Our offical SBK
& Ducati Corse Fast Dates Calendar Angels, Miss Great Britain
Nicki Lane, Miss Minnesota Janelle Perzina, and Miss Heartbreaker
Chandi Mason stop by calendar sponsor MotoWheels.com's
booth at Laguna Seca. If you want the trickest parts for your bike
you'll want to visit their website. If you want to meet Janelle and
Chandi in person, stop by our exciting new LA Hi-Performance Import
& Sports Car Show on Aug 17th!
World
Superbike Shocker!
2004 SBK CHAMPIONSHIP TO RUN PIRELLI
FGSport Group Press Release, August 4th: In its continuing
development efforts for the Superbike World Championship, the FGSport
Group, Organizer of the Championship, in collaboration with Pirelli,
has defined a program for supplying tyres for the three categories in
the Championship: Superbike, Supersport and Superstock.
Starting with
the forthcoming season, Pirelli will be the exclusive supplier of
tyres for all the teams that take part in the 45 races in 10 countries
for the title of World and European Champion. The program will enable
all the participants to compete under the same conditions with respect
to tyres, which makes the performance of motorcycle manufacturers,
team members and riders all the more important.
The agreement
with Pirelli guarantees the supply of tyres for the Superbike World
Championship for at least the next two years, 2004 and 2005, in addition
to offering the teams additional advantages, such as:
• Guarantee of continuity and quality of the tyres supplied
and the relevant services to all the teams and riders, in all the
nations hosting the championship;
• Continuity of the technological development of the tyres;
• Tyres supplied will be of uniform high quality and available
at advantageous and identical prices for all teams;
• Availability, for the entire duration of the partnership,
of a Pirelli prize fund dedicated to riders, also to attract young
talented riders to participate in the Championship.
In compliance with the pledges of the Superbike, Supersport and Superstock
Championship and in compliance with requests submitted by the FIM
- International Motorcycle Federation to return the Superbike World
Championship to its original vocation, that is as near as possible
to the characteristics expressed by the production motorcycles, Pirelli
has accepted the supply proposal offered by the organizer of the Championship.
The President
of the FGSport Group, Maurizio Flammini, commented: “The agreement
with Pirelli, a world leader in the manufacture of tyres, guarantees
the development and the continuity of the Superbike World Championship,
which has been the primary thought behind our Group that has been
committed to the organization of the Championship since 1988. Moreover,
the agreement strictly adheres to the philosophy of the Championship
that is to offer equal racing conditions to all participants. In this
respect, we would like to thank Pirelli for the significant organizational
and technological efforts that it will undertake over the next few
years which, we are certain, will create the ideal conditions for
new, important developments for motorcycle manufacturers, teams and
riders in the Championship and in racing itself.”
Ugo Forner, General
Manager of the Pirelli Motorcycle Business Unit, stated: “For
our Tyres Department the Superbike World Championship represents a
challenge from both a technical and technological development point
of view the maximum expression of live trials that support and finalize
advanced research and development carried out in our laboratories
all over the world. It is further confirmation of the importance that
Pirelli has always attributed to the competition for two- and four-wheel
production vehicles, in order to experiment innovative solutions and
accumulate know-how that can be implemented in producing our high-performing
tyres.”
From the Editor
- This
Pirelli spec tire rule was first announced at Laguna Seca World Superbike
and it was the most talked about news of the weekend. With most factory
race teams sponsored in part by major tire contracts with other tire
companies, noteably Michelin and Dunlop,in part because of tie-ins
to their OEM supplied tires on their production bikes, this new spec
tire rule requiring the use of purchased Pirelli tires just could
be the nail in the coffin for World Superbike. Many of the Japanese
factory teams like Ducati and Honda who are so closely associated
with, say, Michelin may forgo the huge added cost of returning to
World Superbike in 2004 (loss of their huge tire money and now having
to purchase spec Pirelli tires) and instead, devote all their time
and effort to the now much more popular MotoGP Series. World Superbike
may just have relagated inself to the bush league of NASCAR with all
privateer teams running highly regulated spec production bikes.
Wild card winning riders
at Suzuka, Donnington and Brands Hatch and Laguna Seca will now be
a thing of the past, and the real factory team racing in Superbike
with the best riders will now take place at the National level in
AMA, BSB, and Japanese Superbike racing with Manufacturer's distributor
race teams on works bikes with different brands of tires. The next
few months will see how the future unfolds for SBK - Jim
Gianatsis
The
Suzuka 8 Hours Endurance Race
Nukumi
and Kamada / Sakurai
Honda
Win Chaotic Suzuka 8 Hours
Suzuka,
Japan, August 3, 2003: The Sakurai Honda Team of Yukio Nukumi
and Manabu Kamata won a crash littered Suzuka 8 Hours held today,
Sunday August 8, at the circuit the event is named after. The partnership
tiptoed their way through oil spills, pace cars and numerous accidents
to hand Honda their seventh consecutive victory in the most prestigious
two-wheel event on the Japanese race calendar.
Nukumi
and Kamada rode a fine calculated race, they held their nerve in heavy
traffic as they slowly clawed their way to the front to duel with
long term race leaders Kitagawa and Fujiwara on the number 8 Suzuki
and
the number 7 Seven Stars VTR1000SP-W Honda of Tohru Ukawa and Hitoyasu
Izutsu. These 3 teams were the major beneficiaries
of a second lap crash that brought down two of Honda's chief hopes
for success in the race, the Seven Stars team of VTR1000SP-W of Nicky
Hayden - Ryuichi Kiyonari, and the Sakurai VTR of Tady Okada and Chozun
Kameya, racing with number 74 in tribute to the late Daijiro Kato.
But even the 3rd factory Seven Stars wouldn't make it to the finish
as Tohru Ukawawa was eventually forced from his race lead with mechanical
problems.
Tohru Ukawawa (7)
, top qualifer on the Honda factory team Seven Stars was eliminated
on lap 2 , together with the team's other bike ridden by Nicky Hayden.
The
route cause of the crash came directly after the start as the field
rushed into turn one. The Over Yamaha blew an engine and trailed oil
through corner. As the race leaders crossed the line for the first
time they were unaware of what was waiting for them as they hit turn
one. Oil flag were waving but too late for Hayden, Okada and Atsushi
Watanabe (Yoshimura Suzuki) who all hit the gravel track, race over.
Nickey Hayden and
the Seven Stars team was one of the top factory teams eliminated by
track oil on just lap 2.
"There
were no oil flags shown on the straight when I got into my second
lap." Said Hayden. "I saw it getting into Turn 1 but it
was too late as the machine had started to slide by then."
Many
thought the race should have been red flagged at that point due to
the safety issue concerning the number of machines and attending circuit
staff at the scene. Instead the Clerk of the Course decided to bring
out the pace car for 20-minutes, he also incurred the wrath of the
teams by having the damaged machines returned to the pits on the wrecker
truck, a move that was to cause further confusion later in the race.
Okada
was furious with the track staff at the scene of the incident. "I'm
really angry with what happened. The track marshal put the bikes on
the wrecker truck to get back to the pits. We knew this would be a
problem."
With
three of the most fancied teams quickly sidelined many feared the
race would be deprived of some of its customary excitement. They need
not have worried. When the pace car pulled off the track it left the
number 7 Seven Stars Honda of Tohru Ukawa leading the number 8 Suzuki
of Kitagawa and Fujiwara. The two teams then provided the excitement
for the next hour. The Weider Honda CR954RR of former double 125cc
World Champion Haruchika Aoki and Osamu Deguchi held third place.
Their duel ended just before the second hour had been completed. Izutsu
crashed the number 7 Honda at the hairpin breaking a handlebar and
damaging a footrest. Izutsu got the machine back to the pits and after
speedy repairs rejoined the race in 24th place. But they were forced
out of the race soon after with a mechanical problem.
The winning
Sakurai Honda VTR1000 of Nukumi and Kamada.
The
sole remaining VTR10000SP-W, the number 71 Sakurai Honda of Yukio
Nukumi and Manabu Kamada, was left to retrieve Honda's fortunes and
they did it in great style. By the third hour they were into second
place and closing relentlessly on the number 8 Suzuki. A lap later
they were a mere 20 seconds adrift, the two machines one lap ahead
of third placed Shinichi Nakatomi and Wataru Yoshikawa on the Presto
Yamaha. The Weider Honda dropping back.
Fourth
place was held by the F.C.C. TSR CBR954RR Honda in the hands of former
grand prix stars Shinichi Itoh and Takeshi Tsujimura, which Itoh had
taken to pole in the 'Special Stage.' The race was between the number
8 Suzuki and 71 Honda. As the fifth hour ended the two machines wee
separated by just 21 seconds. Then the Suzuki pairing built on their
lead to head the Honda duo by over 90 seconds at the seven-hour mark
but their race was run soon after. When the Suzuki pitted for the
final time to take on fuel and change tyres it refused to start and
their race was run.
That
left Nukumi and Kamata a whole lap clear of the Presto Yamaha, a lead
they were never to surrender. While Nukumi raced the machine during
the last stint Kamada stayed on the pit wall holding a picture of
Daijiro Kato, a friend and hero to all Japanese motorcycle racers.
While the team watched and prayed that nothing would deprive them
of victory Nukumi and the Sakurai VTR10000SP-W cruised home covering
212 laps and gave Honda a victory that seemed beyond them after two
hours of racing. The victorious pair were still clutching the picture
of Kato when they mounted the podium to receive their trophies and
the adulation of the crowd
The
Presto Yamaha came home a lap down, one lap clear of the CCBR954RR
of Itoh and Tsujimura. Aoki and Daguchi brought the Weider Honda home
in seventh place, with Tatuya Yamaguchi and Yuki Takahashi finishing
10th for the 555 Honda team.
Leading
Honda rider quotes: Manabu Kamada, Sakurai Honda, 1st: "The year
before, I was on the podium as
a third rider but I didn't feel comfortable then, as I didn't ride
at all. Today it was a great honour for me to win the race. When the
Kenz Suzuki retired at the end of the 7th hour, I thought Daijiro
(Kato) was pushing us. We wanted Okada san Kameya pair to win the
race with the number 74 but when I saw Okada san
crashing we felt it was our turn to carry the Daijiro 's aim. I am
sure if he were there he had won again this year.
Yukio
Nukumi, Sakurai Honda, 1st: "I'm 37 years old now feel great
that a team like Sakurai Honda asked me to race he 8-hous for them.
Last year I raced with Nakatomi but we crashed, so I really wanted
to finish the race this year. I very relaxed for me riding with Kamata
san, he raced with my machine set up, so it was easy for me."
Nicky
Hayden, Seven Stars Honda, dnf: "There was no oil flag shown
at the straight when I got into my second lap. I saw it getting into
the Turn 1 but it was too late as the machine started to slide by
then. I couldn't do anything at that moment. If I had seen it earlier,
I could have slowed down. All the hard works ended with only one lap
and I feel bad for the team staff who worked so hard.""
Ryuichi
Kiyonari, Seven Stars Honda, dnf: "I was worried about Nicky
when I saw him crash. Then I was black-flagged when I was riding after
the pit-works and I was disappointed. I still don't want to believe
our race had finished."
Koji
Nakajima, HRC General Team Manager: "Due to the following two
reasons, we cannot consent with the situation which occurred today.
First, although the track condition was dangerous after the lap 1
with oil spray all over it, oil flag was not shown at the main straight.
Another point is that the machines were put on the wrecker and brought
back to the pit following the decision by the organizer. Mr Isoyo
Sugimoto, the Clerk of the Course, explained that it was his decision
to put the machines on the wrecker as he thought it was dangerous
for the riders to push the machine from Turn 1 to the pit. Therefore,
the machines and riders were put on the wrecker against their wishes.
But the organizer stated they were regarded as non-finishers as
they got on the wrecker. The situation is totally unacceptable to
us. In our opinion, the race should have been stopped at the moment
and we think that the organizer is not thinking of the safety seriously.
As we can not accept the situation, we made a protest to the Jury.
However, no answer had been given at the time of 3:00pm. Mean while,
#11 machine (of Hayden's) restarted the race after repairing works,
but was black-flagged.
As
Mr. Fujio Yoshimura had said, spectators who are here this year, are
enthusiasts and were disappointed by the situation where top teams
had disappeared soon after the start. It was lucky that no rider had
been seriously injured today, but we would strongly request to the
organizer to improve their safety measures.
Toru
Ukawa, Seven Stars Honda, dnf: "The track condition in the first
hour was terrible with oil all over it. They should have showed a
red flag then. Many riders had crashed and the pace cars got on the
track twice during the first hour. As the top teams had disappeared,
it was easy pace for me to lead the race after that. It was very disappointing
to retire from the race. But that's racing."
Hitoyasu
Izutsu, Seven Stars Honda, dnf: "When I crashed at hairpin, it
wasn't because of oil. I crashed because there was a slower rider
in front of me. Then after the pit-work, I was trying to catch up
when the machine broke."
Kazuhiko
Yamano, team manager Ukawa - Izutsu: "The reason of the machine
trouble has nothing to do with Izutsu's crash at the hairpin. He was
doing 2m10s trying to catch up. It's disappointing to retire form
the race." Koji Nakajima, HRC General Team Manager: "It's
disappointing as we have to accept the situation where both the Seven
Stars Honda had to retire. We have to apologize to the fans who are
here to support Honda."
Calendar
Girl Strikes Gold
Aug
4, 2003: Joe Millionaire, Evan Marriott, created
quite a stir at Bar on Four in Neiman Marcus, Beverly Hills. He and
his Pamela Anderson look-alike girlfriend, Gabrielle Tuite
a former FastDates.com Calendar girl and featured in the Fast Dates
and Garage Girls Calendar Videos, locked lips
and were all over each other for over half an hour, making out nonstop
like they were teenagers in full view of staff and customers. Then Evan
took his gorgeous gal downstairs to the lingerie department, where HE
picked out a slew of the steamiest, sexiest panties and bras and bought
them for her. The couple was last seen leaving the store, still kissing
all the way out. Gabrielle is also featured in some very sexy pictorials
in our Members Corner.
