December

Year: 2001

Month: December

World’s biggest GP round to become finale

16 December 2001

THE biggest GP of the year will now act as the final round of next year’s world championship. Valencia, which attracted over 200,000 fans over three days this year, will now be held on November 3...

Haslam tries factory R7 but signs to return to GP 250s

16 December 2001

Leon Haslam has tested the factory Virgin Yamaha R7 British superbike but he is still going to sign his world 250 championship contract. Haslam will link up with fellow British rider Jason Vincent in...

GPs tune into pit-to-lid radio

16 December 2001

Formula One-style helmet radios could be seen in GPs for the 2003 season. The radios will allow riders to communicate with their team while out on the track. They are under development by American...

Rossi goes even quicker in final day of test

16 December 2001

Valentino Rossi signed off an unbelievable 2001 by going even faster on the final day of Honda’s four-stroke test at Phillip Island today. The Nastro Azzurro rider got his time down to 1.32.00 which...

Rossi beats lap-record pace in first Aussie session

16 December 2001

Reigning world champion Valentino Rossi might not be 100 per cent happy with Honda’s new four-stroke GP bike but he was still well under lap record pace on the first day of testing at Phillip Island...

Elias admits he has to be fitter to move up to 250s

16 December 2001

Teenager Toni Elias says he needs to toughen up to cope with the extra power and weight of the 250 he’ll ride in 2002, compared to the 125 he came close to taking the title on in 2001. Elias, who...

Ukawa proves costly… as Rossi goes faster still

16 December 2001

Tohru Ukawa is already proving to be an expensive acquisition to Honda’s new four-stroke camp. He crashed on Thursday at the second day of HRC’s test at the Phillip Island circuit in Australia, hot on...

McWilliams signs to ride Roberts’ KR3

16 December 2001

Jeremy McWilliams signed his contract with Kenny Roberts on Monday to ride a Proton KR3 in next year’s world GP championship. ” I am really happy to have a rider like Jeremy on board, ” said...

Roberts to run two-stroke in 2002, four-stroke in 2003

09 December 2001

Kenny Roberts plans to launch a four-stroke GP bike for the 2003 season. The three-times world 500 champion, who runs the Proton team from Banbury in Oxfordshire, said he will continue running his...

Harada secures 500 ride

09 December 2001

Tetsuya Harada has finally secured his deal to ride a 500 in the 2002 world championship. The 31-year-old former world 250 champion will be run by Shell Advance team boss Jeff Hardwick but not under...

Laconi lands Aprilia GP four-stroke ride

09 December 2001

Regis Laconi will ride the gorgeous Aprilia four-stroke GP bike in next season’s world championship. It seems his one-off victory in last year’s final WSB round did him a truck load of favours. He may...

Capirossi’s first test scheduled

09 December 2001

Loris Capirossi’s works Honda 500 team have confirmed five pre-season tests for the Italian despite rumours that he is poised to make a surprise switch to Aprilia’s four-stroke effort. Capirossi, who...

Four Brits secure 2002 GP rides

02 December 2001

JUST when it was looking like there might be no British riders in GP racing next season, FOUR riders from the UK have secured rides – all within a few days each other. Jeremy McWilliams will ride for...

Aprilia’s stunning GP four-stroke triple goes public

02 December 2001

PICK your jaws off the floor – Aprilia’s gorgeous new four-stroke GP bike uses a British-developed 990cc, 220bhp inline triple with pneumatic valves. And something not too dissimilar could be in YOUR...

Exclusive: First pictures of Katoh on the NSR500

02 December 2001

New world 250 champion Daijiro Katoh hasn’t had much time to dwell on his record-breaking 2001 season as he was back on track testing a works Honda NSR500 for the first time today. Katoh, who beat Mike Hailwood’s long-standing 250 record with 11 wins last season, got his pre-season campaign underway with the first of a two-day shakedown test at the Twin Ring Motegi circuit in Japan. The Telefonica...

Full transcript of webchat with Suzuki GP boss

02 December 2001

Suzuki GP boss Garry Taylor took the time to join us for a live webchat on Thursday November 29. In it, he revealed that he only applied for the job thinking it was a Formula One team, that he thinks...