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Jonathan Rea Guides Us Around a Lap at Donington Park

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Jonathan Rea was the man that ended Tom Sykes’ winning streak at Donington Park. The reigning WorldSBK champion snapped a nine-race streak for Sykes by winning Race 2 at the British round, and he’s excited ahead of his home round.

“Donington is a circuit of two halves,” said Rea. “Sector 1 and 2 are very flowing, and the final sector is very stop and start.”

“It’s very difficult to find the right setup, and you’re always making a compromise. Sometimes I have had a setting that is great for the first halfm and other times I’ve set the bike up for the final sector.”

“It really depends on what you need to do with the bike you have. You need to find a compromise between stability and agility, but it’s a very satisfying track to get right.

“This is a track where the harder you try the slower you go. You need to be calm and work with the bike. It’s very enjoyable here when you get it right.”

“I love this track, but the final sector lets down the track, to be honest. The first half is so good, but it’s almost like the designers ran out of inspiration in the final section.”

While the end of the lap isn’t to the tastes of a Superbike rider the rest of the circuit certainly is. Redgate to Coppice is immense, and every corner presents a different challenge. This is two miles of motorcycling perfection that is thrilling and technical.

“Redgate has a fifth gear entry where you’re doing around 260 km/h,” explains Rea of Turn 1. “We backshift three gears to get back into second gear, but once you exit the first corner you’re straight into Hollywood.”

“This section is where experience really counts. It’s difficult to find a reference point because it’s blind, but I’m aiming for a small kerb on the right side of the track. I try and run as close to that as I can before letting the bike drift a little bit, before the second part of the corner.”

“You always feel like you’re turning in too early, but the forces on the bike mean that everything is harder to turn because you’re in fourth gear at this point.”

“You need to understand the track, and where you need to be, because there’s a lot of crashes in this section. A lot of these come from riders rolling off the gas to find that kerb, and the rear is unloaded at the wrong time and you lose the front.”

“It’s not always true but Ron Haslam told me ‘you’ll never tuck the front if you’re on the gas’ so I do think about that through this section.”

“From Redgate to Craner is very busy, but then you’re into the Old Hairpin. It’s definitely not a hairpin though, it’s third gear and fast! This is a very important part of the lap because the exit of the Old Hairpin is crucial because you’re exit here sets your speed for the entry to McLeans.”

“It’s uphill and you need to accelerate well. It’s very easy to get sucked into the Old Hairpin, you have so much momentum down the hill from the Craner Curves, but you need to stop well and be in the correct position to accelerate well for Starkeys and Schwantz.”

“The exit of the hairpin depends a lot on your gearing – do you shortshift or try and hold a longer gear? – but the acceleration is so important.”

“The entry to Schwantz is fun, but the line can change a lot because of the grip or your speed and revs. If you’re able to release the brake early and try and roll through Schwantz before braking for McLeans, or if you have to brake harder through Schwantz. It’s very difficult but it depends on the bike settings.”

“McLeans is a strange corner because there are times where you feel fast in that corner, but you’re actually slow.”

“You need to get the bike stopped and exit as smooth as possible because we’ll try and hold the same gear from Turn 7 into Turn 8, but that can mean that the gearing is lazy on the exit of McLeans.”

“That’ll mean the bike wants to push you wide, so you need to make sure you can catch the bike and be in the right place for Coppice.”

“It’s a blind entry into Coppice, as you brake up the hill. There’s no markers that you can really use for this section, last year I used a tarmac join, but it’s a tough corner. You always feel like you can go faster through here, and the corner almost makes you go faster.”

“But it’s so hard, and you can see a lot of front end crashes here because you push too hard through the entry, and are carrying too much speed. It’s third gear through here, and you shortshift into fourth for the exit, and then it’s down the backstraight.”

While the first half of the lap is fast and flowing the second half is filled with a stop-and-go nature.

The flowing nature comes to an abrupt end with the Foggy Esses. This chicane is faster than it had been but it begins a period of heavy braking where teamperatures start to spike and have no time to recover.

It’s this section that makes Donington Park one of the most difficult circuits on the calendar for brakes.

“The first half of the lap is probably the best in the world and it’s a lot of fun. I love the Craner Curves section and that’s my favourite section but it’s also very tough on brakes because the end of the lap is heavy acceleration followed by heavy braking.”

“The issue here with brakes is that there’s no time for them to cool down from the Esses to Melbourne to Goddards to Redgate.

“The Foggy Esses is the first overtaking spot on the lap but it’s very difficult because the chicane is a lot faster now. It’s not about making this into a stop and go corner; it’s about flowing through here.”

“You can run over the kerbs but it’s easy to crash through here. The exit has some bumps so you trying to pull yourself over the front of the bike because it’s heavy acceleration and you’re trying not to wheelie. It’s very physical, probably more so than braking, but you need to do it.”

“Melbourne Loop is very basic. You have some negative camber if you miss the apex so you need to be as close to the apex as possible. It’s very much a stop and go corner with two apexes but you can leave the gap open for someone.”

“The exit is important because it’s first to third from the Loop to Goddards. You need to understand the exit of the loop because it dictates when you shift before the last corner.

“Goddards is blind and bumpy and very easy to run into too fast. There’s a bump in the braking zone that kicks the rear wheel into the air so you’re engine braking and electronics are useless until the wheel touches down again!”

“Some years I’ve had a great bike in that sector and could make moves but other years I’ve had the bike for the first half of the lap and it was hard. Making a move into Goddards is easy but making it stick is tough!”

“You rush into a lot of negative camber and it’s very easy to run in too hot for the corner and leave the door open for a counter attack.”

Photo: WorldSBK

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MotoGP

MotoGP Silly Season – Jorge Lorenzo Out, Joan Mir In?

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At the beginning of the year, I predicted on MotoMatters that MotoGP’s Silly Season this year would change the face of the MotoGP grid beyond recognition.

The revolution I predicted looks like it is coming to pass, but as with every prediction, the changes happening are beyond even what I had expected.

Young talent is coming into the series – Joan Mir, Miguel Oliveira – big names are changing bikes – Johann Zarco, Andrea Iannone – and a couple of major names face being left without a ride altogether.

A lot has happened in the past couple of weeks. Contracts have been signed with Andrea Dovizioso, Johann Zarco, Aleix Espargaro, Alex Rins, Miguel Oliveira, and Pol Espargaro, adding to the contracts signed earlier in the year with Valentino Rossi, Maverick Viñales, Marc Marquez, and Pecco Bagnaia.

With Cal Crutchlow, Franco Morbidelli, and Xavier Simeon already having a contract, there are thirteen seats officially taken for next year. Ducati have an option on Jack Miller – and look certain to exercise it – making it fourteen riders in a strong position.

And Taka Nakagami looks very likely to keep his seat at LCR Honda.

But the big news is what happens at Suzuki, Ducati, and Repsol Honda. Rumors that Joan Mir would sign for Suzuki grew very strong at Le Mans, as I wrote on Friday, and now appear to be taking shape.

The reliable Spanish journalist Mela Chercoles is reporting in sports daily AS that Joan Mir has signed a two-year deal with Suzuki, which will see him line up alongside Alex Rins for the next two years.

The choice of Mir over either Jorge Lorenzo or Andrea Iannone is the decision of Suzuki bosses in Japan, rather than the team manager Davide Brivio. After a difficult year with Iannone, where both results and PR efforts had disappointed, Japanese bosses decided to choose youth over experience.

The pairing of the 22-year-old Rins with the 20-year-old Mir will make them the youngest factory team on the grid, though 2019 will be Rins’ third year in the championship, which should be sufficient experience to build a development program on.

Mir is exceptionally highly regarded by MotoGP teams, and had interest from both Honda and Ducati. The arrival of Mir means Iannone will be pushed out to Aprilia.

Mir signing with Suzuki leaves Jorge Lorenzo in a very difficult spot. The paddock had been treating Lorenzo’s switch to Suzuki as a done deal, as several sources were indicating that a deal was close throughout testing and the early season.

But Suzuki’s Japanese bosses decided otherwise, and now Lorenzo’s only realistic option is Ducati.

The problem for Lorenzo is that Ducati’s patience with the Spaniard is wearing very thin indeed. Lorenzo was brought in to Ducati as a three-time MotoGP champion, and a rider ready to take Ducati to wins and a world championship, and he was paid accordingly.

Yet it has been Dovizioso who did what Lorenzo was expected to do, while Lorenzo has struggled to adapt to the Desmosedici, much as Valentino Rossi did before him (though it bears pointing out that the current Ducati is a far better bike than the one Rossi rode in 2011 and 2012).

The language being used by Ducati management is much more negative about Lorenzo than it has been previously.

“If this chemistry doesn’t start to work at the level we expect, which is fighting for winning races, fighting for podiums, then I don’t think it’s a good idea to continue,” Ducati Sporting Director Paolo Ciabatti told Neil Morrison for Crash.net.

And at a presentation of the Ducati Scrambler Food Factory in Bologna, Ducati CEO Claudio Domenicali echoed that sentiment, adding that Andrea Dovizioso was the rider Ducati regarded as leading the factory effort, and his teammate would be a rider “we are currently talking to and who will come into the team to work in a measured and balanced way.”

Where does this leave Jorge Lorenzo? It is looking increasingly like the Spaniard will find himself without a ride for 2019. Lorenzo has offers, but they are financially at a much lower level, with a very large element of reward via bonuses.

That is not how Lorenzo regards himself, believing his MotoGP titles mean that he has already proven his value. But the racing maxim that you are only ever as good as your last race seems to be holding true at this point.

Could Dorna step in to aid Lorenzo? Possibly. It is not unknown. Dorna commonly helps out riders it wants to keep in the championship, and is believed to have played a role in mediating a place for Valentino Rossi at Yamaha after his time at Ducati.

But again, this will only be possible if Lorenzo is willing to take a step down financially, and in terms of status. An entirely hypothetical option is for Lorenzo to take one ride at Marc VDS once they switch to Yamaha next year, as they are expected to do.

If Lorenzo is out at Ducati, the Bologna factory is expected to promote either Danilo Petrucci or Jack Miller. The two Pramac Ducati riders have both been impressive this year, and in an echo of 2016, are engaged in a battle over supremacy in the Pramac team, which would offer promotion to the factory team.

The signing of Joan Mir marks some relief for Dani Pedrosa. Alberto Puig had been keen to get rid of Pedrosa and replace him with a younger rider. But first KTM signed Johann Zarco, and then Suzuki snatched Joan Mir from under his nose.

Puig may want to take a risk on Franco Morbidelli, but so far the Italian has struggled with the Honda, as all rookies of recent vintage have done. So keeping Pedrosa for a year may be Honda’s best option.

The moves so far bode ill for a number of MotoGP regulars. Scott Redding and Bradley Smith look to be out of MotoGP as of this moment, and Alvaro Bautista may also lose his ride at the Angel Nieto Team unless his results improve, and especially if another young rider comes up from Moto2.

There is one more wildcard which could be added to the Silly Season puzzle, and that is Jonathan Rea. According to the estimable Mat Oxley, his manager Chuck Aksland was present in Le Mans.

Rea would very much like to make the jump across to MotoGP, but the man who is dominating in WorldSBK will only do so if the conditions are right.

That means a ride on a competitive bike with a factory or factory-backed team, and of those, only the seats at Repsol Honda and Factory Ducati are available, with a possibility at Pramac Ducati if Miller wins the factory seat.

Rea’s problem is that no matter how much he deserves such a shot, the team bosses do not seem inclined to give him one. That is a tragedy for both MotoGP and WorldSBK.

Source: Ducati Corse

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Podcast

Two Enthusiasts Podcast #78 – Princess Düsseldorf

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Episode 78 of the Two Enthusiasts Podcast is out, and in it we talk about an omnibus list of topics.

As such, the show begins with some racing news, both for the Isle of Man TT and for the World Superbike Championship, with a conversation about Bosch’s safety thruster technology stuffed somewhere in-between those topics.

The conversation then turns to some timely news, namely the continued rumors that Honda is readying a V4 superbike, MV Agusta is building a Moto2 bike, Ducati will return to Pikes Peak, and Alta Motors entering the Erzberg Rodeo.

We then shift gears into a long conversation about the rising trend of motorcycle fatalities, when compared to total on-road vehicle deaths.

The show finishes with a look at how profitable halo superbikes can be for motorcycle manufacturers, and how that could be the future of sport bike sales.

You can listen to the show via the embedded SoundCloud player, after the jump, or you can find the show on iTunes (please leave a review) or this RSS feed. Be sure to follow us on Facebook and Twitter as well.

We hope you will join the conversation, and leave us some audio comments at our new email address: twoenthusiasts@gmail.com.

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A&R Pro

Kenan Sofuoğlu, A Rider’s Measure

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To be the best, you’ve got to beat the best. Going up against Kenan Sofuoğlu was no easy matter for the top riders in World Supersport, but it was necessary if you were going to move on from the feeder class.

Kenan Sofuoğlu was the benchmark upon which every WorldSSP rider was judged. If you wanted to move from the class to race a superbike or a grand prix machine, you needed to prove you could beat Sofuoğlu.

As the dominant force of the class his rivals never underestimated the challenge they faced. To mark Kenan’s retirement from motorcycle racing, we reached out to his fiercest competitors to see what they had to say about competing against the Turkish rider.

Eugene Laverty: “I had some great battles with Kenan, and I’m not saying this just because he’s retiring, but he was my toughest rival. His skill level and bravery was tremendous, and on the last lap he was so tough to beat.”

“He could put the bike where you’d not think it was possible to be, and it made him so difficult to overtake. Some of my best battles on track were against Kenan in 2010.”

“He’s been a legend of the Supersport class, and the toughest rival for so many riders to beat, and that’s why he’s won more than any other rider.”

“He was the toughest rider I went up against, and even though he beat me to the 2010 World Supersport title, he did make me the rider I am today.”

“The race that I can remember was Silverstone in 2010, because I was so strong that day and was easing away from him, but then he started to close the gap on me before starting to fight again.”

“It forced me to change my strategy at the end of the race, and on the last lap I managed to get back past him.”

Chaz Davies: “When I started racing Supersport in 2009, Kenan was the top rider, and you knew that if you were going to win in that class, you had to go through Kenan.”

“Back then, he was a rider that wouldn’t give a spare inch, and was super hard on track, but he was the yardstick for the class.”

“I remember Valencia 2010 because we were racing bar-to-bar that day, and I got my first podium. He’s a legend of the class and was so fast, committed, and just the rider you measured yourself against.”

“If you came into the Supersport class, you knew that you’d be up against him.”

“From FP1 he was fast and setting the pace for the rest of the class. If you wanted to step up from Supersport, you knew that you’d have to beat him.”

“There’s not a lot riders that stay in a class as long as Kenan, but Supersport needs riders like him because young riders can be measured against him.”

“There’s a lot of fast guys in that class, but if he’s winning races and at the front, you know the level of the class.”

“To move on from Supersport you’ve got to beat Kenan or get close to him because everyone knows how fast he is on that bike, and if you can race against him everyone knows that you’re riding at a good level.”

Michael van der Mark: “Kenan was so aggressive on track! It’s incredible how much talent he had on a Supersport bike.”

“Sometimes he was over the limit, but it was because he always wanted to win. Every rider that raced against Kenan learned from him, and I think that every young rider should watch his races.”

“His mental strength was so strong, and he’s gone through so much. When he lost his son, he was leading the race and that’s not normal. That showed how special a person he is,m because I don’t think anyone else would have raced, and he was even able to fight for the win. That’s amazing.”

“In 2014, I won the championship, and he had a bad bike that year, but he still was able to fight for the win and have some great battles. He was the standard of the Supersport class and that would have stayed the same if he was fit for another couple of years.”

“You had to beat him and even though he didn’t have the bike in 2014, he was still fighting for race wins. If you could beat Kenan you deserved the chance on the next step because he was so fast and always pushing to the limit.”

“He forced everyone else to do the same. You didn’t build up to a weekend you were at the limit all the time! It doesn’t always work for you, but you had to do it because if you weren’t at that limit, he’d make you look silly!”

“I remember when he won in Turkey, I was on the podium and I’m glad I didn’t have to fight with him that day because his fans were scary! I’ll never forget standing on that podium, but at Phillip Island in 2014 it was funny because we were so much faster than everyone else and we both crashed out.”

“It was at the same corner on different laps for us, and even though neither of us finished, I’ll remember that weekend for a long time.”

PJ Jacobsen: “In 2015 I had a great year battling with Kenan. He’s the hardest racer I ever raced against because you’d set a great lap time and BANG he goes out and beats it. He never gave up and his five titles are incredible.”

“He’s an amazing Supersport rider and he’ll be remembered for a long time. He’s a great guy as well. He might be aggressive on track, but he always gives you advice as well. When you’re second to him he’ll tell you a things to try and help.”

“We’d be at the paddock show stage and he’d say ‘I was watching you and you were struggling in this section of the lap. Maybe you could try and do this to help.’”

“He’d be giving you advice to make you better because he loved a last lap fight, and he wanted to have riders with him on that last lap. He didn’t want to be five seconds in front he wanted five riders to be with him on the last lap! That’s his idea of proper racing.”

“I remember Magny-Cours in 2015 because I had to win the race or else the championship was over. It was a mixture of wet and dry conditions, and I was battling with Kenan. He was in second and didn’t need to win the race, but all he wanted to do was win!”

“I managed to beat him in the race and he won the championship with second. It was a great race and we touched a few times, but he’s so smart in a race. He knew what he had to do at all times on the track and watching him you’d learn a lot about racing.”

“My first fight with him was at Misano and it was my first podium. I was third and he was fourth, and with eight or nine laps to go I was behind Mickey [van der Mark], and I looked at my pitboard and it said +1s to Kenan. For the rest of the race it was +1s and he was so consistent.”

“I was riding as hard as I could and I couldn’t break away from him, and that’s what puts pressure on a rider. When you’re giving it everything and not pulling away it can be tough, but finally it was the last lap and I got the podium. He never gave up and that’s what I respect about him.”

Fabian Foret: “I was a teammate of Kenan’s in Supersport and he was a great teammate. He always wanted everyone to get better so they could fight on track.”

“I went to his place in Turkey to learn from him, and I have so much respect for him. He was one of my biggest competitors at the time, but always a great guy and a great fighter on track.”

“We had some great battles on track and even though I had more experience in the class we had some great battles. From 2008 until I retired we had so many fights on track.”

Photo: WorldSBK

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Bikes

MV Agusta Brutale 800 RR LH44 Edition – Unleashing All That Lewis Hamilton Bling Bling

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It was only a couple days ago that we were talking about how limited edition models have been a cash-making boon for motorcycle manufacturers, and now today we see MV Agusta proving the point, releasing a Lewis Hamilton edition of the Brutale 800 RR.

The MV Agusta Brutale 800 RR LH44, as it is known, takes the venerable street bike, and gives it the styling touches designed by the Formula One champion. The look isn’t all that different from the Dragster 800 RR LH44 that debuted three years ago, and the F4 LH44 superbike that debuted late last year.

The design of course was created in collaboration with the Castiglioni Research Center (CRC), and only 144 examples will be made available around the world.

On the more technical side of things, the basic mechanics of the MV Agusta Brutale 800 RR remain the same on the LH44 model, though special carbon fiber pieces have been used through Hamilton’s creation, along with the unique color scheme.

MV Agusta does say that the exhaust system has been given a ceramic coating, and that there are a number of billet aluminum pieces and accents on the bike, like the brake and clutch levers, clutch cover guard, and fluid reservoir caps.

While we doubt the design is everyone’s cup of tea (I think this is actually my favorite LH44 bike to-date), we doubt that MV Agusta will have a hard time selling the total production run – making a tidy sum in the process.

With this debut, we can likely expect similar LH44 limited edition bikes to permeate through MV Agusta’s lineup, namely the F3 and Turismo Veloce bikes.

Never fear though, MV Agusta will have a new 1,000cc Brutale for us to drool over later this year, with a neo-café to debut in 2019, and a new superbike to debut in 2020.

We can also expect the rest of the three-cylinder lineup to evolve over the next few model years as well. Stay tuned.

Source: MV Agusta

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WorldSBK

Donington Park World Superbike Preview – What to Expect in the United Kingdom

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Round 6 of the 2018 WorldSBK Championship sees the paddock head for the home of Superbikes: Donington Park. The British circuit hosted the first ever round of the championship in 1988, and since then the affinity for superbike racing in the UK has only continued to grow.

The spectacular, flowing track has been the canvas for some of the most incredible moments in the history of the class, but will this weekend be remembered in the same light?

Contenders Ready?

Like all the great gladiators, Jonathan Rea is having to look over his shoulder for a new threat. The Northern Irishman is on the cusp of setting new ground in WorldSBK with a 60th victory around the corner, but this weekend could be a struggle.

Donington is a circuit that should suit the likes of Yamaha and even Aprilia this year, and Alex Lowes, Michael van der Mark, and Eugene Laverty are all fired up to prove their worth as they aim to secure their World Superbike futures.

A First Time Winner?

Lowes and Van der Mark are the obvious options for a new winner in the class but don’t sleep on Leon Camier. This trio of riders are all deserving of claiming their first SBK victories, and with almost 400 starts between them this trio of are overdue a victory.

With a World Supersport champion and two British championships on their combined CV, it is only a matter before they finally break their duck. Could it be this weekend?

Sykes Rights the Ship

When Tom Sykes was beaten by Rea in Race 2 last year, it brought an end to a nine race unbeaten run at his home round. For Rea, it was a race that he had to win, he wanted to use this as a victory to undermine Sykes, and add to the pressure that comes from an intra-team rivalry.

For Sykes, this weekend comes at a crucial juncture; his future has been a topic of hot conversation, with a move to Yamaha being strongly rumored. Winning in front of his home crowd would go a distance to proving how good the 2013 champion still is.

Photo: WorldSBK

This World Superbike story is made possible by our A&R Pro members. If you like reading WorldSBK stories on Asphalt & Rubber, you should consider supporting this content by signing up for A&R Pro.

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Bikes

Honda Finally Debuts a 450cc Dual-Sport for Trail Riders

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It has been a long-time coming, but Honda has finally has a road-legal 450cc dirt bike back in its lineup. As such, say hello to the 2019 Honda CRF450L.

Taking its DNA from Honda’s 450cc MX bike (which is also updated for 2019), the Honda CRF450L offers mirrors, LED lighting, an electric starter, and even a place to stick a license plate, giving you the ability to on-road, between trailheads.

Other features include a wide-ratio six-speed transmission, 18″ rear wheel, a two-gallon titanium fuel tank, Showa suspension front and back, and more crank mass than the Honda CRF450R MX bike. The curb weight is claimed at 275 lbs, topped up with fuel and ready to ride.

Honda says that the CRF450L will be available in September 2018, with pricing set for now at $10,399.

It may not seem like it, but the debut of the Honda CRF450L is a big deal in the off-road / on-road space, as the American market has a dearth of 450cc enduros. In fact, none of the other Japanese brands have a 450cc dual-sport on the market for riders.

This is curious, considering the popularity of 450cc MX bikes in the United States. Thankfully however, Honda has answered the call of American trail-riding enthusiasts.

The Honda CRF450L was developed in tandem with the new Honda CRF450X enduro, and released in conjunction with a revised Honda CRF450R and the up-spec “Works Edition” Honda CRF450RWE motocross machines.

All-in-all, Honda’s 450cc dirt bike lineup is looking fresh and reading for the 2019 model year. With the off-road segments seemingly the only ones in the motorcycle industry that are showing signs of life, Honda has just made a big play for a contentious space.

As such, we would expect Honda to do quite well with the CRF450L, and the rest of its dirt lineup. Hopefully this means that other brands will follow Honda’s lead, and we will see more 450cc dual-sports on the market in coming years.

Source: American Honda

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Bikes

Up-Close with the Krämer HKR EVO2 R

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If I said that there was an 81hp track bike that weighed less than 280 lbs ready to race, would that be something you’d be interested in? If so, say hello to the Krämer HKR EVO2, a purpose-built track bike from Germany.

Built around KTM’s 690cc single-cylinder engine, which is found in KTM 690 Duke and Husqvarna’s 701 series of bikes, the Krämer HKR EVO2 features a bespoke steel-trellis chassis, custom bodywork, and a host of top-shelf components.

The real tasty part about the Krämer HKR EVO2 though is the attention to detail and the purposefulness of its design – take for instance the 12-liter XPE plastic fuel tank that doubles as a subframe, which has integrated crash sliders, and a sighting hole for easy adjustment of the rear shock damping.

Up-close, the build quality is excellent and the bike feels incredibly light. Oddly enough, the riding position is even comfortable for riders over six-feet in height, and as such we are itching to get some ride-time in the coming weeks.

Starting life out as a KTM 690 Duke in RC8 clothing in 2009, the HKR EVO was designed to race in the SuperMono classes that were popping up in Europe. Honing the design into a weapon, the HKR EVO2 was born, as was Krämer Motorcycles in Germany in 2014.

The Krämer HKR EVO2 comes in two flavors for the US market, and three flavors for friends in Europe.

In the USA, the Krämer HKR EVO2 S is a 75hp machine, with cast wheels, and single 320mm front brake disc; whereas the Krämer HKR EVO2 R makes 81hp, comes with forged aluminum wheels, and has dual 290mm discs up front.

For Europe there is also the Krämer HKR EVO2 RR model, which builds off the R model and sees its KTM LC4 engine bumped up to 733cc and massaged into a 90hp weapon.

All the bikes have fully adjustable WP suspension forks and rear shocks, and a custom exhaust (with available silencer).

Of course, the inevitable day will come when a Krämer HKR EVO2 hits the tarmac and crashes, for which the Krämer folk have a full parts list and available spares, both in Europe and in the USA, which is impressive in its own right, for such a small company.

Potent on the track, we have seen several of our local racing friends here in Oregon making mince meat of the OMRRA Lightweight Superbike class with their Krämer HKR EVO2 R race bikes.

Though, the Krämers have found stiffer competition from OMRRA’s Middleweight Superbike entries, where fully built SV650s, MT-07s, and “cripple triples” are more on par with the big thumper.

Still, powerful, small, and lithe, the Krämer HKR EVO2 R promises to get more potent as base setups are honed over the course of this inaugural season.

Accordingly, we will be curious to see where they stand at the end of the season, and whether the exceptionally long sections of PIR have any adverse effects on the longevity of the single-cylinder engine.

If you are so inclined to have one in your garae, the Krämer HKR EVO2 S fetches $16,000 from Krämer USA, while the Krämer HKR EVO2 R will set you back $21,000.

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Recall

The Ducati Panigale V4 Gets Its First Two Recalls

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New model teething issues are always a reality, and it seems that the Ducati Panigale V4 is no exception to the rule. Finding not one, but two issues with the Panigale V4’s fueling system, Italy’s newest superbike is being recalled in the United States.

Both recalls seem to affect the full-lot of Panigale V4 models that have made it to US soil thus far this year, which means 692 units (base, S, and Special trim levels) are being recalled for two issues related to the bike’s fuel system.

As such, the first recall centers around the breathing system valve plug on the Panigale V4, which might have a fuel leak if the O-ring was damaged during production.

Accordingly, the second recall involves the fuel tank cap, which can spray gas when opened, because again of breathing issues within the fuel system.

In recall #1, the internal breathing system valve plug could leak from the outer diameter O-ring, because the O-ring could have been damaged during the valve plug installation process.

Additionally, Ducati says that the grease presence around the O-ring did not allow the supplier to detect the leakage during the quality control leakage test.

Adding more fuel to the fire, if you can excuse the expression, the low-level of fuel within the tank also did not allow detection of leakage during the production phase in the factory.

To remedy the situation, Ducati dealers will replace the O-ring with a new one.

For recall #2, Ducati says that the existing fuel cap is not able to vent properly in all conditions, and in certain cases – resulting from a combination of external temperature, bike usage, and quantity of fuel in the tank – there might be a pressure increase within the tank.

If this occurs, the difference of pressure allows the fuel to come out from the tank when opening the cap. To fix the problem, Ducati dealers will “rework” the cap to improve breathing.

Both of the remedies will be done free of charge to the owner, and are expected to start May 17, 2018.

Concerned Ducati Panigale V4 owners may contact Ducati customer service at 1-888-391-5446. As always, the NHTSA is also available at 1-888-327-4236 and safercar.gov

UPDATE: Ducati North America reached out to Asphalt & Rubber, and explained how today’s recalls are not related to a photo that went viral earlier this year, which showed a Panigale V4 that caught on fire.

Ducati North America says it will be releasing a rather detailed explanation of what happened in that situation, which you will find here on A&R, once it is released.

Source: NHTSA (1 & 2)

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