August 2003 Race News from Around the World c/o mcnews

 

World Superbike confirmed to be Pirelli only in 2004 and 2005

(August 1st) Starting with the forthcoming season, Pirelli will be the exclusive supplier of tyres for all the teams that take part in the 45 races in 10 countries for the title of World and European Championship.

 

James Haydon and Foggy Petronas to split at the end of the season

(August 13th) Foggy Petronas Racing will not seek to retain the services of James Haydon when his contract expires at the end of the current 2003 season. Team owner Carl Fogarty said: “I genuinely feel sorry that this has not worked out for James. I signed him because of his aggressive style and determined nature but, for whatever reason, this has not suited our bike. While Troy raves about the handling of the FP1, James has clearly struggled to find a set-up that works for him.

 

Hofmann to continue with Kawasaki through 2004

(August 15th) Today the Kawasaki Racing Team and Alex Hofmann reached an agreement that will see the 23-year-old German rider contest all rounds of the 2004 MotoGP World Championship aboard the Kawasaki Ninja ZX-RR

 

MotoGP 2003 - Round 10 - Brno - Race Report

(August 17th) Troy Bayliss got an absolute blinder of a start from the 2nd row to lead the field through turn 1 from Rossi, Biaggi and Gibernau. Unbelievable!  Bayliss held on to that lead for the first lap with Rossi right in behind him while Biaggi and Gibernau traded paint over 3rd place. Rossi got the lead with half a lap to run, then side by side with Gibernau at the chicane, Rossi gets the win, Gibernau 2nd, Bayliss 3rd

 

MotoGP 2003 - Round 10 - Brno - 250 Race

(August 17th) Anthony West went out early on in this race with mechanical problems. The battle for the win was a close fought affair between Elias, De Puniet and Poggiali all the way to the finish line

 

MotoGP 2003 - Round 10 - Brno - 125 Race

(August 17th) Casey Stoner missed this race due to breaking his collarbone earlier in the weekend. Pedrosa 1st, Perugini 2nd, DeAngelis 3rd.

 

 

SUPERSPORT

Shannon Johnson is heading overseas

(August 21st) After the final round of the Shell Advance Australian Superbike Championship on August 31 Shannon Johnson will attend the Honda Riders Club of Australia ride day on Monday September 1 before flying straight from Sydney to Holland. Shannon will compete in the Assen round of the World Supersport Championship aboard a Michelin shod CBR600RR for Team Moto 1.  He will then compete in a French Championship race at Magny Course before riding World Supersport again at Imola

 

Kawasaki ZX-10R - 2004 Model Information

(August 27th) Kawasaki are introducing their long awaited entry into the litre-class with the new Ninja ZX-10R, and they are claiming it has been worth the wait. Kawasaki are claiming the highest power-to-weight ratio in the class but at the same time not yet releasing details of the claimed dry weight of their new machine and are also not yet quoting horsepower figures.

 

A new 'Factory' Mille is joining the redesigned Aprilia line-up for 2004.

Special modifications which make the new 'Factory' variant stand out from the standard RSV and RSV-R versions are radially mounted Brembo calipers and radial pump with braided lines, fully adjustable titanium nitrided coated Ohlins forks and shock absorber, and an Ohlins steering damper. Cosmetic changes include forged aluminium wheels and black painted frame along with plenty of carbon-fibre. Only the ‘Factory’ model scores the Ohlins suspension as the RSV-R makes do with high quality Showa forks and Sachs rear shock. Likewise the RSV-R still scores Brembo braking components but misses out on the radial mounting system and pump that are fitted to the ‘Factory’ model. Aprilia hope to freight in one of the models to put on display the Australian Grand Prix in October but the first shipment with machines for sale is not likely to arrive on our shores until December

 

Reece Bancell

(August 31st) We regret to inform you that after a serious turn one crash at Eastern Creek yesterday in the final Australian Supersport race for 2003, 19-year-old Hornsby (NSW) resident Reece Bancell has lost his life. The incident at Eastern Creek resulted from a group of riders colliding in turn one, a domino effect resulted with many bikes coming together and a few riders leaving the track. Unfortunately Reece came down hard, and was transported to Sydney's Westmead Hospital. It was there he passed away.

 

2003 Shell Advance Australian Superbike Championship, Round 5 (FINAL) - Eastern Creek

(August 31st) 20 year old Shepparton rider Craig Coxhell won his first Australian Superbike Championship. The Team Suzuki rider took both race wins today to earn enough points to win the crown and give the Sydney crowd a popular victory.

 

Australian Safari - Day 6

(August 28th) The KTM Motorex Rally Team took the lead in the Australian Safari today after another stellar performance from South Australia’s Andrew Caldecott.

 

American Superbike 2003 - VIR – Saturday

(August 30th) Mat Mladin’s victory in today’s fifteenth round of the AMA Chevy Trucks US Superbike Championship gave the Australian a total of ten race wins for the year, equalling a long standing record of race wins in a single season of the American championship held by former World and American Superbike champion Fred Merkel.