Cycle News - Archive Issues - 2000's

and match to Dorna and MotoGP. Only a matter of time before the two categories combine and SBK's junior World Supersport class replaces the moribund 250 GP category as GP2... Well, not actually. Though vested interests might have you believe otherwise, viewed from outside, it appears that reports of World Superbike's demise are greatly exaggerated, and here's why: First, even in the year that Valentino Rossi and the Honda RC211 V reached the same iconic status in Italy as Schumacher and Ferrari, hotly pursued by his nemesis Max Biaggi, the three World Superbike rounds held on Italian soil all grossed a higher gate in terms of the number of paying spectators (97,000 for the incredible Imola finale, 90,000 at Monza and 66,000 at Misano, all three-day figures on which 20 percent tax must be paid, making it unlikely these have been massaged unduly!) than not only the Formula 1 race at Monza, but also the MotoGP round at Mugello (60,000 paying spectators). Moreover, a study undertaken by Yamaha's whollyowned Italian subsidiary, Belgarda, revealed the fact that 50.1 percent of the 1176 sample interviewees at a World Superbike round were active motorcycle riders, and 70 percent were aged 25 or over, so they therefore had more purchasing power than a younger group. Some 60 percent were convinced that a manufacturer stood to gain commercially as well as in terms of its products' credibility if the company took part in World Superbike racing, and 35 percent stated that this conditioned their choice at the point of sale when buying a new motorcycle, helmet or clothing - a significant proportion. So, Superbike sells product - making its imminent rebirth all the more crucial for the manufacturers around the world that have now committed to supporting it in the future. That's because some ongoing detective work has uncovered the fact that the controversial issue of air Troy Corser and the Foggy Petronas FP-1 triple should be on equal footing in 2003, thanks to the new air restrictor rules that are being implemented in World Superbike. The rules, which restrict machines at the intake manifold and not the airbox, have been approved by all interested manufacturers, whether they plan to run with two, three or four cylinders. restrictors due to be introduced in World Superbike in 2003 on a trial basis and across the board for 2004, has been resolved to the satisfaction of all parties. The announcement made by the FIM in December revealed that the controversial scheme aimed at equalizing the performance across the board of 1000cc four-cylinder machines, triples and twins - borrowed from the world of car racing to impose external air restictors on the intake ducts leading to sealed airboxes - has been scrapped and will be replaced instead by a more readily enforceable system calling for restrictors to be located between the throttle body butterfly and the cylinder head. Easier to check, harder to cheat. Moreover, a new set of restrictor dimensions is understood to have been established. It has been approved by the four Japanese factories planning to run four-cylinder machines in 2004 as being fair and equitable, agreed to by the Italian twin-cylinder brigade. These dimensions are reliably believed to be 33mm diameter for four-cylinder engines and 50mm for twins. Apparently there's no restrictor size yet decided for triples - but this is almost certainly because the technicians making the comparative dyno tests (in Japan?) to arrive at these figures didn't have a Benelli Tornado or Foggy Petronas FP-1 at their disposal. It'll follow - and so in due course will a five-cylinder restrictor figure, once Proton transforms its Team Roberts-developed V5 Grand Prix racer into the spinoff street version, which will assuredly be built in sufficient quantities (150 units minimum, under present rules) to qualify for Superbike raCing. What makes this decision crucial is that the Japanese manufacturers are understood to believe they now have a level playing field for World Superbike 2004 and onwards, and they are preparing to support the championship in a major way. There's no secret why this should be: Grand Prix racing is all about prestige, but as Belgarda's study underlined, Superbike racing sells product - and in the current tight economic climate, company accountants are much readier to sign checks for a branch of racing they can see a return from. Add in the current sponsorship famine in MotoGP, and this becomes even more of an issue - especially when all four Japanese manufacturers as well as Aprilia and Ducati have brand-new range-topping sportbikes either already in the ma rketplace or set to debut a year from now as 2004-season contenders. These machines represent their highest-margin products in their key markets like the USA, Great Britain, Germany, Italy and, of course, Japan. And they're eager to market via success on the racetrack. That's one reason why 2004 World Superbike grids will see, in addition to at least two Ducati teams (the factory squad and the HM Plant team, both with 999R equipment), an array of new fuel-injected Japanese fours, headed by two works Honda teams running the forthcoming all-new fourcylinder in-line RCB 1000 FireBlade. This is already undergoing testing in Japan and, like its CBR600RR kid brother making its debut this season in World Supers port, was designed first as a racer then adapted for street use and is closely based on the allconquering RC211 V MotoGP racer in terms of overall concept, with an under-seat fuel tank to compact the bike's mass, Unit Pro-Link rear suspension with the shock mounted entirely on the swingarm, and most probably a semi-dry sump engine design like the RCV's V5. Honda will have one two-rider fuJI-factory squad, possibly run out of Britain under Castrol Honda team manager Neil Tuxworth's control, though in light of his recent promotion to head up all Honda's motorsport activities in the UK, including touring cars, etc., it's unlikely Tuxworth will run the team himself. Honda has already committed for the next four years to the BSB British Superbike series, in which in 2003 it'll be running a single-rider team under ex-500cc GP racer Simon Buckmaster, with Steve Plater racing If all goes well, MY Agusta will enter the World Superbike fray in 2004. Rather than chase MotoGP glory, the refinanced company has come to recognize the tremendous value of , racing what it sells. Some industry insiders believe that it's the move MY should have made all along. eye I e n e _ so • JANUARY 22, 2003 23

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