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Category: Superbikes
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THE BIKES WILL BE RIDDEN BY ITALIAN LORENZO SAVADORI AND NORTHERN IRISHMAN EUGENE LAVERTY IN THE RACES
Two Aprilia RSV4 bikes will be on the track in the 2017 World Superbike Championship with the Milwaukee Aprilia Racing Team colours.
This is a two-year contract, so it will also be valid for 2018.
The agreement specifies that technical material and related direct assistance and support will be provided by Aprilia Racing, including bike development, which classifies Milwaukee as a Supported Factory Team.
This means that Aprilia Racing - the Piaggio Group racing department and technological point of excellence in the Italian motorcycle industry - is confirming its high level presence in the premier competition for factory derivative bikes, alongside its important efforts in MotoGP.
The goal is to compete at top levels in World SBK in order to emphasize the competitiveness of the Aprilia RSV4, capable of taking no less than seven World Titles (three Rider and four Manufacturer) between 2010 and 2014, proving to be the most victorious bike in recent WSBK history.
The result of a project intended to create a true racing bike that any enthusiast could have, the RSV4 astonished from its rookie season, winning a race in its maiden year and then racking up repeated championship wins in both the Manufacturer and Rider competitions (twice with Max Biaggi and once with Sylvain Guintoli). All this while the street version - obviously also characterized by an exclusive narrow 1.0 litre V4 - continued to win comparative reviews year after year with the best competitors in the world, both European and Japanese.
The team run by Shaun Muir, which boasts two British titles, will be able to count on a top shelf rider lineup: in addition to the 2015 Superstock Champion Lorenzo Savadori, who quickly drew attention this year in his rookie World Superbike season, Northern Irishman Eugene Laverty will be back in WSBK, 2013 runner up astride none other than an Aprilia RSV4.
Romano Albesiano - Aprilia Racing Manager
"Shaun Muir's team, after making a good name for themselves in the British championship, wants to get to the top of a world category. Our agreement includes, in addition to providing bikes and materials, support from Aprilia Racing personnel to manage and develop the RSV4, within a Factory Support type relationship.
The birth of the Milwaukee Aprilia Racing Team also marks Eugene Laverty's return to WSBK, a rider who we know well and whose professional and personal qualities have our utmost respect. He will have Lorenzo Savadori working alongside him, a young rider who has been part of our sports project for two seasons in which he won the Superstock 1000 title first and then drew attention in WSBK with an extremely positive rookie year".
Shaun Muir - SMR General Manager
"For SMR, collaboration with Aprilia Racing for 2017 and 2018 means a real chance to fight for the win. Aprilia has a strong and victorious history in World Superbike and we are determined to continue on the same path. Having Eugene and Lorenzo on board makes this a dream team. Without a doubt, Eugene is coming back to WSBK for one reason only - to win. Lorenzo, on the other hand, is the fastest rookie and a sure protagonist. I wish to thank Milwaukee, Gulf and all of the partners who are supporting our project".
Eugene Laverty
"I'm excited to return to Superbike with Aprilia and the RSV4, a bike with which I took ten wins and second place overall in the championship. I hope to be able to pick up where I left off with those results, thanks to the support of Aprilia and a fantastic team like Shaun Muir's. Everything is in place for us to be competitive straight away".
Lorenzo Savadori
"I am very happy to continue my adventure in World Superbike with Aprilia. This is another chance to achieve great results, with one more year of experience on the RSV4 for me. In a demanding rookie season I was already able to express a good performance level, learning a lot, both about race management and working in the garage, but I do not want to stop here. We will definitely be highly motivated at the start, with an ambitious project and a great desire to do well".
Jason Chiswell - Vice President of Marketing Milwaukee Tools
"At Milwaukee Power tools our vision is always to win and that same mentality is shared with the SMR team. We see the next year with Aprilia as being an exciting and a new winning chapter in our World Superbike program”.
Frank Rutten - Vice President of Gulf Oil International
"As the world’s fastest growing oil brand we are very excited by the prospect of moving forwards with what we believe will be one of the most rapid teams in SBK next year. We have been extremely impressed by the way SMR has entered the World Superbike arena. They are one of the best organized and most professional outfits in the paddock and we have developed an excellent working relationship with both them and the team’s title sponsor, Milwaukee Tools.
We are very excited by the prospect of moving forwards with them as team sponsor and official lubricant partners”.
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FAUSTO GRESINI
“Twenty years of activity is a major milestone and we are proud of it: it means that Gresini Racing can now be considered a piece of motorcycling history. The competitions have always been part of my life: first as a mechanic, then as a rider and now as a team manager. In tackling this job I have always tried to put the determination and the passion I had when I was wearing leathers and helmet, and the results were no less exciting. It’s difficult to describe the mix of emotions that I have experienced in all these years: the joys, the wins, but also difficult moments. I would first like to thank all those who have supported us over the years and who have helped to make Gresini Racing what it is today: a much more organized structure compared to the past, racing in all the three categories of the World Championship. This is our pride and it’s the completion of a project that I really wanted. I can see the future of Gresini Racing just like that: a team involved all-round in the Grand Prix World Championship, able to offer to the young riders a path to the pinnacle of motorcycle racing. It’s an exciting challenge for me, and who knows that it can’t continue for the next twenty years!”.
1997 - A MEMORABLE DEBUT
The debut of the Gresini Racing team in the 500cc class has the flavor of motorcycling of the past: the team is set up in less than two months and in the opening GP, aboard a very private Honda NSR500 V-twin machine, Alex Barros is fighting for the top positions before being forced to slow down due to technical problems.
1997 - THE JOY OF THE FIRST PODIUM
Donington, British Grand Prix: in his eleventh Grand Prix start, Gresini Racing enters already in the Olympus of motorcycling. Alex Barros is third behind the factory Hondas of Doohan and Okada, collecting thus the first in a long series of podium finishes.
1999 - THE FIRST VICTORY WITH CAPIREX
In 1999 the team debuted in the 250cc class with a factory Honda NSR for Loris Capirossi, former teammate of Fausto Gresini when he was racing in 125cc. Capirex claims the first victory of the team in the Malaysian Grand Prix, and finished the season in third place.
2001 - KATO RECORDMAN IN 250cc
2001 is the perfect season of Daijiro Kato: riding his Honda the little Japanese star breaks all records in the 250cc class, winning 11 of the 16 Grand Prix races on the calendar, clinching Gresini Racing’s first World Title.
2002 - RIGHT AT THE TOP WITH THE NEW HONDA RC211V
Gresini Racing team is back in the premier class with rising star Kato: from the Czech Republic GP, Honda gives the new, five-cylinder four-stroke RC211V jewel to the Japanese rider and Daijiro is immediately at the top, climbing the second step of the podium.
2003 - GIBERNAU IN THE NAME OF KATO
In the opening round of the season at Suzuka, the star of Daijiro Kato turns off forever: through a great difficulty time, the team and Sete Gibernau find the strength to continue to fight, dedicating him four wins and finishing the year second in the Championship.
2004 - SETE CHALLENGES VALENTINO
Four wins, eight podium finishes and six pole positions: Gresini Racing confirms itself at the top of the MotoGP and Sete Gibernau, who stars in memorable battles with Valentino Rossi, is once again runner-up in the World Championship.
2004 - A ONE-TWO TO ENTER THE ÉLITE
Sete Gibernau first, Colin Edwards second: in the 2004 Grand Prix of Qatar, the Gresini Racing team puts their two bikes in front of everyone, thus entering the restricted élite of teams that can boast a one-two in the premier class.
2005 - ITALY WINNING WITH MARCO MELANDRI
Another dream of Fausto Gresini comes true: to bring at the top of MotoGP an Italian rider. With two wins and seven podium finishes, Marco Melandri surprises everyone closing the season as runner-up in the World Championship.
2006 - STILL THE BEST AMONG THE SATELLITE TEAMS
In 2006 come four more victories in MotoGP, three with Marco Melandri and one with Toni Elias in a spectacular Portuguese GP at Estoril, won in a sprint finish on Valentino Rossi. Fausto Gresini’s team is therefore once again the best satellite team in a category which has become increasingly competitive.
2007 - THE LAGUNA MONSTER
2007 is not an easy season, but Marco Melandri, fifth at end of the year, is still protagonist of memorable races: on the strip of asphalt that winds around the famous “Corkscrew” at Laguna Seca, the Italian takes a sensational podium despite a sore ankle after a big crash in Qualifying.
2008 - THE BEGINNING OF THE LONG PARTNERSHIP WITH SAN CARLO
San Carlo joins the team in 2008: a long partnership that will accompany the team in MotoGP for five years, until 2012. In 2009, Toni Elias and Alex De Angelis get two consecutive podiums, at Brno and Indianapolis, closing the season in seventh and eighth position in the standings, respectively.
2010 - THE SEVEN WONDERS OF ELIAS
Seven wins, four of which consecutive, give to the Gresini Racing team and Toni Elias the first World Title in Moto2, the new four-stroke intermediate class. An overwhelming supremacy for the Spanish, who is crowned champion with three races to go.
2011 - SIC, A GREAT FAIRY TALE
2011 is the season which consecrates Marco Simoncelli among the MotoGP top riders: a wonderful story started in Barcelona with a stunning pole position in Spaniards’ home race, continued with the two podium finishes at Brno and Phillip Island and unfortunately interrupted on that very sad 23 October in Sepang.
2011 - THE TRIUMPH OF PIRRO IN THE NAME OF SIMONCELLI
In the race after the terrible Malaysian GP, at Valencia, Michele Pirro gets a thrilling victory in Moto2. A very touching moment for the entire team, racing in the memory of SIC.
2012 - TRIPLE COMMITMENT
In the newly formed Moto3 category, Fausto Gresini recognizes the ideal ground for a project aimed at the promotion of young Italian talents. The commitment in the smaller displacement, which is added to those in the Moto2 and MotoGP classes, starts with a Honda entrusted to the young Niccolò Antonelli.
2012/2013/2014 - THREE GREAT SEASONS WITH BAUTISTA
In the three seasons 2012, 2013 and 2014 Alvaro Bautista is one of the undisputed protagonists of the premier class, with 28 placements in the top six in total, including three podiums. The Gresini Racing team is also racing in the CRT class, then “Open”: in 2014 rookie Scott Redding is the best among the riders aboard the Honda RCV1000R machine.
2015 - THE NEW ADVENTURE WITH APRILIA
After 18 years with Honda, the 2015 season marks the beginning of a new exciting chapter in the history of Gresini Racing: the Piaggio Group chooses the team manager by Fausto Gresini to return to MotoGP with his glorious brand Aprilia. A great reward for the work done since 1997.
2015 - GRAND SLAM
By winning the Grand Prix of San Marino and Riviera di Rimini with Enea Bastianini, Gresini Racing become the only team to have won at least one Grand Prix in all the three classes - Moto3, Moto2, MotoGP - in the new four-stroke MotoGP era. A real “grand slam” that no other team can boast.
2016 - FIVE YEARS WITH FEDERAL OIL
The intermediate class of the World Championship has always given great satisfaction to Gresini Racing, with two World Titles in 2001 and 2010. Since 2012, Gresini Racing in Moto2 stands for Federal Oil, a major Indonesian partner that in 2016 reached five years of collaboration. And it’s not over…
SPORTS RESULTS
2 World Titles
20 Seasons
43 GP Wins
136 Podiums
41 Pole Positions
547 Grand Prix Starts
6489 World Championship Points
40 Riders
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Despite threateningly dark grey skies, the weather did not interfere with the first two practice sessions at Silverstone, held on a dry track. The MotoGP riders found rather bumpy asphalt and less than optimum grip, conditions that have an impact on bike performance, especially in acceleration.
The Aprilia Racing Team Gresini riders struggled particularly in this area, both complaining of a certain difficulty exploiting the power of their RS-GP machines coming out of corners due to the lack of stability. Therefore, both Alvaro Bautista and Stefan Bradl are hard at work with their mechanics, assessing changes to the setup, both of the chassis and the electronics, that will allow them to be more incisive in practice and qualifying tomorrow.
ALVARO BAUTISTA
"Today was a difficult day. We are struggling a lot. The bike is not stable and I am unable to take advantage of the power coming out of corners. I am always too close to the limit and that keeps me from pushing. We tried to work on the power output to make it less aggressive, but that was not enough. For tomorrow we will need to make some significant changes to solve the problems".
STEFAN BRADL
"We used a few solutions that we found in the Misano tests which especially improve braking performance, but here at Silverstone acceleration and shock absorption are also important. From this point of view, there is still room for improvement, besides being ready for the different weather conditions that we could encounter. Today we were lucky not to have any rain in the two sessions, but things can change very quickly here".
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Twenty-three time TT Race winner John McGuinness, riding the Team Winfield Paton, won his first Classic TT Race in today’s Bennetts Senior Classic TT Race on the Isle of Man. The Morecambe rider, who has retired in his three previous attempts, set a new lap record of 113.342mph and race record in the process.
McGuinness and Dean Harrison, on the Black Eagle Racing MV Agusta, were separated by fractions of a second on the opening two laps before a decisive late pit strategy by Team Winfield eventually saw McGuinness take the win by twenty seconds.
Speaking from the winner’s enclosure at the end of the race, McGuinness said:
“We’ve been trying hard for the last four years which have been really frustrating but we’ve got it now. It was nip and tuck all the way with the young fella. I thought I might be able to get a lead and ease off but no chance. It’s been mega, I’ve really enjoyed it. I’ve had to really learn to ride the bike, keep the momentum. It’s like riding a 250 round here.”
The sunshine came out on the Isle of Man for the first race day for the Isle of Man Classic TT Races presented by Bennetts and conditions were reported as dry all round the course.
John McGuinness was first away at 11.30am and was first on the road to Glen Helen and on time at the first checkpoint at Glen Helen, establishing a lead of 1.5 seconds from his nearest rival Dean Harrison, who won the corresponding race in 2015 with Maria Costello tucking into third a further seven seconds behind Harrison. McGuinness’s Team Winfield team-mate Conor Cummins on the second Paton was holding fourth with Alan Oversby on the Davies Motorsport Honda fifth, fifteen seconds behind the leaders. 
At the front of the field a close battle was developing between McGuinness and Harrison with Harrison edging in front at Ballaugh, only 0.162 ahead of McGuinness with Maria Costello maintaining third place but with the gap already extended to seventeen seconds from the leading pair.
Conor Cummins was reported to have retired at Quarry Bends which saw Michael Rutter on the Ripley Land Racing Matchless moving into the top five at Ramsey where Harrison had extended his lead to 0.3 seconds while Ian Lougher, riding the late entry John Chapman Racing RC181 Honda was reported to have retired at Union Mills on his opening lap.
McGuinness set a new lap record for the class on the opening lap 112.043 (20:12.289), which he held for less than a minute with Harrison clocking 112.077 (20:11.094), giving the Bradford rider a lead of 0.366 seconds. Maria Costello held third place with her opening lap of 107.499 (21:03.530) but was already over 50 seconds behind the leading pair.
That remained the top three at the end of the second lap, but with Harrison having opened up a lead of over a second earlier in the lap, McGuinness ate into the lead and set a new lap record of 113.342mph (19:58.394) for the class.
With Harrison slowing down coming into the pits, posting a second lap of 112.830/ 20:03.826, McGuinness established a lead of five seconds at the Grandstand at the end of the second lap with Costello third with her second lap of 107.846/ 20:59.462.
Meanwhile Rutter had moved up into fourth place by Ballaugh on his second lap ahead of fifth placed Oversby. However, it was clear that Rutter had machine issues as he came in to the pits and he duly retired at the end of the second lap.
Harrison’s pit of 46.973 seconds put the Yorkshire rider almost a minute behind McGuinness at Glen Helen on the third lap. Alan Oversby, like McGuinness, elected to run straight through at the end of his second lap, and edged in front of Costello on corrected time.
McGuinness came in to the pits at the end of the third lap, with a ‘splash and dash’ stop of 40.218 seconds which meant that his lead over Harrison was down to just over twenty seconds at Ballaugh on the last lap once the pit stops had unravelled. However, the Morecambe rider maintained the gap with a last lap 108.196/ 20:55.385 to win his first Classic TT Race title by twenty-one seconds in a new race record of 111.559mph/ 1:21.10.189/ from Harrison (111.070/ 1:21.31.627).
With Oversby coming in to the pits at the end of his third lap Costello duly moved back into the final podium place, which she clinched with a final lap of 108.686, which gave her an overall race time of 106.799/ 1:24.47.253.
James Cowton, due to start 19, set off from the back of the field on the Dave Kennah Racing Norton following machine issues, made a huge effort to get to 6th place before retiring on his third lap at Signpost Corner.
Dom Herbertson finished as the leading privateer in 6th place on the Herbertson Racing Honda in a time of 104.499mph/ 1:26.39.213.
Hefyn Owen riding the Owen Racing 500 Matchless is currently the leading contender for the Peter Williams Trophy, which was created by Rob Ianucci, an enthusiast for AJS and Matchless race bikes made from a titanium conrod from the iconic ‘Wagonwheels’ machine.
The trophy is awarded to the highest placed AJS or Matchless rider in either the Junior or Senior Classic TT races. All eyes will be on Monday’s Okells Junior Classic TT Race to see if Owen’s 11th placed finish proves decisive.
There are still race day tickets available for Classic TT on Monday 29th August as well as VIP and Platinum hospitality tickets. To purchase tickes phone Duke Marketing on (00 44) 1624 640011 or visit the Duke Shop behind the Grandstand.
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The FIM Endurance World Championship draws to a close this weekend (27 August) as the final round of the 2016 season takes place in Germany – the 8 Hours of Oschersleben. It is a race close to the hearts of the Honda Endurance Racing team, and its three endurance specialists, as it was this round in 2014 where the squad scored its maiden EWC win.
With the World Championship title firmly in the team’s sights Freddy Foray, Julien Da Costa and Sébastien Gimbert are sitting seventh overall – only 17 points away from the title leaders. With 35 points available for the win, the pressure is on for the team and the Honda CBR1000RR Fireblade SP for the race win to secure the 2016 EWC title.
It’s been a mixed season for the squad with one podium secured at Portimão and two, top-20 finishes at Le Mans and Suzuka. However, the crew and riders know what it takes to win at Oschersleben, so are even more determined to prove their winning capability again at the 3.66km German circuit.
Qualifying for the 8 Hours of Oschersleben takes place on Thursday and Friday, with the race starting at 1400 (GMT +1) on Saturday 27 August.
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