plus 4, Senna signs F1 deal with Campos - USA Today

Senna signs F1 deal with Campos - USA Today
Goodman Wins ATV EDT Pro Lites Title - Motorcycle USA
Yoshimura Suzuki QuadRacer R450 Review - Motorcycle USA
WSBK: Shinya Nakano Retires - Superbike Planet
Shinya Nakano Announces Retirement From Professional Racing - RoadracingWorld.com

Senna signs F1 deal with Campos - USA Today

Posted: 29 Oct 2009 02:58 PM PDT

The 26-year-old nephew of three-time world champion Ayrton Senna finalized a deal to race for the Spanish team last weekend, said the Brazilian racing official, who was involved in negotiations.

The official offered no other details and spoke on condition of anonymity as he was not authorized to discuss the move, which he said Campos planned to announce following this weekend's race in Abu Dhabi.

After hours calls to Campos' Madrid office were unanswered.

Senna said this month while attending the Brazilian Grand Prix that he was negotiating a deal with three teams, including Campos.

The deal returns the legendary Senna name to F1 for the first time in 15 years, since Ayrton Senna's death in a crash at the San Marino GP in 1994.

Before his death, Ayrton lauded his then 8-year-old nephew's driving skills, which he witnessed on the Senna family farm near Sao Paulo.

Shortly after Ayrton's death, Bruno's father was killed in a motorcycle accident -- which combined with Ayrton's death meant racing was off limits for young Bruno.

"It was kind of a taboo. I just had to respect the pain and the family, I just had to cope with it," Senna told the Associated Press last year.

Senna's mother, Viviane, refused to let auto racing enter her son's life for the decade after his father's death, even if her brother had seen promise in Bruno as he tore around the family farm.

But when his mother asked him what he wanted to do with his life -- he was 18 and working at a car dealership to stay close to wheels -- the answer was simple: He wanted to race.

In 2005 he was invited to test a Formula 3 car in Valencia, Spain, before eventually competing in the series.

Senna jumped to GP2 for 2006. Last year he finished second in driver standings in the F1 feeder series. He then left to focus on finding a seat on the F1 grid.

Earlier this year, Senna tested a Brawn GP car, but was passed over for fellow Brazilian Rubens Barrichello.

___

On the Web:

www.brunosenna.com.br

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Goodman Wins ATV EDT Pro Lites Title - Motorcycle USA

Posted: 29 Oct 2009 02:23 PM PDT

ATV racer Harold Goodman took his Honda ATV to the Extreme Dirt Track Pro Lites Championship, after winning five rounds of the six-race series on his quad fitted with Öhlins TTX shocks. And, Goodman backed up this championship by earning second place the Extreme Dirt Track Pro Championship, with three wins in that class.

Goodman said, "It's harder to tune an ATV as compared to a motorcycle. On a bike you only have 4 inches of track to worry about, but an ATV forces you to tune for 50-inches of track, and two contact patches. Öhlins USA built me a set of shocks for the dealer show, I put them on my 'bike' and won. I had never used them until I went out and won on them."

As a privateer racing against Factory teams in the ATV MX Series, Harold Goodman has been mixing it up with the top riders. Goodman took his Team Harold Goodman ATV to 11th overall in the 2009 AMA PRO ATV MX Championship, finishing the season a mere 4 points from the coveted top ten. All season long Goodman scored points in every race, with a best finish of sixth at the Muddy Creek National. Goodman was also recorded with the second-fastest time at Red Bud, Michigan, in the Sunday morning qualifying session. Goodman said, "I pulled five holeshots this year. I get out front and I try not work my way too far back."

Öhins USA congratulates Goodman on his championship season.

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Yoshimura Suzuki QuadRacer R450 Review - Motorcycle USA

Posted: 29 Oct 2009 12:14 PM PDT

You don't earn a national championship title in the most competitive ATV MX racing series on the continent without building something special. Suzuki not only built a title-worthy machine for Dustin Wimmer, but the Japanese OEM has formed a platform of racing technology over decades of development that culminated in the 2009 championship. Wimmer has been able to put his Yoshimura Suzuki QuadRacer R450 to good use and is now the two-time defending AMA ATV Pro Motocross champion.

In 1985, Suzuki shocked the powersport industry by unveiling the world's first high-performance four-wheeler. Up until that point, it was all about the three-wheelers. The Quadracer 250 helped lay the groundwork for where we're at now. It wasn't long before people were racing and dominating at the local level, as well as National and Mickey Thompson events. In 1986, Gary Denton took his first National title aboard a new high-performance quad. Fast forward to 2010 and Suzuki has virtually swept all forms of racing, so when Suzuki called us to see if we wanted to take Dustin Wimmer's championship-winning QuadRacer R450 for a spin, we literally jumped at the opportunity. Suzuki's premier sport ATV has served as an industry standard for motocross-specific equipment. The QuadRacer is bad enough in stock trim, but the chance to ride the best bike in the country for two years running wasn't something we'd ever pass up.

The MotoUSA team headed to Milestone Raceway in Riverside, CA to meet up with Yoshimura team manager Kory Ellis. Ready to go with a fresh set of plastic and new tires, we could hardly wait to put in a few motos in on the champ's bike. One of the first things we noticed was just how low to the ground the R450 was. The bike has only 9.4 inches of ground clearance stock but before even riding it, we knew that this thing would handle like it was on rails. Letting our eyes devour this exotic ride in a very unsavory way, it's apparent that the 22-year-old Wimmer needs some added components to pull off his title-winning aggression. Pro Armor provides nerf bars and the front bumper while skidplates on the front and rear frame sections are made by Quad Tech. The same goes for the nosepiece, seat foam and cover, shock cover and wiring guard – all QT products.

Crack the throttle and instantly the boost generated by the four-valve engine gives it away as a serious moto weapon. No electric start here. Yoshimura installed a kick starter to shave off seven pounds, plus the added benefit of less spinning weight on the flywheel for quicker engine response. On the first kick, the champ's bike came to life with a serious growl and we made our way to the entrance to the track. It was game on!

The acceleration of the Yoshimura-tuned 450 was, to say the least, impressive. Yosh uses its Stage 3 porting and cams. Hinson noted that it's very calm in the low rpm but was amazed with the level of tractability and pull throughout the rev range. The fuel-injected motor never stopped pulling and Wimmer uses the Yosh Peripheral Interface Module (PIM2) to ensure perfect fueling throughout the powerband. Of course, Yoshimura is known for its exhaust pipes, and the QuadRacer has the titanium RS-5 muffler with custom Ti head pipe. To handle the abuse of high-temp riding, CV4 radiator hoses are clamped on and Hinson Clutch Components are stuffed inside the right-side cover. A basket, pressure plate, inner hub and BTL slipper-clutch kit are all installed underneath the virtually indestructible clutch cover. Combine the hard-charging, smooth motor with pillow-top suspension and it's difficult to know just how fast you're going until it's time to slow down for a turn.

Squeeze the front brake lever mounted on the oversized CR-mid bend ProTaper handlebars and steel-braided Galfer lines channel fluid to Galfer pads and rotors held in stock calipers. The brakes are strong enough to do the job, but our testers were more focused on other aspects of the bike, like the suspension.

Contributing to the aggressive stance are long-travel JB Racing A-arms. The Yosh team powdercoats them black to match the color scheme, but they do much more than add good looks. Mated with Fox Racing Shocks' top-of-the-line Float X Evol suspension, the front end garnered rave reviews from our tester, Bryan Hinson. Extremely planted in the corners, the front half of the bike never gets out of sorts. The dual air chambers are masterful at handling small chop, uneven stutters and ruts. Equally as impressive are their ability to soak up jump faces and landings regardless of how hard or uneven they are. A Precision Pro model steering stabilizer helps further separate the rider from track nasties. The result is a machine that not only has the ability to go fast anywhere on the track, but makes the rider confident to attack every obstacle.

"Suspension-wise this bike is awesome," said Hinson. "It soaked up everything I made a mistake on... It made up for every inconsistent part of my riding style."

The Fox Podium X rear shock kept the center of gravity low while maintaining travel. Again, the suspender was excellent on all areas of performance. The Podium X uses dual-speed compression, a remote reservoir and a 47mm steel shock body to ensure compliance at all times. It bolts to stock linkage and a JB Racing swingarm which has the same length as stock.

As with any race bike, weight saving was an important goal for the factory Suzuki squad. All of the parts used on the Number 1 machine are as light as possible while offering the strength and durability required for the most brutal motocross conditions. Titanium wheel hubs and studs on the rear are a good example. Even with the added protection, extended A-arms, beefier tires and nerf bars, the team says Wimmer's R450 is lighter than a stocker.

The Maxxis RAZR MX tires spooned on DWT Rok-Out wheels with rear beadlocks combined with perfect dirt at the Milestone track, the QuadRacer was hooking up so hard it felt like your arms were going to come out of their sockets. Jumping was very relaxed; the center of gravity was amazing. The quad did everything we wanted it to do - flying straight and level, powering hard but not overly aggressive from corner to corner and supplementing rider skill with exceptional suspension. It's not hard to see how Wimmer has taken back-to-back championships with equipment like this at his disposal.

Yoshimura Suzuki QuadSport R450 Specs:
Quad: 2009 Suzuki QuadRacer R450
Frame: Stock with black powdercoat
Subframe: Stock
Engine: 2009 LT-R450 With Yoshimura Stage 3 porting and cams
Valves: CV4
Staring: Yoshimura kick start
Fuel delivery: Stock fuel injection with Yoshimura programmable PIM 2
Airbox: Stock modified by Yoshimura Racing
Air filter: Stock
Exhaust: Yoshimura RS-5 Titanium race team system
Clutch: Hinson - Cover, Basket, Pressure plate, Inner hub, BTL system
Transmission: Stock, Yoshimura REM treated
Chain, sprockets: ProTaper
Gearing: 13/37
Hubs: Stock front, Titanium rear with Ti studs
A-arms: JB Racing long-travel powdercoated black
Front shocks: Fox Float X Evol
Steering stem: JB Racing Titanium
Steering stabilizer: Precision, pro series
Swingarm: JB Racing, stock linkage, stock length
Rear axle/carrier: Stock lightened carrier
Rear shock: Fox Podium
Tires: Maxxis RAZR MX
Wheels: DWT ROKOUT with rear beadlocks
Brake calipers: Stock, rear is lightened
Brake pads, rotors: Galfer
Steel-braided lines: Galfer
Handlebars: ProTaper fat bars CR mid bend
Hand guards: ProTaper
Clutch lever, cables: Stock
Grips: ProTaper
Tether kill switch: Pro Armor
Nerfs: Pro Armor
Front bumper: Pro Armor
Footpegs spuds: JB Racing
Skidplates: front frame, Quad Tech; rear frame, Quad Tech
Seat: Quad Tech cover and foam
Nosepiece: Quad Tech
Rear fender extension: Quad Tech
Shock covers: Quad Tech
Wiring guard: Quad Tech

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WSBK: Shinya Nakano Retires - Superbike Planet

Posted: 29 Oct 2009 10:12 AM PDT

This just in, former 500 and MotoGP rider Shinya Nakano has decided to retire from racing:

To everyone who have supported me,

I send this news on a short notice, but I have decided to retire from racing at the end of this season.

I've concentrated on treatment after breaking my collarbone during Round 3 in Spain and straining my neck in Round 11 in Germany, but by missing a few races, I've been a burden to my team as well as to others involved. If feel that as a professional rider, it's time to stop racing if I'm not in a perfect condition to do so. I've given this a lot of thought the past few weeks, and I've come to this decision through my own will.

I would like to express my deepest gratitude to the motorcycle manufacturers who believed in my potential and offered me contracts, to the sponsors supporting the race, and to the fans that have always supported me.
Because of your support, I've been able to ride professionally for 13 years and participate in the World Championships for 11 years, and I have had many precious experiences.

From now on, if I can use such experiences to good use, I would like to keep contributing to the motorcycle world.
I am looking forward to seeing you all in racing circuits in the near future, under different circumstances from now on.

Thank you very much for your support.

Shinya Nakano
28th October 2009

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