IN
THE
WIND
P34
locity Lounge for fans wanting to
watch the season opener in Qa-
tar.
"The official countdown is un-
derway to the Red Bull Grand
Prix of The Americas, and we
wanted to kick off the 2014 sea-
son by giving fans a chance to
enjoy the first MotoGP race to-
gether, "COTA's Vice President
of Public and Media Relations Ju-
lie Loignon said. "Today guests
were also treated to a very spe-
cial experience - the opportunity
to ride around our world-class
racing circuit and enjoy the view
MotoGP riders will have when
they return to compete in Austin
just three weeks from now."
Tickets for the Red Bull Grand
Prix of the Americas start at $39
and can be purchased at www.
circuitoftheamericas.com/mo-
togp.
DONALD TO NORTON FOR TT
R
oad racer Cameron Donald
will contest the 2014 Isle of
Man TT on Nortons in 2014, ac-
cording to event promoters. The
Australian will compete in both
the Superbike TT and the Senior
TT on a North wearing the num-
ber-19 plate - made famous by
the late Steve Hislop, who took
Norton's last TT victory in the
1992 Senior TT.
Donald won the TT Newcom-
ers Trophy in 2005 and set the
paddock alight a year later when
he took a stunning second place
in the Senior TT. In 2008 he
claimed a Superbike-Superstock
double victory for Relentless by
TAS Suzuki before setting the
first ever 131 mph-plus lap in
practice for the 2009 meeting
although a crash a day later ulti-
mately put him out of the races.
Although he has yet to win
another race, he now has an
impressive tally of 10 podiums
with his most recent coming in
last year's Superbike TT when
he took second behind Michael
Dunlop. With a fastest lap of
130.729 mph, Donald is also the
eighth fastest rider ever to have
lapped the 37.75-mile course.
Having made an unsuccessful
return to the TT in 2009 with Mi-
chael Dunlop, Norton bounced
back in 2012 with Ian Mackman
on board their all-new machine
although the Senior TT cancella-
tion put an end to its hopes of a
competitive finish. Last year they
came back with a two-man team
comprising Mackman and Daniel
Hegarty and the duo lapped at
122.277 mph and 122.290 mph,
respectively, with Mackman
claiming the team's best result of
18th in the Superbike TT.
"When Norton began talking to
me about their plans for TT 2014 I
knew it was an opportunity I didn't
want to miss," Donald said. "With
the enthusiasm and experience
of the Norton team behind me
and ex-TT winners such as Mick
Grant and Steve Plater now in-
volved, this is sure to be an excit-
ing year. Norton is synonymous
with the Isle of Man TT and I can't
wait to ride the new SG3 round
the Mountain Course and add to
their Isle of Man history."
Cameron Donald
will race a Norton
in the 2014 Isle of
Man TT.
