|
|
FastDates.com
T-Shirt!
|
Regis
Laconi turns up the wick as the 5-way title battle approaches
its exciting climax.
SBK
World Superbike Championship, Imola Round 10 of 11
Regis
Laconi Doubles at Imola Towards the Title
Autodroma
Enzo & Dino Ferrari, Imola, Italy 23-26 September 2004::
The ever-changing 2004 World Superbike Championship series
threw up another pair of outstanding races for the 76,000
Imola crowd, blessed by sunshine and some exceptionally dramatic
on-track action. Regis Laconi took the championship lead from
his team-mate James Toseland (Ducati Fila 999F004) after two
wars of attrition for the leading riders. Laconi overpowered
Chris Vermeulen (Ten Kate Honda CBR1000RR) in race one, as
the young Aussie lost a fraction of front end feel and traction,
and performed the same trick in race two, this time on the
perennially competitive Toseland.
Two other
top contendars in the Championship battle saw their hopes
virtually dashed as Piere francisco Chili suffered major engine
problems thoughout the weeked with his PSG-1 Ducati, and Noriyuki
haga crashed out of race two while fighting Laconi for the
race lead. The
championship battle is still very much alive for three riders,
with Laconi on 295, Toseland on 291 and Vermeulen on 282.
An epic battle beckons on October 3, with Noriyuki Haga also
still in with an arithmetical chance of the overall title
win.
Ducati
Corse team mates James Toseland (right and Regis Laconi (left)
are 4 points apart going into the final SBK World Championship
round at Magny Cours in 2 weeks.
Regis
Laconi Takes Imola Superpole
Saturday Sept 25th:
This yearís
King of Superpole was ordained once more at Imola, as Regis
Laconi (Ducati Fila 999F04) took his fifth such success of
the 2004 season. Starting last away after finishing the regulation
qualifying sessions fastest of all, Laconi swept around one
of his favourite tracks to record a time of 1:49.818. Laconi
is one of four riders going for a realistic shot at their
first World Superbike Championship title, and the two 21-lap
races on Sunday are sure to be hotly contested, with the top
five Superpole qualifying places containing all four would-be
champions.
HONDA
HEADS UP: Ten Kate Honda CBR1000RR rider Chris Vermeulen felt
that he was about to take his first ever Superpole win of his
short ten round Superbike career, but Laconiís late challenge
deposed him from his position of pre-eminence. The 22-year-old
Australian was the only rider to join Laconi inside the 1:49
second mark, finding his four-cylinder Honda a willing partner
in his attacks on the sweeps and hills of Imola.
MCCOY
COMEBACK: Having struggled in some of the more recent SBK events,
the most experienced rookie in World Superbike found his feet
in superb style at Imola, as Garry McCoy (Scuderia Caracchi
Xerox Ducati 999RS) spun and hustled his big vee-twin to a fine
third place. A winner at Phillip Island this season already,
McCoy professes not to be a fan of the Imola track, but his
uniquely dramatic riding style appears to suit the 4.933km circuit
down to the ground.
HAGA
HANGS IT OUT: The aggression and control shown by Noriyuki Haga
(Ducati 999RS) was enough to put him fourth in Superpole, after
finishing second quickest in regular qualifying. The Japanese
rider is one of the famous four championship challengers, and
one of the most experienced Superbike riders on the grid. Hagaís
team-mate Leon Haslam experienced several technical problems
in regulation qualifying, which conspired to make him miss Superpole,
finishing 19th fastest for a fifth row start.
JAMES
THE FIFTH: Working his factory Ducati Fila 999F04 hard around
the undulations and bumps of Imola, James Toseland, the current
championship leader, missed out on the front row, but only by
one place as he went fifth in Superpole, a two place improvement
on his regulation qualifying best.
THE
BUSSEI THUNDERBOLT: Giovanni Bussei (De Cecco Ducati 998RS)
set the Superpole competition alight with a blistering lap of
1:50.895, by far his personal best of the weekend. Until James
Toseland took his place at the head of the table, albeit temporarily,
Bussei was the leading rider, finishing his Superpole session
in an impressive sixth place. He was the best 998 Ducati rider
on show, finishing his Superpole competition just in front of
Lucio Pedercini (Pedercini Ducati 998RS). Having left the Pedercini
team to join the Scuderia Caracchi Xerox Ducati squad shortly
before Imola, Gianluca Nannelli took his 999RS machine to eighth
place, ousting regular DFX Extreme Sterilgarda 999RS Ducati
rider Steve Martin in the process.
CORSER
TOP TEN: Troy Corser (Foggy Petronas FP-1) took his somewhat
outgunned three cylinder, 900cc triple to a top ten finish,
an impressive result on such a power-sapping track. His team-mate
Chris Walker took 18th fastest time, putting him on an unhappy
fifth row starting position. Best of the local riders making
a wildcard appearance was former GP and Superbike star Doriano
Romboni, taking 12th place in Superpole, one behind regular
rider Marco Borciani (DFX Ducati Extreme Sterilgarda 999RS).
UNLUCKY
7: Pierfrancesco Chili (PSG-1 Ducati 998) experienced two separate
major technical problems in the final untimed qualifying session
at Imola, missing out on Superpole and starting 16th on the
grid. Having qualified eighth in regulation, he was expecting
a far different end to his Saturday of toil on home ground.
WORLD
SUPERSPORT: Karl Muggeridge (Ten Kate Honda CBR600RR) once more
brought all the pre-race elements together under his command
to secure his eighth pole position of the 2004 season, a remarkable
achievement with no peer in WSS history. Heading up an all Australian
front row, Muggeridgeís best was a 1:52.131, a mark he
could have improved on still further had the track been entirely
dry after Friday eveningís monsoon rainfalls. Broc Parkes,
Muggeridgeís team-mate, starts the 21-lap race on Sunday
from the front row, qualifying second fastest, some 0.722 seconds
from Muggeridge. Andrew Pitt (Yamaha Italia) secured third place,
Kevin Curtain (Yamaha Motor Germany) starting fourth, the last
rider on row one. Jurgen van den Goorbergh (Yamaha Italia) was
fifth fastest rider, ahead of Klaffi Honda pilot Sebastien Charpentier.
Lone Briton Iain MacPherson, secured 17th starting spot on his
SL Ducati 749R.
 Laconi
heads Haga, Tosleand and Gary McCoy in the early stages of race
One as they chase Vermeulen.
Laconi Takes Control on Sunday with Two Close Fought Race Wins
RACE
ONE: Chis Vermeulen Takes A Short Lived Championship Lead
Sunday 26th: An almost certain start-to-finish
victory for Chris Vermeulen was only halted by the aggression
and pace of Regis Laconi on the last two laps of the 21-laprace
opener, as the Frenchman blew by on the run down the hill to
the first Ravazza, putting over a second between himself and
Vermeulen in the last two laps as Laconi upped the pace and
Vermeulen fought against a loss of front end feel and performance.
Laconi held the advantage of pacing Vermeulen for the last hald
of the race to learn where the young Aussie was strongest and
weakest, puting the knowled to good use to pass on the last
lap and hold him off to the finish. Still, Vermeulen's 2nd place
ahead of Toseland was enough to put Chis into the Championshop
poinds lead ahead of the Brit.
James
Toseland (Ducati Fila) recovered from a mid race drop in pace
to re-pass Noriyuki Haga (Ducati 999RS) for third place, after
a bold pass on the exit of the Variante Alta turn. Garry McCoy
capitalised on his front row start with fifth place.
The
Championship points tally after the day's fist race had Vermeulen
in the lead by 1 point ahead of Laconi, and 2 paoints ahead
of Toseland, with Haga just 14 points adrift and still in strong
contention if either of the three leaderrs made a mistake in
the 3 maining races with 75 points still up for grabs.
RACE
TWO: Drama for Vermeulen, Agony for Haga and Estacy for Ducati
Corse
World Championship points leader Cris Vermeulen
was forced to swap his number one Ten Kate Honda CBR1000 for
his spare bike after an electrical problem struck the bike as
he headerd out to the grid. Mounted on his backup bike with
cold tires, Chris just got 2 turns around the track for the
warmup lap anf his front end washed out and crashed on the stone
hard tires. damaing the bike and seemingly his clinch on the
Championship. Fellow racer Giovanni Bussei quickly pulled over
and waved Chris (who was visibly injured with a severe limp)
to get on the back of his race bike and rode him back back around
the track with the field to the starting grid. Chris got off,
limped his way over the pit wall and scamperd over to his number
one bike which had been repaired and was now running in anticipation
for him, but it too was on cold tires and Chris would have to
start the race from pit lane at the rear of the pack. He got
away some 6-8 seconds behind the field, but once his tires warmed
up he did match the pace of the leaders. Starting flat last,
and suffering from a badly bruised hip, hand and ankle, Vermeulen
took an improbable and outstanding sixth place to still remain
in distant contention for the Championship goiong into the fianl
race at Magny Cours. And poor Buessi, for all his consideration
to help his fellow rider, was award a Stop and Go Penalty for
carrying a passenger on his bike during the warmup lap!
The
second outing was another spectacular man-to-man fight for the
win, after a triumvirate of riders had made it a close contest
for half the race. Championship contender Noriyuki Haga was
trading paint with James Toseland for the lead in the opening
laps, then around lap 10 seemed to slip off the pace due to
seeming bike or tire problems, puting him within the gras of
a closely following Laconi. They battle for a lap as well untilHaga
went down hard and slid off the track, allowing Toseland to
escape to possible victory, only to be headed off in the last
three laps by Laconi. In a photo finish, Laconi held off the
aggressive Toseland on the inside, who was actually leaning
on laconi and his bike coming out of the final chicane and trying
to elbow his way past on the short finish straight, by only
0.041 seconds.
"Regis
was obviously protecting his line going into the last chicane,"
declared James about the photo-finish. "Unfortunately that
finish-line is so close to the chicane but I had to try and
win! It was a fantastic race, that pass he made was a tough
one. I didnít want to finish second but weíre
still in the hunt for the title with one round to go, which
is the main thing. It couldnít have worked out any better
for the championship. Regis and I are team-mates so thereís
going to be no love lost at Magny-Cours and itís going
to be close right down to the very end".
"I
made a few small mistakes at the beginning and the bike didnít
feel so good with the full tank so I didnít try to push
so much," declared Regis."Haga passed me and James
too so I decided just to follow them. Haga crashed in front
of us which was quite difficult then I just had to pass James
for the win. The only way I found to do that was on the very
fast left in fifth gear. It was hard for sure but I had to go
for it. The last chicane was very difficult, I braked late but
I knew it was close to the finish so I just tried to be fast
all the way through. It was really great to win at Imola today
because Imola is a Ducati track."
MARTIN
SECURES PODIUM FIVE: After some drifts in form of late, Steve
Martin (DFX Ducati 999) kept his head and his pace to leave
Imola with a sixth place and then a more than welcome third,
as the top riders dropped out of contention one by one. After
a sparkling pre-race showing, Garry McCoy (SC Xerox Ducati 999)
was the Aussie privateer most likely to succeed in any potential
podium tussle, but he maintained a respectable sixth in the
series with two fifth place Imola finishes.
LOCAL
LION: Pierfrancesco Chili (PSG-1 Ducati 998RS) had a lowly homecoming,
taking only a seventh place and suffering from having to start
from 16th place on the grid. Walking back in to the pits he
received a heroís welcome, and he remained fifth in the
championship fight, with 222 points.
OPPOSITE
VIEWS: Troy Corser secured two points scoring finishes on his
Foggy Petronas machine, but 12th and tenth were not the results
he was looking for. Chris Walker had no such luck, with a double
no score.
Muggeridge
helped the Ten Kate team keep the Superspot Title for a 2nd
year
Karl
Muggeridge / Ten Kate Clinches 600cc Supersport Championship
SUPERSPORT: Karl Muggeridge (Ten Kate Honda CBR600RR) once more
showed his Supersport pre-eminence by taking win number six
of the year, and the world title itself. His was the third straight
win for the Ten Kate Team, who's other rider Broc Parkes, was
in contention to beat Muggeridge for almost all 21-laps. His
desire to pass had his team covering their eyes at some points,
but when Jurgen van den Goorbergh fell out of contention the
title was decided there and then. Sebastien Charpentier (Klaffi
Honda CBR600RR) was third, with the first non-Honda the Breil
Ducati of Lorenzo Lanzi, fourth. The fight for second in the
championship now moves to Magny Cours, with Parkes only four
points adrift of van den Goorberghís 119 points. Charpentier
could also finish higher than his current fourth place.
SUPERBIKE
Race Results
Race
1: (Laps 21 = 103,593 Km)
Pos /Rider /Nat. /Team /Time /Gap
1 / R. LACONI / FRA / Ducati Fila / 38'58.507
/
2 / C. VERMEULEN / AUS / Ten Kate Honda / 38'59.629 / 1.122
3 / J. TOSELAND / GBR / Ducati Fila / 39'04.145 / 5.638
4 / N.HAGA / JPN / Renegade Ducati Koji / 39'05.117 / 6.610
5 / G.MCCOY / AUS / XEROX - Ducati Nortel Net. / 39'10.481
/ 11.974
6 / S. MARTIN / AUS / D.F.Xtreme Sterilgarda / 39'18.505
/ 19.998
7 / P. CHILI / ITA / PSG - 1 Corse / 39'28.246 / 29.739
8 / M.BORCIANI / ITA / D.F.Xtreme Sterilgarda / 39'28.987
/ 30.480
9 / G.NANNELLI / ITA / XEROX - Ducati Nortel Net. / 39'39.718
/ 41.211
10 / L. HASLAM / GBR / Renegade Ducati Koji / 39'46.479
/ 47.972
11 / I. CLEMENTI / ITA / Kawasaki Bertocchi / 39'48.853
/ 50.346
12 / T. CORSER / AUS / Foggy PETRONAS Racing / 39'52.185
/ 53.678
13 / P. BONTEMPI / ITA / Zongshen / 40'12.864 / 1'14.357
14 / L. PINI / ITA / Boselli Racing / 40'14.214 / 1'15.707
15 / D. ROMBONI / ITA / Giesse Racing Team / 40'21.500 /
1'22.993
Fastest Lap 4° Régis Laconi 1'50.708 160,411
Km/h |
Race
2 : (Laps 16 = 96,432 Km)
Pos /Rider /Nat. /Team /Time /Gap
1 / R. LACONI / FRA / Ducati Fila / 39'04.926
/
2 / J. TOSELAND / GBR / Ducati Fila / 39'04.967 / 0.041
3 / S. MARTIN / AUS / D.F.Xtreme Sterilgarda / 39'17.278
/ 12.352
4 / G.NANNELLI / ITA / XEROX - Ducati Nortel Net. / 39'28.091
/ 23.165
5 / G.MCCOY / AUS / XEROX - Ducati Nortel Net. / 39'33.563
/ 28.637
6 / C. VERMEULEN / AUS / Ten Kate Honda / 39'36.644 / 31.718
7 / L. PEDERCINI / ITA / Pedercini / 39'39.968 / 35.042
8 / M.BORCIANI / ITA / D.F.Xtreme Sterilgarda / 39'44.003
/ 39.077
9 / I. CLEMENTI / ITA / Kawasaki Bertocchi / 39'44.266 /
39.340
10 / T. CORSER / AUS / Foggy PETRONAS Racing / 39'44.579
/ 39.653
11 / G.BUSSEI / ITA / DeCecco Racing / 39'48.860 / 43.934
12 / L. HASLAM / GBR / Renegade Ducati Koji / 39'59.276
/ 54.350
13 / L. PINI / ITA / Boselli Racing / 40'08.070 / 1'03.144
14 / D. ROMBONI / ITA / Giesse Racing Team / 40'12.435 /
1'07.509
15 / A. VELINI / ITA / Pedercini / 40'12.928 / 1'08.002
Fastest Lap 5° Noriyuki Haga 2'04.831 173,813 Km/h |
Riders
Championship Standings:
1 LACONI 295, 2 TOSELAND 291, 3 VERMEULEN 282, 4 HAGA 254, 5
CHILI 222,
6 MCCOY 185, 7 MARTIN 170, 8 HASLAM 150, 9 CORSER 137, 10 BORCIANI
130,
11 WALKER 112, 12 CLEMENTI 85, 13 SANCHINI 79, 14 NANNELLI 72,
15 BONTEMPI 63.
Manufacturers Standings:
1 DUCATI 480, 2 HONDA 289, 3 PETRONAS 183, 4 KAWASAKI 118, 5
SUZUKI 90.
SUPERSPORT
Results: RACE : (Laps 21 = 103,593 Km)
Pos /Rider /Nat. /Team / Time /Gap
1 / K. MUGGERIDGE / AUS / Ten Kate Honda / 39'56.749 /
2 / B. PARKES / AUS / Ten Kate Honda / 39'58.000 / 1.251
3 / S. CHARPENTIER / FRA / Klaffi Honda / 40'06.963 / 10.214
4 / L. LANZI / ITA / Ducati Breil / 40'07.696 / 10.947
5 / F. FORET / FRA / Yamaha Italia / 40'08.331 / 11.582
6 / A. PITT / AUS / Yamaha Italia / 40'08.495 / 11.746
7 / M.FABRIZIO / ITA / Italia Megabike / 40'21.836 / 25.087
8 / S. CHAMBON / FRA / Suzuki Alstare Corona Extra / 40'26.281
/ 29.532
9 / M.BAIOCCO / ITA / Lorenzini by Leoni / 40'28.338 / 31.589
10 / A. ANTONELLO / ITA / Kawasaki Bertocchi / 40'34.246 / 37.497
11 / M.NEUKIRCHNER / GER / Klaffi Honda / 40'45.416 / 48.667
12 / C. COXHELL / AUS / Yamaha Motor Deutschland / 40'50.710
/ 53.961
13 / D. SACCHETTI / ITA / Italia Megabike / 40'51.210 / 54.461
14 / K. FUJIWARA / JPN / Suzuki Alstare Corona Extra / 40'53.550
/ 56.801
15 / C. KELLNER / GER / Yamaha Motor Deutschland / 40'54.368
/ 57.619
Fastest Lap 4° Karl Muggeridge 1'53.160 156,935 Km/h
Riders Championship Standings:
1 MUGGERIDGE 182, 2 VD GOORBERGH 119, 3 PARKES 115, 4 CHARPENTIER
104,
5 CURTAIN 69, 6 LANZI 69, 7 FORET 66, 8 CHAMBON 64, 9 FUJIWARA
55,
10 NEUKIRCHNER 55, 11 CORRADI 44, 12 KELLNER 27, 13 PITT 26,
14 BROOKES 25,
15 IANNUZZO 20.
Manufacturers Standings:
1 HONDA 187, 2 YAMAHA 165, 3 SUZUKI 96, 4 DUCATI 82, 5 KAWASAKI
40
| FastDates.com
Movie Review
Hot
Chicks that Kick Ass
Resident Evil:
Apocalypse
MILLA
JOVOVICH returns in the sequel to the exciting
first movie Resident Evil as Alice, a
former Special Tactics warrior who awakens from a terrible
sleep to find her worst fears realized -- the virus infected
human population have turned into bloodthirsty Undead.
Assisting
Alice in saving Racoon City and the world from disaster
is another beautiful
warrior Jill, played by Sienna Guillory
who kicks Undead ass like a mini skirted Lora Croft.
We love the
entire genre of Kick Ass Chick movies that are pouring
out of Hollywood these days and Resident Evil:
Apocalypse is one of the best! Complete Revue
HERE
Going
to work in mini skirts with automatics weapons and Samurai
swords to kill Undead. |
|
So many curves...
so little time! Rockin' Robin does the new 999R0R in our exclusive
first world test that beat everyone else's exclusive first test
by a month!
Hot
Chicks That Kick Ass continued....
FastDates.com World Wide Firsts and Exclusives!
"Rockin' Robin" Tests the new Ducati
999R05!
Our Exclusive World Premier of the killer new 140hp and 147hp
Models,
and first ever road teat of the new 999R 05!
Our sexy own SBK Fast Dates Team Ducati
Corse girl, Miss Texas and Miss Hawaiian Tropic
"Rockin Robin" Cunningham dishes
the dirt on the world's sexiest new sportbike!
• New 2005
Ducati 999R Superbike - HERE
• The other New
2005 Ducati 999 and 999S Superbikes - HERE
Read
all the sexy details in our FastDates.com Sportbike
Index together with Exclusive FastDates.com
Screensavers of Robin and the 999R05 doing their thing
HERE
Robin
dishes the inside scoup on whether the new $30,000 999R 05 high
class Call Girl can deliver the goods, and how it compares to
the Plain Jane $17,000 Ducati 999 girl next door, and her tarted
up $23,000 Sister 999S.
Below: the new 140hp 2005 Plain Jane 999 Girl Next Door looks
good enough to take home to mother.
|
FastDates.com
Screensavers - Because Robin Loves You!
• Robin
& 999R05 Screen Saver -Stunt Road
• Robin
& 999R05 Screen Saver – Scott's Road
•
Ducati
999R05 Screen Saver - Front • Ducati
999R05 - Rear
Robin
Cunningham was our offical SBK World Superbike Fast Dates
calendar Angel and Team Ducati Corse umbrella girl for
World Championship points leader Regis Laconi at Laguna
Seca. All the the sexy details are in Fast
Dates News.
Also
look for "Rockin Robin" featured as hostess
on 3 new TV shows premiering this fall. Robin will be
hosting the WB Channel's new X-Music Network
show starting in September where she will be interviewing
hot up and coming new bands. She will also be hosting
on Black Belt TV, a new martial arts
TV network premiering in November, as well as the new
TV series Underwater Odessy about swimming
with Dolphins on the ABC Family Channel.
|
Robin
grids World Championship points leader Regis
Laconi.
|
|
John Reynold
(left) the new BSB Champ on the podium with John Denning,
and team mate Yukio Kagayama.
John
Reynolds/Rizla Suzuki Win British Superbike Championship
Donnington Park, Great Britain Sept 19th -
Rizla Suzuki’s John Reynolds has won the 2004 Think!
British Superbike Championship at today’s final round
at Donington Park and team-mate Yukio Kagayama raced to
third overall in a season that has seen the team take 25
rostrum finishes from 26 starts.
Just
a week after the duo clinched the British Superbike Manufacturers
title for Suzuki, Reynolds took third place in the first
race to secure his third British Superbike Championship,
while Kagayama scraped home in 14th after a dramatic off-track
excursion at Craner Curves that left him with it all to
do in the second race to keep a hold on his season rostrum
position. The Japanese ace was up to the task in the second
race, finishing fourth and taking third overall. Reynolds
finished fifth after riding defensively to help his team
mate and take the title by 29 points from Michael Rutter.
The
Rizla Suzuki rider had gone into the action needing just
eight points to ensure he took the country’s premier
title for a third time, but was under intense pressure in
the build up to the action.
“People
were congratulating me as though I had won the title, after
my winning double (last week) at Oulton Park, but there
was still a job to be done, and I had to work hard to be
focussed on that,” Reynolds explained.
He qualified fifth, and in the early stages was running
fifth, while upfront Ryuichi Kiyonari, the 21 year old Japanese
racer, was dictating terms, ahead of his team-mate Michael
Rutter, the only rider who could deny Reynolds the crown.
By
one thirds distance, Reynolds was third, and on course for
the crown: “it is a fantastic feeling but also one
of relief that it is done and dusted. I am delighted for
the team, they came close to winning the title four years
ago here, now they have it.
“When
I crashed at Thruxton and broke my collarbone I thought
my chances of the title were gone, but two weeks later I
was racing and winning at Brands Hatch – it was not
a case of being brave, rather being inspired by Paul and
the team.
“I
had the best bike and the best team – all three of
my titles have been good, all hard to achieve and this has
been no exception,” said Reynolds.
Kiyonari
completed his daily double, again ahead of Rutter, who secured
the runners up positions, while Sean Emmett, in his final
race for MonsterMob Ducati, took third place from Scott
Smart.
Yukio Kagayama, fifth, just from Reynolds, ended the season
in third place overall in the standings, while in the Superbike
Cup, for independent riders and teams, James Ellison underlined
his title success with another winning double.
Yukio
Kagayama – British Superbike Number 3: "Congratulations
to John-san for winning the Championship. This is a title
he deserves and Rizla Suzuki deserves. I am happy to finish
third overall. This is an almost unbelievable result when
I remember my injuries at start of season. I am a Factory
Suzuki rider and I honestly say Crescent Rizla Suzuki is
a brilliant team to ride for. This is big honour for me
to be rider for this team and a big honour to ride in front
of British fans. Thank you!"
Race
One Result: 1: Ryuichi Kiyonari (Honda)
32:05.596, 2: Michael Rutter (Honda) +10.981, 3: JOHN REYNOLDS
(RIZLA SUZUKI) +12.559, 4: Scott Smart (Kawasaki) +15.169,
5: Sean Emmett (Ducati) +16.223, 6: Glen Richards (Kawasaki)
+20.760, 7: Dean Thomas (Ducati) +27.223, 8: James Haydon
(Yamaha) +33.589, 9: Gary Mason (Yamaha) +39.785, 10: Tommy
Hill (Yamaha) +39.873.
Race Two Result:
1: Kiyonari 30:57.801, 2: Rutter +11.862, 3: Emmett +23.062,
4: Smart +24.194, 5: YUKIO KAGAYAMA (RIZLA SUZUKI) +24.521,
6: JOHN REYNOLDS (RIZLA SUZUKI) +26.271, 7: Thomas +27.184,
8: Haydon +33.864, 9: James Ellison (Yamaha) +34.186, 10:
Steve Plater (Yamaha) +37.151.
Final
Championship standings: 1: JOHN REY NOLDS
(RIZLA SUZUKI) 446, 2: Rutter 417, 3: YUKIO KAGAYAMA (RIZLA
SUZUKI) 335, 4: Smart 330, 5: Emmett 315, 6: Kiyonari 234,
7: Thomas 193, 8: Haydon 181, 9: Hill 137, 10: Richards
125.
There's
more! Go to Pit Lane News Next
Page
Hot Calendar Girl and Bike News! Go to: Fast
Dates • Berm Busters
• Iron & Lace
click to see much more ...
|
|
|
New 2005 Fast Dates
Garage Girls, Iron & Lace
- Order Now.
Be warned - We under printed this year and will sell out early.
Ask your favorite dealer to order them now, or click on the cover
to order online..
Naked
Desmosedici!
Exotic Prototyes,
Naked Pinup Calendars
FastDates.com
takes an exclusive visit inside the very exciting Ducati Corse
and very boring Honda MotoGP Race Shops!
Tara
Moreland
does FastDates
Certianly the most beautiful umbrella girl with the rockin'est
body on the AMA National circuit is sexy Team Corona Suzuki umbrella
girl Tara Moreland.
A professional spokesmodel from Lafayette, Louisiana, Tara will
be flying out to Los Angeles next month to shoot with us for the
2006 FastDates.com Calendars.
Rescheduled:
AMA Chevrolet Superbike Championship Final at VIR to Oct 9th &
10th
Sept
17th -AMA have announced that the weekend of October 9 & 10
has been nominated as the new date for the postponed final round
of this year’s American AMA Chevrolet Superbike Championship
at Virginia International Raceway.
2004
AMA Chevrolet Superbike Championship (After 16 of 18 races, 2
races remain @ VIR)
1. Mat Mladin (532, 8 wins);
2. Jake Zemke (490, 2 win):
3. Miguel DuHamel (477, 4 ):
4. Ben Bostrom (364, 1 win):
5. Geoff May (344):
6. Eric Bostrom (336, 1 win):
7. John Haner (312):
8. Aaron Yates (298):
9. Eric Wood (284):
10. Josh Hayes (267).
August
is over,
Zdenka is Back...
...and Hotter Than Ever!
We'd
like to re introduce you to our beautiful FastDates.com calendal
Angel, Penthouse Pet and Czech mate Zdenka. This
beauty from Prauge has been featured in our calendars since 2001,
and was our offical SBK Fast Dates Calendar girl at Laguna Seca
in 2002 with those photos appearing in 2003 Fast Dates. Zdenka
has also served as the official Aprilia MotoGP umbrella girl (left)
at her home circuit of Bruno the last 3 years wearing some pretty
sexy domimatrix gear.
Zenka returned
to Los Angeles this summer looking hotter than ever and we were
happy to shoot her for the next 2006 Calendars, plus a sexy nude
pictorial for our Members Corner
where you can visit Sexy Zdenka right now! Who says summer has
to be boring?
Karl Muggeridge - World Supersport Champion
A spectacular three race winning run at the end of the 2003 World
Supersport season was an impressive feat for the combination of
Karl \ Muggeridge, Ten Kate
Honda and the new CBR600RR Honda, but it was just a taster of
what was to come.
The 30-year-old
Australian rider, now a long term resident in Andorra, has carried
on his 2003 form almost through the 2004 season, despite a couple
of minor wobbles on the path to Supersport greatness in the first
two rounds at Valencia and Phillip Island. Muggeridge scored an
irrepressible five wins in the next six races, to put himself
in an almost unassailable 38-point championship lead before the
penultimate round at Imola, another race in which he was triumphant.
His win at
Imola allowed him the luxury of winning the championship one race
early in the ten round World Supersport season. It also gave Ten
Kate
and Honda a third Riders' title in successive years, one with
the CBR600FS in the hands of Fabien Foret, plus two for the CBR600RR
with Chris Vermeulen in 2003 and now Muggeridge this year.
Muggeridge, called 'Muggas' by all and sundry, had his early experiences
of racing at his local tracks in Australia, but quickly realising
his abundant natural talent, he decided to start competition in
the always competitive Australian national scene. Covering huge
distances to compete Muggeridge soon tired of the long hauls,
with too little rewards in terms of recognition and remuneration
to continue.
The 1999 season
saw Muggeridge fourth in the UK championship, shortly
before another one of his big steps in expectation pushed him
into the World Championship.
Muggeridge's
maiden WSS race win came during his full time season with the
Ten Kate team, taking victory in the second of two Brands Hatch
races in 2000.
An ill-fated swap to the Alstare Suzuki team in 2001 dented Muggeridge's
competitive edge somewhat, even if Muggeridge was occasionally
capable of running strongly at the front. Seventh overall was
a two-step drop from his previous year's fifth for Honda, and
thus Muggeridge returned to the CBR fold.
Another tough
season for the Honda UK team, moving up to World Supersport, was
highlighted by a fine third at a torrentially wet Silverstone
circuit, on his way to overall 14th. Seeing his talent undimmed
his old partners Ten Kate Honda stepped in with an offer to ride
alongside his countryman, the ebullient young Australian Chris
Vermeulen. The Ten Kate pairing proved a potent force in 2003
but it was Vermeulen who secured the championship, with Muggeridge
fourth. All of Muggeridge's ten WSS race wins have come on Honda
machinery and all of them in Ten Kate colours.
Naturally,
he puts his close working relationship with Ten Kate as a prime
reason for his recent success. "One the things I have always
tried to go iswork well with the guys and make the most of everything.
Chipping away at things. Riding for these guys is really motivational
because they just want to keep pushing, keep going for the wins."
With such
a chequered history of ups and downs, Muggeridge adopted some
highly unusual preparations, shortly before his immaculate run
of success in 2003 and 2004 Supersport.
He explains
that they have been an integral part of winning nine of the last
12 available Supersport races. "I'm definitely mentally stronger.
I went on retreat course last year, in Switzerland, just to get
rid of the negative stuff about my career, the crashes and injuries
and all that. It was like somewhere to go to just reset yourself
- to defrag your hard drive, if you like. Only it took ten
days not two hours, like it does on your computer. I did it last
year, just before I started winning races. It was living like
a monk, no communication with anyone. I just came into the last
three races with a clear state of mind, knowing what I wanted
and how I could get it. It has simply carried on into this year."
Ever the professional,
Muggeridge ended his glory day at Imola with a touch of reality.
"Winning the title with my family here is fantastic and it
has already sunk in - but right now all I'm thinking about is
the final race at Magny Cours."
Who
the hell is Ten Kate?
Ducati
SBK -
MAGNY-COURS TESTING
Sept 16th - Regis Laconi and James Toseland completed preparations
for the last two rounds of the World Superbike championship with
a two-day test session at Magny-Cours, France, the venue for the
season's finale on October 3.
Almost two days of good weather in the Nevers area enabled the
two Ducati Fila riders to lap without any problems and find some
good settings for the French circuit in view of the race.
Regis Laconi,
whose best time was 1'43.0 on race rubber, declared: "We
worked a lot on chassis settings here and I was very happy with
the feeling. We started with the same front-end problem as at
Assen, but over the two days we sorted that out and I was able
to run very quick and at a very constant pace. I'm optimistic
for the race."
James Toseland,
with a time of 1'43.2, was just a couple of tenths of a second
off the pace of his French team-mate. "These two days were
very positive, we were trying to get the bike to work good around
this difficult circuit and we succeeded. We tested a number of
different tyre compounds, both front and rear, and made some changes
to the bike, but I found that I was also pretty happy with my
Assen set-up with which I won last Sunday's race."
Four riders,
Toseland, Vermeulen (Honda), Laconi and Haga (Renegade Ducati)
are still in with a chance of the title as World Superbike heads
to Imola next week and then Magny-Cours seven days later for its
exciting finale.
Ducati
presents its new 2005 model line at Intermot in Munich
-
President talks about Aprilia
Munich, September 14, 2004 – The gates are opening at the
4th edition of INTERMOT, the international motorcycle and bicycle
show in Munich. The
first motorcycle manufacturer to meet the press was Ducati, which
presented its new line for 2005.
The entire
world of Ducati is on display in an 800 square meter space at
stand number 705. Ducati is set to welcome thousands of fans of
this
celebrated Italian motorcycle maker with its full range of bikes,
accessories and apparel destined for stores and racetracks in
2005.
"Irrespective
of the fluctuations of the market, which are sometimes favourable
and other times not, as during this particularly difficult year,
the development of the Ducati range of bikes is always based on
two fundamental criteria" commented Federico Minoli, the
Chairman and Managing-Director of Ducati.
"For
the Superbike segment we are transferring all the innovations
and appearance of the racing bike to the streetbike
product, whereas for the other families, we continue to innovate
in the best Ducati tradition, albeit remaining faithful to the
aesthetic and technological principles that have always characterised
our marque."
"As far
as the Aprilia group is concerned - continued the Ducati Chairman
- the situation remains unsettled, with a decision expected from
the pool of financing banks on the future of the company. Ducati
has confirmed its offer for the acquisition of the entire group
and also its interest in only the Moto Guzzi brand and in Aprilia's
off-road
project.
Our interest
is linked to an industrial plan that foresees the relaunching
of the products and the brands. The success of Ducati demonstrates
that
products with a strong personality and a precise market positioning
are the most effective way of taking on the Far East's major motorcycle
manufacturers, rather than the sheer weight of numbers of bikes
produced."
There are
many new offerings from Ducati. Each family has been upgraded
to improve performance, comfort and style, including the 999 SBK
range and the new Multistrada s shown at left.
DISAPPOINTING
GRAND PRIX OF JAPAN FOR DUCATI MARLBORO TEAM
Motegi (Japan), Sunday 19 September 2004 - The Grand Prix of Japan
proved to be a disappointing race for the Ducati Marlboro Team
as both riders were involved in crashes and failed to finish.
Like last
year, the race at the Motegi circuit in Japan began with a tremendous
pile-up at the first corner which involved six riders including
Loris Capirossi. The Italian, who lay immobile on the ground after
the crash, suffered slight concussion and two bone fractures to
his right foot. It was a day to forget also for team-mate Troy
Bayliss. Sixteenth on the starting-grid, the gritty Australian
was making a fantastic recovery when he crashed five laps from
the end while in fifth position.
The good performance
of the Ducati Marlboro Team riders on Friday and Saturday, when
both Loris and Troy were quick on race tyres, was not transformed
into a similar result in the race.
"This
could have been our best race of the season, but instead it was
a day to forget" declared Livio Suppo, director of the Ducati
Marlboro Team. "During the warm-up Loris was third quickest
and Troy was also in a good position. Unfortunately Loris was
involved in a bad crash at the first curve and was unable to demonstrate
all his potential. Troy, after starting in sixteenth position,
was having an incredible race, but he crashed while in fifth place
five laps from the end. In 2003 on this track we were struggling
a lot, but this weekend's qualifying demonstrated how much the
bike has progressed since last year: unfortunately we were unable
to get a good result to confirm this progress".
Loris Capirossi's
Grand Prix of Japan came to an end at the first corner, when he
was involved in a big crash, together with five other riders.
The Italian, who had been consistently quick over the weekend
and third in the morning warm-up, was convinced a good result
could have been possible today. Now Loris is faced with a race
against time to recover for the Grand Prix of Qatar.
"I don't know what happened, I just found myself on the ground"
admitted Loris afterwards in the Clinica Mobile. "It was
a pity, but that's racing and these things can happen. This could
have been an important race for us: we had gone well during qualifying
and in the morning warm-up and were convinced we could have obtained
a good result, instead it all came to an end at the first curve.
This is a strange track and last year there was also a crash involving
4 or 5 riders, including Troy. I'm now just going to have to do
well in the next race."
Ducati Marlboro
Team rider Troy Bayliss gave the spectators at Japan's Motegi
circuit an exciting race: after starting from the sixth row, he
managed to get up to fifth place with a spectacular recovery.
Unfortunately Troy's race came to an end when he crashed out with
five laps remaining.
"I got
a reasonably good start and I had a good race despite starting
from sixteenth on the grid. I was really disappointed about the
crash because I was riding well. It's better to have a crash in
fifth position than sixteenth position, so I'm leaving here on
a positive note because I was doing OK. I look forward to the
next race, I'm going to go home and train like mad to get ready
for Qatar".
LA DUCATI DAY
October 14th La Honda,
(San Francisco region) CA
Motivated Ducati owners in the San Francisco Bay Area and Ducati
North America wil organize a full day of biker activities in La
Honda, California to support the La Honda Fire Department
MH900evoluzione Owners Club, Ducati North America. BevelHeaven.com
and Doc
Wong will host La Ducati Day 2004 on October 10th, 2004 in La
Honda, California.
The
activities include Ducati Garage Challenges, auctions, raffles,
Concourso Ducati, technical seminars, food, music and other fun
events!
LDD2004 takes place in La Honda, California situated in the beautiful
Santa
Cruz Mountains California, now renamed "La Ducati".
This
area is home to
some of the most beautiful motorcycling roads in California. Admission
to La Ducati Day 2004 is FREE. Arrive with your Ducati and enjoy
the day with fellow Ducatisti. Some of the events listed below
have a modest entry fee, of which 100% goes
to the La Honda Fire Brigade.
· ·Sportbike Suspension Setup Clinic
Jim Lindemann and Gary Jaehne will measure and tune your motorcycles
suspension to match your weight/riding style, all for a $30.00
donation to the La Honda Fire Brigade.
· ·Raffles
Attendees can purchase raffle tickets to win very cool prizes
that will be raffled off during the event.
· ·Auction Area
Charity auction to raise money for the La Honda Fire Brigade.
· ·Ducati Clubs Area
Participating Ducati Clubs and groups will be able to display
in this area. No fee for Ducati Clubs to participate, but must
provide club volunteers to work the Helmet Check/Welcome area,
Parking Area and other duties for the event.
· ·Concorso Ducati Area
Ducati Concours d'Elegance brought to you by BevelHeaven.com -
$10.00 entry
fee for participants, general admission is free.
· ·Swap Meet Area
Attendees who register will be allowed to display and sell, barter
or trade their Ducati related items in this area. A $15.00 fee
will be charged to display. If you would like to register to display,
please contact Hans Mellberg.
· ·Tech University Classroom style seating area
for technical discussions/sessions on riding, maintenance, etc.
Free attendance.
· ·Vendor Area
Retail vendor display area, where manufacturers and dealers will
have the latest Ducati parts and accessories available to browse
and purchase.
· ·Ducati Garage Challenge Area
Ducati Garage Challenges: A $5.00 fee will be charged for each
Ducati Challenge entered.
For further
information please visit www.ducatiusa.com
www.ducatiowners.com/LDD2004/
or contact:
Vincent Chiaro
PR and Event Coordinator
Ducati North America
Ph. +1-408-343-4414
vchiaro@ducatiusa.com
John Clelland,
President MH900Evoluzione Owners Club
johnc@ducatiowners.com
|
|
