Cycle News - Archive Issues - 2000's

S8K International's Paolo Flammini Q Wh Y have you brought forward the introduction of 1000cc four-cylinder machines one year early? The situation which we foresaw in 2001 would occur, where under current regulations the 750cc four-cylinder machines would struggle to remain competitive, has indeed happened. For this reason, we felt it important to intervene in order to avoid four-cylinder motorcycles becoming sidelined completely from Superbike racing in the next 12 months. I have to say that this time we found all manufacturers that are members of MSMA to be extremely sensitive to this issue. Everyone of them, without exception, understood the need to advance the introduction of 1000cc four-cylinder bikes by one year, and the MSMA intemal meeting at Sugo that had representatives from each company attending, voted unanimously in favor of this suggestion. The FIM was in favor, also, and so were the teams - so now we will go ahead with it. But in that case, why opt for a hybrid championship in 2003, when the 1000cc fours will have to carry the air-intake restrictors foreseen in the 2004 regulations, but the existing twin-cylinder bikes, and triples, will not. Presuming that you got your sums right in determining the formula to equalize the relative performance of the different kinds of bike in 2004, surely this means nothing will change next year, because the restricted fours can't hope to be competitive against derestricted twins. Why not simply advance the introduction of the 2004 regulations en bloc by one year? No, this was impossible for the manufacturers, because nobody was really ready to compete under the new rules. We therefore determined that this solution would solve the problems experienced by those manufacturers able only to compete with four-cylinder bikes, without creating new problems for the ones with other machines who have been working all along to compete under the current rules. I think this is a good solution - it's a shortterm exception to the existing rules, which is specifically oriented towards solving a current problem. For the rest, everything works very well, so we leave it in place until 2004, when the new regulations come into force in their entirety. Furthermore, this exception has a specific benefit in the technical sense, because in 2004 we are going to have all Superbike engines with air restrictors, but nobody yet has any direct experience of how these engines will work. So we have one interim year now available which will allow us to experiment on the track to see if the size of this air restrictor for four-cylinder engines is correct or not. If not, then we will be able to intervene for 2004, and adjust the regulations accordingly to provide for a different-size restrictor. But you won't have any restricted twins competing next year against the restricted fours, in order to gauge the relative balance of competitiveness. In any case, I thought the proposed restrictor rules allowed for the size of these to be varied during the season, in order to maintain a relative balance between the different types of bike. Won't you hold out the chance of doing this next season? Let's say that this is still to be defined. Having secured the agreement of the Superbike Commission to this exception to the rules for next season, we will now present the detailed technical regulations for 2003 to the FIM, one of which will be the A Q A With the recent announcement 01 the nile changes slated lor the World Superbike Championship next year, it .as time to ask some questions. By crankshafts etc., as in this year's British Superbike) ALLAN CATHCART but if fitted with air restrictors of a specified dimension. This will be "26.3mm by one, or 18.7mm by two," according to the official FIM pronouncement, 77i,); ith World Superbike racing now more than Wever a Battle of the Twins, the announcement by the FIM that 1000cc four-cylinder machines would be allowed to compete in the series in 2003, one year earlier than had been foreseen under the new rules for the category being introduced in 2004, was not unexpected. But instead of simply bringing forward the 2004 regulations in their entirety to 2003, the Superbike Commission consisting of one representative each from the FIM, series promoters Octagon/SBK International, the TTC/Top Teams Club and the MSMA/Motorcycle Sports Manufacturer's Association (currently embracing the four Japanese brands, plus Ducati and Aprilia), has opted for a transitional year next season, with a hybrid formula governing World Superbike racing. This will see the category's existing technical rules (permitting derestricted 1000cc twins, 900cc triples and 750cc fours) modified via an exemption which will permit homologated 1000cc four-cylinder machines to take part as well, built to full-race specification (so, no requirement to use stock 20 JULY 3. 2002' cue I e n e _ presumably indicating the intention for these to be fitted to the airducts leading to the compulsory sealed airbox, rather than to the throttle bodies or carburetors. In addition, 1000cc fours will have a minimum weight limit of 168 kg. (369.6 pounds) next year, as compared to the existing 162 kg. (356.4 pounds) for twins and triples, and 158 kg. (347.6 pounds) for 750cc fours. The introduction of this hybrid formula next year set the World Superbike paddock abuzz and the cynics chattering, complete with the usual conspiracy theories which will leave World Superbike enthusiasts around the world wondering what's behind this shock move. Who better to ask for clarification, therefore, than 38-year-old World Superbike supremo Paolo Flammini, head of promoters SBK International, a wholly owned division of sports marketing giants Octagon Motorsport. s Q A

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