Ducati RT 1972 Motorcycles, page #33

Moto blog

Open Letter from Ducati CEO About Italian Earthquakes

Ducati Chief Executive Officer Gabriele Del Torchio has released an open letter addressing the recent earthquakes in Italy, and how they have affected the company. The Emilia region in northern Italy was hit by a 6.0-magnitude earthquake on May 20 and has continued to suffer from aftershocks including a second earthquake on May 29 that briefly halted production at Ducati‘s Bologna factory. In the letter, del Torchio writes about those who have lost their homes in the disasters and expresses thanks for fundraising efforts to help those in need.

The problem with electric bikes...

This weekend sees the running of the most famous car race of them all, the Le Mans 24hrs, and to be a driver of one of the front-running cars has got to be fairly high on the list of jobs that will make ladies swoon. Speed, danger, noise, fame, physical fitness and lots and lots of money, the key elements of any top-line race series, tend to ensure that its star competitors manage to appear cool. But the latest press picture from Yamaha – publicising the firm's link with (Yamaha shareholder) Toyota's Le Mans effort – manages to strip away every last shred of of swagger from the team's drivers by plonking them on Yamaha EC-03 electric scooters.

Anti clockwise Knockhill and riding in the North East with GP winners.

I was both nervous and excited for my first ever reverse direction track day last week at Knockhill. From rushing downhill into the left hand off camber hairpin to sweeping up onto the start/finish, nothing bears any resemblance to riding round clockwise. I actually raced my 350LC in the opposite direction in 1982 but it still took a few laps to get my head round what essentially is a brand new track for Scotland.

Bob Collins to ride the 848 at Oulton

Bob Collins will be riding the Ducati 848 Challenge VIP bike at Oulton Park BSB on the weekend of the 6th - 8th July. If you're into motorcycle racing, no doubt you'll have heard of Bob Collins. Former R6 Cup competitor 'Viagra Bob' as he was known, went on to win the Superstock 1000 cup in 2006 and then compete at the Isle of Man TT.

Ducati North America Sets New Monthly Sales Record

Ducati North America set a new monthly sales record selling 1,782 motorcycles in May, easily surpassing its previous record of 1,394 units sold set in June 2008. Helping drive sales was the introduction of the new 2012 Ducati 1199 Panigale and the Streetfighter 848 last month. The two new models helped Ducati North America see a 49% year-on-year sales increase for the month.

2012 MotoCzysz E1PC Revealed on Isle of Man

MotoCzysz unveiled what may be the most aerodynamically designed motorcycle ever produced … and we’re not just talking about electric bikes here. The covers were pulled from the 2012 MotoCzysz E1PC electric race bike ahead of the TT Zero electric race at the Isle of Man, revealing a sleek silver and red sportbike with aerodynamically curving wings and fins. The updated E1PC is MotoCzysz’s latest stab at claiming the 10,000 British pound bounty for being the first electric motorcycle to score an average speed of 100 mph on the Isle of Man’s Mountain Course.

Cappuccinos in the Desert – Ducati Opens High-End Lounge in Dubai

Ducati has opened a new boutique restaurant lounge bar in Dubai, joining existing franchises in Rome, Shanghai and Bangkok. Like other Ducati Caffè franchises, the Dubai location offers Italian-style food and, of course, coffee, as well as Ducati merchandise. The lounge inhabits a two-floor, 4,400 square-foot unit in the Dubai mall.

WSBK: 2012 Miller Results

Marco Melandri earned BMW its second ever World Superbike victory to move into second place in the championship standings behind Max Biaggi in the series’ only stop in the United States. Melandri won a red-flagged Race Two at Utah’s Miller Motorsports Park after finishing second to defending WSBK Champion Carlos Checa in Race One to give him 142.5 points on the season, tied with Kawasaki‘s Tom Sykes but behind Aprilia‘s Biaggi who leads the way with 160.5 points. Race One Highlights Get the Flash Player to see this player.

Ducati Temporarily Suspends Production after Second Earthquake

Ducati has halted production in its factory in Bologna, Italy after the region was struck by a 5.8-magnitude earthquake this morning. The earthquake comes nine days after a 6.0-magnitude earthquake in the same area in northern Italy, killing seven people. Though the recent earthquake was lower in magnitude, it has already claimed a higher death toll with at least 15 people already confirmed dead.

848 Challenge: Official race report, Snetterton 300

Mike Edwards put a disappointing start to the season behind him with a win and a second place at Round Three of the Ducati 848 Challenge at the Snetterton BSB weekend. With a gritty ride to victory in Race One and a late charge to third in Race Two, Edwards (Ohlins @ P&H Motorcycles) managed to keep his championship hopes alive following a run of uncharacteristic crashes at the last two rounds.   Edwards said before Race One that he was going for a “win it or bin it” attitude this weekend as he desperately needed to make up the points he missed out on at Assen.