The Monster Energy Kawasaki Racing Team is to welcome ex Yamaha man Romain Febvre on a multiple year deal for the 2020 FIM MXGP MX World Championship. Next season KRT will line up two of the most successful and experienced riders in the series as the Frenchman joins Clément Desalle to compete on the KX450 Kawasaki.
As at October 2019, still a year before the event, the 2020 AMD World Championship of Custom Bike Building has received entries for 41 bikes from 32 builders representing 21 countries for the 14th 'AMD' - well ahead of this time in the cycle at any time since the event moved to Europe from Sturgis and became biennial.
The European Investment Bank (EIB) and the Piaggio Group have signed a 7-year 70 million euro finance contract to fund research and development projects included in the Piaggio Group’s investment plan, conducted at its Italian sites over the three-year period 2019-2021. The loan will also further strengthen the Group’s financial structure through the extension of its average debt life and the reduction of the average cost of debt.
Polaris CEO Scott Wine is quoted as saying that the Administration's proposed 25% tariff on imported Chinese componentry would be "downright catastrophic in terms of its impact on the company and employees," claiming that they could cost the company a third of its net income. Meanwhile, at time of press, it was still unclear whether or not the EU plan for a massive retaliatory tariff attack on U.S. made motorcycle component exports to Europe was still on the cards or not.
Harley says that it made history in May with the 5 millionth motorcycle rolling off its York, PA. assembly line. Having initially been a U.S Navy WWII ant-aircraft gun factory, Harley moved Ironhead Sportster and Shovelhead FL model production there in 1973.
Triumph's UK and Ireland Sales Manager Bruno Tagliaferri retired at the end of August after 29 years with the company and after 44 years in the motorcycle industry, including time with Honda. Tagliaferri was one of the first to join the reborn Triumph in 1990.
The 36th edition of the popular Motor Beurs, Utrecht, will take place from February 20 to 23rd, 2020. Regularly attracting over 100,000 visitors - making it the largest motorcycle show in the Netherlands.
EICMA will see a European debut for Yamaha's 2020 YZF-R1 and YZF-R1M Supersport flagship models with further advanced and enhanced track performance. Both models are powered by liquid-cooled, 4-stroke, 4-valve, in-line 4-cylinder 998 cm3 engines featuring a crossplane crankshaft. Launch of the YZF-R1 and the YZF-R1M in Japan is planned for the fall of 2020. Based on the "Full Control Evolution for the Master of the Racetrack" concept, both the YZF-R1 and the YZF-R1M were developed "with the aim of providing performance to dominate circuit racing via its high-level control of abundant surging power".
Sources: AMD, IDN, FT, Reuters, PSB, MPN, B&B, BDN, MCN, AP, Bloomberg, MNW
