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John McPhee to Join SIC Moto3 Team?

Ex-British Talent Cup rider, John McPhee is rumoured to be riding for the SIC Moto3 team next year.
McPhee made a huge impression in his debut season.
It all depends on whether Ayumu Sasaki or Adam Norrodin heads up to SIC’s Moto2 team.

There has been much talk about John McPhee joining the SIC (Sepang International Circuit) Moto 3 Racing Team for the 2019 season, despite the Scotsman remaining tight-lipped about his future.

“It certainly looks like I’ll be continuing in Moto3, although it was nice that there were a couple of Moto2 offers there,” he told Crash.net, “Hopefully I should know for sure in the next couple of weeks, which team it’ll be and which bike I’ll be on.”

The Scotsman made a great impression in his first Moto3 season last year by regularly challenging for the lead and running in the top 10. He went on to win his first race at the 2017 Czech Republic Grand Prix, in addition to a total of five career podium finishes including at the Sachsenring recently.

He eventually finished seventh overall in his first season with the Dorna-funded British Talent Cup team, and was then moved to the CIP Green Powerteam for the 2018 season. He was without a ride at the beginning of the 2018 season after the project ended.

The SIC Moto3 seats are currently occupied by Asia Talent Cup Champion Ayumu Sasaki and our local boy, Adam Norrodin. Needless to say, both riders would want to move up to SIC’s Moto2 team, which has Niki Tuuli as the sole rider. SIC could very well expand the team to two bikes and riders for 2019.

Besides that, SIC will also run a MotoGP team from next year. The rider line-up has to be announced, they are set to do officially do so later at the Silverstone round.

Benelli Starting Up Motorcycle Factory in India

India has become the largest motorcycle market, beating out China in 2017.
A total 17.7 million motorcycles were sold during last year.
Benelli is the latest manufacturer to open up a factory in the sub-continent.

Chinese-owned Italian brand, Benelli will be the latest manufacturer to set up a motorcycle factory in India. India is currently the world’s largest motorcycle market.

Benelli is setting up the plant near Hyderabad and have also signed a deal with the Adishwar Auto Ride India-Mahavir Group to market the bikes in India. Remarkably, this new factory will start production beginning October 2018, albeit making motorcycles for the Indian market first.

Needless to say, manufacturing motorcycles in the country for domestic consumption avoids having to pay hefty levies.

India has naturally become the market where motorcycle manufacturers are flocking into, either to market or manufacture their motorcycles. In 2017 alone, a total of 17.7 million motorcycles and scooters were sold. Divided that number with 365 days and that’s a whopping 48,000 units per day!

KTM Motorrad AG was among the first to partner with an Indian motorcycle company, namely Bajaj Auto, to produce small capacity motorcycles for the Asian region before exporting them worldwide.

Other manufacturers include Harley-Davidson who built their Street series there; BMW who partnered with TVS to produce the G 310 lightweight series; all the Japanese Big Four; Triumph Motorcycles had signed an MOU with Bajaj Auto; and Polaris had announced lately that they will assemble Indian Motorcycles and ATVs.

The largest motorcycle companies in India are Hero MotoCorp, Bajaj Auto Ltd. and Eicher who currently owns the Royal Enfield brand. When it was speculated that Ducati was up for sale last year, Eicher made a bid of €1.8 billion.

MotoGP 2018: Johann Zarco Back on Track?

Johann Zarco’s form seemed to have dropped after his crash at Le Mans.
Some speculated that success had gone to his head.
But he had just fought back to finish 2^nd fastest during the post-Czech GP tests yesterday.

Johann Zarco had a great start to the MotoGP 2018 season, when he finished 2^nd twice in four races and well ahead of the factory Movistar Yamaha team.

But after the heartbreaking crash at Le Mans in front of his countrymen, his form had a taken a dip somewhat. The sudden drop in performance even prompted his Monster Yamaha Tech 3 boss, Herve Poncharal, to state that Zarco had suddenly been basking too much in the MotoGP limelight and life in the fast lane, especially after meeting his current girlfriend. Others speculated that he might have contemplated about his mortality after the crash. These riders risk their lives and limbs for the sake of our entertainment, after all.

Poncharal knew the crash at Le Mans was different to any other and Zarco had dropped down the order, finishing 10^th in Italy, 7^th in Catalunya, 8^th in The Nederlands, 9^th in Germany and 7^th again in the Czech Republic races.

“I’m happy about the race, a good race, good pace, and we were able to fight at the beginning,” said an upbeat Zarco. “The soft rear tyre was a good choice, I’m happy for that, it helped me to fight at the beginning. Maybe I could have overtaken more riders at the beginning, but it was difficult. In the race I tried to do the best I can, and in the end for sure the tyre was getting used and it became a little bit more difficult, not because of the tyres just because we’re working on the bike to find the best feeling,” said the 2-time Moto2 champion when interviewed by MotoGP.

But if the results of the just-completed post-Brno tests were anything to come by, Zarco certainly hasn’t lost his motivation and certainly not his skills. With the help of his team on the 2017-spec Yamaha YZR-M1, the Frenchman completed a punishing number of 71 laps and emerged 2^nd fastest overall.

Zarco continued, “Now we are coming back on good things, from the Saturday we are quite fast, not enough to be on the podium but I understood good things this weekend so, I’m pretty happy and when everything isn’t perfect I’m taking points and that’s the main thing at the moment.”

He was honest about the dip in his performance, too, “… maybe in the last races I was racing like a guy who is going to buy the bread every morning. Now I can ride the Yamaha well and the answer is yes, I’m happy.”

A happy rider is a fast rider. The next round is at Austria this weekend, from 12^th August 2018.

BMW HP4 Race ready to rock its first race at Ulster GP

The Ulster GP is happening this weekend where the BMW HP4 Race will compete in its first event.
Held every year at the Dundrod Circuit in Northern Ireland, the Ulster GP is known as the world’s fastest road race.
Tyco BMW and their rider, David Johnson, will have the honours of racing the BMW HP4 Race for the very first time in competition.

As far as road racing goes, there the amazing Isle of Man TT aka “The World’s Most Dangerous Race” and then there’s Ulster GP aka “The World’s FASTEST Road Race”. The boys at Tyco BMW is a renowned name in the road racing scene and come this weekend, they will take out the BMW HP4 Race into its first official competition. (more…)

2018 BMW S 1000 RR test & review – “German Masterpiece”

The 2018 BMW S 1000 RR is considered the pinnacle of superbikes born and bred by BMW Motorrad.
The latest evolution has gained many awards including wins at the Isle of Man TT.
With 199hp and BMW’s latest electronics package, any superbike enthusiast will fall head over heels for this German masterpiece.

Let’s get one thing straight. People buy, own, adore superbikes for their super sexy looks, balls-off-the-wall performance, and the crowds they gather every time they’re parked in a public area or blasting down the front straight in Sepang. There are many to choose from in the Malaysian market today and the one that remains to be one of the most popular has to be the BMW S 1000 RR. (more…)

Triumph TR6 Trophy from The Great Escape on Display

The scene of Steve McQueen’s character jumping over the Stalag Luft III fence on a motorcycle is immortalised in The Great Escape.
The bikes used in the shooting were actually Triumph TR6 Trophies.
One of the bikes is now on display at the Triumph Factory Visitor Experience facility.

The 1963 film, The Great Escape, had always been lauded as one of the best war movies of all time. But that scene of Steve McQueen’s character nicknamed “The Cooler King” jumping over the POW camp’s 12-ft. high fence on a Triumph TR6 Trophy turned The Great Escape into one of the best bikie movies, too.

There were actually three bikes used in the movie; they were all Triumph TR6 Trophies, dressed up as BMW R75s used by the Wehrmacht (German Army) as there were very few running R75s around at the time and the escape scene needed a bike that’s lighter, faster and handled better. The TR6R Trophy fitted the fill to perfection so the producers got a few and prepared them spec- and aesthetic-wise for the film.

However, all three Triumphs disappeared after filming, just as both the Easy Rider bikes in 1969 (and you thought missing jet engines was impossible). But this particular bike was traced to being sold to a farmer, who used it… of all things… to herd cows. You’d probably imagine him yelling “There is no escape!” to his bovine subjects.

Dean Shepherd bought it from another farm worker who inherited it after the farmer’s demise and restored it to its original state in the film.

The Great Escape bike is now displayed at the Triumph Factory Visitor Experience near Triumph Motorcycles Ltd.’s HQ in Hinckley, Leicetershire. It will then be displayed at the Salon Privé Concours de Elegance at the Blenheim Palace near Oxford. According to Auto Classics, the bike will be entered into the Class B event for exceptional motorcycles built between 1940 and 1979. (Please click on this link to learn more about the visitor centre.)

Triumph Motorcycles will open Visitor Experience Centre and factory tour

Bikes Republic will be travelling to the UK to visit Triumph Motorcycles Ltd.’s HQ and the Triumph Factory Visitor Experience in October this year, and we truly, sincerely, hope to see The Great Escape TR6 Trophy there! (Otherwise our Editor will throw a tantrum.)

The TR6 Trophy has a soul successor in manufacturer’s current modern classic lineup in the shape of the Bonneville Street Scrambler. It was so fun to ride that we swore we were overcome by the visions of Steve McQueen’s jump and were tempted to jump it over a few roadside railings. Just kidding.

(Please click on this link to learn more about The Great Escape and the Triumph Bonneville Street Scrambler.)

TESTED: Triumph Street Scrambler – “Escapism”

Oh, one more movie trivia before we end: Chris Pratt’s character rode the Street Scrambler in 2015’s Jurassic World.

Bikesrepublic

Latest News

Ex-British Talent Cup rider, John McPhee is rumoured to be riding for the SIC Moto3 team next year.

McPhee made a huge impression in his debut season.

It all depends on whether Ayumu Sasaki or Adam Norrodin heads up to SIC’s Moto2 team.

India has become the largest motorcycle market, beating out China in 2017.

A total 17.7 million motorcycles were sold during last year.

Benelli is the latest manufacturer to open up a factory in the sub-continent.

Johann Zarco’s form seemed to have dropped after his crash at Le Mans.

Some speculated that success had gone to his head.

But he had just fought back to finish 2nd fastest during the post-Czech GP tests yesterday.

The Ulster GP is happening this weekend where the BMW HP4 Race will compete in its first event.

Held every year at the Dundrod Circuit in Northern Ireland, the Ulster GP is known as the world’s fastest road race.

Tyco BMW and their rider, David Johnson, will have the honours of racing the BMW HP4 Race for the very first time in competition.

The 2018 BMW S 1000 RR is considered the pinnacle of superbikes born and bred by BMW Motorrad.

The latest evolution has gained many awards including wins at the Isle of Man TT.

With 199hp and BMW’s latest electronics package, any superbike enthusiast will fall head over heels for this German masterpiece.

The scene of Steve McQueen’s character jumping over the Stalag Luft III fence on a motorcycle is immortalised in The Great Escape.

The bikes used in the shooting were actually Triumph TR6 Trophies.

One of the bikes is now on display at the Triumph Factory Visitor Experience facility.

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But he had just fought back to finish 2^nd fastest during the post-Czech GP tests yesterday.