After securing two wins this year, Ducati’s Jack Miller has been handed a contract renewal for 2022.
Despite a shaky start to the season, Miller secured an impressive back-to-back win at Jerez and Le Mans, making him the only Australian to do so after Casey Stoner back in 2012.
Miller now sits at fourth in the championship standings with 64 points after five rounds.
“I’m thrilled to be able to continue my adventure with the Ducati Lenovo Team for another season.
“Wearing these colours is really an honour for me, and being able to win the last two races with the Desmosedici GP was really a dream.
“This wouldn’t have been possible without the great support I’ve always received from Ducati and the entire team in recent months,” said the Australian.
Meanwhile, Ducati Corse General Manager Luigi Dall’Igna also shared his excitement.
“Miller certainly one of the riders who manage to interpret our Desmosedici GP in the best possible way.
“Our goal remains the world title, as always and we believed that with Jack and Pecco, we can continue to fight for the world championship in 2022,” he said.
KTM is expected to launch the 2021 RC390 soon with the motorcycle recently spotted testing on public roads.
However, the latest spy shot photos revealed a clearer insight into the new RC390.
The Austrian motorcycle brand opted for an all-new centrally mounted headlight replacing the aggressive twin headlight on the previous model for starters.
The 2021 RC390 also looks a lot more refined and modern, thanks to a sleeker body panel, a muscular fuel tank and a sharper front end.
KTM also ditched the underbelly exhaust for a side-mounted exhaust system.
While there are no further details, we can expect the 2021 RC390 to come equipped with a full-colour TFT dash, dual-channel ABS, traction control and adjustable suspension.
The new generation RC390 is expected to be powered by the same 373cc single-cylinder engine.
MForce Bike Holdings Sdn Bhd has updated the SM Sport 110R with new colours and graphics for 2021.
Firstly introduced in 2017, the SM Sport 110R is powered by a 110cc engine capable of producing 6.04Hp at 7,500rpm and 7.0Nm at 5,000rpm, making it ideal for daily use.
Despite the small size, it carries a 10L storage and a 4L fuel tank making it a practical motorcycle.
Priced at only RM4,018, the SM 110R also comes with LED and DRL lights and a front disc brake for better braking and tubeless tires.
You also get a USB port, making it suitable for those using their smartphone as a navigation tool while riding.
Customers will also enjoy a two-year warranty or 20,000km (whichever comes first) with every purchase of the SM Sport 110R.
Things could turn up a notch if reports of upcoming models that include a roadster and a cruiser turn out to be true.
According to the motorcycle grapevine, Royal Enfield has filed trademark application for the name “Royal Enfield Scram”, as seen in what appears to be a screenshot of the trademark filing below.
Curiously though, there has not been a single spy shot of the Chennai-based bike maker’s latest model.
But according to Rushlane, the entire inspiration for the Scrambler model stemmed from modification projects of the past such as the modifications carried out on the company’s Interceptor 650, which should give a good indication of what the Scrambler could look like.
That or the renderings (below) of what the Scrambler could look as posted on MotoSketches.
As for the powertrain, it only makes sense for Royal Enfield to use what is already in its parts bin and since the 500cc engine has been dropped from all new models, it only makes sense for Royal Enfield to turn to its 650cc engine that is already powering models like the, you guessed it, Interceptor (below, orange) and Continental (below,white).
The parallel twin engine is bolted to a tubular steel frame, and puts out 47hp of power and 52Nm of torque, mated to a 6-speed constant mesh gearbox.
Suspension duties is carried out by standard forks up front and twin shocks at the rear, while stopping power is provided by a 320mm disc up front and a 240mm disc at the rear, backed up by a dual-channel ABS system.
Royal Enfield Interceptor 650
Some time ago, Royal Enfield announced that it is going to be introducing 28 all-new or updated models up until the year 2027.
Hence the introduction of the new Royal Enfield Scrambler is almost certainly part of this multi-year model roll out.
It is then just a matter of time (two years perhaps) for the ‘Royal Enfiel Scram’ to make its way to Malaysia.
The BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team clinched the best team result so far at the opening round of the 2021 season thanks to the German marquee new weapon, the BMW M 1000 RR.
During the race in Motorland Aragon, BMW Motorrad riders Tom Sykes and Michael van der Mark finished the race in 4th and 5th, respectively.
Interestingly, they were just half a second off the podium positions.
Van der Mark even set the fastest lap of the race on the M 1000 RR, which help him to shot through from 15th on the grid to finish fifth at the end of the race.
The Dutch rider briefly took the lead on lap six before spending several laps defending second place against defending champion and Kawasaki Racing Team (KRT) rider Jonathan Rea and Alex Lowes before the two eventually passed him.
Van der Mark and Sykes swapped position later on before the two secured their best result in WSBK at 4th and 5th place.
“A bittersweet day, really. We definitely had a Superpole race to forget, which we won’t go into too much detail about. That meant that we compromised our start position in race two. For race two, I wanted to go with the slick tyre, but after this morning, we opted to play it safe on the intermediates.
“I could see what the guys in front of me were doing but obviously considering the tyres we were on, I tried a different strategy to feel where the BMW M 1000 RR was working and where we had to improve. Unfortunately, we just missed out on the podium today, but considering our results here last year it is a huge improvement,” explained Sykes after the race.
Van der Mark also shared his take on the M 1000 RR.
“This morning, we had a wet warm-up session which was my first time on the BMW M 1000 RR in the rain, and to be honest, I had such a good feeling from the first lap. The Superpole race was in mixed conditions, but I opted to go with the slick tyre and in the end was the right choice.
“Despite that, we made a good start, had some incredible battles taking the lead, but I knew I was asking too much of the tyres and in the end, some guys got past me. But we have got to be happy with the two P5 positions and most importantly the experience I’ve gained with the BMW M 1000 RR,” he said.
Last year, Young Machine claimed that Honda is planning to revive the Transalp to compete in the middleweight adventure segment against BMW F 850 GS, KTM 890 Adventure and the Yamaha Tenere 700.
Fast forward to March 2021, Honda reportedly registered the Transalp nameplate in the United States, thus confirming the rumours by the Japanese publication.
Then again, this is Young Machine, and surprisingly they rarely found themselves on the ‘wrong side of the fence.
Latest reports now suggest the Japanese manufacturer will reveal the all-new Transalp at EICMA 2021.
Considering the Transalp could be the game-changer for Honda in the middleweight adventure segment, choosing EICMA as the platform for the official unveiling is a no brainer.
Despite no further details, the Transalp will likely receive the same 750cc engine found on the NC750X.
Meanwhile, Honda has confirmed its participation at the 2021 EICMA taking place in November 2021.
