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MOTO GP : A. Espargaró mène les deux séances du vendredi au Sachsenring : Aleix Espargaro quickest in both Sachsenring sessions on Friday

Aleix Espargaró a conclu la première journée du Grand Prix eni Motorrad d'Allemagne devant Marc Márquez et Jorge Lorenzo à l'issue de la seconde séance d'essais.

Aleix Espargaró s’est emparé de la première position in extremis vendredi après-midi au Sachsenring et a bouclé son dernier tour en 1’22.041 pour battre Marc Márquez (Repsol Honda) de 0.117s une fois le drapeau à damier levé. Le pilote du team NGM Forward Racing avait aussi signé le meilleur temps le matin mais a cette fois-ci dû tirer le maximum du pneu tendre de la catégorie Open pour s'assurer la première place et a passé une partie de la séance à travailler sur le nouveau châssis Forward.

Malgré sa chute en FP1, Márquez était de retour au sommet de la hiérarchie jusqu’à ce que son compatriote catalan ne le prive de la première place et comptait deux dixièmes de seconde d’avance sur Jorge Lorenzo (Movistar Yamaha MotoGP), troisième et lui aussi en progrès par rapport à son chrono du matin. 

Valentino Rossi (Movistar Yamaha MotoGP) était en fait le seul pilote à ne pas améliorer son chrono l’après-midi lors de la seconde séance d’essais. L’Italien a cependant fini dans le Top 6, derrière Stefan Bradl (LCR Honda) et Álvaro Bautista (GO&FUN Honda Gresini), en étant à moins d’une seconde du temps de référence. 

Derrière le nonuple Champion du Monde, Andrea Iannone (Pramac Racing), Pol Espargaró (Monster Yamaha Tech3), Andrea Dovizioso (Ducati) et Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda), tombé dans le virage n°12 en début de séance, se tenaient en moins de trois centièmes de seconde, avec à peine plus d’une demi-seconde de retard sur l'aîné des frères Espargaró.

Tombé deux fois le matin, Bradley Smith (Monster Yamaha Tech3) a fini onzième, devant Yonny Hernández (Energy T.I. Pramac Racing), Cal Crutchlow (Ducati) et Michael Laverty (PBM), qui a, comme Pedrosa, chuté dans le virage n°12 mais se classait devant les Honda Open de Scott Redding (GO&FUN Honda Gresini), Hiroshi Aoyama (Drive M7 Aspar), Karel Abraham (Cardion AB Motoracing) et Nicky Hayden (Drive M7 Aspar). 

Mike di Meglio (Avintia Blusens) a conclu la journée en 21e position.

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Aleix Espargaro set the best lap in the MotoGP™ FP2 run at the eni Motorrad Grand Prix Deutschland, outpacing Marc Marquez and Jorge Lorenzo at the head of the timesheet.

Having also gone quickest in FP1, Espargaro lapped in 1’22.041 on the NGM Forward Racing ‘Open’ Forward-Yamaha on a softer option rear at the end of the FP2 session. The riders kept their concentration despite some light rainfall 20 minutes from the end of the afternoon run.

World Champion Marquez (Repsol Honda Team) ended the session 0.117s behind compatriot Espargaro, having had a big crash at turn 3 earlier in the day in FP1.

Another Spaniard, Movistar Yamaha MotoGP’s Lorenzo kept out of trouble at a track where he had a big crash last year in practice and missed the 2013 race. Lorenzo was third fastest, trailing Espargaro by 0.327s.

Home rider Stefan Bradl (LCR Honda MotoGP) and his fellow Honda equipped rival Alvaro Bautista (GO&FUN Honda Gresini) were fourth and fifth.

Valentino Rossi (Movistar Yamaha MotoGP) was sixth fastest overall, lapping just over 0.4s slower than pace setter Espargaro – the Italian’s best time came in FP1.

The top ten was completed by Andrea Iannone (Pramac Racing), Pol Espargaro (Monster Yamaha Tech3), Andrea Dovizioso (Ducati Team) and Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda Team) – who walked away from a high speed FP2 crash at turn 12.

The top 16 riders were separated by less than a second at the short, tight and twisting German track.

Turn 12 also saw another FP2 crash, for Michael Laverty (Paul Bird Motorsport), who was unhurt and ended the day 14^th. His teammate Broc Parkes was down in 23^rd and crashed in FP1.

Bradley Smith (Monster Yamaha Tech3) crashed twice in FP1 and ended the day 11^th best overall.

For full Sachsenring FP2 results for MotoGP click here.

TOKYO DIRT

Speedtractor teams up with friends, Animal Boat CC and Iceblock Films to find that there is indeed dirt in Tokyo...you just have to look for it.

SUPER MOTOR COMPANY LUCKY PUNK

We hear a lot about the rise of the Chinese-built motorcycle, and how it’s going to change the industry in the western world. Well, this is the story of a westerner trying to beat the Chinese at their own game. And yes, it’s messy.

The star of this cautionary tale is Dimitri Hettinga, who runs Holland’s Super Motor Company. (You may know Hettinga from his previous appearances on Bike EXIF, courtesy of a pair of sharp-looking Super Cub customs.) The bike in question is a beautiful production-ready lightweight called ‘Lucky Punk.’

“Building a bike in China?” says Hettinga. “How hard can it be?” Very hard indeed, it turns out.

Nearly two years ago, Hettinga mocked up a new design. A small-capacity supermotard with a vintage trials vibe. It ended up with a weight of 101 kg and 27 bhp—which means a power-to-weight ratio similar to a heavier Triumph Bonneville or Moto Guzzi V7. So far, so good.

“Then it all went downhill. China is a nightmare to work in. The language barrier is one to take into account, but the mentality is hard to ignore. It’s Kafka’s paradise.” The first engine from a Chinese supplier had the wrong spec, and was delivered without a balance shaft. “The vibrations were intense. If you had false teeth, you would have lost them after a minute.”

The basis of the Lucky Punk is a ‘dragon bone’ frame: a pressed-steel backbone that is widely available in China. To keep the bike looking as clean as possible, Hettinga selected a 4.5Ah Li-ion battery the size of a pack of cigarettes. It’s stowed under the seat, along with the rest of the electrical necessities.

The litany of disasters even included the fabrication of the exhaust. “We gave precise CAD drawings to the factory that was going to do this pipe. But once we got there to do the first fitment it was all off. In the end it took us two days to get it right, accompanied by lots of swearing and a bucket load of incomprehension. But the result is now spot on.”

There were glimmers of hope. “We are friends for life with the people of the paint factory,” says Hettinga. “They are unbelievably skilled, and the only ones we encountered that had a sense of perfection. They let us mix our own color by hand. They gave the tank extra rubdowns till they were happy with the result. We changed the color several times—no problem. Great and easy to work with, given that we could not understand each other!”

The last hurdle was critical: shipping the Lucky Punk prototype to the huge Chinese motorcycle fair in Guangzhou, where it could go on display to the trade and the public. “We arranged to ship the bike by air, and the courier lost the bike!”

For three days, the bike disappeared. “We were about to miss the Fair altogether. When we arrived in Guangzhou, the bike was still missing. And even at 5pm, the day before the fair, the bike was still missing. Then we got a call: the bike was found!” Hettinga picked it up at 4am on the day of the Fair at the cargo facility of the airport, and assembled the bike in the parking lot of the Fair itself.

Lucky Punk rolled into the Fair complex just after 9am, and took its place in the booth of Yinxiang Motors—the factory that produces the Super Motor Company’s Cub-based bikes. “Over the next few days, we drew a lot of attention. But many of the Chinese did not understand the bike—the price was too high, it’s too expensive to build, blah blah. But, happily, we met some like-minded enthusiasts. We now have five distributors from around the world to work with.”

So was it worth the ineptitude and insanity? “Yes, it was.”

Lucky Punk is now being readied for production, and will hit European markets in the first quarter of 2015. The 125cc version will cost 2,500 euros and the 250cc version 3,000 euros.

It’s a great price for a great-looking bike. And after all that stress, we think Dimitri Hettinga deserves success.

Keep tabs on the adventures of Super Motor Company via their website and Facebook page.

via BIKEexif