Kawasaki has just revealed the latest generation superbike that is the 2018 Kawasaki ZX-10RR. Highly regarded as one of the best superbikes around and proven at the hands of the 2017 WorldSBK World Champion Jonathan Rea of Kawasaki Racing Team (KRT), the latest evolution comprises of mainly ‘two colour changes to the components’. (more…)
The last MotoGP round was full action, drama and action despite the exclusion of nine-time World Champion, Valentino Rossi from the Movistar Yamaha squad. It was yet another unfruitful race for Team SUZUKI ECSTAR as their supposedly number one rider Andrea Iannone had retire after 12 laps in the rain. (more…)
Besides the annual Art of Speed Malaysia 2017 gathering, the 40th Coca Cola Suzuka 8 Hours FIM World Endurance Championship took place in Suzuka, Japan this past weekend. This weekend also marked a historic moment where three Malaysian riders competed in the iconic eight hours race but what’s even more amazing was the fact that one of our very own made it onto the podium! (more…)
According to a recent report made by MCN, the big guns over at WorldSBK are seriously contemplating on whether to scrap the reverse grid system which was introduced into the race series earlier this year. It seems that the format is not working out as well as they had hoped for. (more…)
It was a clear and landslide victory for both the Kawasaki Racing Team riders this past race weekend during the UK Round of the WorldSBK race held at the legendary Donington Park. After an interesting outcome from Race 1 which saw two of the top podium contenders crashing out, it was Tom Sykes (Kawasaki Racing Team) aka “The King of Donington” who took the whole shot for Race 1. (more…)
The WorldSBK has been going through a few evolutions for the past couple of years to make sure that the motorsport is up to date with current times. With the introduction of the new starting line up where the podium finishers in Race 1 will start from the third row in reversed order, the WorldSBK is doing everything they can to make the races as interesting as they can be.
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Now, rumours are floating around the garages that they will be introducing a standard ECU (Electronic Control Unit) for 2018 in hopes that the races will give a fair competition to all manufacturers and teams in the WorldSBK arena. This option has been discussed for a while now to make the race more exciting and competitive for all competitors in the field.
The other reason why some folks are calling out for the unified electronic packages is probably due to the fact that the sport is being dominated by the likes of Ducati and Kawasaki. All 10 races in the past five rounds since the start of the 2017 season has clearly being conquered by Jonathan Rea from Kawasaki Racing Team and Chaz Davies from Aruba.it Racing Ducati squad.
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Actually, the podiums finishes for all of the 2017 races so far are all shared between just four different riders; Jonathan Rea and Tom Sykes from Kawasaki, Chaz Davies and Marco Melandri from Ducati. No other manufacturers have stepped up to the podium spot so far.
This is probably due to the fact that Kawasaki and Ducati have the necessary funds and manpower to develop superior electronic packages for their bikes and riders while other manufacturers are somewhat limited in those two aspects. So, we can understand why there’s a calling for a standardised electronic package like MotoGP to even out the playing field.
All in all, there’s one question remains. Will the spec-ECU help the sport or will it affect the overall development of the manufacturer’s products when they go on sale in their respective showrooms? Well, race wins are a good way to promote the brands and products and those participating in the races do want to win.
We will only know in the near future whether the spec-ECU will be implemented in the world superbikes championship as how it is in MotoGP. One thing is for sure, an even playing field offers a much more interesting race instead of just seeing either green or red on crossing the finish lines time and time again.
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Source: Asphalt & Rubber
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