The ambience is surrounding the Red Bull Indianapolis Grand Prix on Thursday as previous Grand Prix competitor Randy Mamola and NHRA (National Hot Road Association) champion Antron Brown took pleasure in a MotoX2 demonstration ride in the Indianapolis city streets.

Commenting on the huge weekend Stateside, American Mamola states, “It is fantastic for the World Championship to come to the United States twice in the season. The Indianapolis Motor Speedway has to be the most famous circuit in the world and they are celebrating their 100th anniversary this year, so it’s a very special event.”

Drag Racing champion Brown adds, “The United States is all about technology and MotoGP is all about technology so we love having the sport here. It was just a blast to be on that bike with Randy!”

Together with the street ride, many other Red Bull sponsored competitors such as Dani Pedrosa, Andrea Dovizioso, Chris Vermeulen and Mika Kallio arrived to a city centre media conference and each enthused their excitement about competing at the historic Indianapolis circuit.

Racing in a Grand Prix on US turf for only the second time in his career this weekend, Bradley Smith is very motivated about the visit from his home town Great Britain to the historic Indianapolis arena.

Smith was classed eighth in last season’s sole ever 125cc event at Indy and he is anxious to get back on circuit at The Brickyard. “Indianapolis is a fantastic place, with great facilities and an amazing history,” says the Oxfordshire teenager. “The fans are brilliant and you can really sense how much motorcycles mean to them. The atmosphere is up there with the best Grands Prix of the year for me and I really love the United States.”

The Briton, who currently stands third in the 125cc rankings adds, “Although I couldn’t get on the podium at the last round in Brno fourth place was still a solid result and I hope to continue our good work this Sunday. Indianapolis is still almost like a new track for everyone as we have only been there once, so nobody really knows all the reference points for riding on the limit there yet.”

Concluding he states, “It is a strange track which is quite technical, especially because of the distinct types of asphalt in various parts of the circuit.

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With a 50-point lead going into the remaining six rounds of the season and visiting a circuit where history was made as the sole ever MotoGP victor last year, Valentino Rossi is positive and confident about Indianapolis, but never taking anything for granted.

As the year arrives to a conclusion, Rossi will move forward to show the focus and heart that has enabled him to six prior premier class titles, knowing if he lapses in any way, colleague Jorge Lorenzo will attempt to take advantage.

Rossi claimed a win in last season’s Red Bull Indianapolis Grand Prix in an event cursed by hurricane weather and he is read to enjoy racing at the historic US arena again this weekend. “2008 at Indy was something special because it was the first time we had been there and it is definitely the most famous racetrack in the world,” he says.

“We didn’t really know what to expect but our bike worked very well and we were fast from the start, in the wet and the dry,” adds Rossi. “Every year is a different story, however, so we won’t know where we are until we start our work on Friday afternoon. Last year I had a great win but, like everyone, I really hope that was the only hurricane we ever have to race in and that this time the conditions are more normal.”

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Julián Simón will have his Indianapolis event debut on Sunday in the 125cc session, a change from his original 250cc session.

Simon is the bookies favourite and will move into the weekend with confidence, having claimed his eighth stage appearance of the year, the previous time in second placing at the Czech Republi which allowed hima 54.5 point rankings lead with only six races left. Simón had initially qualified for tenth placing last season at Indy on a 250cc engine, however the Spaniard has proven his abilities with a 125cc motor this year.

Nico Terol is sitting in second place in the championship, he will also be full of confidence to challenge Simon as heads over the Atlantic Ocean to Indiana. Terol was last season’s 125cc victor at the Indianapolis event (an event cut short by bad weather) and was a winner at the Czech Republic just over a week ago.

Following Terol in the rankings are Simón’s Aspar colleagues Bradley Smith and Sergio Gadea, Smith is eight points trailing Terol and Gadea only half a point away from the Englishman.

Ongetta Team ISPA’s Andrea Iannone, currently fifth placed,  gained a third placing at Brno, whilst Pol Espargaró (Derbi Racing Team) was placed fifth in the Czech Republic and will ensure to repeating his result of last year of second place at Indianapolis.

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Filled with amazing lines and a new look, the VT1300CX is a motorbike due to be a milestone engine.

Announcing the arrival of this novice motorbike into Australia, Honda has added all the specifications and development information on their website www.hondamotorcycles.com.au.

Honda’s engineers have designed the new VT1300CS to handle, function and ride to Honda's excellent standards.

The most famous benefit is its raked-out chopper styles, high-mount handling head that allows the frame a see-through, open-air design with extra room to breathe, slender and long petrol tank situated up high, low seat height and much more.

With a fuel-injected system fairly fresh to Honda’s previous models, plus a single-pin crankshaft and two balancers, the VT1300CX has all the guts and grunt expected for a motorcycle of this calibre.

A freshly designed exhaust system and ultra new camshafts also pack the features into this creation for a motor that is very satisfying in all performance aspects.

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British competitor Scott Redding will be pushing forward again at the next session of the World Championship in Indianapolis, with his right ankle restoring back to health on his return to the UK.

Blusens Aprilia competitor Redding thrusted hard to recover from an unfortunately accident in Sunday’s Brno event, placing 15th to refute his mate Danny Webb a point. The youngster stated, “In the race I think I could have got a top ten finish but I got knocked off the track on the second lap and just lost it all. Then with the adrenaline and my ankle I was getting tired quickly, but that is racing.”

Referring to his ankle injury in the practice test and the return to training in England, Redding explains, “It’s not too bad actually, I got it x-rayed and they said its fine, so I have just been resting it and supporting it. I have to concentrate on upper body training in the gym this week. I don’t really go swimming but I can cycle on it. I can’t go too hard, but I have been focusing on that.”

Future advice on Indianapolis, Redding says, “I had a good race there last year and to try and get on the podium would be good because it is really nice track. Of course America is a great place for us to race and is a superb place to visit.”

Redding and his team are liaising with a group of squads, with reference to the possiblity of a move into the fresh Moto2 session next season. Although just 16 years-old, the English competitor is planning to be moved forward onto the 600cc engines because of his physical stature with being one of the taller competitors in the 125cc class.

Following another success event for Valentino Rossi in Sunday’s Cardion AB Czech Republic Grand Prix, this has placed him in an excellent position in this year's championship and the present Fiat Yamaha team is the strongest so far, however in Monday’s post-competition test, the Italian hero and his staff were planning ahead to next season.

Six-time premier division World Champion Rossi claimed his first opportunity to test prototype developments for next year, testing out a fresh chassis and a new motor specification, placing his best time of the day just prior to the end of the afternoon event, which was detered by the wet weather.

Rossi’s best lap of 1’56.622, was below the fresh lap record engaged by his colleague Jorge Lorenzo in Sunday’s event, but was however the second best lap time of the test, 0.451s after Lorenzo’s top test lap.

Rossi explains, “We had some important work to do as we were testing a 2010 spec engine which is more resistant and should be able to do more kilometers. We also tested the first prototype of the 2010 chassis, but I did just 20 laps in the morning.”

“Unfortunately it rained in the lunch break and so we couldn’t ride for a lot of the afternoon because of the wet rack, but it dried enough for us to do some more work at the end. This time we could really concentrate on doing a proper job testing the chassis and the new engine specification, and I was quite fast.”

Team boss Davide Brivio adds, “We got a lot done and we were able to collect a lot of data about the new chassis and engine spec, which will help the engineers back in Japan with their development for the future and next year’s bike. We also tried some electronic mapping and it was a very useful day for us.

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The wet weather on Monday afternoon at Brno caused chaos for all riders at the test, although for Repsol Honda specifically, there was a dash to fix the complications between their normal suspension distributors Showa and potential suppliers Öhlins, who are now providing the system being used on LCR Honda’s RC212V engines.

Dani Pedrosa was in good spirits to gain an opportunity to improve his package, even though the rainy circuit dampened his work slightly afterwards.  His placing was enough for third best following Jorge Lorenzo and Valentino Rossi.

“It was a tough test,” Pedrosa states. “In the morning we did some chassis tests to improve our bike and some setting work. In the afternoon we tried some new suspensions and it was a bit tricky because it was raining so finally it was like a time trial, as we had almost no time to change things on the bike.”

Commenting on the 2 main suppliers, Showa and Öhlins, Pedrosa says, “Obviously it is normal that there is a difference between different brands, as every one has there own characteristics. It is only our first try, we have to keep trying with various settings on the bike, because it is not that easy to put things on the bike and go really well. But it was not so bad for the first test.”

Loris Capirossi claimed his equal best target this year with a fifth placing on Sunday at Brno.  Afterwards he subsequently thanked the Rizla Suzuki staff for all the hard participation they have been enduring to be able to provide him with a substantially competitive appointment.

In sweltering temperatures amongst a huge crowd of up to 140,000 spectators, Capirossi tried to match his 2008 Brno stage appearance as he vied alongside Toni Elías and Andrea Dovizioso, however was ultimately short under a second from the rostrum.

Thanks to Suzuki, Capirossi has been enjoying work with a fresh chassis and motor in the Czech Republic he commented after the race, “I really want to say a huge thank-you to the whole team because their effort this weekend was fantastic. I also want to thank Suzuki for giving us the chance to comeback with a better package; this is a really good thing and will help us for the rest of the season.”

Overall commenting on the race, he says, “Overall it has been good for us, because we have been able to fight the whole weekend and were nearly rewarded with a podium. We had a big problem with chatter and we managed to resolve that for the race. We made the right choice of tyre, but a couple of times I nearly lost the front which meant I didn't quite have the right feeling and that caused me to lose a bit of time.”

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Toni Elías is aware he will not stay with the same staff next year, after the news that Marco Melandri will be heading to the Honda Gresini staff with Marco Simoncelli at the end of this season, however the results from the Czech Republic after round eleven have not been harmful for Elías.

Repeating his 2008 Brno stage was an important score for Elías as he seeks a new competition for the coming year.  Following the race he states, “I’m in a difficult situation because I don’t have a team and I don’t have a bike. I think this result could help but I don’t think anyone really wants me, so what can I do? I have to just concentrate on the next few races, like Indianapolis and Misano, which could be good for us also. We are talking with some teams, but at the moment there are not so many options.”

He continues, “This podium could change things, so I hope that the teams who haven’t finalised their plans for next year think about me a little bit more.”

Concluding the weekend at the Czech Republic after the race he explains, “I’m happy because recently I have been getting closer to the top riders, but problems or crashes meant I wasn’t getting the final rewards. But we have kept pushing and finally it has arrived. We worked well this weekend.”

“It was hard in the race because I was alone and then Andrea Dovizioso came up close behind me and was pushing a lot. Then Jorge Lorenzo crashed and that gave us an extra position, the final prize is a podium and we are really happy with that.”

2013 – Dani Pedrosa’s ninth placing finish at Donington takes his career points total to 2013 allowing him to be the Spanish competitor who has taken the most points in his career, just one single point over Alex Criville.

159 – Valentino Rossi and Giacomo Agostini are the two competitors with the most stage placings across all sessions of Grand Prix racing, each having been on the stage on 159 seperate occasions.

149 – Loris Capirossi’s 11th at Donington was the 149th time he has placed in a point scoring role in the higher class. Only two other competitors have had more premier class points scoring placings – Carlos Checa with 150 and Alex Barros with 195.

99 – Loris Capirossi’s third placing last season at Brno was the 99th time he has been on the podium in Grand Prix competition. He is still waiting to be only the seventh competitor to score 100 Grand Prix stage ends.

57 years – Race day at Brno marks the 57th anniversary of the 1952 Ulster Grand Prix when Ken Kavanagh was victorious in the 350cc event to be the first Aussie to claim a Grand Prix.

28 – Even though Yamaha’s two factory competitors smashed out at Donington, Colin Edwards extended the lead of MotoGP stage finishes with at least one Yamaha competitor. Yamaha have always had at least one rider end up on the stage in the previous twenty-eight events, beginning at the first race of last season at Qatar. This is the longest ever sequence of successful stage ends for Yamaha since they have always had at least one competitor end up on the podium at 40 consecutive races throughout the 1989/90/91 years.

28 years – On race day this Sunday, it will be 28 years following the last premier class win by a British competitor which was Barry Sheene at the Swedish Grand Prix in 1981 at Anderstorp.

24 – Mattia Pasini enjoys his 24th birthday on the day before practice begins at Brno.

16 – The youngest competitor in the 125cc session, Jonas Folger, enjoys his 16th birthday on the day before practice begins for the Cardion AB Czech Republic Grand Prix.

15.004 seconds – Valentino Rossi’s victorious margin at the Czech Grand Prix last season was the largest ever in the four-stroke MotoGP era in a dry event.

11 – Colin Edwards’ second placing at Donington was the 11th time he has been on the stage since his Grand Prix debut at the Japanese GP in 2003. This allows him the award of having more stage ends in the premier class than any other competitor that has not been on the top step of the stage.

 

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The time has come for improvements for Rizla Suzuki duo Chris Vermeulen and Loris Capirossi at the Cardion AB Czech Republic Grand Prix, if they are able to be successful on their ninth and tenth placings in the ranks as the last part of the season begins.

The duo had a serious challenge against each other last season at Brno, with Capirossi finally ending up on top and continuing to claim his first stage appearance in Suzuki colours.

A repeat of that place could be a perfect booster for the Italian champion who has been having a difficult year on the GSV-R. “I just can't wait to get back on the bike again; we have a lot of unfinished business and need to show that the results we've been getting are not a true reflection on how hard the team has been working recently,” Capirossi stated prior to the Czech action.

He explains, “I got a third at Brno last year which was the last time I was on the podium and that is just too long, so I need to do something about it. We really want consistently good weather all weekend so we can get the set-up right and if that happens I think we have a chance of a really good result.”

Vermeulen, who has twice been in the top six Brno places, gave his thoughts on the comeback to competition racing following the short break, saying, “We've had a bit of time for some rest and relaxation since the last race and that has given all my injuries a chance to heal, so I'll be 100% fit in the Czech Republic.”

“We have had an opportunity to look at the data from the last couple of events and see where we can make some changes for Brno. I have been speaking with Tom (O’Kane, Crew Chief) about the bike, we have a few ideas and we are both quite positive we can improve it straight away. I've done pretty well at Brno in the past couple of years and I'm sure that this is a track where we can make the best of the GSV-R.”

Claiming two wins from the prior three races, one each for Dani Pedrosa and Andrea Dovizioso, the Repsol Honda staff now visit Brno in excellent form and completely prepared for the second part of the MotoGP season.

The factory Honda staff came to form prior to the summer break, with Pedrosa victorious at Laguna Seca and then finding the stage at Sachsenring, before Dovizioso grasped an amazing maiden first class win at Donington Park.

That victory was the ultimate comeback to three consecutive DNFs for Dovizioso, who commented on the Brno race weekend stating, “The team and I arrive in the Czech Republic in a very positive mood thanks to the win at Donington. I’m very motivated and I’m really looking forward to the race, and also to the test session on Monday because that should be valuable for us.”

He explains, “I spent the two weeks of the summer break at the seaside not far from where I live and I had the possibility to relax, spend some time with my friends and also do some training ready for this weekend because Brno is a difficult and physical track. It’s a very fast circuit and I’m confident that our package can work well - in particular that we can make good use of the power of our engine. There are also many long turns that are quite demanding and you definitely need to quickly adjust your riding style to the characteristics of the track.”

Pedrosa visits Brno ready to claim his second win of the year following an innovative surge in recent presentation which was limited in the slippery conditions at the British Grand Prix circuit. He states, “It was a short summer break, but it was long enough for me to get back into training properly and build my fitness to close to 100%.It’s going be very important that I can now concentrate totally on riding the bike without any pain, and these last two weekends off have helped me in that sense.

He adds, “Brno is a circuit that I like very much: it’s technical and demanding. Plus the weather is usually good which would make a nice change. We have the final day’s testing for the season on Monday and it’ll be important for us to do some more evaluation work on the new engine and modified chassis which we’ve been running at the last few races. I’m feeling fit and ready for this race and we’re ready to get out there and put in a good result.”

In the 125cc event, the Bancaja Aspar staff have a good grip on the championship moving into this week’s race at Brno, thanks to three of their competitors, Julián Simón, Sergio Gadea and Bradley Smith, who have all grasped the top three positions in the ranking table.

Simón has a massive 50 point lead on top of the standings and has performed very well all year after dropping back down into the 125cc class for a title fight. The Spanish star raced with excellent intensity at Donington to take a win in the slippery event, gaining extra to his victory in the prior weekend in Germany, he will move into the Czech round with full confidence.

For his colleagues Gadea and Smith, the event at Brno is an opportunity to gain form after a tomultulous ride at Donington. Gadea smashed out after finishing first and second at the last two Grands Prix, while there was heartbreak for Briton Smith at home as he crashed the deck in the second half of the event after leading the way and finally placing 20th, as he also smashed out at Sachsenring.

Following the Aspar contingent in the ranks is Nico Terol, the Spanish Jack & Jones Team competitor, who has successfully managed his early season issues to claim a string of steady top five results in the previous five events.

Andrea Iannone has been victorious in three races this season, however his form has been very inconsistent and with no points at Donington, he slipped back to fifth overall, after Terol. Last season’s 125cc race-victor at Brno, Stefan Bradl, is also having difficulty this year after he was unable to place in the last two events, he is now in 12th place.

To enhance the anticipated arrival of the Fury chopper in Australia, Honda has presented a website for the American-styled, Japanese-made fans.

Honda’s ‘wild side’, more commonly known as the VT1300CX, has dredged-out steering, a huge wheelbase, a small seat height, a long and low petrol tank plus a single-shock back suspension which is shyed away beneath a hard-tail appearance.

It is torqued by the fuel injected 1312ccc V-twin used from the prior VT1300, however with an upgraded exhaust and fresh camshafts.

Price is yet to be confirmed, more details announced at a later stage.

The motorbike facility has engaged in a challenge against newly introduced anti-bikie laws with the likes of the Crimes (Criminal Organisations Control) Act in NSW to the traditional surrounds of the National Press Club in Canberra.

“Ferret”, who talked for the United Motorcycle Council of New South Wales, stated laws in many Australian states that wears away the liberty of association are uncalled for.

"I'm not trying to say all bikers are saints, just like not all politicians or police are squeaky clean," Ferret explains.

"But I would say that there is more organised criminal activity every day in Australia's governments and police services than you would find at your local biker clubhouse.

"The behaviour of the few does not justify punishing or taking away the rights of the whole.

"Think about it this way - if the behaviour of a few was enough to justify a criminal tag being applied to all then Anna Bligh up in Queensland should be declaring her own party a criminal organisation.”

"The Finks Motorcycle Club in South Australia has had a control order placed on it. Nine of our members have control orders placed on them," adds Ferret. "Two of those members have no criminal record. How many people in New South Wales have no criminal record who can also have a control order placed on them?

"Under secret police intelligence, that's what it's come to.”

Against these strict fresh anti-bikie laws, a committee in South Australia has now called upon itself as a political gathering with an eye towards challenging the SA state election in March next year, where it eventually wants to alter the association laws.

An added presenter at the National Press Club in Canberra was Paul Wilson from Bond Uni who is a criminology expert, stated bikie-related crime wasn't a huge issue.

"Gang-related violence represents just 0.6 percent of all crime in Australia and biker groups represent probably half of that - about 0.3 percent," Wilson says.

"Okay, it's significant, some of it (the bikie crime) is horrific, but it's a very small proportion.”

Nicholas Cowdery, Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), recently denounced the Crimes Act in NSW, saying it is a "very troubling legislation" and "another giant leap backward for human rights and the separation of powers - in short, the rule of law in NSW".

Barkbusters are an icon in the dirtbike industry. Most people are aware that they are not just the top hand protection in the field, but they tend to continue on for a long time. Honda agrees totally as it installs Barkbusters as a standard to its CRF series, here is some history.

Barkbusters was commenced by Ted Goddard in 1984. He lead the field as a one-man, part-time business up to 1998, after that he sold it to Mathew Philpot. Mathew saw possiblities in Barkbusters and took on his ability to market the brand, quickly setting about to make it huge.

Barkbusters is now a successful small business incorporating 11 staff and retailing into more than 20 countries nationally. To add to this bonus, Mathew is evidence that wealthy businessmen can be nice people too.

The recipe for success has been reasonably  simple: make a creation from excellent substances and produce it properly. To enable this, a lot of finance has been invested in ensuring you have the right tools for the work.

The Barkbusters series has developed substantially from early on when it advertised only one product – an aluminium bar that enfolded around your hands and levers. While the spine has remained the same, the range has grown dramatically.

The skeleton is out of the closet for the first time since 2005, a stand alone session of the Australian Superbike Championship will occur at Phillip Island.

The huge venue will announce this season’s finale from November 27-29. By then it will be the third showing for superbike and supersport riders at Phillip Island this year, having been on the sustained class program at the national superbike and MotoGP sessions.

For all the other world sessions, it will be their sole time challenging for Australian championship scores at Phillip Island in over four years.

The finale round of the 2009 Woodstock Bourbon Australian Superbike Championship was supposed to be held at Calder Park in Melbourne, but that plan was negated due to recurring issues.

The next event of the championship will occur at Sydney’s Eastern Creek Raceway this weekend (August 7-9), trailed by Mallala (SA) from August 28-30.

You can also tune in to Digital Channel ONE for the superbike telecast times as follows:

August 17 - 11.00am-1.00pm
August 21 - 7.30-8.30pm

Ducati says it has shot to the head of the nakedbike fighter food chain with the announcement of its daring Streetfighter.

There is no hesitation that this machine is extremely beautiful, it has been voted the most astonishing bike at last season’s EICMA show in Italy, Milan, which confirmed that it had an immediate influence on the press and the public.

Besides it's beauty, the Streetfighter now clarifies that Ducati has all its nakedbike bases wrapped. As the Streetfighter pays attention to the performance and radiant technology ‘wing’, the Monster (in both 696 and 1110cc suits) is at the tail end of the spectrum with its air-cooled two-valve motor and a level of elegant simplicity.

It has been a purposeful outcome by Ducati to manufacture such an true level of difference, and one that could well work in its favour.

The Streetfighter is torqued by Ducati’s 1099cc liquid-cooled L-twin superbike motor, and it goes without saying that it’s the most power efficient nakedbike in the Italian’s marque’s national history.

In line with Ducati’s standard representations, there are two forms of the Streetfighter: the Streetfighter and upper class Streetfighter S.

“Until Streetfighter, a rider wanting real superbike performance needed to also live with the uncompromising, and often impractical sports bike riding position,” stated Warren Lee, General Manager of NF Importers (their Australian Ducati importer). “Streetfighter isn’t simply a stripped down or naked 1098, it is a completely new motorcycle designed from the ground up to perform and function as a high powered, high performance Ducati naked motorcycle.

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The Bendigo Motorcycle Expo will this year incorporate an electric motorbike which will be presented on an inside test track for all spectators to view.

The motorcycle is not a hybrid pedal bike, it looks fantastic and apparently has enough torque, speed and agility to ensure it is a serious consideration once mass production begins.

The bike is also completely silent which means no more angry neighbours!

The ‘Zero’ motorbike will be on display throughout the event which commences from Saturday, October 3 until Sunday, October 4, 2009.

Figures released recently by the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries (FCAI), states that the motorbike market has decreased in sales over the first half period of this year, scooters particularly are reducing in showroom popularity.

Approximately 55,500 motorcycles, ATVs and scooters were sold in the initial six month period of 2009, creating a 14% decline over the same time frame in 2008.

Held up by sturdy demand from the agricultural region and the Federal Government’s tax break for companies, ATV retail sales were only 0.1 percent lower than the previous year with 9722 bikes sold.

Scooters however endured the biggest drop in sales, with 5592 sales incorporating a 29.3% decrease.

Fluctuating petrol costs are a major contributor for the decline in popularity of scooters.

With 2009’s record petrol costs the main motivator behind the reduction in scooter sales, it was expected that demand would reduce once the price of petrol remains to a better level.

Road bikes and trail bikes were not resistant to the fall in motorcycle sales either, with both areas falling 13.4 and 15.3% respectively.

According to the FCAI, the drop in showroom performance is no huge cause for concern.

    “This result reflects the impact of broader economic conditions,” FCAI Chief Executive Andrew McKellar stated.

    “Motorcycle sales are now at the level we would expect them to be and are broadly consistent with the trends in new car sales.”

Honda was the leader in sales for the first period of 2009 with 11,837 bikes sold, Yamaha trailed with 11,393 and following them was Suzuki with 8,212. Road bikes are still classed as the most popular sale, with off-road bikes second and ATVs third.