German BMW specialist Wunderlich has cancelled its annual "Anfahrt" homecoming customer appreciation day - slated to have been held at its new corporate HQ and warehouse south of Bonn for the first time on April 25-26, on what would have been a celebration of its 35th anniversary. The company has just been awarded 'Best Brand' in Germany by Motorrad.
Leopard Racing and LeoVince have renewed their relationship for a third consecutive year. Last year saw Leopard's Lorenzo Dalla Porta win the Moto3 World Championship. This year Italian Dennis Foggia and the Spaniard Jaume Masia will be the riders who will line up in Moto3 for Leopard in 2020.
Royal Enfield is discontinuing production of the 500 cc single-cylinder engine it introduced in 2009 - reportedly due to compliance issues with India's new domestic emissions regulations. The popular 'Classic' and 'Bullet' model names that used the engine will continue, but with a new engine that is in development.
The 95th edition of the FIM International Six Days Enduro (ISDE) has been postponed. The event had been slated for Lombardy-Piedmont, Italy, from August 31 to September 5th. The event is now slated for August 30 - September 4, 2021 at the same Rivanazzano Terme venue south of Milan. The USA claimed the World Trophy, Women's World Trophy and Club division titles at the 2019 ISDE in Portimao, Portugal, and finished runner-up in the Junior World Trophy Class. The ISDE is the most prestigious off-road motorcycle event in the world. First held in Carlisle, England, in 1913, the ISDE is one of the longest-running events on the FIM calendar.
The MCIA in the UK is demanding the immediate introduction of the Euro 4 'End of Series' sales period provisions, as provided for during the January 2017 transition from Euro 3 to 4, to be introduced immediately and extended by 12 months to allow Euro 4 vehicles to be produced and registered throughout 2021 with End of Series derogations taking place in 2022.This would allow a further year to sell Euro 4 vehicles already in stock or yet to be produced. This is not a request for a delay to the Introduction of Euro 5, but simply for additional time to allow Euro 4 stocks to clear through the market. The health emergency has brought the PTW market to a near standstill, and with the traditional spring and summer demand peaks unlikely to be realised, the result will be large quantities of unsold product.
In the USA, Honda of South Carolina Mfg., Inc. (Timmonsville, SC) has suspended production at its ATV and SxS/UTV factory from March 26 through to April 10.
British crash protection specialist R&G is to sponsor the MotoAmerica race series again for 2020. Distributed in USA by Twisted Throttle, the R&G range includes tank sliders and engine case covers. Created in 2014 by three-time 500 cc World Champion, two-time AMA Superbike Champion, and AMA Hall of Famer Wayne Rainey, MotoAmerica is the North American road racing series created for the AMA Superbike Championship.
Yamaha Motor Co., Ltd. announced that nine-time World Champion Valentino Rossi will ride his last season as a Yamaha Factory Racing MotoGP Team rider in 2020. Following discussions together, Yamaha and Rossi have mutually agreed that the decision as to whether the Italian will remain an active rider in the MotoGP World Championship in 2021 will be taken mid-2020. This will be Rossi's 15th year with the Yamaha Factory Racing MotoGP Team. Should Rossi decide to continue as a MotoGP rider in 2021, Yamaha assures Rossi of the availability of a factory-spec YZR-M1 bike and full Yamaha Motor Co., Ltd. engineering support.
Sources: AMD, IDN, FT, Reuters, PSB, MPN, B&B, BDN, MCN, AP, Bloomberg, MNW. electricmotorcycles.news
