But Honda reacted immediately and introduced tweaks to the bike's electronics which eventually gave Marquez his confidence back.
Wary that Assen would be a tougher challenge for both Marquez and Honda than the Sachsenring where the six-time world champion won, Puig is confident his rider could have fought for the podium again without his FP2 crash.
"Yes, Sachsenring is a track which is very suitable for the Honda and also for Marc Marquez," Puig said after the Assen race.
"Marc had the chance there and he grabbed it with both hands. In the past Assen has never been an easy track like this, and it has been much tougher for all the Honda HRC riders.
"We clearly understood it wouldn't be easy before we arrived.
"On Friday, Marc's crash made the weekend even more complicated.
"Without that crash, I think he would have been fighting for the podium as he wouldn't have lost the confidence he did."
Marc Marquez, Repsol Honda Team, Alberto Puig, Repsol Honda Team Team Principal race
"We saw a great recovery from Marc at the beginning of the race," Puig added.
"He started in 20th and he recovered almost ten positions in just a single lap, this was the Marc that we know.
"It shows his effort and the potential that he has, we are really looking forward to seeing him again in Austria after the break when he has recovered even further."
“I heard three bangs in succession, ‘bang bang bang,’” said a nearby hair salon employee who was working when the collision occurred. When she stepped outside, “the BMW was in the crosswalk and the white (Honda) was in the middle of the street,” she said.
Off Road Xtreme recently reported on several off-road industry associated trail conservation programs highlightingBFGoodrich’s Outstanding Trails Program,Score $250 For Your Off-Road Trails, andOLAF Desert Cleanup. We are always on the lookout for more opportunities to promote and facilitate good land stewardship. Here we are again presenting Yamaha’s Outdoor Access Initiative and their effort to fund grant recipients that steward and conserve public land access.
For more than a decade,Yamaha Motor Corp., USAhas supported nearly 400 projects across the nation with over $4.5 million in grant contributions. Recipients are typically non-profit organizations supporting the needs of riding groups, outdoor enthusiasts, land stewardship organizations, and land managers who are actively working to improve access to public land for outdoor recreation.
The Outdoor Access Initiative is open to all applicants who believe they have a worthy cause associated with the mission. Yamaha invites submissions atYamahaOAI.comwhere users may review guidelines and applications are available. They also invite you to connect with @YamahaOutdoors via their social media or search any of the following hashtags on all platforms: #Yamaha #YamahaOAI #REALizeYourAdventure #ProvenOffRoad #AssembledInUSA
OAIA First Quarter Recipients
2021 first quarter Yamaha OAI grants total more than $225,000 and were awarded to the following organizations:
All Kids Bike / Strider Education Foundation
Central Mountain ATV Association, Pennsylvania
Darnell Hills – BLM Open OHV Area, Wyoming
Day Mountain Road Association, Maine
Interior Alaska Trails and Parks Foundation
Lakes Region ATV Club, Maine
Northwest Motorcycle Association, Washington
Osseo Area Dusty Riders, Wisconsin
Sault Ste. Marie Snowmobile Association, Michigan
Southwest Wildlife Foundation, Arizona
The Nature Conservancy, Tennessee Chapter
The first quarter applicant pool represented a wide-ranging selection of OHV enthusiasts with projects working to supply ATV, Side-by-Side (SxS), motorcycle, and snowmobile riders with safe and sustainable trails and riding areas for responsible recreation. Yamaha touts their OAIA as the powersports industry’s leading land access program, and remains an essential resource to grassroots efforts initiated by riding clubs, land stewardship organizations, and public land managers across the country.
“Happily, we are seeing an increase in grant applications for the Yamaha Outdoor Access Initiative as the public strengthens its interest in outdoor and motorized recreation,” said Steve Nessl, Yamaha’s Motorsports marketing manager. “With the growing amount of people visiting state and national parks and forests, the work needed to maintain these public spaces for everyone’s benefit and enjoyment is also rising, and Yamaha remains dedicated to supporting those who want to make a difference in protecting and creating access to these lands.”
Updated guidelines, application form, information and news about the Outdoor Access Initiative are available atYamahaOAI.com. For specific questions about the Yamaha Outdoor Access Initiative, call the dedicated hotline at 1-877-OHV-TRAIL (877-648-8724), email[email protected], or write to:
Yamaha Outdoor Access Initiative Yamaha Motor Corp., USA 3065 Chastain Meadows Parkway, Bldg. 100 Marietta, GA 30066
About the Yamaha Outdoor Access Initiative
For more than a decade, the Yamaha Outdoor Access Initiative has led the Powersports industry in guaranteeing responsible access to our nation’s land for outdoor enthusiasts. Through this program, Yamaha has directly and indirectly supported thousands of miles of motorized recreation trails, maintained and rehabilitated riding and hunting areas, improved staging areas, supplied agricultural organizations with essential OHV safety education, built bridges over fish-bearing streams and partnered with local outdoor enthusiast communities across the country to improve access to public lands. Each quarter, Yamaha accepts applications from nonprofit or tax-exempt organizations including OHV riding clubs and associations, national, state and local public land use agencies, outdoor enthusiast associations and land conservation groups with an interest in protecting, improving, expanding and/or maintaining access for safe, responsible and sustainable public use. A committee then reviews each application and awards grants to deserving projects. Examples of appropriate projects for grants include, but are not limited to:
Trail development, restoration, and maintenance
Trail signage and map production
Staging area construction, renovation, and maintenance
YAMAHA has today announced that it has signed a deal withShinMaywa Industries, a Japanese conglomerate looking to develop the next generation of lightweight aircraft.
‘And what does this have to do with bikes?’ I hear you cry. Well, aside from one of the planets biggest motorcycle manufacturers moving into a new sector, we are also more than a little bit excited about what this could mean for Yamaha’s motorcycle engines further down the line.
For starters, aero engines have to be lightweight. The same can be said for motorcycles but in aircraft, it can be the difference between flying and crashing. The heavier an engine, the more fuel it needs to fly a set distance. The more fuel it needs, the heavier the aircraft gets. While we aren’t suggesting Yamaha will begin bolting carbon copies of its aircraft engines into motorcycles, there is sure to be a trickle-down of technology crossing over from one side to the other.
New Yamaha MT-09 SP Review 2021
Another bonus of the endeavour could come from the way aero engines are used. For the most part, they run on a relatively stable throttle and to be able to accurately calculate the distance you can travel you need to know how much fuel you will use. This could help Yamaha’s motorcycle engines become more fuel-efficient, maybe not at the top or bottom rev range, but in the middle – motorway cruising for instance.
Deal will see batteries used in models such as Insight hybrid recycled and material recovered
Battery Resourcers, a lithium-ion battery recycling and manufacturing company, announced an agreement with American Honda Motor to recycle Honda & Acura electric vehicle (EV) batteries.
Millions of EVs are expected to reach US roads in coming years and new regulations mandate recycling of spent batteries and the use of recycled metals in new batteries.
The two companies will work together to improve recyclability and to reintegrate recycled material back into the automaker’s material supply chain.
Battery Resourcers CEO Mike O’Kronley said in a statement: “Our innovative, closed-loop recycling process addresses environmental and regulatory issues while unlocking the hidden value in spent lithium-ion batteries. As a result, we can provide safe, convenient and environmentally responsible recycling solutions at an affordable cost.”
Founded in 2015 as a spinout from the lab of Yan Wang at Worcester Polytechnic Institute, Battery Resourcers recently completed a US$20m Series B equity round with financing led by Orbia Ventures, the venture capital arm of the multinational Orbia, and other investors including At One Ventures, TDK Ventures, TRUMPF Venture, Doral Energy-Tech Ventures and Jaguar Land Rover’s In-Motion Ventures.
It claims to offer a “fundamentally new” approach to lithium-ion battery manufacturing, starting with a mixed stream of used lithium-ion batteries and ending with the production of finished, battery-ready cathode active materials. With 97% metal recovery, it currently produces nickel manganese cobalt (NMC) based cathode active materials.
Honda’s batteries will initially be processed by the company’s recently expanded site in Worcester, Massachusetts and, later, at a new commercial scale plant that will be operational in spring 2022. The new site will be capable of processing 20m pounds of batteries.
The company is also engineering a novel process for graphite recovery and purification, which will enable it to return both the cathode and anode active materials back to manufacturers of new batteries.
The 2022 Honda Civic continues to set the bar for compact sedans. Extremely well-rounded and just plain easy to like, the Civic offers a whole lot of car for not a lot of money. And in the case of this Civic Sport, I'm talking less than $25,000.
Like
Handsomely styled inside and out
Competent on-road manners
Plenty of standard driver-assistance tech
Priced under $25,000
Don't Like
2.0-liter engine is sluggish.
Least-efficient Civic in the lineup
Rudimentary infotainment tech
Slotting just above the base Civic LX, the Sport starts at $24,095 including $995 for destination. This specific test car has a few exterior accessories from the Honda Performance Development catalog, including some underbody trim, a decklid spoiler and black badges, all of which add $1,562 to the Civic's bottom line. Me? I'd leave 'em on the table -- especially that huge, tacky HPD badge to the right of the license plate.
Even without the HPD add-ons, the Civic Sport is an attractive little four-door. While base Civics get 16-inch wheels and the midrange EX has 17s, the Sport has gloss black 18-inch alloys with 235/40-series all-season tires. LED headlights and taillights are standard, and the Sport has gloss-black mirror caps and a chrome exhaust tip, making it look pretty upscale, despite being the second-cheapest trim in the Civic range. I know a lot of people call the new Civic's design boring, but I think it'll age really well.
Inside, the Sport is super handsome; I love the new Civic's minimalist approach to interior design. The vent controls have nice weight to their action and click into a central position (great for my OCD), and the mesh insert that runs the length of the dash neatly hides the air vents. The steering wheel controls are easy to operate while driving and the buttons on the center console are neatly and logically arranged. This isn't an interior that'll wow you with snazzy touches, but it's clearly designed to be durable over the long haul, putting a greater emphasis on comfort and convenience than outright glitz and glamour.
Head- and legroom are ample for front-seat passengers, and the Civic's low beltline, long windshield and thin pillars (a welcome trait from older Hondas) lend to excellent outward visibility. There's plenty of space for folks in the rear, with large enough door openings to make getting in and out curbside a cinch, and everyone's luggage will fit just fine in the 14.8-cubic-foot trunk, though if you're concerned about cargo space, maybe the new Civic Hatchback is more your jam.
The Sport's cloth seats are super comfy and the rest of the interior is top-notch.
Steven Ewing/Roadshow
The one downside to the Civic Sport is that you can't get all of the Touring's best tech. Like the base LX and midrange EX, the Civic Sport has a 7-inch color touchscreen multimedia system, with a rudimentary infotainment package that's... well, it's fine. Wired connections for Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are standard, thankfully, even if it looks decidedly dinky on that 7-inch display. The Civic Touring's larger 9-inch screen isn't available, nor is its wireless smartphone pairing. You can't get Honda's cool new 10.2-inch digital gauge cluster, either, though LX, Sport and EX trims do have a 7-inch, left-side screen in the instrument panel, which defaults to a tachometer but can show all sorts of pertinent info instead.
The good news is that the Sport doesn't skimp on driver-assistance technologies, with lane-keeping assist, full-speed adaptive cruise control and Honda's Traffic Jam Assist that combines the aforementioned functions fitted to every Civic as standard. Automatic high-beams, a rear seat reminder and traffic sign recognition are also included, though weirdly, blind-spot monitoring doesn't become available until you step up to the Civic EX, and the Touring adds cross-traffic monitoring to that functionality, as well.
The base 2.0-liter engine is a little dull, but it'll be fine for most drivers.
Steven Ewing/Roadshow
Arguably the biggest difference between the Civic Sport and other models is what's under the hood. Like the base LX, the Sport uses Honda's naturally aspirated 2.0-liter I4, with 158 horsepower and 138 pound-feet of torque. This engine is kind of pokey, though the continuously variable transmission is refined and well behaved, fading into the background most of the time.
Really, the only thing sporty about this Civic is its name. The Sport is mechanically identical to other Civic models, so don't get your hopes up if you're looking for a sharp-driving sedan. That's not to say the Civic Sport is in any way unpleasant, however -- it has nicely weighted and responsive steering, a composed chassis and confident braking. It won't out-handle a Mazda3, but the Civic is more entertaining than a Nissan Sentra or Subaru Impreza and more comfortable and solid-feeling than a Hyundai Elantra or Toyota Corolla.
Interestingly, the Sport is the least-efficient Civic sedan, estimated to return 30 mpg city, 37 mpg highway and 33 mpg combined. In mixed use during a week of driving in Los Angeles, I saw 32 mpg. That's not horrible, but it also isn't great when you consider the Civic's optional turbocharged engine -- available in the EX and Touring sedans -- is not only more powerful, but more efficient, too. The Civic EX ups those EPA ratings to 33 mpg city, 42 mpg highway and 36 mpg combined.
Sport or not, the Civic is a great car.
Steven Ewing/Roadshow
The real sporty Civic is the upcoming Sport Touring hatchback, which not only has the 1.5-liter turbo engine, but can be had with a six-speed manual transmission for maximum on-road fun. Of course, Honda's also working on proper Si and Type R variants of the 11th-generation Civic, so stay tuned.
As for the 2022 Civic Sport, it earns high marks for its competent on-road manners, spacious and nicely appointed interior, high level of standard tech and handsome style -- all for under $25,000. Not many other new cars offer that kind of value, making the new Civic nicely poised to hold onto its benchmark crown for years to come.
NORMAN –Anastasia Webb capped her incredible career at the University of Oklahoma on Monday night as she was named a Top Three Finalist for the Honda Cup by the Collegiate Women's Sports Awards.
Webb was joined in the top three by winner Rachel Garcia (UCLA, softball) and Madison Lilley (Kentucky, volleyball).
The senior from Morton Grove, Ill., became the first gymnast in program history to be named a Top Three Finalist. These three finalists for the program's top honor exemplify the very best attributes of all Honda Sports Award winners, including excellence and leadership in their sport, as well as outstanding academic achievement and community involvement. The Top Three Award began in 2009-10.
Since the introduction of the Top Three Award, only one other gymnast has been honored as a finalist (Kim Jacob, Alabama, 2014). Webb becomes just the second Sooner to be a top three finalist, joining softball's Keilani Ricketts who was a finalist in 2012 and the Honda Cup Winner in 2013.
Webb was just the ninth gymnast in NCAA history to earn three national titles in one season. Her three individual crowns ranks third all-time in OU history. The Morton Grove, Ill., native claimed the all-around, vault and floor national championships with one of her best performances of the season.
The 2021 Big 12 Gymnast of the Year, Region 4 Gymnast of the Year and an AAI Finalist, Webb helped lead Oklahoma to an NCAA Runner-Up finish in her senior season. Along the way, she picked up All-America honors and was the only gymnast in the nation to earn first-team accolades on all four events and in the all-around. Webb now has 20 career All-America honors to her name to rank second all-time in OU history.
In 2021, Webb earned four perfect 10s with two on vault and one each on bars and beam. She earned a career high of 39.850 in the all-around as she racked up 33 career event titles. Webb now ranks second all-time in OU history with 67 event wins.
Webb competed in every single meet of her OU career, picking up nine All-Big 12 team accolades, three individual Big 12 crowns and two major Big 12 awards. The No. 1 ranked gymnast in the nation on vault, Webb also excelled in the classroom as a three-time Academic All-Big 12 First Team selection.
On the same day that Honda announced its all-electric Prologue crossover for 2024, someone forwarded this to us: Three people welded a bicycle-built-for-two into the engine bay of a 1989 Civic Hatchback and pedaled off to McDonalds. At 2 mph.
This was published on YouTube under the name, “Life OD.” And it wasn’t their first “engine” swap. They’ve also set up four turbos on a Yamaha FZ-09 stacked up on a stick like an exhaust; converted a ‘98 Forester into the World’s Cheapest Snowplow; and made tires out of duct tape, zip ties, rubber bands, and shopping cart wheels. This very same Civic has previously been converted to ride on ultra-dinky 4x100 wheels from Harbor Freight Tools, set up like a bro-dozer, added what looks like the same four turbos as the FZ-09, added dually rear wheels so they could use it to tow a 13,000-pound trailer, and removed the engine entirely and powered the car with an 18-volt handheld drill.
So, after all that, it seems only natural that they would weld the bicycle-built-for-two onto the front, install a pulley drive from the bike to the axle, and head out for milkshakes at McDonalds.
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As entertaining as the engineering itself is the dialog:
“Dude that’s mint!”
“I got some faith in this, dude!”
“Dude THAT IS MINT!”
“Alright boys, we’re gonna take the bike to McDonald’s. We got it all welded up, we got the back pulley on, tensioner’s good, pulley on the tranny’s good, we’re clearly out here going to McDonald’s.”
And off they rode, two up front pedaling, one in the driver’s seat shifting and steering.
“Watch yer head! Watch yer head, dude!”
“Awright here we go boys.”
“It’s going swimmingly.”
“Fifth! Fifth!”
“Everybody in town loves this.”
“It’s definitely a crime.”
“Go, go, go, it’s green!”
Did they make it? You’ll have to watch to see. Can’t wait to see what they’re going to do next.
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Maverick Vinales will depart from the Monster Energy Yamaha team at the close of the 2021 MotoGP season after both parties reached a mutual agreement, it has been confirmed.
The Catalan’s contract with the Iwata factory ran up to the end of 2022, but rising tensions inside the box, as well as a belief from the rider’s end that the current malaise that has gripped him this year would not change unless a dramatic course of action was taken.
An official statement from Yamaha read, “Following Maverick Vinales‘ request, Yamaha have agreed to put an early end to their current two-year contract. Currently in their fifth season together, they mutually decided to go their separate ways after this year.
“Both parties are committed to putting in their maximum effort for the remainder of the 2021 MotoGP season and ending the relationship on a high note.”
Maverick Vinales, here seen in parc ferme after the Dutch TT in which he finished second, has decided to split from Yamaha at the end of the year.
It is believed the two parties came to this agreement on Friday evening at the Dutch TT, five days on from Vinales’ disastrous outing in Germany, where he started the race from 21st and finished 17th and at the back of the field.
On Thursday he was still deeply troubled by the ordeal and told journalists he had “never been so angry in my life” at how the weekend had gone. The fact his teammate Fabio Quartararo, new to the team for 2021, has won four races, leads the MotoGP championship by 34 points and has been the season’s standout rider to date has only exacerbated matters.
Not even a second place finish in Sunday’s Dutch TT could mend the fractious relationship. If anything, it confirmed the ill-feeling from the rider’s end. His words and body language on the podium and parc fermé hinted at irreparable differences. Asked if it was possible to show his full potential in his current team, he said, “No, it’s not possible. We have many issues that will stay with me.”
Yamaha team boss Massimo Meregalli explained the frustration from Yamaha’s side. “To finish last for sure is not his position. Wednesday when we started preparing this GP we checked some data. We also saw that during the race he was the fastest Yamaha in terms of fastest lap. The bike wasn’t as bad as he pointed out. Here we said he would start leading FP1 and basically he did. It’s frustrating also for us to understand this kind of behavior. From the Sachsenring to here the bike was changed a bit but not enough for this.”
It’s believed Aprilia will be Vinales’ future destination. Pressed on this matter on Sunday, Aprilia Racing CEO Massimo Rivola said, “We need to know if the rider is on the market. If he is on the market, if he is available then we will try our best to convince him.”
Eight race wins to date with Yamaha were not enough to convince Vinales to stay.
This season Vinales has hired a new personal manager, Giovanni Balestra, while his father Angel, who was not part of his inner circle in recent times, was present in his garage over the weekend at Assen.
Of the split, Yamaha’s Managing Director Lin Jarvis said, “It is with sadness that we will say farewell to Maverick at the end of the year. We are in the middle of our fifth season together and over the years we have achieved many highs but also had to manage many lows.
“After the German GP, which was the most difficult weekend of our partnership, we had important discussions in Assen and came to the conclusion that it would be in the interest of both parties to go our separate ways in the future. Yamaha will put in their maximum effort – as we always have done – to give full support to Maverick and finish this season in the very best way possible.”
In his time at Yamaha, Vinales has won eight times and claimed 16 further podium finishes. But across those four and a half seasons, he has worked with three different crew chiefs as he searched for the magic formula to help him rediscover the form that saw him win three of his first five races for the factory. Not once has he sustained a championship challenge. Neil Morrison
Rain showers this morning with numerous thunderstorms developing during the afternoon hours. Storms may contain strong gusty winds. High 76F. Winds SW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 70%..
Tonight
Overcast with a slight chance of showers and thunderstorms, mainly this evening. Low 61F. Winds WSW at 10 to 15 mph. Chance of rain 30%.
New 2022 Honda Civic hatchback will include hybrid powertrain options
American Honda Motor has named its first battery electric vehicle (BEV) which will be sold in the US from 2024.
In a lengthy blog post, EVP Dave Gardner said: “We will be introducing a new series of BEVs coming in this decade. This will include both SUVs for both the Honda and Acura brands and we will share more about the Acura BEV in the future.
“Our first volume Honda BEV will be introduced in 2024, signaling the start of our transition to this technology and the name of this first model will signal its role: the Prologue.
“While I won’t provide a specific sales target for you, I will tell you that we are targeting annual volume roughly between our Passport and Pilot SUVs [US reports put this between 40,000 and 150,000 units]. And the Honda Prologue coming in 2024 is just the start.
“We have some sense of the unique purchase behaviors of consumers who will be buying their first BEV in 2024, and we have started preparing on the business side in North America for selling full EVs. Our dealers will be an integral part of the process, so we’ll be spending a lot of time with them to clarify roles and responsibilities, all aimed at providing the best experience possible for our customers.
“With the Prologue, our goal is to provide a highly competitive product with the functionality to meet the diverse needs of our customers and Honda’s role in co-development will ensure this class-leading experience.
“We’re taking what we believe is a smart approach to the start of volume EV sales, leveraging strategic partners to achieve scale and mitigate initial investment requirements. Here iN North America, General Motors is one of our strategic partners. Our relationship with GM includes: battery co-development, vehicle co-development, and a joint venture focused on the development and production of fuel cell technology for vehicles and other applications.”
Gardner noted Honda has a long history with electrified vehicles, from the EV Plus 25 years ago to America’s first hybrid and the industry’s first fuel cell vehicle in the hands of individual customers and, more recently, the Honda Clarity series.
“In the near term, our strategy is focused on introducing a higher percentage of hybrids in our core models. We’re making a committed effort to achieve higher volume, by making the hybrid variant the best grade of each model to give it stronger appeal.
“We know people who have a good experience with a hybrid are likely to buy a battery-electric vehicle (BEV). We have grown our sales of electrified vehicles in each of the past three years, with CR-V Hybrid leading the way to our best-ever HEV sales in each of the past three months.
“Why invest in hybrid vehicles? We believe it is the best pathway to a zero-emission future. We have vast experience and expertise in hybrid vehicle technology, which is something not every automaker can claim. In the near term, this will play a critical role in our continuing efforts to reduce CO2 emissions from our product performance.
“Hybrid production in the U.S. also enables us to get our production network ready, including familiarization with EV components, including the battery unit and EV system utilised in three hybrid models we build in the US, (Accord, Insight and CR-V )..
“In the second half of this decade, our transition to electrification will continue with a series of EVs based on what we call our e:Architecture, with development being led by Honda.
“Moreover, to secure the high competitiveness of our EVs of the future, Honda is conducting independent research on solid-state batteries as the next generation batteries for EVs that will realise high capacity and low cost.
“As part of our ongoing effort in this area, we will undertake the verification of production technology using a demonstration line, starting this fiscal year. We will begin accelerating this research with an aim to make solid-state batteries available by the end of the decade.
“Together, these development efforts will take us toward Honda’s vision for carbon neutrality by 2050, with a plan to increase our sales of battery-electric and fuel cell electric vehicles to 40% of our volume by 2030, 80% by 2035, and to 100% of our vehicle sales by 2040.”
VEGAS (June 28, 2021) - The National Hockey League announced today information for the 2022 Honda NHL All-Star Weekend in Las Vegas. The festivities will take place at T-Mobile Arena and will be scheduled during its traditional midway point of the NHL regular season.
"It's very exciting to have the opportunity to host the 2022 NHL All-Star Weekend at T-Mobile Arena," said Vegas Golden Knights President & COO Kerry Bubolz. "This is one of the league's premier events of the year and we are thrilled to bring fans from around the world to Las Vegas to celebrate hockey. This event will also help continue our growth of the game in Nevada and our surrounding areas."
The 2022 Honda NHL® All-Star Weekend will include the 2022 NHL All-Star Skills™ and the 2022 Honda NHL All-Star Game, and will feature various hockey-themed events, entertainment and activities. Confirmed dates and additional information regarding the 2022 Honda NHL® All-Star Weekend will be announced when available.
ABOUT THE VEGAS GOLDEN KNIGHTS
The Vegas Golden Knights are a National Hockey League franchise owned and operated by Black Knight Sports and Entertainment LLC. The Vegas Golden Knights were established by founding partners William Foley and his family and the Maloof family. For the latest news and information on the Golden Knights visit vegasgoldenknights.com. Fans can follow the team on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Snapchat.
The 99th Pikes Peak International Hill Climb has ended, and full results are here.
The annual Colorado hill-climb event featured 52 drivers and crew members in six classes, or divisions, including a Porsche Cayman GT4 Clubsport–only class, the traditionalist open-wheel class, and Exhibition, won this year by Randy Pobst in a Tesla Model S Plaid.
Overall winner was Robin Shute in a purpose-built car in the Unlimited division, with a 5:55.246 lap time.
The 99th running of the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb (PPIHC) was crazy, exhausting, dangerous, and one of the greatest motorsports event you can see. Fifty-two drivers and their crew had spent close to a month preparing for the annual time-attack hill climb near Colorado Springs. We arrived for the fun part: the last four days of practice and qualifying, leading into teams' final attempts on race day on Sunday, June 27. Snow and ice at the top of the mountain cut three miles from this year's climb, putting even more pressure on drivers to do more with less. The runoff area along this private road's most dangerous sections is measured vertically. And so are the mistakes.
PPIHC is best described as an event as dangerous as any World Rally Championship stage, but stitched together with the spirit of a 24-hour endurance race. No part of Pikes Peak mountain harbors fools or pretenders. The only people on the mountain on race day were race drivers, race cars, race teams, race fans, and three bears who would have identified as at least one of those. Everyone here is only here because they want to be—especially the bears.
Austin IrwinCar and Driver
Marc UrbanoCar and Driver
This place is wild, giving just a glimpse of what motorsports used to be: feral and exciting. There's no mandatory anything here. The only stoppage in play is to tow mangled pieces of bodywork and tire off the asphalt so the remaining drivers can climb beyond the failures of others and into the clouds. Spectators roam past fences for a better view, and even the blades of the low-flying camera helicopter mostly drowned out the siren required for electric vehicles competing here. Most people woke up yesterday to watch today's race, except for the people camped along the 12.3-mile race course, who are legendary in their own right.
Practice days are arguably better for spectators than race day. Drivers do several passes on one of three sections of the mountain. From the cliffs, we'd watch cars come up one at a time. As quickly as the thunder from local pastor Layne Schranz's Chevrolet SS stock car passed, a tornado of rpm would scream from the bottom of the mountain from the next car. Point is, on race day you get to see each car once. During practice you can watch a few cars all morning.
Marc UrbanoCar and Driver
The true king of Pikes Peak Mountain was back this year: Romain Dumas, the crazy Frenchman who set an unbeaten record of seven minutes, 57 seconds in Volkswagen's all-electric ID. R Pikes Peak racer in 2018. For 2021, Dumas had the second-fastest lap in his Porsche 911 GT2 RS Clubsport. His closest competitor, Rhys Millen driving a Bentley Continental GT3, was more than 12 seconds ahead of Dumas after the second sector, but his Bentley developed a boost leak later in the run. The power loss dropped the New Zealander nearly five seconds behind Dumas by the end of the event, but he still managed to finish fourth overall.
The overall winner was Robin Shute. This was his second win at Pikes Peak, and a big one at 36 seconds ahead of second place. His car is a turbocharged Honda-powered homemade Unlimited category car. The Unlimited division is a longtime favorite of this event. Its requirements in the PPIHC rulebook have fewer words than the first paragraph of this story. If you can afford to build it crazy enough, and can procure someone just slightly crazier and brave enough to test it along a cliff, it's allowed. Which sounds simple but is also just such an insane concept in 2021. Apply this open-ended guide to any other sport, and maybe we'd see cybernetic LeBron James shooting threes from the parking lot with a basketball rocket launcher.
Austin IrwinCar and Driver
Marc UrbanoCar and Driver
Randy Pobst was back too. After sending a Tesla Model 3 flying into a wall at Bottomless Pit, he came back for more. This time winning the Exhibition division with his new Model S Plaid from Unplugged Performance, but still finishing 10 seconds behind a 1996 BMW M3 from the Pikes Peak Open division.
Isn’t that the point of motorsports? To experience something greater than just people driving. To see groups of humans push the boundaries of both physical possibility and moral responsibility. Sorry, maybe that's the altitude talking. Like a father we overheard at 14,115 feet at the summit explaining to his son what Pikes Peak was: "It's like walking through smoke, but instead it's clouds." Whoa, man. Are you like, one of those professional thinkers?
Next year is shaping up to be even crazier for the 100th anniversary of PPHIC. There's a rumor of legendary cars from Pikes Peak's past making a return to the mountain. We’re totally going, but until then, we’ve got a lot of sleep to catch up on.
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MotoGP - TT Assen - TT Circuit Assen, Assen, Netherlands - June 26, 2021 Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP's Maverick Vinales during qualifying REUTERS/Yves Herman
June 28 (Reuters) - Nine-time MotoGP race winner Maverick Vinales will leave Yamaha at the end of the 2021-22 season after terminating his contract one year early, the team announced on Monday.
Vinales was signed by Yamaha in 2017 as a replacement for Jorge Lorenzo and won three of his first five races.
But the 26-year-old, who had a contract until 2022, was linked with a move to Aprilia after his relationship with Yamaha soured this season.
"Yamaha and Maverick Vinales have mutually decided to terminate their current 2021-2022 agreement at the close of this season," Yamaha said in a statement.
"Following Maverick Vinales' request, Yamaha have agreed to put an early end to their current two-year contract."
After winning the season-opening Qatar Grand Prix in March, Vinales failed to secure a podium finish until last weekend's Dutch GP, while his team mate and championship leader Fabio Quartararo won four times.
Vinales also suffered his worst MotoGP weekend in Germany this month where the Spaniard qualified 21st and finished last, while Quartararo came third.
The former Moto3 world champion said it was a difficult decision to part ways with Yahama.
"In these seasons together, we experienced both great achievements and tough times," said Vinales, who won a total of eight races with Yamaha.
"However, the underlying feeling is of mutual respect and appreciation. I am fully committed and will strive to achieve the best results for the rest of the season."
Vinales is sixth in the riders championship on 95 points, 61 points behind leader Quartararo.
Reporting by Manasi Pathak in Bengaluru, Editing by William Maclean
As motorcycle fans, many of us always want something more, and/or something different than what’s currently being offered to us by manufacturers. Take the latest Ducati Monster redesign (no, really, please, you can have it), which is a perfect illustration of how divisive change can be. Half of us want new, fantastic, different designs, while the other half likes what we like, and doesn’t embrace change easily.
That’s where designer Kar Lee, the artist behind Kardesign Koncepts, comes in. Digital tinkerers like him come in and address the things we wish existed, but unfortunately don’t. At least, they don’t yet. That Ducati Monster redesign? Lee waved his magic wand to show us what it might look like in an alternate universe. In February, 2021, Lee took us on the visual journey of how a Triumph Daytona 1200 might look. It’s fun to imagine the possibilities, isn’t it?
In June, 2021, we’re living in a post-Yamaha YZF-R7-reveal world. While rumors had been flowing for some time, the reality of it—as all realities do—pleased some riders, and irritated others. One thing that Lee supposes a lot of middleweight sportbike fans can agree on is that there’s every reason for Yamaha to consider making an MT-09-derived R9 next.
After all, Lee’s original suggestion of an MT-09-based R9 design first started making the Internet rounds back in 2017, which is forever ago in bike years. Since then, both the MT-09 and Lee’s ensuing updated designs have shifted into the design you now see before you. Lee’s new design incorporates the updated CP2 engine and componentry found on the 2021 MT-09, as well as some of the styling cues that make it fit right in stylistically with the rest of the current Yamaha family.
Racier ergonomics, and a thoroughly modern take on R-family fairings that bear a distinct family resemblance to what Yamaha’s already producing seem like an extremely logical conclusion. Would you be into an R9 if Yamaha decided to produce one, and would you want it to look like this if it did? Why or why not?
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