Table of contents for #422 24-03 in Just Bikes

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On year on from Triumph’s factory-supported rider, Ivan Cervantes, winning the Baja Aragon off-road race in Spain, special edition versions of the Tiger 900 adventure bike celebrating that victory have been released. Available on both the Tiger 900 GT and Tiger 900 Rally, the ‘Aragon’ editions are inspired by the Tiger 900 Rally Pro that Cervantes rode to a dominant win at Baja Aragon, with unique details and additional components as standard. On the Tiger 900 Rally Aragon, the Matt Phantom Black, Matt Graphite and Crystal White paint is accented with Racing Yellow accents, ‘Triumph Tiger’ and ‘Aragon Edition’ detailing, plus a unique two-tone seat. The Tiger GT Aragon is finished in Diablo Red, Matt Phantom Black and Crystal White, with a similar two-tone seat treatment, Triumph Tiger identification and…

Barely a fortnight after he announced his decision to leave Yamaha and race for BMW in the 2024 Motul FIM Superbike World Championship, Toprak Razgatlioglu was given the YZF R1 on which he won the championship in 2021. The presentation to the 26-year-old Turk, made in front of fans at the Misano WorldSBK round, was attended by members of Razgatlioglu’s Pata Yamaha Prometeon WorldSBK Team, along with Eric de Seynes, President and CEO of Yamaha Motor Europe, who officially handed the bike over. Also in attendance was Olivier Prevost, Vice President of Yamaha Motor Europe, Alessandro Ghezzi, President and Managing Director of Yamaha Motor Research and Development Europe, Andrea Dosoli, Yamaha Motor Europe Road Racing Manager and Riccardo Tisci, Yamaha Motor Research and Development Europe Project Leader. “We returned to…

If you’re of a certain age, Evel Knievel is a name that needs no introduction. For more than a decade, Knievel was the biggest thing on two wheels, inspiring generations of young daredevils and creating a legacy that exists to this day. Some have emulated Knievel’s feats, while others have been inspired to recreate the motorcycles he rode to success – and failure – in those feats. Without Evel Knievel, there wouldn’t be the Crusty Demons, Nitro Circus or the entire freestyle motocross scene. Simple as that. Modern-day daredevils, like Robbie Maddison and Seth Enslow, all drew inspiration from Knievel - whether they admit it or not. But not everyone who was inspired by Knievel as a child grew up to imitate his feats. Some, like John Timoney, were content…

1 MERLIN EXILE D30 JACKET Merlin / Link International  merlinbikegear.com.au Combining Halley Stevensons ripstop material with D30 armour in the shoulders, elbows and back, the Merlin Exile jacket is also “green,” using 100 per cent organic cotton, along with less CO2 and water in its manufacture. With ventilated sections front and rear, as well as a Textland Humax membrane that’s waterproof and breathable, the Exile also includes a removable thermal lining. Two lower cargo pockets, a forearm pocket, tank guard for the central zipper, fold-back collar, multiple adjustment points and zipper for connecting to Merlin pants are other features. $649.95 RRP. Available in black or green, and S-4XL sizes. 2 DNA CFMOTO 450 SR AIR FILTER Kenma Australia kenma.com.au DNA’s high-flow air filter to suit the 2023 CFMoto 450 SR…

Selected models in Triumph’s roadster and adventure range will soon be available with a new look, following the announcement of a range of new colour options for 2024. These new colours will be available on the Speed Triple 1200 RS, Trident 660, Rocket 3 and Tiger Sport models. Triumph’s Modern Classic range will also get new colour schemes for 2024, but details on these will be announced separately. Starting with the Speed Triple 1200 RS, its existing colour choices of Sapphire Black and Matt Silver Ice will remain for 2024, but this year’s Matt Baja Orange will be replaced with Carnival Red. While only renderings of the new colour had been presented at time of writing, Carnival Red appears similar to the Red Hopper finish that’s available on the Speed…

Details on the 2023 Walcha Motorcycle Rally have been released, with this year’s event to be held in the NSW Northern Tablelands town on 17 and 18 November. First held in 2019, the Walcha Motorcycle Rally welcomes all riders and features the elements of a classic motorcycle rally, like camping, bike skills events, group rides, competitions and a swap meet. Extra attractions include stunt shows and special motorcycle demonstrations, woodchop demos, chainsaw racing, dog jumping and even a demolition derby. All these attractions and more are part of the 2023 programme, which kicks off with registrations and opening of the rally campgrounds at the Walcha Showgrounds from Noon on Thursday, 16 November. A BMW off-road training course will be held on the 16th, too, with live music that evening for…

In response to rider concerns over safety, the FIM have made a minor format change to the race weekend for the MotoGP class. Effective from the British Grand Prix in August, the change applies to all rounds for the remainder of the 2023 season, including the Australian GP this 20-22 October. Previously, both the ‘Practice 1’ and ‘Practice 2’ sessions on Friday counted toward qualifying, with the ten fastest times automatically gaining entry to second Qualifying (Q2) on Saturday morning. The remaining riders had to go through first Qualifying (Q1), with the fastest two from Q1 graduating to Q2. Riders had been critical of the first Friday session counting towards Q2 entry, as the ‘green’ track on the opening day would not have as much rubber down and therefore not…

Yamaha’s YZF supersport range isn’t exactly bereft of options. From the entry-level R15M, the range also includes the R3, track only R6, LAMS-compliant R7LA, full-power R7HO and the almighty R1 in both standard and more potent R1M form. However, there’s a gap between the R7 and R1 that Yamaha looks set to plug with an ‘R9’, if the recent appearance of a XSR900-based prototype is any indication. First revealed in 2016, the XSR900 showed that a retro roadster can be built off the MT-09’s proven CP3 engine and Deltabox chassis, while the Tracer 9 GT showed that a tourer can be built up from the same bones. Now, it appears that the torquey 889cc three-cylinder engine and lightweight aluminium frame will be applied to a sportsbike, too. At the Goodwood…

To mark 25 years since Yamaha introduced their iconic R1 sportsbike, Yamaha Motor Europe, through their GYTR PRO network, have created a track-only limited-edition motorcycle – the R1 GYTR PRO 25th Anniversary. The limited edition is broadly similar to the ‘GYTR VR46 Tribute’ bike equipped with GYTR PRO accessories that Valentino Rossi was presented with at EICMA in 2021, following his retirement from MotoGP. Like that one-off, this latest GYTR PRO creation was designed by engineers at Yamaha Motor Research & Development Europe (YMRE) that are responsible for the World Superbike Championship winning R1. The bike was developed alongside Yamaha’s WorldSBK and Endurance World Championship (EWC) programs, with input from WorldSBK riders Toprak Razgatlioglu and Andrea Locatelli, as well as Yamaha’s factory test rider, Niccolo Canepa. The GYTR PRO 25th…

Marc VDS Racing Team, one of the most successful squads in the Moto2 World Championship, as well as the team with whom Jack Miller recorded his first MotoGP victory, will expand into the FIM Superbike World Championship in 2024. Sam Lowes, one of the team’s two current riders in Moto2, will make the switch and ride a Ducati Panigale V4 R for the Belgian outfit’s WorldSBK debut. “I’m delighted to begin this new adventure in the World Superbike Championship,” said team owner and founder Marc van der Straten. “And it gives me even more pleasure to do it with our great rider, Sam Lowes. I’m also proud to start this new adventure with Ducati, which is undoubtedly the bike to be on in WorldSBK. “Sam Lowes [is] a great rider…

Yamaha have confirmed their MotoGP rider lineup for 2024, with Alex Rins to join 2021 World Champion Fabio Quartararo on a one-year deal. The experienced Spaniard will replace Franco Morbidelli, who departs after two and a half seasons with the factory team. Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP will be Rins’s third team in the premier class, following a six-year stint with Team Suzuki Ecstar and one year (of a two-year deal) with LCR Honda. The 27-year-old from Barcelona has been in the GP paddock since 2012, spending three years in Moto3 before stepping up to Moto2 in 2015, then MotoGP in 2017. In the premier class, Rins has achieved six race wins at time of writing, most recently at the Grand Prix of the Americas in April. While Rins is an…

As I write this review, finals campaigns for both the NRL and AFL are gearing up, which brought to mind the BMW M 1000 R. Just as the finals is a step above the regular season in terms of intensity and performance, the M 1000 R is a step above BMW’s other litre-class nakeds. It’s already a finalist in the super naked class, but can the BMW be a grand finalist, or even the premier? I always enjoy test riding new bikes, but I approached this one with a particularly big smile on my face, not only because I’d have the bike for a couple of weeks instead of the usual day or two, but also because I’d have a 2023 BMW M 1000 R - BMW’s super naked bike.…