1.
Italy
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Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a unitary parliamentary republic in Europe. Located in the heart of the Mediterranean Sea, Italy shares open land borders with France, Switzerland, Austria, Slovenia, San Marino, Italy covers an area of 301,338 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate and Mediterranean climate. Due to its shape, it is referred to in Italy as lo Stivale. With 61 million inhabitants, it is the fourth most populous EU member state, the Italic tribe known as the Latins formed the Roman Kingdom, which eventually became a republic that conquered and assimilated other nearby civilisations. The legacy of the Roman Empire is widespread and can be observed in the distribution of civilian law, republican governments, Christianity. The Renaissance began in Italy and spread to the rest of Europe, bringing a renewed interest in humanism, science, exploration, Italian culture flourished at this time, producing famous scholars, artists and polymaths such as Leonardo da Vinci, Galileo, Michelangelo and Machiavelli. The weakened sovereigns soon fell victim to conquest by European powers such as France, Spain and Austria. Despite being one of the victors in World War I, Italy entered a period of economic crisis and social turmoil. The subsequent participation in World War II on the Axis side ended in defeat, economic destruction. Today, Italy has the third largest economy in the Eurozone and it has a very high level of human development and is ranked sixth in the world for life expectancy. The country plays a prominent role in regional and global economic, military, cultural and diplomatic affairs, as a reflection of its cultural wealth, Italy is home to 51 World Heritage Sites, the most in the world, and is the fifth most visited country. The assumptions on the etymology of the name Italia are very numerous, according to one of the more common explanations, the term Italia, from Latin, Italia, was borrowed through Greek from the Oscan Víteliú, meaning land of young cattle. The bull was a symbol of the southern Italic tribes and was often depicted goring the Roman wolf as a defiant symbol of free Italy during the Social War. Greek historian Dionysius of Halicarnassus states this account together with the legend that Italy was named after Italus, mentioned also by Aristotle and Thucydides. The name Italia originally applied only to a part of what is now Southern Italy – according to Antiochus of Syracuse, but by his time Oenotria and Italy had become synonymous, and the name also applied to most of Lucania as well. The Greeks gradually came to apply the name Italia to a larger region, excavations throughout Italy revealed a Neanderthal presence dating back to the Palaeolithic period, some 200,000 years ago, modern Humans arrived about 40,000 years ago. Other ancient Italian peoples of undetermined language families but of possible origins include the Rhaetian people and Cammuni. Also the Phoenicians established colonies on the coasts of Sardinia and Sicily, the Roman legacy has deeply influenced the Western civilisation, shaping most of the modern world
2.
Ravenna
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Ravenna is the capital city of the Province of Ravenna, in the Emilia-Romagna region of Northern Italy. It was the city of the Western Roman Empire from 402 until that empire collapsed in 476. It then served as the capital of the Kingdom of the Ostrogoths until it was re-conquered in 540 by the Eastern Roman Empire. Afterwards, the city formed the centre of the Byzantine Exarchate of Ravenna until the invasion of the Lombards in 751, although an inland city, Ravenna is connected to the Adriatic Sea by the Candiano Canal. It is known for its well-preserved late Roman and Byzantine architecture, the origin of the name Ravenna is unclear, although it is believed the name is Etruscan. Some have speculated that ravenna is related to Rasenna, the term that the Etruscans used for themselves, the origins of Ravenna are uncertain. Ravenna consisted of houses built on piles on a series of islands in a marshy lagoon – a situation similar to Venice several centuries later. The Romans ignored it during their conquest of the Po River Delta, in 49 BC, it was the location where Julius Caesar gathered his forces before crossing the Rubicon. Later, after his battle against Mark Antony in 31 BC and this harbor, protected at first by its own walls, was an important station of the Roman Imperial Fleet. Nowadays the city is landlocked, but Ravenna remained an important seaport on the Adriatic until the early Middle Ages, during the German campaigns, Thusnelda, widow of Arminius, and Marbod, King of the Marcomanni, were confined at Ravenna. Ravenna greatly prospered under Roman rule, Emperor Trajan built a 70 km long aqueduct at the beginning of the 2nd century. During the Marcomannic Wars, Germanic settlers in Ravenna revolted and managed to seize possession of the city, for this reason, Marcus Aurelius decided not only against bringing more barbarians into Italy, but even banished those who had previously been brought there. In AD402, Emperor Honorius transferred the capital of the Western Roman Empire from Milan to Ravenna, at that time it was home to 50,000 people. However, in 409, King Alaric I of the Visigoths simply bypassed Ravenna, after many vicissitudes, Galla Placidia returned to Ravenna with her son, Emperor Valentinian III and the support of her nephew Theodosius II. The late 5th century saw the dissolution of Roman authority in the west, Odoacer ruled as King of Italy for 13 years, but in 489 the Eastern Emperor Zeno sent the Ostrogoth King Theoderic the Great to re-take the Italian peninsula. After losing the Battle of Verona, Odoacer retreated to Ravenna, Theoderic took Ravenna in 493, supposedly slew Odoacer with his own hands, and Ravenna became the capital of the Ostrogothic Kingdom of Italy. Both Odoacer and Theoderic and their followers were Arian Christians, but co-existed peacefully with the Latins, Ravennas Orthodox bishops carried out notable building projects, of which the sole surviving one is the Capella Arcivescovile. Theoderic allowed Roman citizens within his kingdom to be subject to Roman law, the Goths, meanwhile, lived under their own laws and customs
3.
Ducati Corse
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Ducati Corse is the racing team division of Ducati that deals with the firms involvement in motorcycle racing. It is directed by Claudio Domenicali and is based inside Bologna, more than one hundred people work in Ducati Corse. Ducati Corse currently competes in MotoGP, the Superbike World Championship, between 1998 and 2004 the racing division existed as a subsidiary company named Ducati Corse S. r. l. and fully owned by Ducati Motor Holding. To date, Ducati has one MotoGP world championship for both rider and manufacturer, with Casey Stoner in 2007, in addition Ducati has won multiple Superbike world championships, with Carl Fogarty and Troy Bayliss being the most successful riders. The company is split into four departments, technical research and development is composed of two teams responsible for the design and development of the motorcycles that compete in the MotoGP and Superbike championships. The sporting activities department is responsible for the teams that take part in the MotoGP. The commercial activities department is responsible for providing private teams with motorcycles and it also provides consultancy services and technical assistance to Ducati privateers take part in the Superbike World Championship and in national Superbike championships. From 2004 Ducati Corse also supports a team in MotoGP, supplying bikes. The marketing and communication departments goal is to increase and manage the Ducati brand image in racing and it is also responsible for Ducati Corse official merchandising line. When the MotoGP technical rules changed in the 2002 season, giving priority to four-stroke machinery, Ducatis MotoGP motorcycle was unveiled at the 2002 Italian GP at Mugello, for use in the 2003 MotoGP championship. Ducati began taking part in the MotoGP Championship in the 2003 season and won one title in the 2007 season, Ducati has collected 33 wins,23 by Casey Stoner,7 by Loris Capirossi and each 1 by Troy Bayliss, Andrea Iannone, and Andrea Dovizioso. Marlboro has been the sponsor since 2003, although its name does not currently appear on the teams motorcycle. Loris Capirossi and Troy Bayliss competed in all rounds of the 2003 MotoGP championship, Loris Capirossi, got a podium in the opening round of the championship in Japan and won the Catalan Grand Prix in Barcelona. Capirossi finished fourth in the championship standings and Bayliss sixth. A large part of the 2004 season went by before the bike became competitive, in the 2005 season, Bayliss was replaced by Spains Carlos Checa and Ducati switched tyre suppliers to Bridgestone. Capirossi took two wins at Twin Ring Motegi and Sepang, while Checa scored a brace of podium finishes, spanish rider Sete Gibernau replaced Checa for the 2006 season. The team took its first win of 2006 in the round at Jerez. Capirossi led the championship for a short while, but at the start of the Catalan Grand Prix in Barcelona, both riders ended up injured and in hospital, with Gibernau sustaining a broken collar bone
4.
Grand Prix motorcycle racing
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The FIM Road Racing World Championship Grand Prix is the premier class of motorcycle road racing, held since 1949. Grand Prix motorcycles are purpose-built racing machines that are available for purchase by the general public nor able to be ridden legally on public roads. The championship is divided into three classes, MotoGP, Moto2 and Moto3. All three classes use four-stroke engines, in 2010 the 250cc class was replaced by the new Moto2600 cc four-stroke class. After that, MotoGP gave the four-strokes a 490cc advantage over the two-strokes, a 2 stroke engine produces power with every rotation of the crank, where as the 4 stroke engine produces power every fourth rotation. In theory, a 500cc 2stroke produces the power as a 1000cc 4 stroke. Carburation vs fuel injection, engine mapping, power/torque curves, practice showed the 4 strokes generating 10 to 15 more Hp and turning in much faster lap times then their 2 stroke counterparts. 4 stroke engines would be the choice for years to come. Moto2 and 3 are four-stroke only, a FIM Road Racing World Championship Grand Prix was first organized by the Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme in 1949. The commercial rights are now owned by Dorna Sports, with the FIM remaining as the sanctioning body. Teams are represented by the International Road Racing Teams Association and manufacturers by the Motorcycle Sport Manufacturers Association, rules and changes to regulations are decided between the four entities, with Dorna casting a tie-breaking vote. In cases of technical modifications, the MSMA can unilaterally enact or veto changes by unanimous vote among its members and these four entities compose the Grand Prix Commission. There have traditionally been several races at each event for various classes of motorcycles, based on engine size, and one class for sidecars. Classes for 50 cc,80 cc,125 cc,250 cc,350 cc, and 500 cc solo machines have existed at some time, up through the 1950s and most of the 1960s, four-stroke engines dominated all classes. In part this was due to rules, which allowed a multiplicity of cylinders, in the 1960s, two-stroke engines began to take root in the smaller classes. In 1969, the FIM — citing high development costs for non-works teams — brought in new rules restricting all classes to six gears, by this time, two-strokes completely eclipsed the four-strokes in all classes. The 50 cc class was replaced by an 80 cc class, then the class was dropped entirely in the 1990s, after being dominated primarily by Spanish, the 350 cc class vanished in the 1980s. Sidecars were dropped from world events in the 1990s, reducing the field to 125s, 250s
5.
2003 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season
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The 2003 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season was the 55th F. I. M. The season consisted of 16 races, beginning with the Japanese motorcycle Grand Prix on 6 April 2003 and he soon signed with Yamaha and took Jeremy Burgess with him to be his crew chief. The season was marred by Daijiro Kato being killed at the first round at Suzuka and he lost control of his motorcycle on the approach to the Casio Triangle and hit a barrier at high speed. His heart was restarted by track paramedics, but he did not wake from a coma, controversy arose because the race was not red-flagged to allow Kato to be removed from the track with maximum care. Suzuka has since removed from the MotoGP calendar. Teammate Sete Gibernau would inherit Katos factory-spec RC211V, MotoGP rookies for 2003 included Nicky Hayden, Troy Bayliss, Marco Melandri and Colin Edwards. A new constructor also arrived, Ducati, after much success in Superbike racing, Ducati returned to the premier-class of GP with their GP3. It made an impression with its raw speed, and they finished the constructors championship in second place, ahead of Yamaha. Points are awarded to the top fifteen finishers, rider has to finish the race to earn points. Riders marked with blue background are eligible for Rookie of the Year awards. Rounds marked with a blue background were under wet race conditions or stopped by rain. Results as follows Result as follows The Official MotoGP website
6.
2010 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season
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The 2010 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season was the 62nd F. I. M. It was the first season for the new Moto2 class, jorge Lorenzo was crowned MotoGP World Champion for the first time, after he finished third in the Malaysian Grand Prix on 10 October. Second in the championship was Dani Pedrosa,138 points behind Lorenzo, the only other rider to win races during the season was Casey Stoner, who finished fourth in the championship. Stoner won three races in the half of the season, winning the inaugural race in Aragón, as well as the races at Motegi. Second place went to Julián Simón, who despite not winning a race, third place in the championship went to Andrea Iannone, who achieved three victories but lost out on runner-up in the championship to Simón by just two points. Other riders to win races were Jules Cluzel, Yuki Takahashi, Roberto Rolfo, Alex de Angelis, Stefan Bradl and Karel Abraham. Spanish riders once again dominated the 125cc championship, with a 26-race winning streak for Spanish riders only being broken by Bradley Smith at the race of the season in Valencia. The top three championship placings went to Spanish riders as Marc Márquez won the championship ahead of Nicolás Terol and Pol Espargaró. With ten victories, Márquez became the second youngest World Champion ever at the age of 17 years,263 days, Smith was best non-Spanish rider, in fourth place. A number of changes were enacted for the 2010 season. Despite this, two Friday practice sessions were held in Aragón and the two races. From 2010 on, rookies in the MotoGP class are permitted to sign only with privately owned teams, suzuki are exempt from this rule, as they only run one factory team and have no satellite teams. The Moto2 class replaced the 250cc class for 2010, the original intention was for Moto2 bikes to run alongside the existing 250cc machinery, however the entry list consisted of Moto2 machines only. The new class aimed to be economical, with such as limiting electronics, the ban of carbon-fibre brakes. All Moto2 bikes use a mandatory 600 cc Honda engine, which are prepared by Hondas European specialized tuner Ten Kate, control tyres for the new series were provided by Dunlop only, despite early intentions of leaving tyre specifications free. The provisional calendar was announced on 10 November 2009, in case a circuit was not able to hold a scheduled Grand Prix, a reserve race would take place on the same day at the Motorland Aragón circuit. This was updated six days later, with a change for the Czech round. On 19 April 2010, it was announced that the Japanese Grand Prix would be moved to 3 October, † = Night Race †† = Saturday Race ‡ = MotoGP class only Points were awarded to the top fifteen finishers
7.
2015 MotoGP season
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The 2015 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season was the 67th F. I. M. Marc Márquez started the season as the defending champion, having won his second consecutive title in 2014. Lorenzo started the season quietly with three finishes off the podium, whereas Rossi took wins in Qatar and Argentina, thereafter, Lorenzo took four successive wins for the first time in his career to bring himself back into the championship race, before Rossi won at Assen. Lorenzo did not win again until Brno, taking the lead on countback, but ceded it back to Rossi. Lorenzo crashed out at Misano, while Rossi finished fifth – ending a 16-race streak of podium finishes – after both Yamaha riders were out by wet weather. In the final five races, Rossi finished ahead of Lorenzo once, as Lorenzo continued to close the gap, at a maximum of 23 after Misano. At the final race, Lorenzo took his seventh win of the season, Rossi had lost the title under controversial circumstances, following a coming together on track with reigning champion Márquez amid accusations of unsportsmanlike conduct. The only other rider to win a race during the season was Márquezs Repsol Honda team-mate, Pedrosa missed three races at the start of the season, after electing to undergo surgery to alleviate issues with arm-pump. Upon his return, he did not podium until Catalunya, and ultimately, the 2015 season also saw several moments of controversy between the main championship contenders. In Argentina, Rossi chased Márquez down for the lead before the two collided on the penultimate lap. Rossi stayed upright but Márquez was unable to rejoin, Rossi later spoke of Márquez as an all or nothing rider. Rossi and Márquez again collided at Assen on the lap, Rossi rejoined the circuit through the gravel and went on to win the race. At Misano, Rossi was given a penalty point on his licence, Rossi accused Márquez of helping Lorenzo in his title aspirations at Phillip Island, in the pre-event press conference at Sepang, a claim that Márquez refuted. The most significant of the clashes came during the Sepang race, Rossi, after a series of 18 overtakes and exchanges of positions between the two, Rossi made a move on Márquez at Turn 14, pushing Márquez to the outside of the circuit. The two riders made contact and Márquez fell from his bike and he remounted and returned to the pits but had to retire from the race. Rossi maintained the third place that the pair had been battling over until the end of the race, after the race, race direction reviewed the incident and deemed Rossi at fault for the collision, and three penalty points were added to his licence. With this, it meant that Rossi would have to start the race in Valencia from the back of the grid. On the podium, Lorenzo made a gesture showing his disapproval at the move, Rossi voiced his regret at his move on Márquez, while Márquez stood his ground on his riding style in Malaysia
8.
Yamaha Motor Company
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Yamaha Motor Company Limited is a Japanese manufacturer of motorcycles, marine products such as boats and outboard motors, and other motorized products. The company was established in 1955 upon separation from Yamaha Corporation, the company conducts development, production and marketing operations through 109 consolidated subsidiaries as of 2012. Led by Genichi Kawakami, the company’s first president, Yamaha Motor began production of its first product, Yamahas initial product was a 125cc two-cycle, single cylinder motorcycle, the YA-1, which was a copy of the German DKW RT125. Yamaha began competing internationally in 1956 when they entered the Catalina Grand Prix, again with the YA-1, the YA-1 was followed by the YA-2 of 1957, another 125cc two stroke, but with significantly improved frame and suspension. The YD-1 of 1957 was a 250cc two-stroke twin cylinder motorcycle, resembling the YA-2, a performance version of this bike, the YDS-1 housed the 250cc two-stroke twin in a double downtube cradle frame and offered the first five-speed transmission in a Japanese motorcycle. This period also saw Yamaha offer its first outboard marine engine, by 1963 Yamahas dedication to both the two-stroke engine and racing paid off with their first victory in international competition, at the Belgium GP, where they won the 250cc class. Success in sales was even more impressive, and Yamaha set up the first of its subsidiaries in this period beginning with Thailand in 1964. 1965 saw the release of a 305cc two-stroke twin, the flagship of the companies lineup and it featured a separate oil supply which directly injected oil into the gasoline prior to combustion. In 1967 a new larger displacement model was added to the range, in 1968 Yamaha launched their first four-stroke motorcycle, the XS-1. Not until 1976 would Yamaha answer the other Japanese brands with a four stroke of their own. The XS-750 a 750cc triple cylinder machine with shaft drive was introduced almost seven years after Hondas breakthrough bike. Yamahas first four-cylinder model, the XS-1100 followed in 1978, again with shaft drive, despite being heavier and more touring oriented than its rivals it produced an impressive string of victories in endurance racing. The 1970s also saw some of the first dedicated off-road bikes for off-road racing, Yamaha was an early innovator in dirt-bike technology, and introduced the first single-shock rear suspension, the trademarked Monoshock of 1973. It appeared in production on the 1974 Yamaha YZ-250, a model which has continued in production, with updates, until 2015, making it Yamahas longest continuous model. Yamaha continued racing throughout the 1960s and 1970s with increasing success in several formats, the decade of the 1970s was capped by the XT500 winning the first Paris-Dakar Rally in 1979. By 1980 the combination of consumer preference and environmental regulation made four strokes increasingly popular, suzuki ended production of their GT two stroke series, including the flagship water-cooled two-stroke 750cc GT-750 in 1977. Kawasaki, who had success throughout the 1970s with their two-stroke triples of 250cc, 350cc, 500cc and 750cc ended production of road-going two strokes in 1980. Yamaha bucked this trend and continued to refine and sell two-strokes for the street into the 1980s and these bikes were performance oriented, water-cooled twin cylinder machines, designed to achieve excellent performance taking advantage of the lower weight of two strokes
9.
2004 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season
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The 2004 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season was the 56th F. I. M. The video game MotoGP4 is loosely based on this season, rossis move to Yamaha, therefore, was a gamble on a manufacturer that hadnt had a world championship in 12 years. Runner-up Sete Gibernau gave Rossi a strong challenge initially, but faded towards the end of the season, the friendship between him and Rossi frayed over the season, and snapped completely at the Qatar round. Conditions dried enough that the riders started the new race in slicks instead of wet-weather tires, in 2005 the rules were changed so that rain would no longer stop a race in MotoGP. Rookie of the Year was Rubén Xaus, points are awarded to the top fifteen finishers. Rider has to finish the race to earn points, riders marked with light blue background are eligible for Rookie of the Year awards. Rounds marked with blue background were under wet race conditions
10.
Honda
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Honda Motor Co. Ltd. is a Japanese public multinational conglomerate corporation primarily known as a manufacturer of automobiles, aircraft, motorcycles, and power equipment. Honda became the second-largest Japanese automobile manufacturer in 2001, Honda was the eighth largest automobile manufacturer in the world behind General Motors, Volkswagen Group, Toyota, Hyundai Motor Group, Ford, Nissan, and PSA Peugeot Citroën in 2011. Honda was the first Japanese automobile manufacturer to release a luxury brand, Acura. Aside from their automobile and motorcycle businesses, Honda also manufactures garden equipment, marine engines, personal watercraft and power generators. Since 1986, Honda has been involved with artificial intelligence/robotics research and they have also ventured into aerospace with the establishment of GE Honda Aero Engines in 2004 and the Honda HA-420 HondaJet, which began production in 2012. Honda has three joint-ventures in China, in 2013, Honda invested about 5. 7% of its revenues in research and development. Also in 2013, Honda became the first Japanese automaker to be a net exporter from the United States, exporting 108,705 Honda and Acura models, throughout his life, Hondas founder, Soichiro Honda had an interest in automobiles. He worked as a mechanic at the Art Shokai garage, where he tuned cars, in 1937, with financing from his acquaintance Kato Shichirō, Honda founded Tōkai Seiki to make piston rings working out of the Art Shokai garage. After initial failures, Tōkai Seiki won a contract to supply piston rings to Toyota, Honda also aided the war effort by assisting other companies in automating the production of military aircraft propellers. The relationships Honda cultivated with personnel at Toyota, Nakajima Aircraft Company, with a staff of 12 men working in a 16 m2 shack, they built and sold improvised motorized bicycles, using a supply of 500 two-stroke 50 cc Tohatsu war surplus radio generator engines. When the engines ran out, Honda began building their own copy of the Tohatsu engine and this was the Honda A-Type, nicknamed the Bata Bata for the sound the engine made. In 1949, the Honda Technical Research Institute was liquidated for ¥1,000,000, or about US$5,000 today, at about the same time Honda hired engineer Kihachiro Kawashima, and Takeo Fujisawa who provided indispensable business and marketing expertise to complement Soichiro Hondas technical bent. The close partnership between Soichiro Honda and Fujisawa lasted until they stepped down together in October 1973, the first complete motorcycle, with both the frame and engine made by Honda, was the 1949 D-Type, the first Honda to go by the name Dream. Honda Motor Company grew in a time to become the worlds largest manufacturer of motorcycles by 1964. The first production automobile from Honda was the T360 mini pick-up truck, powered by a small 356-cc straight-4 gasoline engine, it was classified under the cheaper Kei car tax bracket. The first production car from Honda was the S500 sports car and its chain-driven rear wheels pointed to Hondas motorcycle origins. Over the next few decades, Honda worked to expand its line and expanded operations. In 1986, Honda introduced the successful Acura brand to the American market in an attempt to ground in the luxury vehicle market
11.
2007 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season
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The 2007 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season was the 59th F. I. M Road Racing World Championship season. Casey Stoner won the MotoGP title, winning 10 of the 18 races to finish with a lead of 125 points over second placed Dani Pedrosa, jorge Lorenzo won his second 250cc title, and Gábor Talmácsi won the 125cc title. Stoner had a breakthrough season on the Ducati, the team winning its first world title on the Grand Prix scene. It was also the first time since 1973 that the category had not been won by a Japanese constructor. The new 800 cc Ducati engine had a significant advantage over the manufacturers in straightline speed but was tricky to ride through corners for Stoners experienced teammate Loris Capirossi. Up to the end of 2006, speculation suggested that Honda would have the advantage of the new 800cc engines, in practice, Honda suffered the most from the regulation change, with only Dani Pedrosa and Marco Melandri making any impression on the leaders. Stoner scored a string of wins for Ducati, Suzuki saw Chris Vermeulen take their first win since the advent of four-stroke regulations, the Kawasaki team also made progress with improved results. In addition to the capacity reduction, MotoGP teams were restricted to 31 tires per race weekend per rider. This change seemed to have favored the Bridgestones wider performance range over the more temperature-, pressure from top riders and declining viewership led Dorna CEO Carmelo Ezpeleta to propose a single-tire manufacturer for MotoGP. Points are awarded to the top fifteen finishers, rider has to finish the race to earn points. Riders marked with blue background were eligible for Rookie of the Year awards. Each manufacturer got the amount of points as their best placed rider in each Grand Prix. † Ilmor withdrew before Spanish race, on 15 March 2007, Mario Illien of Ilmor announced that the team would be taking a break from the Moto GP series as a result of funding issues. During practice for the Chinese GP, Olivier Jacque injured his arm in a practice crash and he missed his home race, at Le Mans, and was replaced by Fonsi Nieto. Team Roberts announced that they would expand to a bike from the Mugello race onwards. Kenny Roberts, Jr. withdrew from the series in June, in those rounds the sole KR212V was ridden by his brother Kurtis. On 21 June, it was announced that Anthony West would be replacing Olivier Jacque at Kawasaki for the remainder of the season, during practice for the Dutch TT, Toni Elías broke his left femur. He was replaced by Michel Fabrizio at the German Grand Prix, chaz Davies was invited to take his ride for the remainder of the weekend despite having no experience on any MotoGP bike or Bridgestone tyres
12.
Ducati
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Ducati Motor Holding S. p. A. is an Italian company that designs and manufactures motorcycles. Headquartered in Bologna, Italy, Ducati is owned by German automotive manufacturer Audi through its Italian subsidiary Lamborghini, in 1935 they had become successful enough to enable construction of a new factory in the Borgo Panigale area of the city. Production was maintained during World War II, despite the Ducati factory being a target of Allied bombing. Meanwhile, at the small Turinese firm SIATA, Aldo Farinelli began developing a small engine for mounting on bicycles. Barely a month after the liberation of Italy in 1944, SIATA announced its intention to sell this engine. In 1950, after more than 200,000 Cucciolos had been sold, in collaboration with SIATA and this first Ducati motorcycle was a 48 cc bike weighing 98 pounds, with a top speed of 40 mph, and had a 15 mm carburetor giving just under 200 mpg‑US. Ducati soon dropped the Cucciolo name in favor of 55M and 65TL, when the market moved toward larger motorcycles, Ducati management decided to respond, making an impression at an early-1952 Milan show, introducing their 65TS cycle and Cruiser. In 1953, management split the company into two entities, Ducati Meccanica SpA and Ducati Elettronica, in acknowledgment of its diverging motorcycle. Ducati Elettronica became Ducati Energia SpA in the eighties, dr. Giuseppe Montano took over as head of Ducati Meccanica SpA and the Borgo Panigale factory was modernized with government assistance. By 1954, Ducati Meccanica SpA had increased production to 120 bikes a day, in the 1960s, Ducati earned its place in motorcycling history by producing the fastest 250 cc road bike then available, the Mach 1. In the 1970s Ducati began producing large-displacement V-twin motorcycles and in 1973, in 1985, Cagiva bought Ducati and planned to rebadge Ducati motorcycles with the Cagiva name. By the time the purchase was completed, Cagiva kept the Ducati name on its motorcycles, in 1999, TPG issued an initial public offering of Ducati stock and renamed the company Ducati Motor Holding SpA. TPG sold over 65% of its shares in Ducati, leaving TPG the majority shareholder, in December 2005, Ducati returned to Italian ownership with the sale of Texas Pacifics stake to Investindustrial Holdings, the investment fund of Carlo and Andrea Bonomi. In April 2012, Volkswagen Groups Audi subsidiary announced its intention to buy Ducati for €860 million, Volkswagen chairman Ferdinand Piëch, a motorcycle enthusiast, had long coveted Ducati, and had regretted that he passed up an opportunity to buy the company from the Italian government in 1984. Italian luxury car brand Lamborghini was strengthened under VW ownership, AUDI AGs Automobili Lamborghini S. p. A. subsidiary acquired 100 percent of the shares of Ducati Motor Holding S. p. A. on 19 July 2012 for €747 million. Since 1926, Ducati has been owned by a number of groups, AUDI AG acquired 100% of the voting rights of Ducati Motor Holding S. p. A. via Audis Automobili Lamborghini S. p. A. MotoTranss most notable machine was the 250 cc 24 Horas, Ducati is best known for high-performance motorcycles characterized by large-capacity four-stroke, 90° V-twin engines, with a desmodromic valve design. Ducati refers to this configuration as L-twin because one cylinder is vertical while the other is horizontal, modern Ducatis remain among the dominant performance motorcycles available today partly because of the desmodromic valve design, which is nearing its 50th year of use
13.
2008 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season
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The 2008 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season was the 60th F. I. M. The MotoGP class opened with the historic Qatar Grand Prix, the first night race held in the World Championship history. The race was won by Ducatis Casey Stoner ahead of rookie Jorge Lorenzo, who started on pole in the first race in the top class, and Dani Pedrosa. In Spain Pedrosa won his first race of the year, ahead of Rossi and Lorenzo, while Stoner struggled with problems on his bike. At the Portugal GP, Lorenzo started on pole and won his first MotoGP race, ahead of Pedrosa, Stoner won the three consecutive races in Britain, the Netherlands and Germany, also obtaining pole position and the fastest lap in all three. The United States race at Laguna Seca was the biggest turning point of the season, before the race Stoner trailed Rossi on the standings by only 20 points. The Australian took pole position and started the race in first position, however, Rossi passed Stoner in the middle on the first lap, and Stoner could never make a decisive pass, and he stayed behind until the 24th lap, where he fell at the last corner. He re-mounted, but finished in place while Rossi caught the first of five consecutive wins. In the next two races, Czech Republic and San Marino, Stoner fell off while leading from Rossi, as Rossi began to pull a gap, heavy winds began to blow and the race was ended early with Rossi leading. Two weeks later, in Japan, Rossi clinched his sixth premier class title with three races to go, by winning the race ahead of Stoner, the Australian then won his home race and in Valencia, while Rossi won in Malaysia. After the initial problems, though, Simoncelli had a run of 7 consecutive races on the podium and he started the season on a semi-works Aprilia LE, but his performances led Aprilia to give him a works Aprilia RSA, making him a de facto works rider. After his strong start, Kallio couldnt keep the pace of Simoncelli, bautista got into shape well into the season, after a series of bad races and retirements due to problems with his bike and rider errors. Reigning champion Gábor Talmácsi stayed in the class, unlike other top names from last year who moved into 250cc category, among the pre-season favourites were also Bradley Smith, Simone Corsi and Mike di Meglio. Talmácsi had dismal start to the season, with reliability problems on his new bike, Corsi won three of first six races and despite few bad results, looked good in the championship. However, Mike di Meglio won also multiple races, and having escaped without retirement until Misano and he clinched the championship two races before the end. Corsi took second ahead of Talmácsi and Bradl who failed to finish the final race, the season was completely dominated by the Piaggio bikes, as Spanish Marc Márquez was only other rider to achieve podium place with his 3rd place in Donington. The 2008 race schedule was released on July 2007, the schedule was later revised, with Japan held before Australia, because of the original Australian date had a conflict with the AFL Grand Final. Portugal was moved from 20 April to 13 April and the Grand Finale in Valencia was on 26 October instead of 2 November
14.
Kawasaki Heavy Industries
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/kaʊ. əˈsɑːki/ is a Japanese public multinational corporation primarily known as a manufacturer of motorcycles, heavy equipment, aerospace and defense equipment, rolling stock and ships. It is also active in the production of industrial robots, gas turbines, boilers, the company is named after its founder Shōzō Kawasaki, and has dual headquarters in Chūō-ku, Kobe and Minato, Tokyo. KHI is known as one of the three major industrial manufacturers of Japan, alongside Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and IHI. Prior to World War II, KHI was part of the Kobe Kawasaki zaibatsu, after the war, KHI became part of the DKB Group. Kawasaki is active in a range of the aerospace industry. It is currently developing two large, next-generation aircraft, the XP-1 maritime patrol airplane and the XC-2 transport aircraft, Kawasaki also builds helicopters, including the BK117, jointly developed and manufactured with MBB. It also produces the CH-47J / JA helicopter, in the commercial aviation business, the company is involved in the joint international development and production of large passenger aircraft. It is involved in joint development and production of the Boeing 767, Boeing 777 and Boeing 787 with The Boeing Company, and the 170,175,190 and 195 jets with Empresa Brasileira de Aeronáutica. It is also involved in the joint international development and production of engines for passenger aircraft such as the V2500, the RB211/Trent, the PW4000. Kawasaki also works for the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, the Company was responsible for the development and production of the payload fairings, payload attach fittings and the construction of the launch complex for the H-II rocket. It continues to provide services for the H-IIA rocket, main products Aircraft Space systems Helicopters Simulators Jet engines Missiles Electronic equipment Kawasaki is Japan’s largest manufacturer of rolling stock. It began operations in the industry in 1906 and it manufactures express and commuter trains, subway cars, freight trains, locomotives, monorails and new transit systems. Kawasaki is also involved in the development and design of high-speed trains such as Japan’s Shinkansen and its product range include high-performance LNG and LPG carriers, container ships, bulk carriers and VLCCs, as well as submarines. The Company is also involved in the development of offshore structures, Kawasaki also produces marine machinery and equipment, including main engines, propulsion systems, steering gears, deck and fishing machinery. It also offers industrial plant engineering from design to sales, main products Industrial plants Industrial robots Aerodynamic machinery Hydraulic equipment Kawasaki is involved in the development of equipment that prevents pollution in a wide range of industries. Among the leading products are fuel gas desulfurization and denitrification systems, the Company also supplies municipal refuse incineration plants, gasification and melting systems, sewage treatment and sludge incineration plants. Kawasaki has also been developing systems that enable a range of municipal and industrial waste to be recovered, recycled. The company offers of storage solutions for LNG, Kawasaki’s portfolio also includes retractable roofs, floors and other giant structures, for construction, Kawasaki produces products such as wheel loaders, tunnel machines, rollers, snowplows and purpose specific loaders
15.
2009 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season
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The 2009 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season was the 61st F. I. M. Valentino Rossi won his sixth MotoGP title, seventh in the top class, in the final 250cc championship, Hiroshi Aoyama became the third Japanese rider to win that title, after Tetsuya Harada and Daijiro Kato. In the 125cc class, Julián Simón won the title after taking seven victories during the season, the MotoGP season was marked by dominance by the Yamaha duo Rossi and Lorenzo, with occasional wins for Dani Pedrosa and Casey Stoner. Riding the factory Ducati,2007 champion Stoner won the opener in Qatar as well as a race in Italy to open up a championship lead after six rounds. As announced during 2008, MotoGP class switched to a single-tyre manufacturer, the move was made to try to improve safety by reducing cornering speeds, and in a marginal way for cost reasons, the winner was decided by bid. Michelin, one of the two tyre suppliers in 2008, decided not to bid for the supply, effectively declaring Bridgestone the winner, Bridgestone will be the sole tyre supplier from 2009 to 2011. Only race spec tyres will be provided to the teams, eliminating qualifying tyres, other cost-cutting manoeuvers were made during the winter prior to the season, to try to contain the rising costs of the sport, especially during a period of economic downturn. FIM was especially concerned, fearing that defections among private and factory teams could leave the grid with 14 bikes only, after negotiations between FIM, Dorna and MSMA, new measures were adopted. The team ran under the Hayate Racing banner, as announced on 1 March 2009, the 2009 revised race schedule was released on 24 October 2008. A Hungarian round was scheduled for 20 September 2009 but the organizers asked Dorna to postpone the event to 2010 due to delays in the construction of the Balatonring circuit. Due to adverse conditions, the Qatar MotoGP race was postponed until 13 April. ‡ = Night Race Points are awarded to the top fifteen finishers, rider has to finish the race to earn points. Riders marked with blue background are eligible for Rookie of the Year awards. Rounds marked with blue background were under wet race conditions. † Half-points awarded in Qatar, as the riders did not complete the sufficient distance for full points, † Half-points awarded in Qatar, as the riders did not complete the sufficient distance for full points. All entries taken from the official MotoGP site, note 1, Mika Kallio replaced Casey Stoner in Czech GP, Indianapolis GP and San Marino GP. Note 2, Michel Fabrizio replaced Mika Kallio in Czech GP, note 3, Aleix Espargaró replaced Mika Kallio in Indianapolis GP and San Marino GP. He also replaced Niccolò Canepa in Malaysian GP and Valencian GP, with the exception of Japanese wildcard riders, who use Bridgestone, all entries use Dunlop tyres
16.
Aprilia
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Aprilia is an Italian motorcycle company, one of the marques owned by Piaggio. Having started as a manufacturer of bicycles it moved on to manufacture scooters, in more recent times Aprilia has produced large sportbikes such as the 1,000 cc V-twin RSV Mille and the V4 RSV4. Aprilia has enjoyed success in road-racing. Aprilia was founded after the Second World War by Cavaliere Alberto Beggio, as a production factory at Noale. Alberto’s son, Ivano Beggio, took over the helm of the company in 1968, the first production Aprilia mopeds were named Colibrì, Daniela and Packi. Aprilia later produced a motocross bike in 1970 called the Scarabeo, produced until the end of the 1970s, the Scarabeo came in 50 and 125 cc versions. In 1977 Ivan Alborghetti from Milan, Italy won the Italian 125 and 250 cc motorcross championships on Aprilias, in 1978 Alborghetti closed the season with two third places in individual races and sixth place in the World Championship. In the 1980s Aprilia added enduro, trials and road bikes of between 50 and 600 cc, in 1981 Aprilia introduced the TL320 trials machine. In 1983 Aprilia launched to St 125 road bike, in 1984 Aprilia launched an improved model called STX, and an enduro, called the ET50. In 1985, Aprilia started outsourcing engines for some models to the Austrian company Rotax, in 1985 Aprilia launched a 125 STX and 350 STX. In 1986 Aprilia launched the AF1, a sports model, and the Tuareg. Two seasons later, on August 30,1987, at San Marino Grand Prix in Misano Loris Reggianis AF1 won the first World Speed Championship, in 1990 Aprilia launched the Pegaso 600, a road bike derived from off-road mechanics. Later, in 1992 Aprilia rider Alessandro Gramigni won the World 125 Road Racing Championship title, also in 1992, Tommy Ahvala won the World Trials Championship on an Aprilia Climber. Since then, Aprilia has 124 times won 125 and 250 cc class Grand Prix,15 Road Racing World Championship titles, many world champions started on Aprilia such as Biaggi, Capirossi, Gramigni, Locatelli, Sakata and Rossi. Also in the 1990s, Aprilia entered the market starting in 1990 with Italy’s first all-plastic scooter. In 1992, Aprilia introduced the Amico LK and the two stroke Pegaso 125, both with catalytic converters, in 1993 Aprilia launched a large diameter wheel scooter reusing the name Scarabeo with a four-stroke, four-valve engine. Later Aprilia launched more scooters such as the Leonardo, the SR, in 1995, Aprilia commissioned Philippe Starck to design the Motò which was shown in New York’s Modern Art Museum. Also in 1995 Aprilia launched the two stroke RS125 and RS250 sports bikes, in 1998 Aprilia launched what is its current flagship model the RSV Mille, a 1000cc V-Twin Superbike, and the Falco, a 1000cc V-Twin sport tourer with emphasis on sport
17.
Pole position
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In motorsport the pole position is the position at the inside of the front row at the start of a racing event. This position is given to the vehicle and driver with the best qualifying time in the trials before the race. This number-one qualifying driver is referred to as the pole sitter, historically, the fastest qualifier was not necessarily the designated pole-sitter. Different sanctioning bodies in motor sport employ different qualifying formats in designating who starts from pole position, often, a starting grid is derived either by current rank in the championship, or based on finishing position of a previous race. In contrast to contemporary motorsport, where only a participant is designated pole-sitter, prior to World War II. The term has its origins in horse racing, in which the fastest qualifying horse would be placed on the part of the course. Originally in Grand Prix racing, grid positions, including pole, were determined by lottery among the drivers, prior to the inception of the Formula 1 World Championship, the first instance of grid positions being determined by qualifying times was at the 1933 Monaco Grand Prix. Since then, the FIA have introduced many different qualifying systems to F1, between 1996 and 2006, the FIA made 6 significant changes to the qualifying procedure, each with the intention of making the battle for pole more interesting to an F1 viewer at home. Traditionally, pole was always occupied by the fastest driver due to low-fuel qualifying, the race-fuel qualifying era between 2003 and 2009 briefly changed this. Despite the changing formats, drivers attempting pole were required between 2003 and 2009 to do qualifying laps with the fuel they would use to start the race the next day. An underfuelled slower car and driver would therefore be able to take pole ahead of a better, in this situation, pole was not always advantageous to have in the race as the under-fueled driver would have to pit for more fuel before their rivals. With the race refueling ban introduced, low-fuel qualifying returned and these decisions are no longer in play. Since the reintroduction of the rule in 2011, this applies to the quickest first session time. Since 2014, the FIA has awarded a trophy to the driver who wins the most pole positions in the season, indicates that the driver won the World Championship in the same season. IndyCar uses four formats for qualifying, one for most oval tracks, one for Iowa Speedway, one for the Indianapolis 500, and another for road and street circuits. Oval qualifying is almost like the Indianapolis 500, with two laps, instead of four, averaged together with one attempt, although with just one session. At Iowa, each car takes one qualifying lap, and the top six cars advance to the race for the pole position. The result of the race determines positions 1–10
18.
2000 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season
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The 2000 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season was the 52nd F. I. M. Kenny Roberts, Jr. fulfilled the promise of his 2nd place in 1999 by winning the championship for 2000 with 2 races to spare. Defending champion Àlex Crivillé had a season, bothered by an undetermined illness. Said Jeremy Burgess, In the middle of the corner, in the transition of getting back onto the power and you couldnt transfer the weight with the throttle from the front to the rear without feeling this weakness. That led to a tendency to over-open the throttle… and things would happen, by the third round, Honda started going back to much of the 1999 parts, though Rossi and Burgess decided to use the 2000 chassis with the 1999 engine. Rounds marked with a blue background were under wet race conditions or stopped by rain. Rounds marked with a blue background were under wet race conditions or stopped by rain. Rounds marked with a blue background were under wet race conditions or stopped by rain. Chronosports S. A. ISBN 2-940125-32-5 The Official MotoGP website
19.
2002 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season
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The 2002 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season was the 54th Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme Road Racing World Championship season. The season consist of 16 races, which started with the Japanese Grand Prix on 7 April, in the premier class, 990cc four-stroke bikes were introduced as the new rules and regulations allowed those bikes to race alongside the previous years 500cc two-stroke bikes. Defending champion Valentino Rossi won his second premier class title by winning 11 races and he clinched the title at the Rio de Janeiro Grand Prix, with four races left in the season. The 250cc title was won by Marco Melandri who won nine races and he clinched the title at the Australian Grand Prix and became the youngest ever champion in the 250cc class. Arnaud Vincent won the 125cc title by 19 points difference over defending champion Manuel Poggiali, the title was decided in the last race of the season at Valencia with Vincent finishing in second place to secure the title. The season marked the start of a new era in the class with the arrival of 990cc four-stroke bikes. Four factory teams, Repsol Honda, Marlboro Yamaha, Suzuki and Aprilia, the season also marked the return of Dunlop and the entry of Bridgestone to the premier class. However, after two races, Suzuki switched back to Michelin tyres for the remainder of the season. Valentino Rossi, riding the four-stroke Honda RC211V bike, won the first race of the season at Suzuka under wet conditions, suzukis test rider Akira Ryō, who raced as a wildcard entry, and Yamahas Carlos Checa completed the all four-stroke podium. Rossis teammate, Tohru Ukawa, won the race before Rossi went on to dominate the championship by winning seven consecutive races. Max Biaggi handed the four-stroke Yamaha YZR-M1 its first win in the Czech Republic Grand Prix at Brno, in that race, Honda also expanded their four-stroke presence by providing the RC211V bike for Honda Gresini rider Daijiro Kato. Rossi then won two races in Portugal and Brazil, clinching the world championship in the latter. In the Pacific Grand Prix, Honda Pons rider Alex Barros won his first race riding the RC211V bike, in that race, Kawasaki returned to the world championship after 20 years absence. Kawasaki, with their four-stroke Ninja ZX-RR, raced as wildcards in the last four races of the season as a preparation before entering the championship full-time in the following season. In the following race at Sepang, Yamaha expanded their presence by providing the YZR-M1 bikes to Tech 3 pair Olivier Jacque. Another Yamaha rider, Norifumi Abe, raced the fifth YZR-M1 on the grid for the last two races of the season, Rossi ended the season with 355 points from 11 wins and four second places. Biaggi finished second to Rossi with 215 points and two race wins, Ukawa and Barros completed the top four with 209 and 204 points respectively. Previous years 250cc champion Daijiro Kato finished in position with two podium finishes and was named as the Rookie of the Year
20.
1997 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season
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The 1997 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season was the 49th F. I. M. A fourth world championship in a row for Hondas Mick Doohan with another dominating performance and he broke Giacomo Agostinis record for victories in one season with 12 wins. It was also dominating year for Honda with eight of the top ten riders aboard Hondas, the Yamaha and Suzuki teams were in disarray. Kenny Roberts left Yamaha to start his own venture with a lightweight, wayne Raineys team was left with the inconsistent Norifumi Abe and Sete Gibernau, a rookie. Daryl Beattie wasnt able to back from head injuries and retired at the end of the year while Anthony Gobert failed a drug test and was dismissed by the Suzuki team. The Elf team soldiered on with their Swiss-Auto V4 but Aprilia decided to pull their V twin from the 500 class at the end of the year. Max Biaggi had a harder time defending his title from Tetsuya Harada and Ralf Waldmann, a new star emerged from the 125 class with Valentino Rossi winning 11 races for a commanding win on an Aprilia. Sources Source Source Source Source Source Schertenleib, Jean-Claude, Büla, Maurice
21.
1999 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season
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The 1999 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season was the 51st F. I. M. The dominant reign of Hondas Mick Doohan came to an end with serious injuries suffered in practice for the Spanish Grand Prix, in his absence, his Honda team-mate Àlex Crivillé stepped forward and claimed Spains first-ever 500cc world championship. Kenny Roberts, Jr. gave a performance to finish in second with four victories including an outright victory over Doohan in Japan. A young Valentino Rossi continued to impress for Aprilia, winning nine races and claiming his second world championship, Source Source Source Büla, Maurice & Schertenleib, Jean-Claude. Chronosports S. A. ISBN 2-940125-32-5 The Official MotoGP website
22.
Superbike World Championship
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Superbike World Championship is the worldwide Superbike racing Championship. The championship was founded in 1988, the Superbike World Championship consists of a series of rounds held on permanent racing facilities. Each round has two races and the results of each race are combined to two annual World Championships, one for riders and one for manufacturers. The motorcycles that race in the championship are tuned versions of motorcycles available for sale to the public, MotoGP is the motorcycle worlds equivalent of Formula One, whereas Superbike racing is similar to touring car racing. Europe is Superbike World Championships traditional centre and leading market, an Indonesian race was also proposed for the 2008 season, but this was later canceled by the FIM. The championship is regulated by the FIM, the governing body of motorcycle racing. FGSport became part of the Infront Group in 2007 and in 2008 was rebranded as Infront Motor Sports, as of 2013 the championship is organised by Dorna. The Superbike World Championship began in 1988, being open to modified versions of road bike models available to the public, for many years, the formula allowed for machines with 1,000 cc V-twin engines to go up against the 750 cc four-cylinder engines. For the first few seasons Honda won with the RC30, using 1,000 cc V-twin engines benefited Ducati and it was able to dominate the championship for many years, but the 750 cc was second or third each year between 1994 and 1999. Held under the FIM, the Formula TT from 1977 to 1989 once constituted the official motorcycle World Cup. Having proven itself both popular and commercially viable, it was decided by the end of the 1990 season to end the Formula TT, from 1993 to 1999 Carl Fogarty and Ducati dominated, Fogarty won the title a record 4 times and finished as runner-up twice on factory Ducatis. Troy Corser also won the 1996 title and finished as runner-up in 1995, realizing that 1,000 cc V-twin engines suited the superbike racing formula more, Honda introduced its own V-Twin powered motorcycle the VTR1000 SPW in 2000. The result was clear right away as Colin Edwards won the championship in the bikes first year of competition, Ducati regained the title in 2001 with Troy Bayliss. Colin Edwards again reclaimed the title in 2002 on the same VTR1000 SPW bike, Colin Edwards won his 2nd championship in what was arguably the most impressive comeback in the history of motorcycle racing. The season started with Troy Bayliss winning the first 6 races, Race 2 at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca was the start of Colin Edwards comeback, he went on to win all 9 remaining races and Edwards won the championship at the final race of the season at Imola. The final race of the season saw both riders fighting wheel to wheel for the entire race, the race is known by fans as the Showdown at Imola. The manufacturers championship was won by Ducati, during these years the Superbike World Championship reached the zenith of its popularity, with global fan and full factory support. In 2003 the FIM changed the rules to allow 1,000 cc machines to race, rule changes in MotoGP to allow four-stroke engines meant that the Japanese manufacturers focused their resources there, leaving the Superbike World Championship with limited factory involvement
23.
BMW Motorrad
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BMW Motorrad is the motorcycle brand of the German company BMW, part of its Corporate and Brand Development division. The current General Director of the unit is Hendrik von Kuenheim, in May 2011, the 2,000, 000th motorcycle produced by BMW Motorrad was an R1200GS. The company began as an engine manufacturer in the early 20th century. BMW manufactured its first motorcycle in 1923, the R32, which featured a flat-twin boxer engine, BMW Motorrad still uses the flat-twin boxer configuration, but now manufactures motorcycles with a variety of engine configurations. All BMW Motorrads motorcycle production takes place at its plant in Berlin, Germany, although some engines are manufactured in Austria, China, and Taiwan. Most of the current motorcycles in BMW Motorrads range were designed by David Robb, who was the companys chief designer from 1993 to 2012 when he was replaced by Edgar Heinrich. Current production includes a variety of shaft, chain, and belt driven models, with engines from 310 cc to 1,649 cc, and models designed for off-road, dual-purpose, sport, and touring activities. In 2008, BMW introduced the DOHC Boxer HP2 Sport, BMW Motorrad motorcycles are categorized into product families, and each family is assigned a different letter prefix. The current families are, C series – Maxi-scooters called Urban Mobility Vehicles by BMW F series – parallel-twin engines of 798 cc capacity, models are F650GS, F700GS, F800GS, F800R, F800S, F800GT and F800ST. The F650GS was powered by a single cylinder 652cc Austrian built Rotax engine, G series – single-cylinder engines of 449 to 652 cc capacity featuring chain drive. Models are G450X, G650GS, G650 Sertão, G650 Xmoto, G650 Xchallenge, the 450 cc engines are manufactured by Kymco in Taiwan. The 2009 and 2010650 cc engine parts were manufactured by Rotax in Austria, with the engine being assembled by Loncin Holdings, arriving in 2016 is the BMW G310R, a single-cylinder liquid-cooled model manufactured in India by TVS Motor Company. R series – twin-cylinder boxer engines of 1,170 cc capacity featuring shaft drive, models are R1200GS, R1200R, R1200RT, BMW R1200RS, R1200S and R nineT. K series – four-cylinder engines of 1,157 to 1,649 cc capacity featuring shaft drive, models are K1200LT, K1300GT, K1300R and K1300S. In 2011, BMW Motorrad launched the six-cylinder 1,649 cc K1600GT, S series – S1000RR – sport bike with transverse-mounted,999 cc inline-four engine. Models included S1000R, S1000XR BMW Motorrad achieved record sales for the time in succession in 2015. With a total of 136,963 vehicles sold in 2015, the biggest single market in 2015 was once again Germany, followed by USA, France, Italy, United Kingdom and Spain. With an aim for 2020 to supply 200,000 vehicles to customers, as it was the case until now, BMWs most successful motorcycle is still the R1200 GS with 23,681 units sold in 2015
24.
Road racing
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In North America, road racing is motor racing held on a paved closed circuit with both left and right turns. Road racing is therefore distinct from both off-road racing and oval racing, the latter is common in North America and involves turning in only one direction. Road racing may be on purpose-built race tracks or on circuits, such as closed-off airport runways and public roads. A roval is a road course incorporating parts of a track and its infield. Some officially-sanctioned races are held on roads, that are closed for the duration of the event. This form of racing was banned in Great Britain in 1925 due to an accident at the Kop Hill Climb. The North West 200 and Ulster Grand Prix races are popular, the ban in Great Britain does not extend to the Isle of Man and Northern Ireland. Sometimes the term real road racing is used to distinguish this form of racing from that which takes place on purpose-built paved circuits. Global road-racing series such as Formula One, FIA WEC and MotoGP are almost always conducted on dedicated tracks, such as Spa-Francorchamps, Suzuka, Monza. Expansion of these series has resulted in dedicated tracks being built in Qatar in the Middle East, Sepang in Malaysia, events for many types of motorized vehicles are held at road racing tracks. There was a tradition of road racing on real streets in North America. The terms definition has shifted over time, however, with the dominance of Oval racing. A permanent, purpose-built, road racing circuit, is described as a natural or proper road course in the U. S. After a few decades of such events three sons of Barron Collier—Barron, Miles, and Samuel—founded the Automobile Racing Club of America in 1933 and that organization became the Sports Car Club of America in 1944. Throughout its history, American race car drivers such as Briggs Cunningham, Lake Underwood, Carroll Shelby, the Road Racing Drivers Club was formed and invited members by nomination alone. Its presidents have been, Walt Hansgen, Dolph Vilardi, John Gorden Benett, Robert Grossman, Lake Underwood, Mark Donohue, Bob Sharp, Skip Barber, Dave Ammen, Bob Akin, Brian Redman, and Bobby Rahal. Additionally, racing over public streets is making something of a comeback, other famous street circuits in North America include events held in Saint Petersburg, Florida, Montreal, Québec, Detroit, Michigan, and Toronto, Ontario. More recently, the Edmonton Indy is held on the runways of Edmonton City Centre Airport in Edmonton, Oval track Roval Dragstrip Traditional Road Racing 944 Cup
25.
Donington Park
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Donington Park is a motorsport circuit located near Castle Donington in Leicestershire, England. The circuit business is now owned by MotorSport Vision, and the surrounding Donington Park Estate is currently under lease by MotorSport Vision until 2038. Originally part of the Donington Hall estate, it was created as a racing circuit during the period when the German Silver Arrows were battling for the European Championship. Used as a vehicle storage depot during World War II. Revived under his ownership in the 1970s, it hosted a single Formula One race, DVLL consequently lost the rights to the British rounds of both Formula1 and MotoGP, and in its bankruptcy returned the track to the Wheatcroft family in December 2009. Under Wheatcrofts ownership, the venue has undergone significant work, with the track restored to use in 2010, before major upgrades in the following five years. At the end of 2010, it was announced that Donington would become home to an annual motorsport event. Donington Park motor racing circuit was the first permanent park circuit in England, fred Craner was a former motorcycle rider who had taken part in seven Isle of Man TT races, and was by 1931 a Derby garage owner and secretary of the Derby & District Motor Club. Craner approached the owner of the Donington Hall estate, Alderman John Gillies Shields JP. The original track was 2 mile 327 yd in length, the first motor cycle race took place on Whit Monday,1931. For 1933 Craner obtained permission to build a permanent track, with the original layout widened and sealed at a cost of £12,000, the first car race was held on 25 March, followed by three car meetings further that year. The first Donington Park Trophy race was held on 7 October 1933, in 1935 the first 300-mile Donington Grand Prix was won by Richard Mad Jack Shuttleworth in an Alfa Romeo P3. In the 1937 Donington Grand Prix and 1938 Donington Grand Prix, the circuit at Donington Park was closed in 1939 due to World War II, when it was requisitioned by the Ministry of Defence and was converted into a military vehicle depot. In 1971 the circuit was bought by business man and car collector Tom Wheatcroft, Wheatcroft moved his collection to the circuit, in a museum now known as the Donington Grand Prix Exhibition which opened in 1973, and has the largest collection of Grand Prix cars in the world. The motor racing circuit re-opened for cars on 28 May 1977, as per the original pre-war opening, the first postwar car race meeting was organised by the Nottingham Sports Car Club, sponsored by local Lotus dealers, J A Else of Codnor. That first car meeting nearly didnt happen, as the local ramblers tried to assert their rights to access to footpaths at the eleventh hour. The meeting went ahead as a Motor Trial, a loophole that curtailed the use of single seater racing cars for that opening meeting. The NSCC continued to run meetings at Donington until the Donington Racing Club was formed
26.
Leicestershire
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Leicestershire is a landlocked county in the English Midlands. The border with most of Warwickshire is Watling Street, the county has a population of just under 1 million with over half the population living in Leicesters built-up area. Leicestershire was recorded in the Domesday Book in four wapentakes, Guthlaxton, Framland, Goscote and these later became hundreds, with the division of Goscote into West Goscote and East Goscote, and the addition of Sparkenhoe hundred. In 1087, the first recorded use of the name was as Laegrecastrescir, Leicestershires external boundaries have changed little since the Domesday Survey. These actions were reversed on 1 April 1997, when Rutland, Rutland became a distinct Ceremonial County once again, although it continues to be policed by Leicestershire Constabulary. The symbol of the county council, Leicestershire County Cricket Club, Leicestershire is considered to be the birthplace of fox hunting as it is known today. Hugo Meynell, who lived in Quorn, is known as the father of fox hunting, Melton Mowbray and Market Harborough have associations with fox hunting, as has neighbouring Rutland. A large part of the north-west of the county, around Coalville, the highest point of the county is Bardon Hill at 278 metres, which is also a Marilyn. The lowest point is about 24. 8m, north of Bottesford where the River Devon leaves Leicestershire, the population of Leicestershire is 609,578 people. The county covers an area of 2,084 km2 and its largest population centre is the city of Leicester, followed by the town of Loughborough. Other large towns include Ashby-de-la-Zouch, Coalville, Hinckley, Market Harborough, Melton Mowbray, Oadby, Wigston, some of the larger of villages are, Burbage Birstall, Broughton Astley, Castle Donington, Kibworth Beauchamp, Great Glen, Ibstock, Countesthorpe and Kegworth. One of the most rapidly expanding villages is Anstey, which has seen a large number of development schemes. The United Kingdom Census 2001 showed a resident population for Leicester of 279,921. Approximately 62,000 were aged under 16,199,000 were aged 16–74,76. 9% of Leicesters population claim they have been born in the UK, according to the 2001 UK Census. Mid-year estimates for 2006 indicate that the population of the City of Leicester stood at 289,700 making Leicester the most populous city in East Midlands, the population density is 3, 814/km2 and for every 100 females, there were 92.9 males. Of those aged 16–74 in Leicester,38. 5% had no academic qualifications,23. 0% of Leicesters residents were born outside of the United Kingdom, more than double than the English average of 9. 2%. Engineering has long been an important part of the economy of Leicestershire, John Taylor Bellfounders continues a history of bellfounding in Loughborough since the 14th century. In 1881 John Taylors cast the largest bell in Britain, Great Paul, snibston Discovery Park is built on one of three coal mines that operated in Coalville from the 1820s until 1986
27.
England
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England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west, the Irish Sea lies northwest of England and the Celtic Sea lies to the southwest. England is separated from continental Europe by the North Sea to the east, the country covers five-eighths of the island of Great Britain in its centre and south, and includes over 100 smaller islands such as the Isles of Scilly, and the Isle of Wight. England became a state in the 10th century, and since the Age of Discovery. The Industrial Revolution began in 18th-century England, transforming its society into the worlds first industrialised nation, Englands terrain mostly comprises low hills and plains, especially in central and southern England. However, there are uplands in the north and in the southwest, the capital is London, which is the largest metropolitan area in both the United Kingdom and the European Union. In 1801, Great Britain was united with the Kingdom of Ireland through another Act of Union to become the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. In 1922 the Irish Free State seceded from the United Kingdom, leading to the latter being renamed the United Kingdom of Great Britain, the name England is derived from the Old English name Englaland, which means land of the Angles. The Angles were one of the Germanic tribes that settled in Great Britain during the Early Middle Ages, the Angles came from the Angeln peninsula in the Bay of Kiel area of the Baltic Sea. The earliest recorded use of the term, as Engla londe, is in the ninth century translation into Old English of Bedes Ecclesiastical History of the English People. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, its spelling was first used in 1538. The earliest attested reference to the Angles occurs in the 1st-century work by Tacitus, Germania, the etymology of the tribal name itself is disputed by scholars, it has been suggested that it derives from the shape of the Angeln peninsula, an angular shape. An alternative name for England is Albion, the name Albion originally referred to the entire island of Great Britain. The nominally earliest record of the name appears in the Aristotelian Corpus, specifically the 4th century BC De Mundo, in it are two very large islands called Britannia, these are Albion and Ierne. But modern scholarly consensus ascribes De Mundo not to Aristotle but to Pseudo-Aristotle, the word Albion or insula Albionum has two possible origins. Albion is now applied to England in a poetic capacity. Another romantic name for England is Loegria, related to the Welsh word for England, Lloegr, the earliest known evidence of human presence in the area now known as England was that of Homo antecessor, dating to approximately 780,000 years ago. The oldest proto-human bones discovered in England date from 500,000 years ago, Modern humans are known to have inhabited the area during the Upper Paleolithic period, though permanent settlements were only established within the last 6,000 years
28.
Loris Reggiani
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Loris Reggiani is an Italian former Grand Prix motorcycle road racer who competed for the Aprilia factory racing team. Reggiani was the first rider to win a Grand Prix for the Aprilia factory when he won the 1987 San Marino Grand Prix, in spite of development problems, Reggiani managed a 10th place in the 1995 season. He retired from competition after the 1995 season and he won a total of 8 Grands Prix during his career. Points system from 1969 to 1987, Points system from 1988 to 1992, Points system from 1993
29.
Masaryk Circuit
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In the 1930s, events such as the Masaryk Grand Prix attracted top teams and drivers. The track is named after the first president of Czechoslovakia, Tomáš Masaryk, racing on the old roads ended after 1986, when the new circuit was opened. The annual Motorcycle Grand Prix of the Czech Republic is the circuits most important event and it is held here since 1950 and is the most famous motor race in the Czech Republic. Championship is part of the World Grand Prix since 1965, the FIA World Touring Car Championship, FIA GT1 World Championship, Formula Two and the Superbike World Championship also raced at the circuit. The Czech Republic Motorcycle Grand Prix has always more of a promoter event than a profit-raiser in itself. The original layout ran anti-clockwise on approximately 31 km of public roads west of Brno, including the villages of Bosonohy, from 1930 to 1937, the Masaryk Grand Prix attracted some of the top drivers and teams. The renamed Czechoslovakian Grand Prix in 1949 was run clockwise on a shorter 17.8 km layout around Kohoutovice, in spite of a crowd in excess of 400,000 people, this would be the last Grand Prix for cars on the old circuit. Beginning in 1950, the circuit played host to the Czechoslovakian motorcycle Grand Prix, the circuit had been again reduced in length to 13.94 km in 1964. The European Touring Car series visited in the 1980s, by time the circuit had been finally reduced to 10.92 km in 1975. The current permanent road racing circuit was opened in 1987 and it lies north of Kyvalka, within the bounds of the circuit used in the 1930s, but not incorporating any of the public roads. The motorcycle race moved to the new circuit and regained its status as a round of the world championship, a World Sports Car Championship race was held in 1988, and a round of the A1 Grand Prix series in 2006. It is also the location of the 24H Epilog of Brno
30.
Czech Republic
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The Czech Republic, also known as Czechia, is a nation state in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west, Austria to the south, Slovakia to the east and Poland to the northeast. The Czech Republic covers an area of 78,866 square kilometres with mostly temperate continental climate and it is a unitary parliamentary republic, has 10.5 million inhabitants and the capital and largest city is Prague, with over 1.2 million residents. The Czech Republic includes the territories of Bohemia, Moravia. The Czech state was formed in the late 9th century as the Duchy of Bohemia under the Great Moravian Empire, after the fall of the Empire in 907, the centre of power transferred from Moravia to Bohemia under the Přemyslid dynasty. In 1002, the duchy was formally recognized as part of the Holy Roman Empire, becoming the Kingdom of Bohemia in 1198 and reaching its greatest territorial extent in the 14th century. Following the Battle of Mohács in 1526, the whole Crown of Bohemia was gradually integrated into the Habsburg Monarchy alongside the Archduchy of Austria, the Protestant Bohemian Revolt against the Catholic Habsburgs led to the Thirty Years War. After the Battle of the White Mountain, the Habsburgs consolidated their rule, reimposed Roman Catholicism, the Czech part of Czechoslovakia was occupied by Germany in World War II, and was liberated in 1945 by the armies of the Soviet Union and the United States. The Czech country lost the majority of its German-speaking inhabitants after they were expelled following the war, the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia won the 1946 elections. Following the 1948 coup détat, Czechoslovakia became a one-party communist state under Soviet influence, in 1968, increasing dissatisfaction with the regime culminated in a reform movement known as the Prague Spring, which ended in a Soviet-led invasion. Czechoslovakia remained occupied until the 1989 Velvet Revolution, when the communist regime collapsed, on 6 March 1990, the Czech Socialistic Republic was renamed to the Czech Republic. On 1 January 1993, Czechoslovakia peacefully dissolved, with its constituent states becoming the independent states of the Czech Republic and the Slovak Republic. The Czech Republic joined NATO in 1999 and the European Union in 2004, it is a member of the United Nations, the OECD, the OSCE, and it is a developed country with an advanced, high income economy and high living standards. The UNDP ranks the country 14th in inequality-adjusted human development, the Czech Republic also ranks as the 6th most peaceful country, while achieving strong performance in democratic governance. It has the lowest unemployment rate in the European Union, the traditional English name Bohemia derives from Latin Boiohaemum, which means home of the Boii. The current name comes from the endonym Čech, spelled Cžech until the reform in 1842. The name comes from the Slavic tribe and, according to legend, their leader Čech, the etymology of the word Čech can be traced back to the Proto-Slavic root *čel-, meaning member of the people, kinsman, thus making it cognate to the Czech word člověk. The country has traditionally divided into three lands, namely Bohemia in the west, Moravia in the southeast, and Czech Silesia in the northeast. Following the dissolution of Czechoslovakia at the end of 1992, the Czech part of the former nation found itself without a common single-word geographical name in English, the name Czechia /ˈtʃɛkiə/ was recommended by the Czech Ministry of Foreign Affairs
31.
Mugello Circuit
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Mugello Circuit is a race track in Mugello, Tuscany, Italy. It has 15 turns and a long straight, the circuit stadium stands have a capacity of 50,000. Grand Prix motorcycle racing host an annual event here, also, the Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters hold an annual event. The track is property of Scuderia Ferrari which uses it for Formula One testing, the first race of the A1GP 2008/09 season was originally planned to be held at the Mugello circuit on 21 September 2008. However, the race had to be cancelled due to the delay in building the new chassis for the new race cars, road races were held on public streets around Mugello since the 1920s. Giuseppe Campari won there in 1920 and 1921, Emilio Materassi in 1925,1926 &1928. The Mugello GP was revived in 1955 and from the 1964 to 1969 as a Targa Florio-like road race consisting of eight laps of 66.2 km each, including the Passo della Futa of Mille Miglia fame. The anticlockwise track passed the towns of San Piero a Sieve, Scarperia, Violla, Firenzuola, Selva and it counted towards the 1965,1966 and 1967 World Sportscar Championship season. The last WC race was won by Udo Schütz and Gerhard Mitter on a Porsche 910, four other people, including 2 young children were seriously injured. After this incident, Dini spent 2 months in jail, and after his time served he moved out of Italy, the present-day closed Mugello circuit was constructed in 1973 and opened in 1974, about five km east from the easternmost part of the original road circuit. The circuit was used over 1–3 May, for the in-season test during the 2012 Formula One season, by all teams except HRT. The track was praised by Mark Webber, who stated that he did 10 dry laps today around Mugello, four-time Formula One world champion Sebastian Vettel was impressed too, saying that “unfortunately we don’t have this track on the calendar. It’s an incredible circuit with a lot of high-speed corners”, on the other hand, Vitaly Petrov from Caterham F1 complained that It is not safe and wide enough. If you lose it, the walls are so close and you will smash into the tyres and it is not for Formula 1 and, if you lost the steering or the tyre pressure dropped or whatever, then it will be a big crash. Nevertheless, it holds a grade 1 FIA license, meaning it meets the standards to host a Formula 1 race, an unofficial track record of 1,21.035 was set by Romain Grosjean during the test
32.
TT Circuit Assen
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The TT Circuit Assen is a motorsport race track built in 1955 and located in Assen, Netherlands. Host of the Dutch TT race, it is referred to as The Cathedral of motorcycling by the fans of the sport. It has a capacity of 100,000 spectators, including 60,000 seats, since 1992 it is also part of the Superbike World Championship calendar. The original Assen track was first used for the 1925 Dutch TT race, held on roads through the villages of Borger, Schoonloo and Grolloo. The brick-paved track had a length of 28.57 km, the winner was Piet van Wijngaarden on a 500 cc Norton with an average speed of 91.4 km/h. In years afterwards the Dutch TT was held on a circuit through de Haar, Barteldbocht, Oude Tol. In 1951 the Italian Umberto Masetti took the record on a 500 cc Gilera with an speed of 162.35 km/h. In 1954, Geoff Duke of Great Britain reached 170.69 km/h. The circuit remained unchanged until 1955, when a new circuit was built close to the site of the original. The circuit was fundamentally redesigned again in 2006, becoming the so-called A-Style Assen TT Circuit, all alterations aside, only one section of the circuit is original, the finish line never moved. The current Assen race track was built in 1955, and initially had a length of 7,705 meters, the current track has a length of 4,555 meters with the mixture of super fast flat-out and slow corners. The longest straight is 560 meters, the curves in Assen were traditionally banked and the surface is extremely grippy, so the riders were able to drive much faster on the course than other circuits. Today these sloped or curved bends have been modified due to safety issues, on July 6,2004 the organization announced plans for an amusement park located to the north of the track. In 2006 the northern loop was removed and the length was shortened to 4,555 meters, the new centre is expected to be visited by 300,000 people, and the total investment is approximately €85 million
33.
Netherlands
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The Netherlands, also informally known as Holland is the main constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It is a densely populated country located in Western Europe with three territories in the Caribbean. The European part of the Netherlands borders Germany to the east, Belgium to the south, and the North Sea to the northwest, sharing borders with Belgium, the United Kingdom. The three largest cities in the Netherlands are Amsterdam, Rotterdam and The Hague, Amsterdam is the countrys capital, while The Hague holds the Dutch seat of parliament and government. The port of Rotterdam is the worlds largest port outside East-Asia, the name Holland is used informally to refer to the whole of the country of the Netherlands. Netherlands literally means lower countries, influenced by its low land and flat geography, most of the areas below sea level are artificial. Since the late 16th century, large areas have been reclaimed from the sea and lakes, with a population density of 412 people per km2 –507 if water is excluded – the Netherlands is classified as a very densely populated country. Only Bangladesh, South Korea, and Taiwan have both a population and higher population density. Nevertheless, the Netherlands is the worlds second-largest exporter of food and agricultural products and this is partly due to the fertility of the soil and the mild climate. In 2001, it became the worlds first country to legalise same-sex marriage, the Netherlands is a founding member of the EU, Eurozone, G-10, NATO, OECD and WTO, as well as being a part of the Schengen Area and the trilateral Benelux Union. The first four are situated in The Hague, as is the EUs criminal intelligence agency Europol and this has led to the city being dubbed the worlds legal capital. The country also ranks second highest in the worlds 2016 Press Freedom Index, the Netherlands has a market-based mixed economy, ranking 17th of 177 countries according to the Index of Economic Freedom. It had the thirteenth-highest per capita income in the world in 2013 according to the International Monetary Fund, in 2013, the United Nations World Happiness Report ranked the Netherlands as the seventh-happiest country in the world, reflecting its high quality of life. The Netherlands also ranks joint second highest in the Inequality-adjusted Human Development Index, the region called Low Countries and the country of the Netherlands have the same toponymy. Place names with Neder, Nieder, Nether and Nedre and Bas or Inferior are in use in all over Europe. They are sometimes used in a relation to a higher ground that consecutively is indicated as Upper, Boven, Oben. In the case of the Low Countries / the Netherlands the geographical location of the region has been more or less downstream. The geographical location of the region, however, changed over time tremendously
34.
Kazuto Sakata
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Kazuto Sakata is a former Grand Prix motorcycle road racer. Sakata began his Grand Prix career in 1991 and by the 1993 season, in 1994, he became the first Japanese rider to race for a European factory when he signed with the Aprilia factory. He repaid them by winning the 125cc championship that year and he repeated as champion in 1998 after a tight points battle with Tomomi Manako and Marco Melandri. He retired after the 1999 season
35.
Emilio Alzamora
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Emilio Alzamora Escardibul is a former Grand Prix motorcycle road racer. He holds the distinction of being the rider to win a Grand Prix motorcycle world championship without having won a race. Alzamora got his racing in the 80cc class, winning the 1989 80cc championship of Catalunya at the age of 16. In 1994, he made his Grand Prix debut in the 125 class as a member of former world champion Paolo Pileris team and he moved up to the 250 class in 1997, but after a season marred by injuries, he returned to the 125 class. Alzamora won the 1999 125cc world championship without winning a race by virtue of 10 podium positions, defeating Marco Melandri and he continued to compete until the 2003 season. Since 2005 he is the director of the Monlau Competicion technical school and he manages motorcycle racing projects from the base up to the Moto3 World Championship with the creation of the new Team Estrella Galicia 0,0
36.
Valentino Rossi
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Valentino Rossi is an Italian professional motorcycle road racer and multiple MotoGP World Champion. He is considered to be the greatest and one of the most successful racers of all time. Following his father, Graziano Rossi, Valentino started racing in Grand Prix in 1996 for Aprilia in the 125cc category, from there, he moved up to the 250cc category with Aprilia and won the 250cc World Championship in 1999. He left Yamaha to join Ducati for the 2011 season, and he suffered two winless seasons while at Ducati. Márquezs manoeuvres exasperated Rossi, prompting a response, although Lorenzo eventually stated to the media he was helped by Márquez not making serious moves trying to overtake him. However, the rivalries between Rossi and Márquez appeared to come to an end at the 2016 Catalan Grand Prix. Rossi is first in all time 500cc/MotoGP race wins standings, with 88 victories, Valentino Rossi was born in Urbino, Marche, and he was still a child when the family moved to Tavullia. Son of Graziano Rossi, a motorcycle racer, he first began riding at a very young age. Rossis first racing love was karting, fuelled by his mother, Stefanias, concern for her sons safety, Graziano purchased a kart as substitute for the bike. However, the Rossi family trait of perpetually wanting to go faster prompted a redesign, Rossi won the regional kart championship in 1990. After this he took up minimoto and before the end of 1991 had won numerous regional races, Rossi continued to race karts and finished fifth at the national kart championships in Parma. However, the high cost of racing karts led to the decision to race minimoto exclusively, through 1992 and 1993, Valentino continued to learn the ins and outs of minimoto racing. He finished ninth that race weekend, although his first season in the Italian Sport Production Championship was varied, he achieved a pole position in the seasons final race at Misano, where he would ultimately finish on the podium. By the second year, Rossi had been provided with a factory Mito by Lusuardi, in 1994, Aprilia by way of Peppino Sandroni, used Rossi to improve its RS125R and in turn allowed him to learn how to handle the fast new pace of 125 cc racing. At first he found himself on a Sandroni, with a Rotax-Aprilia engine in the 1994 Italian championship, Rossi had some success in the 1996 World Championship season, failing to finish five of the seasons races and crashing several times. Despite this, in August he won his first World Championship Grand Prix at Brno in the Czech Republic on an AGV Aprilia RS125R. He finished the season in position and proceeded to dominate the 125 cc World Championship in the following 1997 season. By 1998, the Aprilia RS250 was reaching its pinnacle and had a team of riders in Valentino Rossi, Loris Capirossi and he later concluded the 1998250 cc season in second place,23 points behind Capirossi
37.
Sachsenring
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The Sachsenring racing circuit is located in Hohenstein-Ernstthal near Chemnitz in Saxony, Germany. Among other events, it features the annual German motorcycle Grand Prix of the FIM Grand Prix motorcycle racing world championship, the first race was held on 26 May 1927 on an 8.7 km layout on public roads, running also through the village of Hohenstein-Ernstthal itself. It was dubbed Sachsenring in 1937, the East German motorcycle Grand Prix was held there from 1962 to 1971. The local two stroke MZ bikes of Zschopau were competitive during this time, the quickest lap was achieved by 15 time World Champion Giacomo Agostini on a MV Agusta with a 180 km/h average. After West German Dieter Braun won in 1971 and the East German fans sang the West German National Anthem in celebration, in 1990, with faster Western machinery now available, racing through the village became too dangerous with some fatalities. In 1996, IDM motorcycle racing and the ADAC Super Tourenwagen Cup resumed racing here, the DTM raced here in 2000, with Klaus Ludwig winning at age 51, but the DTM did not return after 2002, preferring international venues. Since 1998, the German motorcycle Grand Prix moved to the Sachsenring from Nürburgring, in recent years, the track has been made faster and longer again, with the length now being 3670m. Since 2007, the Sachsenring is part of the schedule of ADAC GT Masters. In 2011 the FIA GT1 World Championship held one of its race weekends at the Sachsenring. info Satellite View of Sachsenring from Google Maps
38.
Germany
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Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a federal parliamentary republic in central-western Europe. It includes 16 constituent states, covers an area of 357,021 square kilometres, with about 82 million inhabitants, Germany is the most populous member state of the European Union. After the United States, it is the second most popular destination in the world. Germanys capital and largest metropolis is Berlin, while its largest conurbation is the Ruhr, other major cities include Hamburg, Munich, Cologne, Frankfurt, Stuttgart, Düsseldorf and Leipzig. Various Germanic tribes have inhabited the northern parts of modern Germany since classical antiquity, a region named Germania was documented before 100 AD. During the Migration Period the Germanic tribes expanded southward, beginning in the 10th century, German territories formed a central part of the Holy Roman Empire. During the 16th century, northern German regions became the centre of the Protestant Reformation, in 1871, Germany became a nation state when most of the German states unified into the Prussian-dominated German Empire. After World War I and the German Revolution of 1918–1919, the Empire was replaced by the parliamentary Weimar Republic, the establishment of the national socialist dictatorship in 1933 led to World War II and the Holocaust. After a period of Allied occupation, two German states were founded, the Federal Republic of Germany and the German Democratic Republic, in 1990, the country was reunified. In the 21st century, Germany is a power and has the worlds fourth-largest economy by nominal GDP. As a global leader in industrial and technological sectors, it is both the worlds third-largest exporter and importer of goods. Germany is a country with a very high standard of living sustained by a skilled. It upholds a social security and universal health system, environmental protection. Germany was a member of the European Economic Community in 1957. It is part of the Schengen Area, and became a co-founder of the Eurozone in 1999, Germany is a member of the United Nations, NATO, the G8, the G20, and the OECD. The national military expenditure is the 9th highest in the world, the English word Germany derives from the Latin Germania, which came into use after Julius Caesar adopted it for the peoples east of the Rhine. This in turn descends from Proto-Germanic *þiudiskaz popular, derived from *þeudō, descended from Proto-Indo-European *tewtéh₂- people, the discovery of the Mauer 1 mandible shows that ancient humans were present in Germany at least 600,000 years ago. The oldest complete hunting weapons found anywhere in the world were discovered in a mine in Schöningen where three 380, 000-year-old wooden javelins were unearthed
39.
Daijiro Kato
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Daijiro Kato was a Japanese Grand Prix motorcycle road racer, the 2001 250cc world champion, and the 2000 and 2002 Suzuka 8 Hours winner. He died as a result of injuries sustained during a crash at Suzuka race circuit, Kato was born in Saitama, and started racing miniature bikes at an early age, becoming a four-time national champion in the Japanese pocket-bike championship. He began road racing in 1992, and entered his first Grand Prix in 1996, in the 250cc class, Kato finished third after debuting at his home circuit of Suzuka Circuit. The next year, he won the Japanese Championship, and again entered the Japanese Grand Prix with a wild card, in spite of these successes, Kato did not ride his first full Grand Prix season until 2000, when he started in the 250cc, riding a Honda. He won four races that season, and placed third in the championship, in 2001, he dominated the 250cc championship. He won no fewer than 11 races, a record in 250cc, in that season he set a new record for the most points in a single season in 250cc class with 322 points. The following season, Kato moved up to the MotoGP class racing for Honda Racing Corporation in the Fortuna Gresini Racing team, for 2003, Kato remained at the Gresini team, now with sponsorship from Telefónica movistar brought by new teammate Sete Gibernau joining from Suzuki. On April 6,2003, during the first race of the MotoGP season at the Japanese Grand Prix held at the Suzuka Circuit, Kato crashed hard and sustained head, neck. He hit the wall near the Casio Triangle chicane of the circuit at around 125 mph, initially he and the bike struck a tire barrier, followed by a foam barrier. Importantly, there was a gap between the tire and foam barriers, Kato was fatally injured when his head struck the edge of the foam barrier, dislocating the joint between the base of the skull and the cervical spine. Questions were raised regarding the actions of the workers immediately following the crash. Kato was thrown back onto the track hitting the barriers and was lying next to the racing line. This did not happen following Katos accident, instead, the corner workers moved him onto a stretcher and off the circuit. It certainly appears that sufficient care was taken to immobilize his head, however, when the stretcher was moved Katos head drooped markedly, and it cannot be denied that this might have additionally injured his neck. Kato spent two weeks in a following the accident before dying as a result of the injuries he sustained. The cause of death was listed as brain stem infarction, many of the MotoGP riders wore black armbands or placed small #74s on their leathers and bikes at the following race in South Africa to pay tribute to the fallen racer. His teammate, Sete Gibernau, thereafter wore a #74 on his racesuit since winning the race in his memory, there has not been a Grand Prix motorcycle race held at Suzuka following Katos crash, with safety issues at the facility being cited as the reason. Two hours later, Tady returned to the pitlane to retire the bike amid mass applause from the crowd, afterwards the FIM retired Katos number, and the bike number 74 has not been used by any rider since
40.
Tetsuya Harada
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Tetsuya Harada is a Japanese former Grand Prix motorcycle road racer. He was the 1993 FIM 250cc World Champion, in all three years he competed in the Japanese round of the 250cc World Championship, twice starting on the front row and twice scoring points. His performance earned him a ride in the 1993 250cc World Championship. Riding a Yamaha TZ250, he won four races including his home race, a wrist injury affected his performance in the 1994 season, finishing 7th overall with only a single podium finish. In 1995 Harada was Max Biaggis main competitor for the 250 title and he won one race and finished 2nd eight times. In 1996 his bike was underpowered and he reached the podium four times. He was on the verge of retiring when Aprilia offered him a bike for the 1997 season, although his 235 points were the most he scored in a season, he finished the season in third place behind Biaggi and Ralf Waldmann. Valentino Rossi took the victory while Capirossi claimed second place and the world championship, Harada would finish the season in third place behind Capirossi and Rossi. In 1999 Harada moved up to the 500cc class to compete on Aprilias 380cc V-twin race bike. He obtained top 5 finishes in the first 10 races, including podium results at Paul Ricard and Donington Park, however, in 2000 he was less competitive, coming 16th overall. In 2001 he made another attempt to obtain a second 250cc world championship, taking 8 poles and three victories, the title, however, went to fellow Japanese Daijiro Kato. For 2002 he entered the MotoGP class aboard a Honda two-stroke and he ended his career with 17 Grand Prix victories, all in the 250cc class. Points system from 1988 to 1992, Points system from 1993, Profile Official site
41.
Dani Pedrosa
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Daniel Dani Pedrosa Ramal is a Spanish Grand Prix motorcycle racer. Pedrosa grew up in a village near Sabadell called Castellar del Vallès and he is the youngest world champion in 250cc Grands Prix. Pedrosa is 1.58 m tall and weighs 51 kg, in spite of never being MotoGP world champion, Pedrosa has won races in eleven consecutive seasons in the championship. He has also finished as championship runner-up on three occasions, born in Sabadell, Catalonia, Spain, Pedrosa started riding bikes at the early age of four, when he got his first motorcycle, an Italjet 50, which had side-wheels. His first racing bike was a replica of a Kawasaki, which he got at the age of six. The next year, Pedrosa entered the championship, but health problems prevented him from improving his results. In 2001, Pedrosa made his World Championship debut in the 125cc class after being selected from the Movistar Activa Cup, a series designed to promote fresh racing talent in Spain, back in 1999. Under the guidance of Alberto Puig, Pedrosa scored two podium finishes in the first season and won his first race the year, when he finished third in the championship. In 2003, he won five races and won the championship two rounds remaining, scoring 223 points. In his first championship winning year, Pedrosa scored five victories, a week after winning the championship, eighteen-year-old Pedrosa broke both of his ankles in a crash during practice at Phillip Island, ending his season. After winning the 125cc Championship, Pedrosa moved up to the 250cc class in 2004 without a proper test on the new bike because his ankles were healing during the off-season. Going into the season unprepared, Pedrosa won the first race in South Africa and went on to clinch the 250cc World Championship title, in his first season in 250cc class, Pedrosa scored 7 victories and 13 podium finishes. Pedrosa decided to stay for one season in the 250cc class. In 2005, Pedrosa won 8 races and scored 14 podium finishes, Pedrosa made the move to 990cc MotoGP bikes in 2006, riding for Repsol Honda. Critics said that Pedrosas tiny stature was not strong enough to handle a big, heavy MotoGP bike, proving critics wrong, he finished second in the opening round at Jerez on 26 March 2006. At his fourth ever MotoGP appearance, on 14 May 2006, during the Chinese Grand Prix and this win made him the equal 2nd youngest winner in the premier class, behind Freddie Spencer. He won his second MotoGP race at Donington Park and became a candidate for the MotoGP Championship. It was a victory for Pedrosa, who shared the podium for the first time with Valentino Rossi in 2nd place
42.
Carlos Checa
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Carlos Charlie Checa is a former professional motorcycle road racer and winner of the 2011 Superbike World Championship. After racing in 500cc and MotoGP for over a decade, mostly on Honda and Yamaha machinery with and without manufacturer support. He has two Grand Prix victories and he has a younger brother, David Checa, also a motorcycle racer who competed in the Superbike World Championship for 2008. Checa made his debut in 125cc and 250cc motorcycle racing in 1993 for Honda, in 1995, he moved up to the Blue Riband 500cc class as a replacement for Alberto Puig, a fellow Spaniard who broke both his legs in a horrifying crash in France. Checa shocked the paddock by being on the pace and nearly winning the Barcelona race and he continued with the team until 1998, the year he suffered near fatal injuries with a crash at Donington Park. He crashed at Craner Curves and was thought to have suffered only scrapes and bruises before complaining of pain. Hours later he had lost his vision, needed surgery to remove his spleen and was listed in critical condition. He fought back to ride that year, missing just one race and he nearly won many races but unfortunately crashed after taking the lead. One such race was at Rio de Janeiro in 2002 when he stalled on the line then. Checa continued racing with the factory Yamaha team for the 2003 and 2004 seasons and he struggled as the sole LCR Honda rider in 2007, with the 800cc Honda proving uncompetitive for many riders. Checa returned to the series in 2010, as replacement for Mika Kallio for the last two races of the season, for the 2008 season, Checa left MotoGP to join the Ten Kate Honda team in the Superbike World Championship as a replacement for 2007 champion James Toseland. At Valencia he challenged Max Neukirchner for the win at the final corner, checas first two wins – following four podium finishes – both came in the meeting at Miller Motorsports Park in Salt Lake City on 1 June 2008. He did not reach the podium again, but consistent results elsewhere allowed him to fifth in the championship. He also won the Suzuka 8 Hours with team-mate Ryuichi Kiyonari, in 2009, Checa struggled to compete for much of the season, securing just four podium finishes and finishing seventh in the riders standings,32 points behind satellite Honda rider Leon Haslam. During the 2009 season, Ten Kate Honda announced that they would be downsizing their operation from three riders to just two, both Checa and Ryuichi Kiyonari were released, with Jonathan Rea retained and Max Neukirchner joining the team from Suzuki. In November 2009, Checa was confirmed as a rider at the Althea Ducati team, Checa went on to win the Italian round at Imola and finished the season in third place in the 2010 championship. Checa dominated the round of the 2011 season, winning both races comfortably at Phillip Island on his Ducati 1098R. Carloscheca. com Official website Media related to Carlos Checa at Wikimedia Commons
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