Valentino Rossi et le Mugello : Une histoire d’amour… / Valentino Rossi’s love affair with Mugello

Le Mugello a accueilli plusieurs des plus grands moments de sa carrière mais Rossi y a aussi eu des épisodes difficiles…

Présent dans le paddock MotoGP™ depuis près de vingt ans en tant que reporter pour Motorcycle News, Matthew Birt rejoint l’équipe de motogp.com pour la saison 2015 afin de vous proposer des news exclusives ainsi qu’une opinion venant du coeur du paddock.

Étant donné l’histoire d’amour entre Valentino Rossi et le Mugello, il peut paraître incroyable que sept années se soient écoulées depuis la fin de sa fantastique série de sept victoires consécutives en MotoGP.

Bien qu’il ait un palmarès sans égal sur ce circuit, le pilote du team Movistar Yamaha MotoGP y a connu autant de hauts que de bas.

Le Mugello a accueilli plusieurs des plus grands moments de sa carrière mais Rossi y a aussi eu des épisodes difficiles.

Il remporta sa première victoire au Mugello en 125cc, en 1997, lors d’une course qui est restée célèbre pour ses moqueries envers son rival italien Max Biaggi.

Rossi avait fêté sa victoire avec une poupée gonflable sur laquelle était écrit le nom du modèle allemand Claudia Schiffer, une attaque directe envers Biaggi, qui était à l’époque lié à Naomi Campbell.

Son unique victoire en 250cc au Mugello arriva en 1999, lorsqu’il utilisait une livrée ‘Peace and Love’ sur son Aprilia.

La popularité de Rossi était déjà énorme et des milliers de fans italiens avaient envahi la piste pour fêter sa victoire. Essayant d’échapper à ses fervents supporters, Rossi était tombé de son Aprilia en percutant le caméraman Gigi Soldano sur le tour d’honneur !

La première déception de Rossi au Mugello date de 2000 et de sa première saison en catégorie reine. Visant le titre de premier Italien à gagner en 500cc au Mugello, Rossi s’était battu avec Loris Capirossi et Biaggi pour s’emparer de la première place mais finit par chuter en fin de course.

Il tomba à nouveau l’année suivante, sous une pluie diluvienne, lorsque sa Honda NSR500 revêtait une livrée aux couleurs d’Hawaii. 

Superstitieux, Rossi abandonna l’idée d’utiliser une livrée spéciale au Mugello et porta son attention sur les casques.

Une tradition qu’il lança en 2002 pour que la traditionnelle présentation du casque le samedi matin devienne au fil des ans l’un des moments incontournables de la saison.

Son premier casque spécialement conçu pour le Mugello reprit le design de celui qu’avait utilisé son père Graziano en 1979, l’année de naissance de Rossi.

Le début de cette nouvelle tradition fut aussi le début d’une incroyable série de sept victoires consécutives pour Rossi au Mugello. 

Sa victoire en 2002 fut l’occasion de nouvelles festivités post-course brillamment orchestrées. Rossi dominait sans partage sur la nouvelle Honda V5, à tel point que ses détracteurs avancèrent que son succès était dû à la vitesse de pointe de la RC211V.

Le Mugello a l’une des lignes droites les plus longues du calendrier et après une nouvelle victoire sur Biaggi, Rossi s’arrêta pour recevoir une amende pour excès de vitesse remise par l’un de ses fans déguisé en policier.

Les innombrables souvenirs de Rossi au Mugello n’ont cependant pas tous été créés en piste, l’Italien ne manquant jamais d’humour.

En 2008, il dévoila la plus célèbre de ses créations pour le Mugello : son propre visage était placé sur le dessus de son casque AGV.

L’idée était venue de l’incontournable designer Aldo Drudi suite à ce que Rossi lui ait demandé à quoi ressemblait son visage lorsqu’il freinait au bout de la ligne droite.

Il s’imposa ce jour-là mais a depuis connu plus de déceptions que de succès.

En 2010, Rossi fut victime d’un highside à l’entrée de la chicane Biondetti, lors des essais du samedi matin et se fractura la jambe droite. 

Deux Top 6 peu satisfaisants avec la Ducati Desmosedici en 2011 et 2012 furent suivis par un nouvel espoir en 2013, lorsque M. Mugello revint chez Yamaha.

La course de Rossi ne dura cependant qu’une trentaine de secondes puisqu’il alla au tapis dès le premier tour suite à un accrochage avec Álvaro Bautista.

C’est certainement cette année que Rossi a le plus de chances de renouer avec la victoire chez lui devant son public, et de faire passer son compteur à 10 au Mugello. 

À 36 ans, l’Italien est sur une série de neuf podiums consécutifs, dont trois victoires.

Et il arrive au Mugello en tête du classement du Championnat du Monde pour la première fois depuis 2008.

Ce week-end, Rossi et des dizaines de milliers de fans espèreront le voir redevenir Roi du Mugello.

 Mugello has been the scene of some of the greatest moments in his career, but Rossi has experienced the darker side of racing here too…

With nineteen years of experience reporting on MotoGP™ for Motorcycle News, Matthew Birt knows the championship inside-out. For the 2015 season he joins the motogp.com team to bring you exclusive news and opinion from inside the paddock.

Given Valentino Rossi’s love affair with Mugello, it is incredible to think it is seven years since the last of his magnificent seven successive MotoGP victories at the awe-inspiring track.

Despite his unrivalled success, the Movistar Yamaha rider’s fortunes have been as up and down as the spectacular circuit itself.

Mugello has been the scene of some of the greatest moments in his career, but Rossi has experienced the darker side of racing here too.

His first win in Mugello was a 125cc success in 1997 and was made more memorable by his mischievous mocking of bitter Italian rival Max Biaggi.

Rossi celebrated with an inflatable doll that had German model Claudia Schiffer’s name scribbled on it in a direct swipe at Biaggi’s link to fellow supermodel Naomi Campbell.

His solitary 250cc success came in 1999 when using the distinctive one-off ‘Peace and Love’ Aprilia livery.

Rossi’s popularity was already booming and it was at a time when thousands of fervent Italian fans would invade the circuit. Trying to escape his adoring public, Rossi fell off his Aprilia machine when he rode into TV cameraman Gigi Soldano on the slowing down lap!

Rossi’s first bitter experience of Mugello came in his rookie premier class campaign in 2000. Aiming to become the first Italian rider to win a 500cc race at Mugello, Rossi fought an enthralling battle with Loris Capirossi and Biaggi but fell out of the lead late on.

He crashed again a year later in monsoon conditions while racing his Honda NSR500 in a special Hawaiian livery.

After that tumble, superstitious Rossi hasn’t used a special livery for Mugello since and instead he took to rolling out unique helmet designs.

The helmet tradition started in 2002 and the traditional Saturday morning unveiling has become a hugely anticipated moment of the season.

The first version was a design used by his father Graziano back in 1979 – the same year Rossi was born.

The start of the one-off helmet designs coincided with Rossi’s unrivalled domination at Mugello, with his success in 2002 the first of a record seven straight wins.

His 2002 success triggered another brilliantly orchestrated post race celebration.

Rossi was dominating on the stunning new Honda V5 machine and he’d had to deal with snipes that his success owed much to the top speed of the RC211V.

Mugello has one of the longest straights on the calendar, so after another win over Biaggi, he stopped and was issued with a speeding fine by fans dressed as police.

Rossi’s Mugello memories have not just been created on track. You can never accuse him of lacking humour and ingenuity.

In 2008 he unveiled the most famous of his Mugello creations.

Sprawled across the top of his AGV was his own face in a shocked expression.

The inspired idea came from legendary designer Aldo Drudi after he asked Rossi what his face looked like when he was braking at the end of the end of the straight.

He won that day, but since then, it has been more a tale of woe than win.

In 2010, Rossi suffered a huge high side on the entry to the fast Biondetti chicane in Saturday’s morning practice. He was left with a compound fracture of his right tibia.

Two low-key top six finishes on the ill-handling Ducati Desmosedici in 2011 and ’12 were followed by renewed hopes that Mr. Mugello would be back to winning ways on his return to Yamaha in 2013.

However, Rossi’s race lasted barely 30 seconds when he was out on a disastrous first lap after a tangle with Alvaro Bautista.

Rossi heads to his spiritual home this weekend with arguably his best chance of sending a passionate and partisan crowd home delirious with what would be a 10th victory at his beloved Mugello.

The 36-year-old is on a golden run of nine straight podiums, which includes three wins.

And for the first time since 2008, he arrives to try and conquer Mugello again leading the World Championship.

Rossi and tens of thousands of fans will be hoping his fortunes this weekend will be more up than down.

‘78 Kawasaki KZ400 – Jochen Guske

Barn finds are good and well, providing you actually have barns where you live. But as long as you have old geezers who love to horde, you’re going to find old bikes hidden away. Here in Australia we usually find them in sheds or garages. And clearly barns are the preferred storage method for the forgetful oldies in the US. But what about Germany? Apparently carpenter’s shops are all the rage over there. And if Jochen Guske and his find are anything to go by, the common inhabitants of the average Deutsche woodworkhaus are none other than the ‘Kawikus Kaffeus’ – also known as the Green-Breasted Kawasaki KZ400.

“I’m Jochen from Dresden, Germany and I’m 35 years old,” say Herr Guske, the bike’s owner and builder. “I live with my wife and our two kids. Riding motorcycles had been a part of my live since I was 15 years old. Or should I say a big part of my life. Honestly, I’m obsessed. My current bikes are a 04’Kawasaki Z1000 for daily duties and now this, a ‘78 Kawasaki KZ400.”

Then Jochen encountered his first café. “I saw one in a magazine. I was in love. This was the day I made the decision to build my own bike.” Like most of us, Jochen was fascinated by the style of the café racers and their ‘less is more’ attitude. “It’s so simple. There’s no unnecessary parts. Everything should have a function and nothing more.”

And just like that, he was hooked. But before he got started, he had a few things to consider. Priority one was to comply with those pesky German licensing laws. Priority two? “Stay in budget”. To achieve this, Jochen was after a bike built before 1983. “Then I found the donor bike in an old carpentry shop in Hamburg. Excitement turned to worry as I realised that it was well-worn and in pretty bad condition. The engine wouldn’t start and the wiring was an absolute nightmare.”

Jochen says that nasty battery is the next to go

“After I brought it home, I was thinking that I needed to find a proper garage and some expensive tools to start the project. But as so often happens, I just started to strip down the bike myself.” Jochen replaced the suspension, built a new wiring harness, added new lights and some clip-on ‘bars. Then came a new seat, metalwork on the tank and thousand other things as well.

“The only thing I didn’t tackle myself was the paint job, which I took to a local pro. I decided to paint it in a traditional ‘British Racing Green’. When you think about it, the color fits perfectly because it’s both a Kawasaki and a café racer.”

Then, after applying a little too much enthusiasm through his twisty right wrist, Jochen  changed the engine after the old one mysteriously went kaput. Now the bike has all its go supplied from a donk sourced out of an ‘83 KZ440. “It’s great for daily riding or old-timer hill climbing.” Hill climbing, he says. On a bike like this! Jealous much?

Three years later and here we are. “Sure it cost a lot of money and hours, but it really doesn’t matter. To build this bike was a real kind of ‘zen’ for me. It’s meditation – the best type of calm imaginable.”

“The hardest part of the build was sourcing the spare parts for this model. Thanks to eBay, I bought many different parts from Sweden, England and Canada. Another big challenge was to redo the wiring, because I had absolutely no experience with auto electrics. In the end I destroyed a few regulators, blew countless bulbs and killed a few batteries, too. But I finally made it.”

It’s the magic number. Twice

Jochen’s final step was to name his creation. “After I finished, I decided to give it a name. I settled on ‘ACE400’ as a hat tip to the Ace Café in London.” Makes us wonder if there aren’t already some plans afoot to make the pilgrimage across das kanal and pay a little visit. Gute reise, Herr Guske. Gute reise!

from PIPEBURN

Dirty Sunday Eauze 2014

Dirty Sunday Eauze 2014 from Eric H2ocean Walfard on Vimeo.

Ten top car photographers to follow on Instagram

Is it possible to use Instagram while avoiding Kardashian selfies, craft-beer hipsters or half-eaten pulled-pork burgers? Yes, is the answer! Follow these 10 talented automotive photographers and everything will be fine…

Amy Shore

Since we discovered Amy Shore more than a year ago, the young British photographer has had an unprecedented career, repeatedly turning our heads with extraordinary photos. Her feeling for colours and composition is unique and we are very pleased that Amy has remained faithful to Classic Driver as an in-house photographer to this day. Follow @amyshorephotography

Rémi Dargegen

Whether at the Tour Auto, Mille Miglia or Concorso d'Eleganza Villa d'Este, Rémi Dargegen can't be overlooked. Easy to spot from his trademark beard and authentic 1940s outfit, the Parisian photographer is already a phenomenon – but even more impressive is his great eye for detail. Follow @remidargegenphotographies

Peter Aylward

The London photographer Peter Aylward has photographed all manner of architectural wonders, but his heart seems to beat especially strongly for classic cars. Follow Peter’s Instagram and immerse yourself in the world of historic racing, properly composed and skilfully filtered, of course. Follow @peteraylward

Laurent Nivalle

Rarely has a photographer’s style influenced the car scene in recent years as much as Laurent Nivalle. The Parisian photographer and Citroën Design Center art director has moved his focus – those who follow him on Instagram must also be interested in elegantly staged motorcycles and fashion. Follow @laurentnivalle

Alex Penfold

Alex Penfold is something like the ‘London Eye’ of the automotive scene. On Instagram, more than 230,000 followers from all over the world follow his daily snapshots from ‘Vroomtown’. From blue Ferrari F40s to all the latest hypercars, Alex has something for everyone. Follow @alexpenfold

GF Williams

London photographer GF Williams prefers to shoot modern big-game with his camera – LaFerrari, Porsche 918, Pagani Huayra and co. are his favourite targets. Whoever follows him at Instagram also gets an insight into the everyday life of a hypercar photographer. Follow @GFWilliams

Cool & Vintage

Lisbon isn't widely known as a capital of classic automobiles. The team at Cool & Vintage, however, not only post affordable and attractive classics, they have also set new standards of photo and video production. Follow @coolnvintage

NYCars

The Instagram account of NYCars promises strange cars in strange places, and all in one specific style: cars can be seen only side-on, in profile. The project began in New York City, but now the photographer documents the street life of Singapore. Follow @nycars

Luke Gilbertson

Forget his 51,000 followers for a moment; London-based Luke Gilbertson is a photographer with an uncanny ability to ignite one’s passion for cars, all over again. Combining street-style candour with print-quality composition, Luke cruises into our top ten with ease. Obviously a keen Star Wars fan, his Instagram handle is certainly memorable… Follow @yournotmyfather

...and don't forget to follow the official Classic Driver account: @classicdriver.

THE TEMPER – KAWASAKI VERSYS 650 ’14

Written by Donny Ariyanto

Nothing ever really goes to plan. The multitude of options available to us at any one time makes it hard to know where we will end up. Unless it’s time to go to the night club, because that is a given. This indecisiveness through an excess of options affects the custom motorcycle world as well, with culture/drivetrain/performance/bike styling choices making it hard to settle on one result. This is what happened with today’s feature bike, the latest offering from us, call it THE TEMPER that we built from 2014 Kawasaki Versys 650.When the custom motorcycle scene in Indonesia booming, it is no wonder more and more people want to be seen riding one. Take for instance like Bro Anas D.V, He bring his bike and wanted to get the feel of riding a custom bike that converted to a scrambler style. “When I choose this bike, I knew that I needed to modify this bike. The distinctive suspension looks perfect for a scrambler style”, says Anas. The engine is a 649 cc liquid-cooled, four-stroke parallel twin with a bore X stroke of 83 mm x 60 mm.

The layout for the bike was adjusted accordingly, Building on previous experience, we only need to rechanged the model from original frame. The front end and swing arm plus back suspension still using an original including the rims. Only changed tires using Shinko E705 120/80-17 for front and 150/70-17 for the back. The original body was swapped with a handmade unit crafted from 1.2mm galvanized plate, along fitted in original Versys main frame. The custom headlight and taillight on “The Temper” are joined by Pro Tapper handlebar, custom exhaust system and topped off with a classic grey base by Komet Studio, highlighted with silver accents, using Sikkens product. Finally, with the build finished, there is only one thing left to do, and it is best summed up by our self. Nothing the best, it’s just a simply stunning from us, but really, It’s satisfied!!

Specification :

• Body Custom by STUDIO MOTOR
• Painting & Airbrush by KOMET Studio
• Pro Tapper Fatbar Handlebar
• Aftermarket Headight & Taillight
• Shinko E705 120/80-17 & 150/70-17 (Front and Rear)
• Custom Exhaust System by STUDIO MOTOR

 from STUDIO MOTOR Custom Bike

Road to Le Mans : Abu Dhabi / Dempsey - Proton Racing

Aux 24 Heures du Mans 2015, Michelin est partenaire de 20 teams que nous présenterons jusqu’au début de la semaine mancelle. L’équipe allemande Proton Racing engage deux Porsche 911 RSR et s’est scindée en deux sous-entités : Abu Dhabi et Dempsey.

Fondé par Gerold Ried au milieu des années 1990, Proton Racing a très vite engagé des Porsche 996 GT3 RS en championnat BPR, puis FIA GT. En 2006, le team est devenu Felbermayr-Proton et s’est lancé avec succès l’année suivante en Le Mans Series (vice-champion GT2).

La première participation de Felbermayr-Proton aux 24 Heures du Mans remonte à 2007, avec le soutien de Siekel Motorsport. Une première expérience écourtée après 68 tours. En 2008, Felbermayr-Proton était de retour dans la Sarthe, en son nom propre, avec une 5^e place finale en GT2.

En 2009, avec des pilotes du calibre de Marc Lieb et Richard Lietz, Felbermayr-Proton a remporté les titres Teams et Pilotes GT2 en LMS. Mais les 24 Heures du Mans furent un bien mauvais souvenir avec un abandon de la Porsche N°77 après seulement 24 tours (panne d’essence).

En 2010, Felbermayr-Proton a conservé ses titres Teams et Pilotes GT2 en Le Mans Series, et participé au nouveau championnat ILMC. Mais le point d’orgue de la saison fut sans doute les 24 Heures du Mans avec la victoire en catégorie GT2 !

Après une campagne 2011 un peu moins glorieuse en Le Mans Series, ILMC et au Mans, Proton Racing s’est engagé en Championnat du monde d’Endurance FIA WEC 2012 en catégories LM GTE Pro et Am, puis uniquement en Am avec deux Porsche à partir de 2013. Proton Racing a terminé vice-champion LM GTE Am en 2012 et 3^e l’an passé.

Cette année, l’équipe allemande s’est scindée en deux sous-entités : Abu Dhabi-Proton Racing et Dempsey-Proton Racing. L’acteur américain dispute ses 3^e 24 Heures du Mans avec Proton Racing.

At the 2015 Le Mans 24 Hours, Michelin will have 20 partner teams which we will be introducing one by one up to race week. The German team Proton Racing is running two Porsche 911 RSRs in La Sarthe under different names: Abu Dhabi and Dempsey.

Proton Racing was founded in the mid-1990s by Gerold Ried and was soon seen running Porsche 996 GT3 RSs in the BPR series, then in FIA GT. In 2006, it was renamed Felbermayr-Proton, earning GT2 runner-up honours in the following season’s Le Mans Series.

Felbermayr-Proton’s first Le Mans appearance followed in 2007 with support from Siekel Motorsport, but its race ended after 68 laps. It was back – on its own – in 2008 and this time scooped fifth place in GT2.

In 2009, with drivers of the calibre of Marc Lieb and Richard Lietz on board, Felbermayr-Proton won the Le Mans Series GT2 Teams’ and Drivers’ crowns, but that year’s Le Mans was one to forget when the N°77 Porsche was halted by an empty fuel tank on Lap 24.

The 2010 season saw Felbermayr-Proton successfully defend its LMS GT2 Teams’ and Drivers’ titles in addition to a participation in the new ILMC. Highlight of its year was the top GT2 prize at Le Mans.

After a less glorious campaign in the 2011 LMS, ILMC and Le Mans 24 Hours, Proton Racing continued in the 2012 FIA WEC’s LM GTE Pro and Am classes, then in LM GTE Am with two Porsches from 2013. Honours included the LM GTE Am runner-up title in 2012 and third place in 2014.

This year, the German squad has been split into two entities, namely Abu Dhabi-Proton Racing and Dempsey-Proton Racing. This will be the American actor’s third attempt at Le Mans with Proton Racing.

Cars entered for the 2015 Le Mans 24 Hours

N°77 Porsche 911 RSR (LM GTE Am): Patrick Dempsey / Patrick Long / Marco Seefried

N°88 Porsche 911 RSR (LM GTE Am): Christian Ried / Khaled Al-Qbaisi / Klaus Bachler

Le Mans record

2007: retired, Porsche 997 GT3 (Felbermayr/Belbermayr/Collin)

2008: 5^th GT2, Porsche 997 GT3 (Felbermayr/Davison/Henzler)

2009: retired, Porsche 997 GT3 (Felbermayr/Felbermayr/Lecourt)

2010: 1^st GT2, Porsche 997 GT3 (Lieb/Lietz/Henzler)

2011: 4^th LM GTE Pro, Porsche 997 GT3 (Lieb/Henzler/Lietz)

2012: retired, Porsche 997 GT3 RSR LM GTE Am (Ried/Roda/Ruberti) and Porsche 997 GT3 RSR LM GTE Pro (Lietz/Lieb/Henzler)

2013: 4^th LM GTE Am, Porsche 997 GT3 RSR (Dempsey/Joster/Long)

2014: 2^nd LM GTE Am, Porsche 911 RSR (Ried/Bachler/Al-Qbaisi)

BJ 40........