Motourage

Ulsterman Alastair Seeley will spearhead Suzuki’s official effort in the 2011 British Supersport Championship on the all-new GSX-R600.

Seeley will also have a full stable of Relentless by TAS Racing Suzuki GSX-R machinery for the International North West 200; currently the only road race in which he participates during the season. Seeley was the first Irishman in 13 years to win the NW200 Superbike race earlier this year, also taking the opening Supersport race victory.

Team manager Philip Neill is delighted to be back in the British Supersport Championship – a series where the Moneymore-based team first cut its teeth in British racing – and he’s confident Seeley is the right man for the job.

Philip Neill – Team Manager:
“I’m delighted that Alastair is with us for what is effectively his third year, as we have already formed a formidable partnership. He has been a British Champion in Relentless Suzuki colors, won a British Superbike race as a rookie and lifted the prestigious NW200 Superbike title. We will be looking for bigger and better things with Alastair next season, both in the British Supersport series and at the North West 200.

“It’s an important year for Suzuki reentering British Supersport with a new bike and I know Alastair feels it’s a huge honor to have been asked to represent them. He had a terrific rookie season in BSB in 2010 and he will get various opportunities to ride the Superbike next season, but in the short-term his focus will be on challenging for the Supersport title on the all-new GSX-R600. As previous winners we will not be taking the class lightly, as we know it houses some top riders, but we are confident Alastair can be hugely successful.”

Alastair Seeley:
“I’m very happy to be sorted and back racing with Relentless Suzuki next season and my aim is to try and win the Supersport Championship and put the new GSX-R600 firmly in the limelight. When the team competed in the series back in 2007 with Michael and Ian, the bikes were the best out there and I fully expect the new bike to be the same. It’s an honor to represent the official GSX-R600 effort in the series, and my aim will be to try and hit the ground running, just like I did in ’09 in the Superstock class. With two races per weekend, the Supersport class will be right up there with the Superbikes in 2011 and with an opportunity to ride both the Superbike and Superstock bikes before the North West 200; I couldn’t be in a stronger position.”

The Suzuki Endurance Racing Team will start tomorrow’s final round of the 2010 World Endurance Championship, the 8 hours of Doha in Qatar, from second place on the grid.

Sylvain Guintoli will pilot a Ducati in World Superbikes next year, but is shining onboard a Suzuki in Qatar

World Superbike contender Sylvain Guintoli, who is guesting alongside SERT regulars Vincent Philippe and Freddy Foray, put in a time of 2’00.862 minutes on the French team’s GSX-R1000 – just a fraction behind pole setters, BMW-mounted BMP Elf 99 Racing Team (2’00.343).

Third place – more than two seconds adrift of the leaders – was Yamaha Austria Racing Team (2’02.398) ahead of Honda RMT 21 and Yamaha X-One.

The top Superstock team is the Suzuki GSX-R1000 piloted by Team Motors Events in sixth place.

With temperatures forecast in the mid-80′s, tomorrow’s eight-hour race gets underway at 1pm local time.

Qualifying results: 1 BMP Elf 99 Racing Team – 2’00.343, 2 SERT (Suzuki GSX-R1000) – 2’00.862, 3 YART 2’02.398, 4 RMT 21 Racing Team – 2’03.467, 5 Team X-One – 2’03.930, 6 Team Motors Events (Suzuki GSX-R1000) – 2’05.203.

The Ace Cafe in London, England will welcome two Worx Suzuki British Superbike riders on August 22, as GSX-R Day takes place as part of the motorcycle model’s 25th anniversary celebrations.

With support from Suzuki Great Britain, GSX-R Day is a not-to-be-missed event for any fan, with a host of attractions including Tommy Hill and Yukio Kagayama in attendance to meet fans and sign autographs.

With test rides on the latest GSX-R models, prizes and a £5.00 breakfast voucher for the first 100 people to register at the Suzuki exhibition unit, the Ace Cafe’s usual electric atmosphere is set for a real boost on GSX-R Day.

For more information on the Ace Cafe visit ace-cafe-london.com and for more information on GSX-R 25th anniversary celebrations log on to imgsx-r.com.

Suzuki Australian Superbike Champion Josh Waters, multiple Suzuki Australian Superbike Champion Shawn Giles, multiple Suzuki New Zealand Superbike Champion Robbie Budgen and Suzuki Supersport Rider Troy Herfoss will be available at Springwood Suzuki to meet and sign autographs for fans.

Meet Robbie Budgen and other Suzuki champions at Springwood Suzuki in Underwood, Queensland on June 3

Venue: Springwood Suzuki

Address: 112 Kingston Road, Underwood QLD

Date: Thursday 3 June 2010

Time: 7:00pm to 8:00pm

You can also register to win a Suzuki Superbike two-up Ride with Shawn Giles on Saturday 5 June and general admission passes for Australian Superbike Championship Round 3, taking place in Queensland Raceway for the same weekend.

2010 is shaping up to be an exciting year for the Steeves Motorsports team. New for the 2010 season is the team’s switch to Suzuki GSX-R equipment. For 2010 rider Terry Steeves will be campaigning a Suzuki GSX-R 1000 superbike in Atlantic Roadracing League Atlantic Championship events and select Parts Canada Superbike Championship rounds. The team is very excited for this new challenge and is looking forward to the coming season.

New sponsors for 2010 include Suzuki and Pro Cycle. Suzuki has a rich and storied history of success in motorcycle racing, as does Pro Cycle. Both have long been supporters of racing in Atlantic Canada and we are very pleased to be working with them in 2010.

For 2010 Suomy has renewed their support of the team. Terry’s excellent Suomy suit and Helmet worked perfectly during his unfortunate accident last July and saved him from what could have been far worse injury. We couldn’t be more pleased to have Suomy back on board.

We would also like to welcome back Importations Thibault and Vicious Cycle who have renewed their support for 2010. Both are big players in our team and we are very happy to have them back on for this year. Also returning for 2010 are Atlantic Roadracing League, Accelerated Technologies, Slim Gyms, Pirelli Tires, Parts Canada Superbike Championship, Dionne Signs, Repsol lubricants, AFAM, D.I.D Racing Chains, and Brad Boutilier Photo & Press.

Rider Terry Steeves has completely recovered from his injuries sustained last July and has been training very hard during the off season. Terry is in the best shape of his life, in large part thanks to sponsors Slim-Gyms Fitness for Men. They have been coaching him through his injury and pushing him to build up his endurance and fitness. Terry is very much looking forward to the season.

As always we would like to thank all our sponsors, fans, and supporters. Without them none of this would be possible and we are very thankful for your support. Terry would also like to thank his fiancée Nicole for her support, understanding, and encouragement.

You can follow Steeves Motorsports on Twitter at twitter.com/StMotorsports.

Suzuki Canada has agreed to a reduced role in the 2010 Parts Canada Superbike Championship that will see its motorcycles remain eligible for the national road racing series. This will be the 30th year of national Superbike racing in Canada and the 10th season of Parts Canada’s title sponsorship of the series.

Under the terms of the new deal, Suzuki Canada will pay a small homologation fee to allow its GSX-R1000 and GSX-R600 equipment to run in the feature Parts Canada Superbike and Yoshimura Pro SportBike divisions in 2010.

The arrangement precludes the manufacturer from providing direct support for ‘A’ teams in either class, however it leaves the door open for privateers and dealer supported competitors to ride Suzukis in the national series. Suzuki’s GSX-R1000 is particularly popular among smaller racing teams.

“Everyone understands the current financial challenges in the motorcycle industry, and it was important to provide some flexibility to Suzuki Canada so that it could continue to play a role in the Parts Canada Superbike Championship,” said Colin Fraser of Professional Motorsports Productions, which administers the series.

“Our four partner manufacturers agreed that keeping the GSX-R out of the series would have a detrimental effect on the national championship, and we think we have found a good compromise that can work for all parties. We appreciate Suzuki’s willingness to find a way to make this happen.”

The move is also based on Suzuki Canada making an early commitment to the 2011 Parts Canada Superbike Championship. The company will continue to pay contingency to riders on board its motorcycles.

“This is going to be a challenging summer and we’ve had to make concessions in a number of areas,” Fraser added. “But we are confident that by taking these steps for 2010 we can ensure a strong and prosperous national championship for the 2011 season and beyond.”

Yamaha Motor Canada will not officially participate in the 2010 Parts Canada Superbike Championship. The company made its decision to withdraw last November. As a result, the YZF-R1 Superbike has been excluded from the national series, along with any 2010 Yamaha models. Yamaha YZF-R6 motorcycles from the 2009 model year and earlier are still permitted in the Sport Bike class.

“We all hope, however, that Yamaha will return to the Parts Canada Superbike Championship in the near future,” Fraser added.

The Parts Canada Superbike Championship is overseen by Professional Motorsports Productions along with partner manufacturers Canadian Kawasaki Motors, Honda Canada, BMW Motorrad Canada and Deeley Racing.

The 2010 season opens May 28-30 at Circuit ICAR in Mirabel, Que.

National Guard Jordan Motorsports' Jake Zemke leads the field at Daytona

Suzuki continued its tradition of owning the racetrack at the opening round of AMA American Superbike series in Daytona Beach, Florida this weekend – the GSX-R1000 taking seven of the top-10 spots overall after two days of racing.

National Guard Jordan Suzuki team rider Jake Zemke took first place in both 44-mile, 15-lap races and Tommy Hayden steered his Rockstar Makita Suzuki GSX-R1000 to second place in both races. On Friday, he and Zemke were only .009 seconds separated as they crossed the finish line.

Jordan Suzuki’s Aaron Yates took pole position after setting the quickest qualifying lap in the day leading up to the double header; ending up fourth overall at the end of the event, while Blake Young, in his second year with the Rockstar Makita team, took fifth overall after grabbing the holeshot in Thursday’s race and leading for a few laps.

The RoadRacingWorld.com Suzuki, with Chris Ulrich aboard, took sixth overall. Taylor Knapp and his RidersDiscount.com Suzuki took seventh, and Shane Narbonne finished ninth on his DASPerformance.com GSX-R1000.

In the 69th running of the legendary Daytona 200, Geico Powersports RMR Suzuki’s Danny Eslick raced his GSX-R600 to the pole position and won the Rolex award for fastest qualifier. Eslick battled through the cold and challenging 200-mile race and took fourth, as Vesrah Suzuki’s Cory West took sixth overall. 

Daytona Superbike Race 1:
1. Jake Zemke (Suzuki)
2. Tommy Hayden (Suzuki) +0.238
3. Larry Pegram (Ducati) +0.259
4. Aaron Yates (Suzuki) +0.291
5. Blake Young (Suzuki) +0.307
6. Chris Ulrich (Suzuki) +27.398
7. Taylor Knapp (Suzuki) +27.43
8. Shawn Higbee (Ducati) +1 lap
9. Shane Narbonne (Suzuki) +9.078
10. Barrett Long (Ducati) +16.377

Daytona Superbike Race 2:
1. Jake Zemke (Suzuki)
2. Tommy Hayden (Suzuki) +0.009
3. Ben Bostrom (Yamaha) +0.081
4. Aaron Yates (Suzuki) +0.212
5. Larry Pegram (Ducati) +0.858
6. Josh Hayes (Yamaha) +1.838
7. Blake Young (Suzuki) +22.383
8. Brett McCormick (Suzuki) +29.235
9. David Anthony (Suzuki) +34.124
10. Taylor Knapp (Suzuki) +34.404 

Top 10 Points Standings:
1. Jake Zemke 62
2. Tommy Hayden 50
3. Larry Pegram 37
4. Aaron Yates 37
5. Blake Young 30
6. Taylor Knapp 25
7. Ben Bostrom 24
8. Chris Ulrich 24
9. Josh Hayes 23
10. Shane Narbonne 20

Team Suzuki rider Troy Herfoss kicked off his 2010 season with the overall win in the opening round of the Australian Supersport Championship, run in conjunction with the Superbike World Championship first round at Victoria’s Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit at the weekend.

Christian Casella, Troy Herfoss and Brodie Waters were the top three in the Supersport class at Phillip Island

In only his second full season of Supersport racing, Herfoss had a near-perfect start to his title assault with a close third in the opening race, backed up with a dominant win in race two. The 23-year-old missed victory in race one by just 0.059sec after a race-long battle with eventual winner Christian Casella and fellow Suzuki GSX-R600 rider Brodie Waters; the trio flashing across the finish line with less than 600ths-of-a-second covering all three bikes. After some minor suspension adjustments between the two 12-lap races, Herfoss powered to a 5.410sec victory in race two over experienced international competitor Kevin Curtain, with Waters third.  Herfoss’s 43-point tally across the two races gives the 2008 US Supermoto Champion a narrow one-point lead over Casella in the six-round series, with Waters third (38pts) and Suzuki GSX-R600 rider Chas Hern fourth (30pts).

In the opening round of the Australian Superbike Championship reigning champion Josh Waters had a mixed commencement to the defense of his title. The 23-year-old Team Suzuki rider, who won the 2009 title in his rookie Superbike year, missed pole position by just 0.001sec to fastest-qualifier Wayne Maxwell. Third in the opening 12-lap race, just 1.293sec behind race-winner Maxwell, and only 0.123sec behind second-placed Bryan Staring, was followed by disappointment in race two when a gear lever malfunction on lap four left Waters’ GSX-R1000 stuck in third gear. He completed the 10-lap journey in third gear to secure 9pts, his tally of 27pts across the two races leaving the defending champion 24pts off the series lead.

Shawn Giles finished sixth overall on 29pts after recording sixth and seventh placings; the three-time Australian Superbike champion admitting that his tactics to combat Phillip Island’s tire-punishing high speeds did not work in his favor.
“I didn’t encounter those sort of grip problems when we tested here earlier in the year, but Phillip Island is one of the world’s most-punishing tracks on tires. The track temperature on Friday was up to 54 degrees, and the conditions were affecting the world teams as well. It was a matter of balancing fast lap times with tire conservation, and setting the bike up to cope,” added Giles.

The Phillip Island Superbike World Championship race meeting also marked the one-year anniversary of Team Suzuki’s custom-built New Breed Mack Trident transporter, the impressive rig drawing plenty of admirers from the visiting international Superbike teams.
Read more…

Team Suzuki Alstare rider Leon Haslam didn’t chase lap times in today’s first qualifying session for the World Superbike Championship at Phillip Island in Australia, but took the third fastest lap of the day.

The young Briton worked all day trying to find a good race set-up and did not even use any soft tires during the timed session this afternoon, when his best lap was set on race rubber.

His team mate Sylvain Guintoli continued to improve his understanding of his GSX-R1000 Suzuki and finished qualifying with the eighth quickest time.

Spaniard Carlos Checa (Ducati) posted the fastest time in qualifying, with Michel Fabrizio (Ducati) second.

Leon Haslam – 3rd, 1:32.373:
“I am really happy with today because we are well on the way to finding a good set-up for the race on Sunday. We tried all three different tires and now we have good ideas about which one we will use depending on the conditions. I didn’t even use a soft tire this afternoon and my fastest lap was done on ordinary race rubber.

“The differing temperatures have given us different challenges, but I’m pretty confident about the bike’s set-up, unless of course it rains and then we’ll all be in trouble. The track felt a bit slippery and greasy today, because of the hotter temperatures, and the wind was a bit of a problem in turns 1 and 2 and sector 4, but it was the same for everybody and we just had to cope with it. No problems really today, except that I heard from home this morning that my 19-year-old dog had died. He’s had a good, long life, but he will be missed.”

Sylvain Guintoli – 8th, 1:32.902:
“We’ve made a good step forward today – maybe part of it was down to me using my right hand better – and I am really loving riding the bike. We tried many different settings and also did a lot of work on trying to improve the tire life and, like Leon, I did my best lap on normal race rubber.

“At the moment, I am struggling a bit finding problems with the bike and everything is going very well. That’s also down to the hard work put in by the whole team and we are feeling good about our prospects on Sunday. First aim tomorrow morning is getting into Superpole. After that, we’ll see what happens.”

Friday WSB qualifying: 1 Checa (ESP-Ducati) 1:32.155, 2 Fabrizio (ITA-Ducati) 1:32.162, 3 Leon Haslam (GBR-Suzuki Alstare) 1:32.373, 4 Byrne (GBR-Ducati) 1:32.635, 5 Haga (JPN-Ducati) 1:32.703, 6 Biaggi (ITA-Aprilia) 1:32.850. 8 Sylvain Guintoli (FRA-Suzuki Alstare) 1:32.902.

Treasure Racing attended Winton Motor Raceway in Northern Victoria recently to continue its bike testing to increase its knowledge of the new LCR Chassis adjustments in preparation for the 2010 FIM World Championship. The main purpose of the day was to focus on suspension.

The Treasure Racing LCR Suzuki of Adam Treasure and Darren Dewhurst

The Winton racetrack has become quite a bit bumpier in the years since Adam or Darren last rode at the track in 2006. The bumpy track created an environment to test the suspension adjustments allowing Adam to focus on obtaining the perfect balance between low impact ripples while still maintaining composure over the harder hitting bumps for the LCR.

Pilot Adam Treasure and passenger Darren Dewhurst at Winton

The day started out slow with each test session becoming quicker as adjustments were made. The Sidecar lap record at this track was set by Stacey Sellar at 1:30.088 in 2006, Adam and Darren managed to go out in their last session and lap consistently in the mid to low 1:30’s until the final lap when the boys posted a new un-official lap record of 1:29.63.

Thanks must go to Mick DeWith and Justin Sheppard for their help throughout the day. We would like to take this opportunity to announce that Treasure Racing now has it’s own official Website. We can be found at  www.treasureracing.com Thanks to our Website designer and Host Bradley Brown for all of his help and input.

Feel free to drop into our website and sign on to the forum and comments page to keep up to date with our achievements throughout 2010.

Adam & Darren

Treasure Racing

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