Season 2008 - 250s: Blusens ride for Laverty

Irishman Eugene Laverty will spend a second season in the 250cc world championship after agreeing to ride for the Blusens Aprilia team.

Laverty, 21, will sign for the Spanish squad just before Christmas and is looking for a big step up after a frustrating maiden season in the championship with the LCR Honda team.

"I wanted to stay, because otherwise this year's hard work would have counted for nothing," Laverty told MCN. "It will be a kitted Aprilia, which is definitely a step up from what I had this year.

"I reckon I should be getting results just out of the top ten and be consistently in the points, and hopefully challenging to be the top privateer bike. This year my bike was slow on the straights and it wouldn't go around corners. That was really frustrating."

Laverty's season with LCR - his first at world level since stepping up from British Supersports - has seen disappointment after disappointment as he has scored points in only four races - including a best of 14th at Jerez.

It seems likely that Spaniard Efren Vazquez - who rode for Blusens for the second half of this season - will be Laverty's team-mate.

KTM 2008 (KTM 1190 RC8)

KTM 1190 RC8

The 65th EICMA show in Milan keeps cranking out the surprises, with Austrian manufacturer KTM introducing its first-ever Superbike design - the 1190 RC8.
Yet the KTM RC8 debut isn't too shocking, as the "Made in Austria" Superbike has been a long time coming. First breaking cover at the 2005 shows, the then-concept machine was powered by the Super Duke 999cc Twin. Promised for eventual production, the project morphed into the 1190cc version unveiled this week at Milan.
Explaining the development of his company's first Superbike design at its Milan debut, KTM CEO Stefan Pierer said: "The RC8 is the perfect embodiment of the collective know-how and the sporting passion of our development teams. In addition, they have proven that KTM is capable of pushing through its own model strategy and in doing so, being absolutely true to our clear brand philosophy, also on the road."
Based off the LC8 Twin powering the Super Duke, the RC8 motor is punched out to, we assume, 1190cc displacement. Power claims for the new V-Twin are 155 horsepower and 88.5 lb-ft torque. If our past experience with the LC8 platform is any indication, the RC8 will benefit from a bounty of torque and magnificent mid-range - characteristics which figure to only be enhanced by the extra 190cc.
Dispensing with the raucous leftovers from the new V-Twin is an under-engine exhaust, positioning we've seen before on Erik Buell creations. The underslung design helping to keep a low center of gravity.
The chassis is made up of a tubular steel frame mated to what appears to be a standard-fare aluminum swingarm. KTM continues use of WP suspension, with a non-traditional rear linkage located at the top of the swingarm. The WP components are complimented by radial-mount Brembo brakes, both of which the Austrian firm utilizes on its other high-performance streetbikes. The total design adds up to a claimed tank-full weight of 440 lbs.
Images of the new Superbike entry indicate a stock steering damper, as well as a pivot in the subframe to adjust seat height. In this regard, the Austrians have taken an adjustability cue from their Northern Italian neighbors, Ducati, which offers seat adjustment forward and back. It is a feature which signifies the RC8's intentions to accommodate a wide array of riders on the street.
But is this orange tiger a purpose-built streetbike or full-blown racing platform?
Given KTM's history of competitive racing, it seems a safe bet that the RC8 will be contesting championships in the near future. A fact backed up at the Milan Show by the RC8 on display being in full Red Bull racing livery trim. But don't expect the new KTM to jump right into the deep World Superbike end of the racing pool right away. When we chatted with KTM reps at the Super Duke press intro last year, they hinted the RC8 would skip SBK right out of the gate and get its toes wet in some European national series first. (One possible arena where we could see the KTM here in the States is the MOTO-ST series.)
Our conversations with the orange folk also gave us an insight into KTM's styling intentions with the RC8. At the Duke intro reps showed us blacked out silhouette shots of the future RC8 next to its Japanese superbike competition. It was clear then that KTM designers wanted a machine uniquely identifiable by its profile alone and they have delivered. From its spacious undertail rear to the sharp bodywork up front, there's no mistaking this KTM for any of its literbike competitors.
Also, although no MSRP is listed in KTM PR, we were assured by our Austrian friends that they want the RC8 to be affordable for the general public. Whether Austrian notions of affordability conform to those of your regular Yankee remains to be seen.
The 1190 RC8 will be offered in KTM's trademark orange and black scheme, as well as a white and black version. According to KTM PR the new model will be available March 2008, "just in time for the start of the new motorcycle season.
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Ducati 848 (2008)

Ducati 848

Describing the new 848 as "agile and light," Ducati intends its new superbike design to "redefine the middleweight sportbike class." Much closer to the regular 1098 than its middleweight 749 predecessor, at a claimed 369 lbs the 848 is lighter than both designs - 44 lbs lighter than the 749 and 11 lbs less than the 1098. The real difference from its predecessor, however, is the 849cc Testastretta Evoluzione engine.

Utilizing the typical L-Twin Ducati configuration, the 848 arrives at its displacement via an oversquare layout of 94mm bore and 61.2mm stroke (compared to a 104mm bore and 64.7mm stroke on the 1098). Compression ratio on the 848 is 12:1. The claimed power output from the smaller-displacement Testastretta Superbike mill is a remarkable 134 horsepower at 10,000 rpm and 70.8 lb-ft torque at 8250 rpm. Those claims coming from the crank, we assume, but still significant gains over the rear-wheel 106 hp and 55 lb-ft readings sourced from the 749 we tested in our 2006 Supersport Shootout.

While utilizing the same valve angle from the 1098, the desmodromic system on the 848 uses smaller diameter valves - 39.5mm inlet and 32mm exhaust (42mm inlet, 34mm exhaust on 1098). Like its 1098 sibling, the 848 utilizes MotoGP-derived elliptical throttle bodies, although the cross-section of the bodies is smaller - 56 square mm to the 60 square mm on the 1098.

Engine weight on the 848 is kept low thanks to the same cylinder head design and magnesium covers found on the 1098. The 848 goes a step further, however, by utilizing Vacural casting of the engine crankcase. A first for the Testastretta Evoluzione lineup, Vacural is a forced vacuum die casting method.

One major difference between the 848 and its larger sibling is the use of a wet clutch. A change which figures to be more durable for street use.

Recognizable from the 1098 are the 848's dual underseat exhaust system and the single-sided swingarm. The trellis frame also appears the same, but the main section tubes have increased in diameter from 28mm to 34mm. The frame is not heavier, however, as the thickness of the tubes has been reduced from 2mm to 1.5mm. The end result is a design which Ducati claims increases rigidity by 14% and drops weight by 3.3 lbs.

The 848 chassis sources fully-adjustable Showa suspension components, with a 43mm fork up front and a single shock mating the rear frame and swingarm.

Marchesini Y-spoked wheels add to the sleek design, with Brembo Monobloc brakes completing the high-performance package. The 848's braking system is a showcase for Brembo's four-piston M4 radial-mount calipers which bite down on a pair of 320mm rotors.

A significant upgrade over the 749, Ducati claims the power-to-weight ratio of the new 848 is better than even the 999 literbike. If true, the 848 sounds like a stick of dynamite on wheels. One we can't wait to ride. The all-new model will be available in two colors, Red and Pearl White, for an MSRP of $12,995.