Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/634995
IN THE WIND P32 EBR TO FIRE AGAIN T he new owners of Erik Buell Racing have said they are searching for an individual or company to acquire EBR to continue the manufacture of the American sport bikes. Liquid Asset Partners now control the lot with EBR - all EBR 2012-2015 model parts inventory, brand names, trademarks, patents, operating licenses, testing equipment, assembly lines and, crucially, any future projects that were under development when they purchased the company. According to our colleagues at Ultimate Motorcycling, LAP plans to restart production of new RX and SX models, with plans to have them in dealers by mid March. They also plan to kick- start the much needed spare parts supply chain for the thousands of EBR and Buell machines on the roads. "This is indeed an incredible opportunity for a huge head start on getting an American sport motorcycle business going," said EBR's Erik Buell. "I have to thank Bill Melvin Jr., Bill Sr., and the team at Liquid Asset Partners for seeing this and working toward activating the assets and building motorcycles again." This is indeed good news for EBR, however it does seem a temporary fix with Liquid Asset Partners uninterested in becom- ing a fully fledged motorcycle manufacturer in its own right. Time will tell if a buyer can be found and if EBR will ride on its own once again. CN DUCATI BUSTS SALES RECORDS T here's plenty to smile about at Ducati North America. The company recently reported sales figures from 2015, and with 12,132 units sold in the U.S., Canada and Mexico, numbers are up 14.1% over 2014. This marks the sixth straight year of sales growth for Ducati North America. Much of the growth can be attributed to Mexi- can sales, which are up more than 85% (over 1000 units sold last year). The U.S. is credited with the bulk of North American sales at 9674 units sold (a 10% increase) while Canada moved 1458 bikes (up 12%). Ducati's new Scrambler line proved to be a big seller in 2015, as well as the 899 Panigale and the Monster 821. The 1299 Panigale and Multistrada 1200 were also standout sellers. "Our success in North America is the result of the hard work of the entire Ducati organization and our network of dedicated dealers," Dominique Cheraki, outgoing CEO of Ducati North America. "I am proud of what we have collectively achieved during the past five years of my tenure and I'm en- thusiastic of what the future holds for the brand." Ducati anticipates even more growth in 2016 with the new XDiavel, and Multistrada 1200 Enduro coming soon. "It's a tremendous honor and responsibility to lead Ducati North America into the next chapter," said Jason Chinnock, the newly appointed CEO. "I am confident that we have a strong internal management team. This, coupled with an out- standing dealer network and a tremendous prod- uct offering, will give us the ability to fully capital- ize on this opportunity in this market." CN Things are starting to look on the up for EBR, but it's early days yet. Ducati is hoping bikes like the new Multistrada En- duro will continue the excellent growth they've seen over the past year.