien also suggests a “simple message” about sharing the road.
“The message should be positive telling car drivers that for every motorcycle or scooter that passes them on the way to work/home there’s less traffic and more parking ahead of them,” he says.
Filtering laws
Lane filtering has now been around in most states since NSW launched a trial in late 2012.
Yet riders continue to say there are many motorists who have no idea filtering it is legal.
Some have taken the advertising campaign into their own hands with small “lane filtering is legal” stickers on their bikes and/or helmets.
“I’m very happy to ride again after a long winter, but I was expecting to be better than I was. I still don’t have full power, for one or two laps it’s ok but I had to change my riding style to compensate. We stopped early to save myself for the rest of the test, there are still two days and we will see what the feeling is. Honda have been working really hard this winter and we tried a few things, but the list is really big. We’re trying the most important things first. The bike is already at a good point, but there’s always more to try before Qatar.”
Marc Marquez
Alex Rins – P2
“My first impressions are very good. We have a lot of new parts here to try, aiming to build on our 2019 bike. The lap times and race pace already felt strong today, so I feel we have a lot of potential. I’m aiming to start the year in the best way so I can put together a strong and consistent season from the very beginning. I feel good about what we’ve achieved today.”
Alex Rins
Maverick Viñales – P3
“I’m actually really happy, because I felt good straight away. I trained quite a lot with bikes this winter, so physically I’m OK. I want to do the three days with maximum power, so I can be quite precise, especially on the track. There’s room to improve and that is very important if we want to battle for this championship. I would like to improve the acceleration and also a little bit the breaking areas, where we struggled last year, so I’m really focused on that.”
Maverick Viñales
Danilo Petrucci – P5
“It’s been a positive first day. Despite the fact that we didn’t try a flying lap, I was able to be quick right away this morning with medium tyres. On the other hand, we still need to improve when temperatures rise and grip levels decrease, so tomorrow we’ll focus on this. Physically I don’t feel fatigued, which means I followed the right conditioning regime over the winter break, and for tomorrow we have a couple of longer runs on schedule during the hottest time of the day. We have a solid base already, which is the most important thing. Also, I have to say it was pretty emotional to go out with the new livery for the first time.”
Danilo Petrucci
Valentino Rossi – P6
“First of all it is a great feeling to be back on the bike and I enjoyed it even though it was very tough physically, because it was very hot for the first test. The first day is quite positive for us, because I always had a good feeling with the bike and we worked very much on improving the grip and our lap times, especially with used tyres. As it is the first day, I looked a bit at the pace of the strong guys, and we are not so bad. It looks like we made some improvements compared to last year.”
Valentino Rossi
Takaaki Nakagami – P7
“The overall position isn’t so bad, but this morning it took a bit of time to get the feeling back with the bike. The last time we rode was in November so you notice two months without sitting on a MotoGP bike! During the winter I have done lots of training to prepare for the season ahead, but even then, it is always different to the real thing. Step by step I got the feeling back with the bike and the lap time was eventually quite good. We need to focus a lot on the set-up of the machine at the moment, we are still not happy with the braking stability, but for the first day it’s not so bad. We have no new parts, so it’s quite simple for us, we just focus on what we’ve got and make it feel as good as possible.”
Takaaki Nakagami
Andrea Dovizioso – P8
“Today has been really positive because we found the track in good conditions already and the weather stayed dry. We made some comparisons but we haven’t found substantial differences yet so we need to make more evaluations in the following days. We have a really good base, and the work done by Michele Pirro is always helpful to this end, because he can try some components beforehand, saving us precious time. Also, I felt great physically, so I’m pretty happy overall.”
Andrea Dovizioso
Jack Miller – P11
“I trained a lot during the winter break but riding a MotoGP bike in conditions like the ones we found today is something else. The feeling is good and I think the first day of testing was positive. It’s a shame about the small crash – without any particular consequences – that forced me to change bike. All things considered, I’m satisfied”.
Jack Miller
Franco Morbidelli – P12
“We are really happy with the first day of the test here at the Sepang International Circuit – the feeling with the bike was similar to the way it was at the end of 2018, even though today we weren’t super fast. We focused this morning on getting back up to speed because it has been two months since I last rode a MotoGP bike. In the afternoon we worked more on the medium and used tyres to see how the bike behaved and gathering data for analysis. We finished up on the soft compound but it wasn’t a real time attack. The Yamaha bike flows well and is very stable, which I think helps me a lot with my riding style. It also suits the characteristics of this track a lot. I am delighted with the support that the factory is giving me and the way they are listening to and analysing my feedback.”
Franco Morbidelli
Cal Crutchlow – P14
“I feel good. It’s really nice to be back out there on the motorcycle and working with the LCR Honda Castrol Team and HRC again here in Malaysia. I thought it was going to be a difficult day, but I was honest about how it was feeling. The first laps were so strange, I went round the track thinking I was doing a 2’01, but I was in the 2’08s or something! I don’t feel fantastic, but I feel I can be competitive this season – which is great. I didn’t really push too hard today, I just worked on trying to understand my feeling on the bike again after so long off. The team did a great job today, they were patient with me with regards to my information. It seemed I quite quickly got back into the way I normally work, so I enjoyed it. I’m confident that if I needed to go one second quicker, I would have. I got to ride the 2019 machine this afternoon. The plan was always for me to start on the 2018 bike anyway, to get back some familiarity with me riding again. I feel HRC have done a good job with the new bike. We need to adjust the setting as is usual and understand it a bit more because it is different to what I’ve been used to, but as expected they’ve done a good job and we’re pleased with how it feels.”
Cal Crutchlow
Pecco Bagnaia – P15
“I made a first positive day especially this morning when I managed to keep a convincing pace. In the afternoon we put on a new tyre to improve the lap time but I didn’t feel comfortable. Tomorrow we will work to see how we can improve in this area. All in all, I am happy: we are on the right path”.
Pecco Bagnaia
Miguel Oliveira – P16
“Our day has been good. We had a small step back because we couldn’t run as much as we wanted with both bikes and the changes took us quite long, but the team did a really great job. We adapted our program and managed to test everything that we wanted. We did many good laps, which is a positive sign. Finally, to do a fast lap at the end was ok, in general I had a decent pace. So, I’m happy with this first day and look forward to improve tomorrow.”
Miguel Oliveira
Fabio Quartararo – P18
“We were really looking forward to riding again after two months off the bike and we were excited for the first day here at the Sepang International Circuit. It wasn’t easy to get a feeling for a bike with so much power but I thought the first few laps would be more difficult. I am happy because we have taken a step forward, in that [at Jerez] I needed a lot of laps to set a fast time but today we were able to do a qualifying time after just two laps. The test here at Sepang is different to Jerez, which is a much smaller circuit, whereas here we have some very long straights and it is very hot. Tomorrow we need to keep working on the bike and try to find a better feeling under braking, which is where we are lacking. I’m really keen to just keep on learning.”
Fabio Quartararo
Sylvain Guintoli – P22
“I’ve been with the team for a few days of testing ahead of this official test, but it feels great to be back on track with all the riders. It’s been a very good and productive day for us. We’re trying some new components for the 2019 package and they were very good, and we made some useful discoveries. In the next days, Alex and Joan can try these things too. I think I set my best ever time in Sepang today, and the rhythm was good as well, it’s been a nice day of work, I did 58 laps and the feeling is positive.”
Sylvain Guintoli
Joan Mir – P23
“It was a hard day with a lot of work, but we made good progress, and we’ll also be trying a lot of other things in the next couple of days. I feel like a fully-fledged rider now, and the focus today was on the bike, but I will also be focusing a bit on myself tomorrow and Friday so that I can gain more experience and knowledge. I felt an improvement in the bike since I last rode it in Jerez, I really like how the bike is now, and I think everything’s going in a good direction.”
Joan Mir
Hafizh Syahrin – P26
“My first impression was great after the long break following the test in Jerez. It has been a long wait, but in the end, we had the shakedown a bit earlier than some other teams. Overall, I feel good, although we are still a bit far. I was working hard to improve many things in order to try to find the best setup for my new bike, but at the moment I don’t have a good feeling with the rear. Nevertheless, with the front I have some great sensations. Tomorrow we’ll try to find a solution to get more grip on the rear and to improve the exit of the corners.”
Hafizh Syahrin
Davide Brivio – Suzuki Team Manager
“Today was a positive day because we went through our programme and we tried different settings. We’re working on the 2019 bike and trying to find the best base setting as well as trying to improve the package overall, using different combinations of parts. So far so good, Alex set strong lap times, not just one isolated ‘fast lap’, but many good quality laps. We were able to get helpful comments and feedback from him. Joan was restarting again with the bike and he is still gaining experience, but he did some useful testing, gave us good feedback and told us his impressions. Everything went smoothly today, let’s continue to work tomorrow.”
2019 MotoGP Sepang Test Day One Times
MARQUEZ, Marc Repsol Honda Team 1:59.621 26/29
RINS, Alex Team Suzuki Ecstar 1:59.880 25/61
VIÑALES, Maverick Monster Energy Yamaha 1:59.937 28/63
“From the start it was too long without touching a MotoGP (bike) and in the first laps the speed is so fast, but we worked well and we did a good job,” continued Rabat. “I felt comfortable with the bike, it worked really well. When I’m on the bike my leg is 200% no problem and I can ride well, this is the most important thing. I’m so happy for today but there is still two more days and this is just the start, there’s a long way to go.
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