7^th January

Liaison Sections: 594 km

Racing Stage: 315 Km

Total Distance: 909 Km

What happened Tuesday 6^th Jan:

Broadlink’s Riaan van Niekerk had a trouble free day and stayed out of trouble, finishing 20^th on the stage. Matthias Walkner set a blistering pace today to take the stage win ahead of Marc coma. Marc was able to pull back some time on Barreda and is looking forward to the Chilean stages. Barreda finished third on the stage, Toby Price was fourth.

Yesterday’s stage:

The traditional crossing of the Andes via the San Francisco pass was taxing although it wasn’t as cold as normal. Riders were overdressed as ominous weather got them packing on extra layers for the 4:30am departure from Chilecito. Temperatures over the 5000m crossing didnt go much below 8 degrees, never the less there was a chill in the air. After a 594 Km liaison section, it was straight into the 315 Km special and competitors first glimpse this year of the Atacama. Navigation would be the order of the day and Tuesdays winner Matthias Walkner soon slotted in behind Marc Coma. Toby Price was the first to get lost losing around 20 minutes early in the morning, Sam Sunderland’s bike stopped at Km 67.

Riaan van Niekerk had a trouble free day with a steady ride into 14^th place at the end of the day. The first 100 kays was absolutely flat out, Sam Sunderland crashed out early in the morning on the really slippery roads and is out. Riaan then passed David Casteu and they rode together until the refuel, when Chilean rider Gouet joined them. A short while later Helder Rodrigues and Pizzalito joined the fray and the four of them rode to the finish together. All in all it was a steady day with no real drama for Riaan and the Broadlink crew.

Joan Barreda took the stage win today gaining 2 minutes on Marc Coma. Both young guns Matthias Walkner and Toby Price made navigation errors today and paid the price.

What’s happening today:

This is one of the few special stages of the rally where all categories follow the same route. The tracks will be really fast in the early stages, allowing those that wish to overtake, the advantage to move up the overall standings. This will be at their own risk though, as competitors should be aware of the pockets of fesh- fesh where absolute self control is the only real measure of success.

6^th January

Liaison Sections: 437 km

Racing Stage: 220 Km

Total Distance: 657 Km

What happened Monday 5^th Jan:

Monday was the longest single special in the rally, proved to be a really tough day for most, with soaring temperatures of up to 42 degrees celcius. The route was challenging with lots of fesh fesh, with ruts and narrow winding tracks between the bushes, then sandy whooped out sections of around 60 Km’s in total to the finish.

It was a Honda one two with Barreda winning the stage ahead of Paulo Gonzalves. Red Bull Factory KTM riders were 3^rd, 4^th, 5^th and 6^th (Ruben Faria followed by Viladoms, Price and Walkner, Marc Comas mousse collapsed about 50 Km’s from the end of the stage and he limped home losing 12 minutes. Sam Sunderland opened the stage and got completely lost losing 2 hours and 20 in the process.

Broadlink’s Riaan van Niekerk had a steady day finishing in 12^th on the stage, putting him in 15^th overall.

Yesterday’s stage:

A long liaison of 282 Km’s led riders out of San Juan to the start of the 220Km special. It would be their first taste of high altitude peaking at 3500 metres. It was another fast stage, Broadlink’s Riaan van Niekerk had a trouble free day and stayed out of trouble, finishing 20^th on the stage. Struggling in the dust, Riaan played caution to the wind as there were some 90 degree bends and he did not need another close encounter like his day one off! He is not particularly looking forward to the Chilean stages as they are more dangerous and will be difficult to navigate.

Matthias Walkner set a blistering pace today to take the stage win ahead of Marc coma. Marc was able to pull back some time on Barreda and is looking forward to the Chilean stages and will continue to claw back time. Barreda finished third on the stage, Toby Price was fourth.

What’s happening today:

It’s into Chile we go! A very early start and a climb to 4800m will precede the border crossing on the San Francisco pass, a gradual warm up will follow on mining tracks, before riders are faced with the reality of the Atacama desert. The route becomes open and sandy, over the last 40 Km’s, the giant dunes and basins of Copiapo will have to be tackled to reach the bivouac, many will spend their night there.

5^th January

Liaison Sections: 107 km

Racing Stage: 518 Km

Total Distance: 625 Km

What happened Sunday 4th Jan:

It was a long and dusty stage, absolutely flat out! The route ran mostly between farms with long straights and sharp corners, pretty much like road racing on dirt. Red Bull KTM Factory rider Sam Sunderland took the win covering the 175Km special in a staggering 1 hour 18 minutes. Broadlink’s Riaan van Niekerk went off the road and crashed heavily. He emerged relatively unscathed, with some bruises, but got back on track to finish the day in 22^nd. Gonzalves picked up a 7 minute penalty for speeding.

Yesterday's stage

A staggering 518 Km’s, the longest single special in the rally, proved to be a really tough day for most, with soaring temperatures of up to 42 degrees celcius. The stage started out with some some twisty mountain road stages, then the route turned into more sandy, desert kind of terrain. Some wide open roads followed with lots of dust, Riaan topped his 450 KTM out at 175 Km/h, it was absolutely flat out until refuel two. From there on the route was more challenging with lots of fesh fesh, with ruts and narrow winding tracks between the bushes, then sandy whooped out sections of around 60 Km’s in total to the finish.

It was a Honda one two today with Barreda winning the stage ahead of Paulo Gonzalves. Red Bull Factory KTM riders were 3^rd, 4^th, 5^th and 6^th (Ruben Faria followed by Viladoms, Price and Walkner, Marc Comas mousse collapsed about 50 Km’s from the end of the stage and he limped home losing 12 minutes. Sam Sunderland opened the stage and got completely lost losing 2 hours and 20 in the process.

Broadlink’s Riaan van Niekerk had a steady day finishing in 12^th on the stage, putting him in 15^th overall.

What’s happening today:

A slight breather after yesterdays 518 Km racing stage, the longest of the rally. The pressure will be off for now on the road to Chilecito. The shorter and less intense stage will allow them to enjoy their spectacular surroundings. The red earth tracks, overlooking steep peaks and plunging down into canyons, will take the Dakar through some of the most beautiful regions of Argentina. The bikers especially should not be too comfortable though, as they will still face some grueling sections with thousands of stones to be avoided, it will only take one to ruin the day!

Most people are dreamers, fewer are doers and even more far apart is someone who is repeatedly successful. Erik Buell is on his fourth generation of motorcycles companies, and has left an indelible mark on the industry and the sport.

After cutting his teeth racing Ducati’s and Yamahas in the 1970’s, working as a motorcycle mechanic, getting an engineering degree at university of Pittsburgh, and getting a development job at Harley-Davidson, Erik Buell decided it was time to start his own motorcycle company.

Buell Motor Company got the ball rolling in 1982 with the legendary RW750, running a British-built Barton power plant, designed to compete in the fledging AMA Formula 1 series. Despite the cancellation of AMA F1, BMC went on to build Harley-Davidson powered racing and street motorcycles that went on sale to the public in the 1990’s.

Chapter 2 began when Harley-Davidson bought a majority interest in the re-branded Buell Motorcycle Company, turning Buell into an H-D subsidiary, which gave Buell’s innovative technologies access to a wider audience.

Among these designs were the Zero Torsional Load single front disc brake that is mounted to the rim, (rather than the hub), fuel-carrying frames, and swing arms that doubled as oil tanks, as well as the now-standard practice of placing the muffler under the motor instead of in the vicinity of the rear wheel. 

The Harley-Davidson, period Buell’s ran Sportster-based motors, and was used in models ranging from superbike, Supermoto, Streetfighter, and Adventure. At the end of the Buell H-D run, however, Buell collaborated with Rotax in Austria, designing a Rotax-built liquid-cooled, DOHC V-twin engine for two new motorcycles a superbike and a cafe? racer. 

Beta Europe announced the latest international comparisons shoot out test in a leading Austrian motor cycle magazine “Motorrad Magazin” which saw the Beta 300 RR beat its opposition in their own backyard taking the overall title in the lengthy full blown test against the KTM 300 EXC and the Gas Gas REC 300 two of its greatest rivals

“It was a clean sweep for the Beta 300 RR,” said Frank Schroeder Betamotor S.p.A. - Export Manager. “It is always a great victory to take on the leaders, we put a thorn in the heart of orange factory by winning  this 300 cc comparison test in the latest edition of the Austrian Motorrad Magazin. “In spite of the other's home ground advantage the author's final result saw us on take the number 1 place in the ranking way out in front of KTM and Gas Gas, mainly due to the best overall "package" with a special mention for new Beta engine and value for money. Our Beta product had to bring on much more to achieve this fantastic result,” said Schroeder.

“This is another huge result for the Beta Factory not long ago Beta had taken the lead in sales in the popular model capacity line up and had overtaken KTM in the European sales race, said Beta’s South Africa’s Sales Director Craig Langton. The Beta brand has been moving very quickly in the overseas markets proving it has all the credentials to take on its competitors, win races, shoot outs and continually impressing the international media.”

For more information on the new 2015 Beta’s call Cayenne World on 011 244 1900 or visit their web site www.cayenne.co.za

4^th January

Liaison Sections: 663 km

Racing Stage: 175 Km

Total Distance: 838 Km

It was an early start for the team, leaving the hotel in Buenos Aires for the 5:15am start at the Tecnopolis which is where the parc ferme was. Riders loaded the first Dakar road books and donned jackets for the first liaison section of 144 Km’s. The 175Km special started at 7:50am and it was to be Red Bull Factory KTM’s Marc Coma, that set off first. Marc won the 2014 Dakar as well as the 2014 World Rally championship, so he is definitely the man with the target on his back. KTM has 13 successive wins at the Dakar and all other manufacturers are hungry for a win.

It was a long and dusty stage, absolutely flat out! The route ran mostly between farms with long straights and sharp corners, pretty much like road racing on dirt. Red Bull KTM Factory rider Sam Sunderland took the win covering the 175Km special in a staggering 1 hour 18 minutes. Broadlink’s Riaan van Niekerk made his way on time to 12^th overall before a 90 degree bend in the road sent him through a barb wire fence and into a hole, where spectators had to pull his bike out. He emerged relatively unscathed, with some bruises, but got back on track to finish the day in 22^nd.

Times are tight up front with Gonzalves in second, Coma third, Barreda fourth and Duclos fifth. Walkner is in 8^th, Faria in 10^th, Toby Price in 11^th and viladoms in 14^th.

Aubervilliers, 22 December 2014. One of the most gruelling and challenging motorsport events in the world, the Dakar Rally is an unparalleled event for off-road drivers.  The world’s leading competitors go up against amateur competitors, for whom the race is often the culmination of their dreams and who come to take up the challenge, and in 2015 there are more than 600 entrants all bidding for glory!

The 2015 edition will run from 3-17 January across Argentina, Bolivia and Chile and will include the largest ever number of Motul-supported entries: 51 covering all four main categories – bike, quad, car and truck.  The vehicles due to take the start of the rally will go on to cover 9000 kilometres in South America, with the added trial in 2015 of marathon stages, where drivers cannot use their assistance teams. The drivers of cars and trucks, which have not taken part in a marathon stage since 2005, will have to tackle this additional difficulty and spend the night in a closed area where only help between competitors is authorised, not their mechanics.  The reliability and technical excellence of the lubricants used will be even more critical.

The Dakar is the world’s greatest rally raid adventure and there is no room for any mechanical weakness. Motul has proven technical reliability in this arena – in both the searing heat of the desert to the icy cold of the mountains – and its technical partners will be using specially adapted lubricants and coolants from its Motorsport Line (Auto) and Factory Line (Moto), particularly from the 300V range for high performance and maximum protection. The terrain, climate and endurance conditions endured by the Dakar’s competitors can be punishing, and offer the international lubricant company an excellent living laboratory for its products. 

Headlining the Motul line-up is the factory HRC Rally team which is returning to the motorcycle category of the Dakar with an exciting roster of riders. A five-time Dakar winner in the past, the Honda HRC squad will field a 5-strong international rider line up: 2013 World Cross Country Rally Champion Paulo Goncalves, Helder Rodriguez from Portugal, 13-time Women’s Trials World Champion and 10-time Women's Trials European Champion in Outdoor Motorcycle Trials, factory rider Laia Sanz, the very rapid Spaniard Joan “bang bang” Barreda, and HRC newcomer Jeremias Israel Esquerre of Chile.   

Also in the motorcycle class, and receiving support from Motul, are entries from teams representing Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Congo, Estonia, France, Netherlands, Peru, Portugal, Romania and Spain.

The largest representation of Motul-supported teams is in the Cars category and will include Motul’s newest Dakar partner, Toyota Overdrive which is an official Toyota team.  The Belgian squad is fielding new fewer than ten entries and includes in its line-up of runners and riders former event winner Giniel de Villiers of South Africa.  Another factory team is Team Land Cruiser Toyota Auto Body, a subsidiary of the Japanese automotive giant which manufactures the Land Cruiser in Japan.  Motul has been the long-time lubricant partner to Toyota Auto Body which is a multiple champion in the T2 category.   

With two machines entered in the T3 category, all eyes will be on the Xtreme Plus Polaris Factory Team which goes into the 2015 Dakar as a 2014 class champion.

Of special significance to Motul will be the 11 entries from MD Rallye Sport, a team which has had a technical partnership with the lubricant specialist for many years.  In 2015 it will be renamed "Écurie du Cœur" in recognition of its partnership with the Mécénat Chirurgie Cardiaque - the charitable cardiac surgery association - which enables children with heart malformations to undergo surgery in France when they lack the technical and financial means to be cared for in their countries of origin.

Motul’s own charitable foundation, the Fondation Motul Corazon, is a patron of the Mécénat Chirurgie Cardiaque, and the presence of Porsche factory LMP1 endurance driver and Pike’s Peak champion, Romain Dumas, will attract an enormous amount of attention for this very worthwhile cause.

The competition will undoubtedly be as intense as ever, and both men and machines will be tested to the limit.  Motul’s proven reliability and endurance will be a crucial part in these teams’ quest for success.

True to his word and backing up his comment months ago about his next EBR being the mother of all adventure motorcycles, Erik Buell has announced his new EBR 1190 AX. Adventure Sports model.

Nobody knows exactly when the EBR 1190 AX will show up, but we know it’s going to be a very interesting bike. An exclusive interview with Gary Pietruszewski, VP of global sales for EBR revealed that our guessing skills have only gotten better. After the supposition that KTM will dish out a “street-adventure” in the form of the 1050 Adventure turned out to be true, it was time to learn that the same future is envisioned for the upcoming EBR 1190 AX.

The fact that Erik Buell is “back from the dead” is well-known. After the H-D hiatus, Erik rose like a phoenix and established Erik Buell Racing (EBR), managed to get financing and even drew solid interest from the huge Indian bike manufacturer Hero MotoCorp.

Three new machines rolled out, the 1190 RS, the 1190 RX and the 1190 SX Street Fighter, all sharing the same 185 hp V-twin platform and promising to become a really hot presence in the high-performance sport bike segment. Still, it looks like EBR is more than willing to become a global player, so expanding the offer beyond fully-faired sport bikes and monstrous roadsters is the next step.

“The sport-adventure segment is becoming stronger worldwide and certainly in South Africa,” said Craig Langton co-owner and Sales Director for EBR SA and Cayenne World. “We’ve seen KTM and BMW unveiling their sport-adventure bikes at EICMA 2014 and both manufacturers admitted that this is the new fashion in the two-wheeled industry.”

More and more customers are searching for bikes with sport specs and a hefty dose of racey vibes, but they are also looking for day-long comfort inspired by the touring and full-on adventure motorcycles.

The manufacturers got the point and have tweaked their existing platforms. Smaller cast wheels replaced the wire-spoked ones of the off-road bikes, while the engines of the sport bikes have been loaded in frames with longer, more compliant suspensions. To some, this might look like lacking vision, but there is an actual demand for such machines.

“The new EBR 1190 AX is the perfect machine for people, who want to go road-touring aboard comfy and fast machines, and for whom short, easy gravel sections are more than enough, the 1190 AX fits that profile and is the ideal machine for the task.” said Craig Langton. “We cannot wait for its arrival, adventure riders who are considering a new motorcycle should add this unit to their shopping list. ’’

Still, there is a waiting period until the 1190 AX will be available,  EBR has indeed mentioned it from the early days on their new website, but it looks like that name will still remain greyed out for a while. Pietruszewski confirmed that the 1190 AX is in the company’s plans, but with no certainty as to when it will be delivered; sadly they say it’s not going to be in 2015. But one never knows wit EBR

He confirmed that the AX will be a bike built on the same platform as the other 1190’s, thinking about the upcoming bike, there is one particular thing which puts an even bigger grin on EBR fans faces, and this is the perspective of a 185 horsepower engine in a sport-adventure machine.

This is still in the supposition territory, but there is one thing which might support this. Most manufacturers who produce naked versions of their sport bikes detune the engines a bit. This did not happen at EBR. The SX has the same grit the RX is so proud of, and we might simply get to see the AX with the same engine and transmission.

Does a 185 hp sport-adventure sound like a crazy idea? It might, but again, it looks like this is the new trend in the business. Nobody at EBR said these machines would be a beginner’s motor cycle.

Now, EBR will have one more advantage until the 1190 AX rolls out that is being able to analyze what works and what doesn’t seem to work in this new class. Observing how the others’ bikes perform will give EBR extra knowledge on how to build a successful sport-adventure machine.

For more information contact Cayenne on 011 244 1900 or visit their web site www.cayenne.co.za

The German motor oil specialist LIQUI MOLY will become the official oil supplier for the Moto2 and Moto3 World Championships. All of the teams will be using the new motor oil during the preparations for the 2015 season. "This is a great distinction for us, that the racing series has selected us as their exclusive oil supplier", stated Peter Baumann, Marketing Manager at LIQUI MOLY Germany.

"I believe that the fact that we produce exclusively in Germany to maintain our uniformly high quality standard, was also a major contributing factor in this decision", continued Baumann. The company also uses the racing series as a test laboratory for its own oil development. The motor oil couldn't possibly be subjected to any more stress than there is in Moto GP’s extreme rotational speeds, extreme temperatures and huge load changes in world championship racing.

The feedback from the riders and mechanics provides valuable information on how to get even more performance out of the oil. "We work together with the teams to further improve our formulation. “Not only do the pros and teams of Moto2 and Moto3 profit from this, but rather every motorcyclist. Because, when oil proves itself on the race track, it also delivers the highest performance on the road.” said Peter Baumann, “We want to make this uncompromising performance available to every motorcyclist."

About LIQUI MOLY
LIQUI MOLY GmbH from Ulm in South Germany offers a wide range of high-quality products such as motor oils, additives, vehicle care products and service products. The range includes some 4000 items. LIQUI MOLY develops and tests their products in their own laboratories, manufactures exclusively in Germany and markets all of their products themselves. LIQUI MOLY was founded some 50 years ago and is now one of the leading companies in the industry. The products are sold in Germany and in 110 other countries.

For more information call Liqui Moly on 011 026 5515 or visit their web site www.liqui-moly.co.za 

Aubervilliers, 25 November 2014. Dorna Sports and Motul are delighted to announce that premium oil and lubricant specialist Motul will be the title sponsor for the Grand Prix of Japan and the TT Assen for the next three years. Both agreements are to run from 2015 to 2017 inclusive.

The 2014 Grand Prix of Japan was also supported by Motul and the title sponsorship of the event at the legendary Twin Ring Motegi will now continue over the next three seasons.

Meanwhile the well-known brand will also be the title sponsor of the Motul TT Assen for the coming three years, forming a link with one of the most anticipated rounds on the FIM MotoGP™ World Championship calendar.
The 2015 Motul TT Assen and Motul Grand prix of Japan will respectively be the eighth and 15th rounds of next year’s FIM MotoGP™ World Championship.

Pau Serracanta, Managing Director Commercial Area at Dorna Sports said, “We are very pleased to confirm Motul as title sponsor to the Dutch and Japanese rounds of the FIM MotoGP World Championship for 2015 to 2017. Twin Ring Motegi is a crucial home event for several of our major manufacturers and the racing at the TT Assen is always a special occasion, with a unique history and atmosphere. As Motul is a brand which prides itself on offering first class service and products to their partners and clients, the company fits perfectly into the MotoGP sponsorship arena.”

Hervé Amelot, President of Motul’s Managing Board said, “Our long association with the MotoGP championship and its competitors reflects our strong and continuous commitment to the sport and its fans. Our title sponsorship of the 2014 Motul Grand Prix of Japan is yet another testimony of our keen support of motorcycling – both the sport and beyond. We are therefore delighted to renew our partnership for the on-going future. “The addition of the TT Assen round, for which we become title sponsor, is the fruit of Motul’s legitimacy with such legendary events. Run for the first time way back in 1925, the TT Assen is the perfect venue for us to underline our standing as motorcycling’s European leader in our field of lubricant sales and technology.”

The 2015 Motul TT Assen takes place from 25-27 June next year, with the 2015 Motul Grand Prix of Japan to be held from 9-11 October.

ABOUT MOTUL

Motul is a world-class French company specialised in the formulation, production and distribution of high-tech engine lubricants (two-wheelers, cars and other vehicles) as well as lubricants for industry via its MotulTech activity.
Motul is also recognised as the specialist in synthetic lubricants. As early as 1971, Motul was the first lubricant manufacturer to pioneer the formulation of a 100% synthetic lubricant for automotive engines, the 300V lubricant, making use of Esters technology and issued from the aeronautical industry.

Throughout the years, Motul has gained experience as an official supplier to many racing teams and manufacturers and contributes with them to further technological development in motorsports.

Motul is supporting those teams in international competitions such as: 24 Hours of Le Mans (cars and motorcycles), FIA World Endurance Championship, Super GT, Drift, Pikes Peak, Japanese championship Super Formula, Blancpain Endurance Series, MotoGP, World Superbike, World MX, FIM Endurance World Championship, Dakar, IOM TT, Motul FIM Ice Speedway Gladiators World Championship and score of others.