Table of contents for 24 August 2016 in MCN

Ducati 959 Panigale It might be described at a ‘Super-Mid’, but the 959 is a litre-class V-twin with superbike-beating skills, and costs just £139 per month after a £2893.93 deposit. Aprilia RSV4 RF One of the most electronically advanced superbikes on the market, the RF also boasts a screaming V4 exhaust howl. Pricey, but sublime at £218 per month after a £4500 deposit. Yamaha YZF-R1 The unique crossplane-crank inline-four has real character, and is superb on track. £3716.21 up front gets you the keys. Honda CBR1000RR SP The last of the electonics-free Fireblades. If you a want pure superbike, grab one fast at £119 a month after a £2346.64 deposit. Fancy something used instead? MCN Garage p35…

You don’t have to be mad to be a MotoGP rider, but actually you do! Cal Crutchlow is arguably the most normal, down-to-earth bloke in the MotoGP madhouse and yet he most certainly has a few cogs working in a different way to the man in the street. To win, to be successful at the very top of motorcycle racing, your brain has to work in a certain way. A way that allows you to get back on a bike after crashing at 200mph and go even faster the very next lap. Cal’s incredible victory in Brno is the result of six years bloody hard graft in MotoGP. He’s seen more than his fair share of pain and suffering – in some ways he’s given more and struggled more than…

There is no denying that 2013 was one hell of a year for new bikes and marked the return to form of the two-wheeled world after weathering very stormy waters. PCP and consumers’ growing financial confidence drove sales upwards and now used buyers are seeing the results. When it comes to used bikes, three-year-old machines are certainly where it is all happening and there are some amazing bikes out there just waiting to tempt you to part with your cash. 2013 BMW F800GS ADVENTURE Price Used from £6500, New from £9800 EngineLiquid-cooled, 798cc 8v parallel twin Claimed power85bhp@7500rpm Claimed torque61ftlb @ 4000rpm Bore x stroke82 x 75.6mm ElectronicsABSwithoptionalASCtraction control FrameTubularsteeltrellis SuspensionInvertedforks,non-adjustable. Monoshock,adjustablereboundandspring preload. Brakes 2 x 300mm front discs with two-pistonradialcalipers,265mmreardisc with single-piston caliper. ABS 2013 KTM 390 DUKE PriceUsed…

TRIUMPH STREET TWIN £7350 FUEL 12 litres @ 63mpg = 166 miles WEIGHT 198kg (dry) SEAT HEIGHT 750mm POWER 54bhp TORQUE 59ftlb THE RIDER Ped Baker. Enjoys tinkering nearly as much as riding. HEIGHT 6ft 4in WEIGHT 90kg ped.baker@motorcyclnews.com Dual carriageways aren’t the Street Twin’s natural home but the other weekend I spent three hours on them riding to the Brackley Festival of Motorcycling. With the newly fitted flat bench seat (£255) from the Scrambler Inspiration kit, I could slide my arse rearward and lean forward in a wind-dodging crouch. Vibes through the bars were just about noticeable, largely due to the Continental TKC80 off-road tyres I’d fitted for the Austin Vince Twin Shock Trailfinder. I’d intended to refit the OE Pirelli Phantom Sportscomp on my return but I really…

Sidi ST £249.99 With replaceable shin plates and toesliders, the Sidi ST offers ventilation and a nylon inner sole. There are also removable arch supports and a shock absorbing heel. Sizes five to 12. TCX R-S2 Evo £299.99 CE-certified with sliders at the calf and rear of each ankle – as well as replaceable toesliders. Available in white, red or black, they’re breathable and have mesh over the vents for durability. Alpinestars S-MX Plus £259.99 CE-certified, the S-MX Plus come in 4.5 to 12.5. With self-moulding ankle protectors and replaceable toesliders, the boots also have an evenly textured sole for grip. Dainese Nexus £199.99 Available in UK sizes 4.5 to 11.5, these CE-certified boots come with a gear shift guard and a rubber sole. A shock-absorbing heel adds extra protection,…

‘I finished second in my last year and that means I can pick up where I left off and go there fighting for a title’EUGENE LAVERTY Eugene Laverty will make his return to the World Superbike championship in 2017 after signing a deal to race in an all-new factory Aprilia squad run by the British Shaun Muir Racing team. Following his impressive sixth place finish in the Brno MotoGP race, Laverty confirmed to MCN that he will be returning to the manufacturer that he so nearly clinched the WSB 2013 title with. “I’ve been sizing up both paddocks, but the machinery was what tipped the balance. It’s what I’ve always based my decisions on, and you should always be on equal bikes to your team-mate. If one’s a year older,…

McPhee says his success is largely down to a new gearbox on his Peugeot-branded Mahindra machine. He received it two rounds ago at Sachsenring and it has helped revolutionise the machine’s performance. Built by English firm Nova, the new box fixes a recurring issue with the original part that saw the bike spontaneously jump out of gear – and has brought with it a newfound confidence for the Indian manufacturer’s 10 riders. “For confidence, the new gearbox helps massively. In terms of lap times, we’ve seen already that it doesn’t make a huge improvement, but we’ve all become much more consistent since. It’s one less thing to worry about now, and one less thing to go wrong. “There might be one tenth of a second a lap in it, but…

Dek Crutchlow Cal’s dad “Cal can ride a bike. Every person on that grid can. It pisses me off when I see people slagging those riders off on Twitter, because they just don’t understand it. For sure, Cal crashes, but people crash; Marquez crashes! “I wasn’t screaming at the TV; I mean, how can I assist him by screaming at a telly? But when he won I was very proud and very happy for him and the team and all of those around him. The pressure is on me now though, as I’m racing in the Pro-Am at Silverstone!” Jake Harrison Monster Energy Two Wheel Motorsport Manager and personal friend of Cal’s “He knew it was in there, and those close to him always knew it – and for it…

 “I was there 35 years ago at the Swedish Grand Prix. I’d never have thought we’d be waiting that long. It’s tremendous, it’s great for the country. It’s like the Olympics and the success we are having there, there might not be any motorcycling in the Olympics but we’ve had our own gold medal today. ‘He deserves it, he’s spent enough time in A&E trying to get there’ STEVE PARRISH “Cal has shown he’s got pace in MotoGP so it’s not a complete surprise for him to win and Jesus Christ he deserves it, he’s spent enough time in A&E trying to get there! He has knocked the s**t out of himself and it just goes to show that perseverance and hard work definitely comes right and pays off in…

 While Sunday’s incredible victory took no small part of skill from Cal Crutchlow, the Honda rider also used his head, gambling successfully before the race started on Michelin’s harder option wet tyres – a gamble that ultimately paid off, but that few of his rivals were prepared to take. ‘I took the right gamble and... the rest of them who didn’t are wimps!’ CAL CRUTCHLOW Speaking after the race, Crutchlow was quite insistent that he knew exactly why he was one of the few to take the bet on going against the crowd. “I chose the tyres on the grid and there was a little bit of hesitation from Michelin, but I knew that if I went with one hard tyre I needed to go with both of them, so…

‘The most powerful and responsive touring bikes ever offered by Harley’ Harley-Davidson have unveiled the complete range of new Touring models which now feature the company’s most-powerful engine yet – the new Milwaukee-Eight V-twin. The Milwaukee-Eight is, slightly confusingly, the ninth large-capacity two-cylinder engine in the history of the company, and is one of two major updates for 2017 – the other being new suspension front and rear. A new engine for Harley-Davidson is a big deal. This is a clean sheet design that actually has three variants based around the same engine. There are two 1745cc (107cu.in) motors and they’re joined by a larger, higher-performance 1870cc (114cu.in), which is used exclusively in the CVO custom specials. Scott Miller, Harley’s Vice-President of Styling and Product Development Strategy, said: “These are…

‘It is believed that over 340,000 of the Super Tuners have been sold’ The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has fined Harley-Davidson $12M (£9.12M) over the firm’s Screaming Eagle Super Tuner device, an official plug-in module that allows owners of certain models to modify engine parameters, altering performance and potentially increasing emissions. Available for sale through Harley Dealerships since 2008, Harley has been ordered to stop selling the tuner in the USA by August 23 and buy back and destroy all unsold units in dealers. Harley must also deny warranty claims if owners continue to use the devices. It’s believed that 340,000 of the Super Tuners have been sold. The EPA also claims Harley-Davidson sold more than 12,000 motorcycles from model years 2006, 2007 and 2008 in the USA that…

Slap bang in the middle of Rockingham’s National circuit is a sequence of left-handers that punishes rear tyres. From the Pif Paf all the way through the blind left of Gracelands (the Northampton track’s answer to Phillip Island’s Lukey Heights), Ducati’s new £23,995, limited-edition, 1299 Panigale S Anniversario is banked at full lean for a dizzying 22 seconds. Mid-summer sun has baked the track surface to over 35 ° C. In these conditions even a racing slick turns to grease through these anti-clockwise turns after a handful of hot laps. So squirming on the edge of its 200-section Pirelli Diablo Supercorsa SP rear trackday tyre, with the horizon at full tilt, the Anniversario twists and slides each time you grit your teeth to squeeze the throttle. With an identical motor…

Noisy bikers need to pipe down Why, oh why, do so many motorcyclists think it’s cool to run loud pipes? As a lifelong motorcyclist and current owner of six bikes, I’m just about as pro motorcycling as you can get, but while sitting outside Jack’s Hill Café near Towcester last Sunday I was ashamed to see, or rather hear, my fellow bikers publicly demonstrating their disregard for other people. I expect my concerns will fall on deaf ears (pun intended) but if I’m offended by noisy bikes, god knows what the anti-bike lobby make of it. As one who for many years took part in carrying out drive-by noise tests I can tell you that manufacturers really struggle to meet the current 80dB limit and that any reduction imposed by…

2013 Ducati Hyperstrada 821 Colours White or red (with silver forks and black & silver pipe) Dealer £7000 Private good £7000 Private average £5000 This one 2013 model, 6660 miles. Private sale £7000 2014 Ducati Hyperstrada 821 Colours White or red (with silver forks and black & silver pipe) Dealer £8000 Private good £7995 Private average £7000 This one 2014 model, 4943 miles. Dealer sale £7299 2015 Ducati Hyperstrada 821 Colours White or red (with silver forks andblack & silver pipe) Dealer £8000 Private good £7995 Private average £7500 This one 2015 model, 6407 miles. Dealer sale £7995 2016 Ducati Hyperstrada 939 New updated model. Colours Red (with silver forks andblack & silver pipe) Dealer from £11,195 Ex-demos from dealers have been spotted for around £10,000 Insurance Sample MCNCompare.com quotes…

KAWASAKI ZX-10R £13,799 FUEL 17 litres @ 45mpg = 168 miles WEIGHT 197kg Seat 813mm POWER 197bhp TORQUE 84ftlb MICHAEL NEEVES Long-time sportsbike lover who also races in the Thundersport GP1 championship HEIGHT 6ft WEIGHT 7 2kg michael.neeves@motorcyclenews.com There’s something strange going on with the latest electronic ‘brake-bywire’ ABS on Japanese superbikes – machines like the Kawasaki H2, Yamaha R1 and my ZX-10R. Kawasaki uprated this year’s ZX-10R with four-piston Brembo monobloc calipers, a Brembo master cylinder and braided steel lines. You’d expect the brakes to be fantastic…but they’re not. They feel more like they’ve been lifted from a tired, mid-90s sportsbike. When we tested all the superbikes during our annual group test earlier in the year the ZX-10R took three metres longer to stop from 70mph…

Swedish suspension giants Öhlins are celebrating their 40th anniversary with a new shock technology they say is a clear step forward over existing suspension units. The TTX Flow is a motocross shock that’s been designed to increase stability in the tough environments of off-road racing. But Öhlins say the technology inside the new shock could be explored for potential benefits in other forms of motorcycling. The new unit uses the firm’s TTX twin-tube set-up, which allows better regulation of forces caused by the compression or rebound stroke. But the new development is a system that directs attention to the internal chamber most in need of preparation for the next direction change. Öhlins say the key to optimum suspension performance is allowing a unit to settle as quickly as possible after…

Byrne has been almost unbeatable over the last three rounds, culminating in a commanding double at Brands Hatch three weeks ago. But Haslam had a cracking test at Cadwell Park last week and now reckons he can get his JG Speedfit Kawasaki ahead of Shakey’s Ducati. Remarkably, Haslam still holds the Cadwell lap record from his BSB days with Airwaves Ducati in 2007, but both he and Byrne matched it during testing at the quirky Lincolnshire track. Byrne currently sits 25 points ahead of Haslam in the standings and more crucially has a 14-point advantage in podium credits, but that’s something former WSB star Haslam is determined to chip away at before the Showdown kicks off at Donington next month. “We have to beat Shakey this weekend and at Oulton,…

Shaun Muir Racing’s move to Aprilia marks the end to a challenging debut season in the Superbike World Championship. Under the banner of Milwaukee BMW, it’s been a tough year for the squad as they have struggled to form a consistently competitive package with the S1000RR and riders Josh Brookes and Karel Abraham. Initially expecting to be competing for the top 10, team boss Shaun Muir has struggled to hide his disappointment. “We are 100% committed to being successful in World Superbikes,” he said, speaking exclusively to MCN. “I haven’t come to WSB not to be in contention and to do that you have to be factory supported. “We have a level of factory support from BMW but when it came down to it, of the three riders we first…

Jorge Lorenzo saw his chances of defending his MotoGP title slip even further away after yet another disappointing wet race. The Movistar Yamaha rider was unable to make the softer option wet front tyres last the distance, suffering the same fate as the factory Ducati pair of Andrea Iannone and Andrea Dovizioso as their tyres fell apart. “When I stopped the bike in the pits the team didn’t understand what was going on, because the hole in the tyre was on the bottom, and the tyre looked perfect. They didn’t know why I wanted to change the bike – and the other one had slicks on. The track was too dangerous for it, and it wasn’t worth trying to stay on track. “It was very bad luck, because like Dovizioso…

A few people have come very close to breaking Barry Sheene’s longstanding record since 1981 – but none of them have ever been quite close enough to take home the big prize. Ron Haslam Probably Britain’s best chance, Haslam took nine podiums between 1983 and 1987 in the 500GP class – but never quite made it all the way to the top step. The closest he came was a second place behind Randy Mamola at the 1985 Dutch TT. Niall Mackenzie Mackenzie’s podium-scoring career spanned from 1987 to 1993, taking seven podiums, but never coming closer to taking a win than third place at the flag. Jeremy McWilliams Not only did McWilliams come close to winning the 2000 British Grand Prix, he nearly denied Valentino Rossi his first ever premier…

‘I could have gone faster. I was rolling off the throttle’ CAL CRUTCHLOW ‘I had so much grip compared to the others. I was cruising round’ CAL CRUTCHLOW Cal Crutchlow took a stunning MotoGP victory in the Czech Grand Prix to finally bring an end to the 35-year Brit win drought that has stretched back to when Barry Sheene won the Swedish Grand Prix in 1981. Crutchlow’s emphatic victory was the result of his usual determination and tenacity, combined with an inspired tyre choice that saw the LCR Honda rider finish ahead of factory stars Valentino Rossi and Marc Marquez. “I went to the grid with a soft front and rear, but I really didn’t believe the soft rear would last the race,” he grinned. “I believed with the…

GP winner Cal Crutchlow is ready... are you? Welcome to MCN’s bumper 32-page British Grand Prix preview, with all the stats, facts, exclusive interviews and inside knowledge you need for this year’s Silverstone race. Going to Silverstone on such a high is going to be incredible for me. I’ve been there over so many years, had some fantastic results, won the British Supersport title there, won World Superbike races and had some great MotoGP races there too, including that run from last to sixth! And the fan support I’ve had too has been phenomenal. I genuinely mean it when I say this, but the last two corners at Silverstone in 2010 and 2012 are the only times I’ve ever heard crowds cheering for me in a race. I hope to…

‘When you crash you always want to come back to get that winning feeling back!’MARC MARQUEZ Marc Marquez has a point to prove at Silverstone after a disastrous race last year. And he’ll be determined to keep his arch rivals at arm’s length in the title chase. Crashing out of the race while battling Valentino Rossi for the win in treacherous conditions, the Spaniard says that there’s unfinished business at the Northamptonshire track. “When you crash you always want to come back to get that winning feeling back! It’ll be another interesting race again this year though, because the weather there is always a question mark.” Taking a win at the British Grand Prix – something that he’s proved well capable of doing in the past – would give the…

Triumph have been developing hordes of new bikes around their water-cooled Bonneville engine family and one of the strangest will be the bobber that’s been spotted on test a couple of times in the last year or so. That bike has now taken a step closer to production as Triumph has officially applied for a trademark on the name ‘Bonneville Bobber’. Differing to the rest of the Bonneville range, the Bobber gets its own unique frame, with a faux-hardtail rear end. It’s a pure single-seater, with no pillion provision - for that you’ll have to wait for the cruiser models that will eventually replace the Speedmaster and America. The spied Bobbers have all had single disc front brakes, and are using the 1200cc T120 engine. There’s no hint yet as…

The ad says it’s a non-runner, and you wonder whether it’s worth taking the plunge. It’s cheap and could be a bargain, but equally, the fault could be something terminal and it’s a money pit. The big question is: why isn’t it going? Ideally, it’s because it’s been laid up for a few years without proper storage precautions. In that case, the fuel in the carbs will have turned to sludge and it’ll need a complete carb strip and clean. If you know your onions, you can do that yourself – buy an ultrasonic cleaner on eBay and take your time. There are other costs with bikes that have just been stashed – the tyres are usually dead, the brake fluid ditto, the battery flat, the chain rusty and there’ll…

‘The good thing for owners is that the belts are replaced every 18,000 miles’ “We don’t see many Hyperstradas come through for service and those that do have been as good as gold. Bikes are getting more and more like that now in general. We have a few warranty issues on some bikes but they’re soon ironed out. I hate to say it, but it gets boring sometimes! Hyperstrada is the same as with most Ducatis really - service history and belt replacement. “Belts are important. You’ll hear people say things like ‘my mate’s bike has done 16,000 miles and he hasn’t changed his belts’, but then you can speak to 10 other people whose bikes have gone pop. Belt material is far better than it used to be in…

£8495 Suzuki GT750 An early sought-after J model that comes with 15,579 miles on the clock. The frame has been powder-coated, however the rest is standard. £5750 Yamaha RD400 This 1977 C model had been fully restored and has done 21,000 miles. The bike is being sold privately and the seller says it runs as it should. It has had two previous owners. £5500 Yamaha RD400 Restored 1980 RD400F is described as being in top condition and has done 25,000 miles. The bike has had a full engine rebuild and seller says large amounts of money has been spent on it. £5500 Aprilia RS250 Nice example that the seller says can be delivered anywhere in mainland UK. The bike has done 18,371 miles since 1995 and comes with an up-to-date…

BEFORE The 26-year-old KR-1S calipers were scuffed, corroded and in a bit of a sorry state. FRESH Stripped down and back to bare metal, Powerhouse refreshed the seals and even fitted shiny new bleed nipples and bolts. Powerhouse brake caliper refurb service £154 Tester Emma Franklin Time tested One rebuild What’s good The Tokico calipers on my 1990 Kawasaki KR-1S had suffered a hard life; the seals were old and hard, the paint was worn and there was a fair bit of corrosion. So the Powerhouse one-stop-shop brake caliper refurb service came as a bit of a godsend. I simply removed my calipers, packaged them up and posted them directly to their Chesterfield workshop. Once there, technicians assessed them, stripped them back to bare metal, cleaned the years of corrosion…

Jason O’Halloran is ready to blast his Honda Fireblade into the hunt at the front as the BSB battle moves to Cadwell. The Honda Racing ace currently sits a strong third in the championship standings, 38 points ahead of fourth-placed Michael Laverty and 31 points behind Haslam in second. Having taken his first BSB win at Snetterton, O’Halloran has had two further podiums since then but perhaps more impressive is the fact that he’s the only rider on the grid to have finished every race in the points so far this year and all of those finishes have been inside the top 10. However, the Aussie star is going for a win this weekend after another step forward in testing at the Lincolnshire circuit. He said: “Cadwell is a track…

‘I did think that a podium never mind a win was impossible’JOHN McPHEE Scottish rainmaster John McPhee showed just what he’s capable of when given half a chance by winning in a challenging Moto3 race at Brno. The 22-year-old looked strong from the start, calmly and deliberately picking his way through the field from a strong ninth on the grid to be in the perfect position when title leader Brad Binder fell in front of him. And with the win coming after 76 Grand Prix starts, the emotion of the moment hit the Oban native hard after the race, as he admitted that it was something that he’d dreamed of but had recently convinced himself that it would never actually become reality. “I’m still trying to let it sink in.…

‘We can be strong to the end of the season and I will give the maximum’ VALENTINO ROSSI Valentino Rossi took a strong second place at Brno on Sunday, but knows he still has a mountain to climb if he is to overhaul championship leader Marc Marquez. His bitter rival made the most of the conditions to finish third and now has a 53-point advantage over Rossi with seven rounds to go. The Italian ended a run of poor results with a strategically brilliant performance having started the race on the same hard rear tyre that took Cal Crutchlow to victory. The factory Yamaha man was able to make huge inroads in the second half of the race to power through the pack from twelfth to take second at the…

 Cal Crutchlow has admitted that after his stunning wet weather victory at the Czech Grand Prix that he was left feeling more relieved than ecstatic, after finally ending 35-year wait for a British premier class win. ‘I won a tricky race in the wet, so the next step now is to win one in the dry’ CAL CRUTCHLOW Speaking exclusively to MCN late on Sunday evening, the LCR Honda rider was left feeling not quite how he imagined after his first win since the final round of the 2010 World Superbike championship. “It felt not quite an anti-climax, but I’ve worked for so long to win a Grand Prix, and in the end there’s other races where I’ve been a lot more emotional at the end. Maybe it’s because it…

The veteran voice of MotoGP and a hugely experienced journalist, Nick Harris was one of the few who was there both in 1981 when Barry Sheen took Britain’s last premier class win and again on Sunday when Crutchlow ended the drought. “Little did I realise when I was in Anderstop in 1981 as a newspaper journalist that I’d be waiting 35 years to celebrate the next British winner! There have been some close shaves in the past, but it’s a long time! “It means so much to British motorcycling though, because as much as we all want to push the sport in a bigger way, it’s very hard to do that without a premier class winner. “You can still go out in the street and mention Barry Sheene’s name and…

Warm-up lap Taking a gamble on the harder rear tyres, Crutchlow admits after the race that he very nearly crashed on the warm-up lap as he pushed to try and get enough heat into the Michelins for the start of the race. Start Crutchlow and Rossi attempt to stay out of trouble while their tyres come up to temperature. Crutchlow drops back from 10th to 15th. Lap six Admitting after the race that this was the point where he knew that his gamble might well pay off, the charge begins with a jump forward two places and a lap time a second quicker than race leader Andrea Iannone. Lap nine Crutchlow sets the fastest lap of the race, doing a 2m 08.2s lap while those at the front are stuck…

JACK MILLER Already an unlikely winner in wet conditions this year and always strong at Silverstone, if it rains again this year, it’s hard to rule out Jack Miller. Denied a chance to battle for a podium last year by an unfortunate mistake that took out both him and team-mate Cal Crutchlow, if the Aussie was capable of running at the front on the disastrous Honda production machine then there’s no reason why he can’t repeat the performance on the more advanced Marc VDS RC213V. And, with his dry-weather performances improving as well, it would be no surprise if he was able to impress, even if the sun shines. The only issue might be fitness, after a monster crash during warm-up in Austria left him missing Brno with hairline fractures…

Jorge Navarro A hit-or-miss season blighted by injury, Navarro has struggled to match the pace of Binder and comes to Silverstone with only two appearances at the track in his short Grand Prix career. BRITISH GP RESULTS 2015 DNF MOTOGP 2014 27th MOTOGP Nicolo Bulega Newcomer Impressing on only his debut season in the world championship, the youngest of Valentino Rossi’s protégés will be a rookie at Silverstone but if the 16-year-old’s form at any of the other track he’s been to for the first time this year is anything to go by, he won’t be too far away. Francesco Bagnaia Finally finding his form on the Mahindra machine (and with the bike improving week by week as well), Bagnaia proved at Assen what he’s capable of by taking his…