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<strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong><br />

<strong>Motorsport</strong><br />

<strong>Superbike</strong><br />

<strong>World</strong> <strong>Championship</strong><br />

The Ultimate<br />

Riding Machine<br />

<strong>FIM</strong> <strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>World</strong> <strong>Championship</strong>.<br />

<strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> <strong>Motorsport</strong> Media Guide.


Dear members of the media and motorcycling friends,<br />

We head into our third season in the <strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>World</strong> <strong>Championship</strong> brimming with anticipation<br />

and excitement. The progress of Team <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> <strong>Motorsport</strong> went as<br />

planned during the past two seasons. After our debut year, the team was able to take<br />

the next step in 2010. Our ambitious target was to score a first podium. In the event we<br />

managed two in addition to celebrating our first pole position. Now the entire team is<br />

aiming for podiums and victories. That’s what racing is all about.<br />

With our <strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>World</strong> <strong>Championship</strong> campaign we intend to demonstrate the full<br />

potential of the <strong>BMW</strong> S 1000 RR on the race tracks of the world and to live up to the top<br />

performance of the production bike. Our aim is to ensure the racing bike emulates the<br />

production version by being absolutely top in its class. On its debut <strong>BMW</strong>’s new supersports<br />

bike immediately took its place among the best in the superbike category. <strong>BMW</strong><br />

<strong>Motorrad</strong>’s customers appreciate that the bike is designed for racing, yet offers all<br />

modern comforts and safety features combined with an excellent price:performance ratio.<br />

During the past winter we have further honed the performance of the racing version of<br />

the <strong>BMW</strong> S 1000 RR. In addition, we have restructured the team as we prepare for the<br />

future, convincing me that Team <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> <strong>Motorsport</strong> will continue to make significant<br />

progress.<br />

I trust our Media Guide will greatly assist you in your trackside duties, and wish you a<br />

thrilling 2011 season with <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> <strong>Motorsport</strong>.<br />

Sincerely<br />

Hendrik von Kuenheim<br />

General Director <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong><br />

FOREWORD BY<br />

HENDRIK VON KUENHEIM,<br />

GENERAL DIRECTOR<br />

<strong>BMW</strong> MOTORRAD.<br />

3


1. Targeting maiden victory. 6<br />

2. An ambitious team. 12<br />

3. Joining forces for success. 16<br />

4. Young blood for 2011. 30<br />

5. The <strong>BMW</strong> S 1000 RR. The innovative supersports bike. 42<br />

6. Production-based bikes deliver thrilling racing. 54<br />

7. Challenges around the globe. 60<br />

8. The <strong>BMW</strong> S 1000 RR as guarantee for success. 88<br />

9. <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> <strong>Motorsport</strong>: the success story. 98<br />

10. Strong partners. 110<br />

11. Service. 116<br />

Editorial deadline: 20 th January 2011<br />

CONTENTS.<br />

5


<strong>FIM</strong> SUPERBIKE WORLD<br />

CHAMPIONSHIP 2011.<br />

TARGETING MAIDEN VICTORY.<br />

A young team has matured: In 2011<br />

Team <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> <strong>Motorsport</strong> starts<br />

its third season in the <strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>World</strong><br />

<strong>Championship</strong>. Its 2009 debut year saw<br />

17 top ten finishes; 2010 brought with it<br />

a maiden pole position and the first<br />

podium finish. Therefore the goal for<br />

2011 is clear: The team led by <strong>BMW</strong><br />

Motor rad <strong>Motorsport</strong> Director Bernhard<br />

Gobmeier aims to celebrate its first<br />

victory.<br />

“Our project has outgrown its infancy and<br />

continuously improved over the past two<br />

years,” says Hendrik von Kuenheim,<br />

General Director <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong>. “Where<br />

the first season was clearly a learning year<br />

during which we achieved decent results,<br />

2010 enabled us to surpass even our<br />

stated aims. We intended closing the gap<br />

to the front and celebrating our first<br />

podium, so scoring two podiums and a<br />

pole position made us even happier.”<br />

During the past two years the <strong>BMW</strong> S<br />

1000 RR has caused a furore on the racetracks.<br />

“And not only in the <strong>Superbike</strong><br />

<strong>World</strong> <strong>Championship</strong>, but also in many<br />

international and national series,” stresses<br />

von Kuenheim. “During the past season<br />

our customer teams celebrated 13 titles<br />

and well over 100 victories. These successes<br />

provide additional motivation for<br />

our <strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>World</strong> <strong>Championship</strong> campaign.<br />

During 2011 we intend establishing<br />

ourselves as front-runners and scoring<br />

our first win.”<br />

In order to achieve this target Team <strong>BMW</strong><br />

<strong>Motorrad</strong> <strong>Motorsport</strong> worked intensively<br />

throughout the winter. The experiences<br />

gained over the past two years were painstakingly<br />

analysed, then channelled into<br />

further development of both team and<br />

motorcycle. In addition, the team was<br />

restructured under Bernhard Gobmeier,<br />

recently appointed <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong><br />

<strong>Motorsport</strong> Director.<br />

“The anticipation for the new season is<br />

big, but the excitement is even greater,”<br />

says Gobmeier. “Obviously we aim to<br />

exceed the successes of the past season.<br />

We plan to add to our podium count and<br />

to fight for victory on merit.”<br />

7<br />

SEASON 2011


NEW FACES, AMBITIOUS GOALS.<br />

Further key appointments were made<br />

during the winter. Rainer Bäumel, previously<br />

Technical Director, moves into the<br />

newly created position of Head of Race<br />

Operations, while Stephan Fischer becomes<br />

Head of Development for <strong>BMW</strong><br />

<strong>Motorrad</strong> <strong>Motorsport</strong>. Josef Hofmann,<br />

manager of alpha Racing, assumes<br />

responsibility for the Stephanskirchen factory,<br />

plus logistics, personnel and finance.<br />

The new team structure enables Team<br />

<strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> <strong>Motorsport</strong> to focus on<br />

continuous development of the motorcycle<br />

while ensuring the race team is able to<br />

concentrate on track operations. In addition,<br />

co-operation with colleagues in<br />

Product Development has been streamlined.<br />

<strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong>’s engineers have further<br />

improved the performance of the racing<br />

version for the 2011 season. “A significant<br />

change is our new engine specification,”<br />

explains Bäumel, “and is easily recognisable<br />

by the revised, shorter exhaust system,<br />

which facilitates increased power at higher<br />

revs without jeopardising mid-range torque.”<br />

Maximum power is now 220 bhp.<br />

Simultaneously weight distribution and<br />

riding position were shifted backwards,<br />

with the tank and frame receiving further<br />

modifications. As part of the continuous<br />

development process, the team is preparing<br />

a further engine revision, due for midseason<br />

introduction.<br />

There is a change to <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong><br />

<strong>Motorsport</strong>’s rider line-up, too: 27-year-old<br />

Brit Leon Haslam, runner-up in the 2010<br />

<strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>World</strong> <strong>Championship</strong>, has acclimatised<br />

well to the team during the offseason,<br />

and is thoroughly excited by the<br />

potential of the <strong>BMW</strong> S 1000 RR: “The<br />

production bike is fantastic. That forms the<br />

basis for a very, very good racing bike,”<br />

explains Haslam. “<strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong>’s clear<br />

ambition – and also my own – is to win.<br />

This motorcycle definitely has the right<br />

stuff. We will do whatever it takes to<br />

achieve that.”<br />

9<br />

SEASON 2011


Australian Troy Corser is now in his third<br />

season with <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> <strong>Motorsport</strong>.<br />

The experience and skills set of the double<br />

<strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>World</strong> Champions make him a<br />

vital component of the project. “We intend<br />

to fight at the front every weekend,” is how<br />

he summarises his expectations for 2011.<br />

“That provides the basis for the next step.<br />

If we then win on merit, that would be fantastic.”<br />

“I am extremely pleased that in Leon<br />

Haslam we were able to sign a young rider<br />

who is impressive with his skill, hunger and<br />

fighting spirit,” explains Hendrik von<br />

Kuenheim. “He became runner-up in the<br />

championship not by giving merely 100<br />

percent, but 110 percent at all times. I am<br />

convinced Leon perfectly complements<br />

Troy – they provide a superb combination<br />

of youth and experience. Together Leon<br />

and Troy can and will drive the project forward.”<br />

In addition to the <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> Motor -<br />

sport works team’s entries, another team<br />

will campaign two examples of the Munich<br />

supersports bike in the <strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>World</strong><br />

<strong>Championship</strong>, namely <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong><br />

Italia SBK. Last season the team dominated<br />

the Superstock 1000 <strong>FIM</strong> Cup with a<br />

<strong>BMW</strong> S 1000 RR ridden by Ayrton<br />

Badovini (IT), who won nine of the season’s<br />

ten rounds.<br />

FORMER CHAMPIONS<br />

ON THE <strong>BMW</strong> S 1000 RR.<br />

The team is led by Andrea Buzzoni,<br />

Director of <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> Italia and manager<br />

of the project, Sporting Director<br />

Serafino Foti, and Technical Director<br />

Gerardo Acocella. Double <strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>World</strong><br />

Champion James Toseland (GB) will partner<br />

Badovini. The team will receive technical<br />

support from the <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong><br />

<strong>Motorsport</strong> works team, which provides<br />

not only technological input and manpower,<br />

but also engines and electronic<br />

systems for its pair of <strong>BMW</strong> S 1000 RRs.<br />

11<br />

SEASON 2011


AN AMBITIOUS<br />

TEAM.<br />

The individual threads of <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong><br />

<strong>Motorsport</strong>’s various on-and off-road projects<br />

all converge at the central headquarters<br />

situated in Munich North. Whether<br />

endurance racing, enduro events, stunt<br />

riding or works participation in the Super -<br />

bike <strong>World</strong> <strong>Championship</strong>: All activities are<br />

co-ordinated by the team headed by <strong>BMW</strong><br />

<strong>Motorrad</strong> <strong>Motorsport</strong> Director Bernhard<br />

Gobmeier. Technical management of<br />

entries has been delegated to experienced<br />

partner teams.<br />

The off-road racing year started with a<br />

bang: in January, the “<strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> by<br />

speedbrain” team entered four riders on<br />

the works-supported <strong>BMW</strong> G 450 RR in<br />

the legendary Rally Dakar. Paulo Goncal -<br />

ves (PO) and Frans Verhoeven (NL) secured<br />

two stage wins at the first Dakar outing<br />

for the young team, which also picked up<br />

podium finishes on three stages. A rider<br />

from the “<strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> by speedbrain”<br />

team led on five day stages. Verhoeven<br />

arrived at the finish in Buenos Aires in 15th<br />

place overall, with Pedro Bianchi Prata (PO)<br />

finishing 30 th . Goncalves and Zé Helio (BR)<br />

both retired hurt after serious crashes.<br />

Husqvarna will be responsible for the offroad<br />

programme, lining up in the <strong>World</strong><br />

Enduro <strong>Championship</strong>, the MX2 Moto -<br />

cross <strong>World</strong> <strong>Championship</strong>, the Super -<br />

moto <strong>World</strong> <strong>Championship</strong> and the<br />

American Cross Country <strong>Championship</strong>.<br />

A DIVERSE MOTORSPORT<br />

PROGRAMME.<br />

When it comes to stunt riding, Chris Pfeiffer<br />

(DE) on his <strong>BMW</strong> F 800 R is one of the<br />

world's outstanding riders and is supported<br />

at his spectacular appearances around the<br />

world by <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong>.<br />

The superbike project has spearheaded the<br />

motorsport activities of <strong>BMW</strong> Motor rad<br />

since 2008. The bikes in the <strong>Superbike</strong><br />

<strong>World</strong> <strong>Championship</strong> are run in cooperation<br />

with the official partner alpha Racing from<br />

Stephanskirchen, Germany. The close proximity<br />

of the sites in Munich and Stephans -<br />

kirchen is hugely beneficial and both partners<br />

share the same mental approach to<br />

their work.<br />

alpha Racing was established in co-operation<br />

with <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> <strong>Motorsport</strong> in<br />

order to draw on the extensive motorcycle<br />

racing experience of alpha Technik, itself<br />

founded as a homologation and tuning<br />

company by Josef Meier and Josef<br />

Hofmann in 1992. Four years later they<br />

entered their own <strong>Superbike</strong> team in the<br />

International German Motorcycle Cham -<br />

pionship (IDM) – subsequently winning<br />

numerous national and international titles.<br />

13<br />

TEAM


The motorsport management and the PR<br />

and marketing department are located in<br />

Munich, along with the software developers<br />

and production developers. Products emerging<br />

from this site include the innovative<br />

functions for the engine control unit on the<br />

<strong>BMW</strong> S 1000 RR. In addition, Team <strong>BMW</strong><br />

<strong>Motorrad</strong> Motor sport uses the wind tunnel<br />

and test facilities belonging to the <strong>BMW</strong><br />

Group in Munich. These include the constant<br />

load test facilities for chassis parts<br />

such as frames and swing arms, as well as<br />

radiator and brake test rigs.<br />

When it comes to the engine, the team uses<br />

the very precise test facilities that once<br />

belonged to the former Formula One de -<br />

partment in Munich to measure highlydynamic<br />

processes when accelerating, control<br />

processes and gear changes. The team<br />

is supported by the advanced simulation<br />

know-how possessed by <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> in<br />

the field of thermodynamics and vehicle<br />

dynamics.<br />

BUILT FOR SUCCESS.<br />

The racing team itself is located in<br />

Stephans kirchen near Rosenheim. The<br />

Com petence Center on Kronstaudener<br />

Weg, which was inaugurated in 2008, houses<br />

the design, trial, test, manufacturing,<br />

procurement and motorcycle assembly divisions.<br />

“And anything else the racing team<br />

requires,” adds Head of Race Operations<br />

Rainer Bäumel.<br />

The working environment for about 50<br />

team members based in Stephanskirchen<br />

are ideal. Three operations halls are all fully<br />

equipped for the development, manufacture<br />

and assembly of the bikes. Also housed<br />

within the facility’s total 17,000 sqm area are<br />

powertrain and chassis development de -<br />

partments, plus a modern motorcycle workshop.<br />

A conventional dynamometer and a<br />

dynamic dyno are available to the team, as<br />

well as a rolling road dynamometer.<br />

Who is Who – <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> <strong>Motorsport</strong>.<br />

Team Name: <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> <strong>Motorsport</strong><br />

Team Partner: alpha Racing<br />

<strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> <strong>Motorsport</strong> Director: Bernhard Gobmeier<br />

Head of Race Operations: Rainer Bäumel<br />

Head of Development: Stephan Fischer<br />

Managing Director Stephanskirchen: Josef Hofmann<br />

Riders: Troy Corser, Leon Haslam<br />

Crew Chief Troy Corser: Tom Larsen<br />

Crew Chief Leon Haslam: Giacomo Guidotti<br />

15<br />

TEAM


JOINING FORCES<br />

FOR SUCCESS.<br />

New man at the tiller: Graduate engineer<br />

Bernhard Gobmeier was appointed <strong>BMW</strong><br />

<strong>Motorrad</strong> <strong>Motorsport</strong> Director in Octo ber<br />

2010, having spent over 20 years with<br />

<strong>BMW</strong> in various capacities. In 1994/1995<br />

he was responsible for the establishment<br />

of <strong>BMW</strong>’s M Division in North America and<br />

the motorsport activities of the <strong>BMW</strong> M3<br />

in the American Le Mans Series (ALMS).<br />

Between 1996 and 2008 the Bavarian held<br />

various positions within <strong>BMW</strong> M GmbH<br />

before switching to <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> as leader<br />

of its driveline and suspension department.<br />

His passion for two wheels started during<br />

his teenage years. “At 13 I repaired and<br />

restored scrap motorcycles and mopeds,<br />

which I then rode on private fields,” he<br />

recalls. “At 17 I got my first motorcycle. As<br />

I did not have a licence I rode on private<br />

roads, mainly at night …”<br />

However, his entry into motorsport was not<br />

preordained, and came about through pure<br />

coincidence. During his mechanical engineering<br />

studies in Munich he befriended<br />

Jost Capito, then an ace German enduro<br />

rider. “I learned about motorcycle sport<br />

from him,” explains Gobmeier. “Later, at<br />

<strong>BMW</strong>, I worked on the first M3, both the<br />

production and racing versions. Through<br />

working on the most successful touring car<br />

ever I entered the world of professional<br />

motorsport.”<br />

BERNHARD GOBMEIER –<br />

<strong>BMW</strong> MOTORRAD<br />

MOTORSPORT DIRECTOR.<br />

After many years in the world of automobiles,<br />

working on the M models, Gob meier<br />

eventually made the professional switch to<br />

motorcycling in 2008. “Motor cycles had<br />

always been my hobby; therefore it was a<br />

logical professional, albeit emotional,<br />

career move to <strong>BMW</strong> Motor rad,” he<br />

explains. His fascination with motorcycles<br />

extends to his sparse spare time. “When I<br />

am motorcycling I like to split the time<br />

equally between on- and off-road activities,”<br />

he says of his leisure activities.<br />

Gobmeier does not, though, relax solely<br />

through motorcycling, and has a host of<br />

other hobbies: mountain biking, skiing, ski<br />

tours, mountain climbing, sailing, diving,<br />

travelling ... and that is only a small selection.<br />

17<br />

MANAGEMENT


BERNHARD GOBMEIER –<br />

FACTSHEET.<br />

Date of birth: 22 nd May 1959 in Eggenfelden (DE)<br />

Place of residence: Wasserburg am Inn (DE)<br />

Nationality: German<br />

Marital status: Married<br />

Hobbies: Motorcycling, racing, cycling, hiking, water sports<br />

1979 – 1985 Studied Mechanical Engineering,<br />

Technical University of Munich<br />

1985 – 1988 Engine engineer for the M3/M5 at <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorsport</strong><br />

1989 – 1990 Development of the race engine for the M3 at<br />

<strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorsport</strong><br />

1990 Trainee programme at Porsche AG<br />

1990 – 1993 Head of Engine Development, sales and projects in the<br />

“Porsche Engineering Services” office in Detroit, USA<br />

1994 – 1995 M Brand Manager at <strong>BMW</strong> of North America,<br />

sales and racing with the M3 GT in IMSA/ALMS<br />

1996 – 2008 Various managerial positions in <strong>BMW</strong> M development<br />

(project management/full vehicle)<br />

2008 – 2010 Head of Chassis Development at <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong><br />

since 2010 <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> <strong>Motorsport</strong> Director<br />

19<br />

MANAGEMENT


Mr Gobmeier, what are your expectations<br />

ahead of your first season as <strong>BMW</strong><br />

<strong>Motorrad</strong> <strong>Motorsport</strong> Director?<br />

Bernhard Gobmeier: “Naturally the anticipation<br />

for the new season is big, but the<br />

excitement is even greater. We have many<br />

new facets coming together: We have a<br />

new rider, we have carried out an intensive<br />

development of the motorcycle. We also<br />

know that in the meantime the opposition<br />

has not stood still. The competition will be<br />

much harder. However, we are also much<br />

better prepared than previously. We have<br />

ramped up considerably on both technical<br />

matters and on the manpower side.<br />

Therefore we are cautiously optimistic<br />

about the new season.”<br />

How do you define your major tasks?<br />

Gobmeier: “I consider it important the<br />

entire division operates smoothly. That our<br />

structure functions not only on paper, but<br />

that structure is alive and functions. That<br />

we can have stability within the various<br />

roles, and we stay on top of technical<br />

developments.”<br />

You have been in the chair since mid-<br />

October. What are your initial impressions?<br />

Gobmeier: “My first impression is that over<br />

the past two to three years an enormous<br />

amount of energy has been invested by all<br />

concerned in building a very strong motorcycle.<br />

They have managed to pack an<br />

incredible number of innovations into it.<br />

Possibly too many, but what we have is the<br />

basis for a successful motorcycle. Tech -<br />

nologically it is very good. We have proba-<br />

BERNHARD GOBMEIER –<br />

INTERVIEW.<br />

bly the strongest engine; we have our own<br />

electronics; we have very good people on<br />

board, and we have ramped up our human<br />

resources. The team is extremely motivated<br />

and focussed. Now we need to take<br />

these ingredients and mix them into a<br />

good package.”<br />

How closely will the motorsport and product<br />

development divisions co-operate<br />

in future?<br />

Gobmeier: “The co-operation will be even<br />

more intensive than it was in the past.<br />

There will be a far-reaching exchange of<br />

knowledge in both directions.”<br />

21<br />

MANAGEMENT


Are Troy Corser and Leon Haslam <strong>BMW</strong><br />

<strong>Motorrad</strong> <strong>Motorsport</strong>’s ‘Dream Team’?<br />

Gobmeier: “Yes, most certainly, and not<br />

only because both have real fighting spirit<br />

– not only the youngster, but also the<br />

experienced one. Troy’s tenacity has been<br />

prickled by competition with Leon. Then,<br />

both have a lot of experience. It is not as<br />

though Leon is a rookie. Totally the opposite:<br />

He has also been very successful. He<br />

has a steep learning curve behind him,<br />

works very analytically and is coached by<br />

his father, who has a lot of racing experience.<br />

The combination of experience<br />

amassed with our motorcycle by Troy and<br />

the youthful skills which Leon brings to the<br />

team is a superb blend. And we saw the<br />

fair competition between each other<br />

makes both riders even faster.”<br />

What are your goals for the 2011 season?<br />

Gobmeier: “Naturally we aim to surpass the<br />

results of our previous seasons. We intend<br />

fighting for victories on merit. For us it is a<br />

given goal to score wins in 2011.”<br />

What are your long term goals for <strong>BMW</strong><br />

<strong>Motorrad</strong> <strong>Motorsport</strong>?<br />

Gobmeier: “In the long run we naturally<br />

intend winning the <strong>World</strong> <strong>Championship</strong>.”<br />

23<br />

MANAGEMENT


RAINER BÄUMEL –<br />

FACTSHEET.<br />

Date of birth: 27 th July 1966 in Landshut (DE)<br />

Place of residence: Stephanskirchen (DE)<br />

Nationality: German<br />

Marital status: Single, one child<br />

Hobbies: Family, mountain biking, cross-country skiing, enduro racing<br />

1986 – 1991 Engineering degree at University of Applied Sciences,<br />

Landshut<br />

1991 Diploma at <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong>, Munich<br />

1994 – 1997 Test- and Technology Editor for specialist<br />

magazine MOTORRAD<br />

1997 – 2000 <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> Engineer Pre-Development Chassis<br />

2000 – 2007 <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> Project Leader Boxer series<br />

<strong>BMW</strong> HP2 Sport<br />

2008 – 2010 <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> <strong>Motorsport</strong> Project Leader and<br />

Technical Director for the <strong>World</strong> <strong>Superbike</strong> Team<br />

since 2011 <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> <strong>Motorsport</strong> Head of Race Operations<br />

25<br />

MANAGEMENT


Mr Bäumel, the first pole position and<br />

podiums have now been achieved. What<br />

are your conclusions after the first two<br />

seasons?<br />

Bäumel: “The first year was extremely<br />

strenuous, because we left no stone unturned<br />

in developing the motorcycle. From<br />

the beginning we invested an enormous<br />

amount of development in the motorcycle,<br />

and constantly reinvented it. Therefore<br />

throughout the first season all members of<br />

the team put in an enormous number of<br />

shifts. From that perspective the second<br />

season was a bit more relaxed. We were<br />

better prepared; we knew what was required,<br />

which meant the 2010 season was<br />

tidier and more orderly. However, we still<br />

learned a lot last year, particularly about<br />

what is required to be more successful. We<br />

are carrying this forward into the new season.”<br />

Have these new routines assisted you in<br />

your preparations for the 2011 season?<br />

Bäumel: “Yes, most definitely. We have<br />

made another step forward in terms of our<br />

preparations, and completed those tasks<br />

earlier. For 2010 we built the motorcycles<br />

in January; this year we completed the task<br />

in December – a month earlier. However,<br />

when preparing for the 2012 season we<br />

will work towards defining the bike even<br />

earlier, although here we have already<br />

made considerable progress. That must<br />

continue.”<br />

RAINER BÄUMEL –<br />

INTERVIEW.<br />

For this season you hold the position of<br />

Head of Race Operations? What are your<br />

most important tasks?<br />

Bäumel: “I think the most important aspect<br />

is to get the absolute maximum out of the<br />

overall package at trackside: motorcycle,<br />

riders and team during races. It is not only<br />

a matter of extracting the maximum from<br />

the motorcycle, but also fully motivating<br />

the entire team, plus, of course, the riders.<br />

All three factors need to be at 100 per cent<br />

in order for us to be regular frontrunners.”<br />

How is the relationship between Troy<br />

Corser and Leon Haslam developing?<br />

Bäumel: “They work fantastically well<br />

together. Troy and Leon understand each<br />

other superbly. They are working in the<br />

same direction, and have the same agendas.<br />

They discuss things and work together<br />

for each other. They have also swapped<br />

bikes during testing: Leon has ridden<br />

Troy’s motorcycle and vice versa. I believe<br />

you see this level of cooperation only very<br />

rarely in a team. That is extremely positive.”<br />

27<br />

MANAGEMENT


On what aspects of the <strong>BMW</strong> S 1000 RR<br />

did you concentrate the most during the<br />

winter?<br />

Bäumel: “We completed most of our development<br />

during the summer and autumn.<br />

That is when we developed the hardware<br />

of the motorcycle. We revised weight distribution<br />

and worked on a new engine specification.<br />

Since the last race in Magny-<br />

Cours our focus has been on honing the<br />

total package, namely suspension, setup<br />

and engine mapping.”<br />

What are your expectations after all these<br />

developments?<br />

Bäumel: “I would not restrict that question<br />

only to the motorcycle. The team also<br />

needs to develop, and that includes the<br />

riders. And I hope the entire package –<br />

motorcycle, riders and team – can win<br />

races this year.”<br />

What would you describe as the most<br />

exciting moment during a race weekend?<br />

Bäumel: “I think it is at some stage during<br />

a race, for example when a rider has achieved<br />

a very good placing, and is trying to<br />

retain the position or even to improve it.<br />

That is the most exciting moment. At the<br />

end, after the flag has dropped, it is the<br />

result that counts. Whatever may have<br />

happened during practice or qualifying is<br />

no longer relevant. Fridays and Saturdays,<br />

when the motorcycles are set up and we<br />

evaluate tyres and engine mapping, are the<br />

most demanding periods for the technicians.<br />

By Sunday the package must be<br />

ready; if not, then something has gone<br />

awry. Therefore Sunday is bit more relaxed<br />

for the technicians – before the really exciting<br />

part starts, namely the race and finish.“<br />

29<br />

MANAGEMENT


YOUNG BLOOD<br />

FOR 2011.<br />

Troy Corser has been an important factor in<br />

the success of the <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> Motor -<br />

sport ever since it was launched. He adds<br />

exactly what a young team needs in the<br />

<strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>World</strong> <strong>Championship</strong>: experience<br />

and the necessary speed. No active rider in<br />

the <strong>World</strong> <strong>Championship</strong> boasts as much<br />

experience as the man from Wollongong in<br />

New South Wales, Australia. Since 1992,<br />

Corser has competed in 355 <strong>Superbike</strong><br />

races – winning 33 and claiming no fewer<br />

than 130 podium finishes.<br />

On two occasions – 1996 and 2005 – he<br />

ended the season as <strong>World</strong> Champion. His<br />

qualifying statistics are also more than<br />

impressive: Corser has claimed 43 pole positions<br />

over the course of his successful<br />

career, earning him the nickname “Mister<br />

Superpole”. For comparison: three-time<br />

champion Troy Bayliss (AU) is second in the<br />

list of all time best qualifiers with “just” 26<br />

pole positions.<br />

At 39 years of age, Corser is in his third season<br />

with the <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> Motor sport<br />

team. However, he is far from past his best.<br />

“I still feel exactly the same way as I did at<br />

30,” he stresses. “Obviously training to keep<br />

fit now plays a more important role. I train a<br />

lot, accordingly. However, my desire to race<br />

– and to win races – is just as strong as it was<br />

ten years ago.”<br />

TROY CORSER –<br />

BIKE NUMBER 11.<br />

As a teenager, Corser competed in motocross<br />

and dirt-track races in his home country<br />

of Australia, before switching to the racetrack<br />

at the age of 18. Back then he could<br />

only dream of one day winning the Super -<br />

bike <strong>World</strong> <strong>Championship</strong>. Corser trained as<br />

a cooling technician – and his boss at the<br />

time ultimately set the course for his apprentice's<br />

career in motorsport. “During my<br />

apprenticeship I obviously kept on racing,”<br />

he remembers, “and shortly before my<br />

apprenticeship was due to end my boss<br />

issued the ultimatum. So I said goodbye to<br />

my job. Who knows what would have<br />

become of me had I not been forced into<br />

choosing. After winning my first title I went to<br />

thank him, and today we are friends.”<br />

Corser’s first triumphs as a full-time rider<br />

came in Australia, where he was eventually<br />

discovered by motorcycling legend Barry<br />

Sheene (GB). With Sheene's support, he<br />

made his way to the USA and Europe, where<br />

he very quickly made an impression: in 1994<br />

he won the title in the American <strong>Superbike</strong><br />

<strong>Championship</strong> AMA, followed by a move to<br />

the <strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>World</strong> Champion ship in 1995.<br />

Just one year later he was crowned <strong>World</strong><br />

Champion for the first time. Since then<br />

Corser has become a permanent draw in the<br />

<strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>World</strong> <strong>Championship</strong>.<br />

31<br />

RIDERS


TROY CORSER –<br />

FACTSHEET.<br />

Date of birth: 27 th November 1971 in Wollongong (AU)<br />

Place of residence: Monte Carlo (MO)<br />

Nationality: Australian<br />

Marital status: Married to Sam, two children: Kalani and Kelisa<br />

Height: 1.70 m<br />

Weight: 68 kg<br />

Hobbies: Golf, wakeboarding, karting, jet ski, motocross<br />

Passion: Racing<br />

Favourite circuits: Phillip Island, Valencia, Portimão<br />

First bike: Yamaha TY 80 (Street), Honda CR 80 (Race)<br />

First race: 1989 Australian Production Series 250cc<br />

Career highlights: 1996 <strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>World</strong> Champion<br />

2005 <strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>World</strong> Champion<br />

<strong>World</strong> <strong>Superbike</strong> record: 355 race starts, 130 podiums<br />

33 wins, 47 second and 50 third places<br />

43 pole positions<br />

45 fastest laps<br />

Website: www.troycorser.com<br />

33<br />

RIDERS


Troy, you are going into your third season<br />

with <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> <strong>Motorsport</strong>. How<br />

would you summarise your first two years<br />

together?<br />

Troy Corser: “Over these two years we<br />

worked very hard. During race weekends<br />

we naturally tried to post good results, but<br />

above all we were able to amass some<br />

important data for future developments.<br />

This can now be used during the new season<br />

in the knowledge we have a bike which<br />

functions well and with which we can<br />

attack.”<br />

What progress have you been able to<br />

observe since 2009?<br />

Corser: “When you compare the bike we<br />

have today with the one we had at the<br />

beginning a lot of progress is visible in<br />

many areas. The development continues,<br />

based on all the data we have collected.<br />

Now we can concentrate on racing. We<br />

aim to post the results that are possible<br />

with this bike by using all our potential.”<br />

What are your impressions of the 2011<br />

<strong>BMW</strong> S 1000 RR?<br />

Corser: “I think the suspension is one of<br />

the strengths of the bike, yet even here we<br />

have been able to make improvements.<br />

We have also worked on the engine, which<br />

is very aggressive and powerful. However,<br />

we needed to tame it a bit in order to make<br />

it easier to ride.”<br />

TROY CORSER –<br />

INTERVIEW.<br />

You are now 39. Are there areas where<br />

you can profit from a sort of ‘wisdom<br />

through age’?<br />

Corser: “Yes, naturally. The more experience<br />

one has, obviously the better. I am<br />

one of the most experienced, if not the<br />

most experienced, rider of four-cylinder<br />

superbikes. Before joining this project I<br />

raced for five different manufacturers.<br />

Every one of these manufacturers won<br />

races and also championships. I brought<br />

this wealth of experience to <strong>BMW</strong>, a manufacturer<br />

with the same will to win as I have.<br />

And I firmly believe together we are able to<br />

develop the basis for success. Now we<br />

need to harness the entire package correctly<br />

in order to achieve our mission.”<br />

What further steps do you expect during<br />

2011?<br />

Corser: “I think if we are able to score podiums<br />

regularly it will be a lot easier for the<br />

entire team. And if we are then able to win<br />

races it will be simply fantastic. We are not<br />

going into our third season in the belief we<br />

will win every race, but our aim is to mix it<br />

at the front on every occasion. We have the<br />

basis for the next step.“<br />

35<br />

RIDERS


Leon Haslam has petrol in his blood – in<br />

every sense of the word: He is the son of<br />

multiple motorcycle world champion Ron<br />

‘Rocket’ Haslam. “Since the age of six<br />

weeks I travelled the world from race track<br />

to race track. Therefore I was truly born<br />

into motorsport,” Leon confirms. As is to<br />

be expected, he first sat on a motorcycle at<br />

an early age. His most successful year to<br />

date was the 2010 season, when he finished<br />

second in the <strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>World</strong><br />

<strong>Championship</strong> rankings.<br />

Haslam’s own career started at the age of<br />

eight in motocross in 1991, culminating<br />

with his becoming British Junior Champion<br />

in 1995/6. His chosen number is a constant<br />

reminder of those early days: “I made<br />

my start proper in motorsport in 1991, with<br />

the number 19. One day I was unable to<br />

use number 19, and chose 91. I immediately<br />

won a big race, so have kept the number<br />

to this day,” Haslam recalls.<br />

In 1998 and 1999 he contested the British<br />

125cc <strong>Championship</strong> before progressing<br />

to the world stage in the same category in<br />

2000. A year later he was promoted to the<br />

500cc <strong>World</strong> <strong>Championship</strong> – becoming<br />

the youngest-ever rider to race in the<br />

series. 2002 saw him switch to the 250cc<br />

<strong>World</strong> <strong>Championship</strong>, although without<br />

notable success due to a lack of competitive<br />

equipment. Therefore in 2003 he<br />

moved to the British Supersport Cham -<br />

pionship, while at the same time starting<br />

in three <strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>World</strong> <strong>Championship</strong><br />

rounds.<br />

LEON HASLAM –<br />

BIKE NUMBER 91.<br />

In 2004 Haslam rode in his first full<br />

<strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>World</strong> <strong>Championship</strong> season,<br />

claiming his first podium. After three seasons<br />

in the British <strong>Superbike</strong> Cham pion -<br />

ship he returned to the <strong>World</strong> Champion -<br />

ship in 2009, scoring three podiums. In<br />

2010 his career really took off with pole<br />

position and victory in the season opener<br />

in Australia, with a two further wins and 11<br />

podiums following in quick succession.<br />

Before the end of the season it was a given<br />

Haslam would be switching to <strong>BMW</strong>, and<br />

two days after the season finale he made<br />

his first acquaintance with the <strong>BMW</strong> S<br />

1000 RR.<br />

By comparison with his childhood little has<br />

changed save he is now the competitor.<br />

Father Ron is still his closest adviser, and<br />

occasionally ventures out on Leon’s<br />

motorcycle during testing. Wife Olivia,<br />

whom Leon married in Sweden at the end<br />

of 2010, is also regularly at his side. “It is<br />

important for me to have the right people<br />

around me. Therefore it is fantastic my<br />

entire family is able to travel to races. Their<br />

support is extremely important to me,”<br />

explains Haslam.<br />

37<br />

RIDERS


LEON HASLAM –<br />

FACTSHEET.<br />

Date of birth: 31 st May 1983 in Smalley (GB)<br />

Place of residence: Smalley (GB)<br />

Marital status: Married to Olivia<br />

Height: 1.73 m<br />

Weight: 67 kg<br />

Hobbies: Golf, wakeboarding, mountain biking<br />

Passion: His family, racing<br />

Favourite circuits: Phillip Island, Assen, Silverstone<br />

First bike: Honda QR 50<br />

First race: 1987, Argentina, 50cc class<br />

Career highlights: 2007/2008: 2 nd place<br />

British <strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>Championship</strong><br />

2010: 2 nd place <strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>World</strong> <strong>Championship</strong><br />

<strong>World</strong> <strong>Superbike</strong> record: 86 race starts, 20 podiums<br />

3 wins, 10 second and 7 third places<br />

1 pole position<br />

3 fastest laps<br />

Webseite: www.leonhaslam.com<br />

39<br />

RIDERS


Leon, have you been able to adapt easily<br />

to <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> <strong>Motorsport</strong>?<br />

Leon Haslam: “Yes, definitely. It’s really an<br />

exciting time for me. The potential of the<br />

team is massive. Our first test sessions<br />

went off well, and together we aim to<br />

achieve a lot. That is why our preparations<br />

are going ahead at full speed.”<br />

What do you think of your new ‘working<br />

tool’, the <strong>BMW</strong> S 1000 RR?<br />

Haslam: “The production motorcycle is<br />

fantastic, and that provides the basis for a<br />

very, very good racing motorcycle. <strong>BMW</strong> is<br />

such a massive organisation that the<br />

opportunities are unlimited, particularly on<br />

the technical side. I have never experienced<br />

anything like this anywhere.”<br />

How well do you get on with your teammate<br />

Troy Corser?<br />

Haslam: “Troy and I have known each<br />

other for a long time. In my early days he<br />

helped me a great deal, so to have him as<br />

a team-mate is fantastic. He has raced for<br />

<strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> for two years now, and has<br />

years of experience in the <strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>World</strong><br />

<strong>Championship</strong>. We will work very hard<br />

together in order to win races.”<br />

LEON HASLAM –<br />

INTERVIEW.<br />

Was there ever a stage in your career<br />

when you wanted to do something different,<br />

and not follow in your father’s footsteps<br />

as a motorcycle racer?<br />

Haslam: “This is the only thing I ever wanted<br />

to do. I am a somewhat ambitious person<br />

and love competition. I played football,<br />

I raced in motocross, I have contested rallies.<br />

Regardless of what I do – I set out to<br />

win. And, to me, motorcycle racing is the<br />

ultimate sport.”<br />

What are your strengths – as a racer and<br />

as a person?<br />

Haslam: “I believe I have very good people<br />

around me, and that I am able to exploit<br />

that at the track. I am able to extract the<br />

best out of any given equipment, and I am<br />

not the type of rider who constantly goes<br />

over the limit, only to crash. That is important<br />

when you set out to be successful. As<br />

a person I am really laidback and relaxed,<br />

and don’t get wound up quickly.”<br />

What are your aims for 2011?<br />

Haslam: “We aim to be able to fight for<br />

wins. That is the clear goal set by <strong>BMW</strong><br />

<strong>Motorrad</strong>, and I want to claim victory for<br />

this team. This motorcycle definitely has<br />

the right stuff. I am looking forward to the<br />

new season; it will be a long and hard year,<br />

but I am convinced we will achieve our<br />

objectives.“<br />

41<br />

RIDERS


THE <strong>BMW</strong> S 1000 RR.<br />

THE INNOVATIVE SUPERSPORTS BIKE.<br />

After a long gestation period <strong>BMW</strong>’s first<br />

supersports bike, the <strong>BMW</strong> S 1000 RR,<br />

made its debut in 2009 to critical acclaim:<br />

the production version of the motorcycle<br />

was immediately catapulted to the top of<br />

its class.<br />

In entering the supersports category <strong>BMW</strong><br />

<strong>Motorrad</strong> respected the parameters of this<br />

market segment, namely top-class performance<br />

combined with superb functionality<br />

and continual improvement programmes –<br />

with successful participation in motorsport<br />

being a given.<br />

Therefore, in parallel with development of<br />

the road version, <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> Motor -<br />

sport commenced development of a competition<br />

version of the <strong>BMW</strong> S 1000 RR in<br />

2007, with entry into the <strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>World</strong><br />

<strong>Championship</strong> following two years later.<br />

After that first learning season Team <strong>BMW</strong><br />

<strong>Motorrad</strong> <strong>Motorsport</strong> scored its first pole<br />

position and maiden podiums in production-based<br />

motorcycle racing’s top category<br />

in 2010. The target for 2011 is its<br />

maiden victory.<br />

The production version of the <strong>BMW</strong> S<br />

1000 RR proudly displays its motorsport<br />

genes. It was developed by <strong>BMW</strong> Motor -<br />

rad’s product development engineers to<br />

parameters which apply equally to motorsport:<br />

superb handling and performance,<br />

excellent tractability and throttle respon se,<br />

utterly stable suspension providing excellent<br />

handling and traction, low overall vehicle<br />

mass, and compact, dynamic design<br />

characteristics.<br />

BORN TO RACE.<br />

By accepting responsibility for the project,<br />

model line leader Markus Poschner achieved<br />

his dream, namely the development of<br />

<strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong>’s first supersports production<br />

motorcycle. As a former racer, the role<br />

was tailor-made for him. He selected a<br />

team of young colleagues all of whom had<br />

themselves been active in motorsport and<br />

could therefore contribute sporting expertise.<br />

In addition, the motorsport division<br />

involved itself in the project at an early<br />

stage.<br />

With an engine output of 142 kW (193<br />

bhp) and a vehicle mass of just 204 kilograms<br />

including fuel (183 kilograms dry,<br />

206.5 kilograms with Race ABS) the road<br />

going <strong>BMW</strong> S 1000 RR offers a superb<br />

power to weight ratio, which is in turn<br />

reflected in its performance. By pushing<br />

the ergonomics towards the front, riders<br />

are assisted in controlling the motorcycle’s<br />

immense power by having maximum<br />

weight over the front wheel. This also<br />

resulted in as slender a knee area as possible,<br />

with the dimension of typical 600cc<br />

supersports machines being used as standard.<br />

This philosophy created enormous<br />

design and packaging challenges, with<br />

every millimetre saved playing a crucial role<br />

in the final design.<br />

43<br />

<strong>BMW</strong> S 110000 RR


INNOVATIONS IN ABUNDANCE.<br />

The engineers strived to cluster the heaviest<br />

components around the motorcycle’s<br />

centre of gravity, resulting in a slim and athletic<br />

machine in which every component<br />

has both form and function. The dynamic<br />

proportions (short, steep front; high compact<br />

rear) resulted in cooling, streamlining<br />

and rider protection issues, all of which<br />

were overcome through close cooperation<br />

with the aero department of <strong>BMW</strong>’s automotive<br />

division. Optimal solutions were<br />

eventually found, but only after innumerable<br />

calculations and painstaking experiments<br />

were carried out in the wind tunnel.<br />

For their engine concept the <strong>BMW</strong> Motor -<br />

rad engineers settled upon a four-cylinder<br />

inline engine. This layout provides the best<br />

solution for a light, rigid power unit while<br />

simultaneously offering compact inlet and<br />

exhaust architecture. A base design with<br />

a bore/stroke ratio of 0.621 offers the perfect<br />

combination of high power output<br />

across a broad rev range.<br />

To ensure precise breathing at high engine<br />

revs, the powerplant of the <strong>BMW</strong> S 1000<br />

RR uses small and extremely light cam followers<br />

to actuate the valves. In order to<br />

save further reciprocating weight, titanium<br />

has been specified as valve material, with<br />

an extremely light aluminium/fibre matrix<br />

material specified for the valve springs. The<br />

camshafts are manufactured from heattreated<br />

steel, and are driven by chain and<br />

sprocket in order to facilitate precise valve<br />

operation.<br />

Close attention was paid to the airflow<br />

through and around the motorcycle with a<br />

view to optimising the inlet system. A full<br />

airbox ensures a perfect charge, so every<br />

possible millimetre was used to ensure<br />

maximum capacity, while the engineers<br />

ensured optimum torque levels by specifying<br />

two-stage intake trumpets whose<br />

length is varied according to engine revs by<br />

an adjuster motor system. Optimum cylinder<br />

charge is provided by fuel being fed<br />

into the engine at all times via four injection<br />

jets on the throttle butterfly rail and above<br />

the intake manifold. Depending on engine<br />

speed and power required, the injectors<br />

are controlled either separately or together.<br />

The throttle butterflies are actuated via an<br />

E-gas system (Ride-by-Wire), which accurately<br />

interprets rider commands so as to<br />

provide superb throttle control. Power is<br />

transmitted to the rear wheel via a multidisc<br />

anti-hopping oil bath clutch driving a<br />

chain through an extremely compact sixspeed<br />

sequential transmission.<br />

45<br />

<strong>BMW</strong> S 110000 RR


PERFECTLY TUNED FOR THE TRACK.<br />

For the best possible performance in the<br />

supersport segment the suspension of the<br />

bike must be up to the task of its high performance<br />

engine. The bridge frame of the<br />

<strong>BMW</strong> S 1000 RR is manufactured from<br />

aluminium, and uses the engine as a loadbearing<br />

element. The production and race<br />

frames are identical, and are welded together<br />

by <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> in Berlin from four<br />

separate cast components. This construction<br />

method facilitates a narrow structure<br />

with maximum airbox capacity while simultaneously<br />

providing the machine with the<br />

desired frame stiffness.<br />

The swing arms on the production motorcycle<br />

are carried by eccentric bearings,<br />

enabling the suspension on the race version<br />

to be adjusted for height. The swing<br />

arms are manufactured from a combination<br />

of welded, drawn aluminium and cast<br />

aluminium sections, thus combining low<br />

weight with the required rigidity. The central<br />

spring strut is connected to the frame<br />

and swing arm via compact and light kinematic<br />

levers.<br />

Unique in this segment is the machine’s<br />

generously proportioned inverted fork with<br />

its diameter of 46 millimetres as opposed<br />

to the normal equivalent of 43 millimetres.<br />

The larger dimension lends the <strong>BMW</strong> S<br />

1000 RR significantly higher stability under<br />

braking, and provides improved feedback.<br />

At 66.1° the steering head angle is relatively<br />

steep, while at 95.9 millimetres the<br />

castor is appropriately short. Conversely,<br />

the chosen wheelbase of the production<br />

bike, at 1,432 millimetres, is relatively long.<br />

In order to achieve the targeted dry weight<br />

of 183 kilograms or 204 kilograms wet with<br />

the production machine, <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong><br />

worked together with the <strong>BMW</strong> plant in<br />

Eisenach to develop an aluminium fuel<br />

tank, which is unique to this sector. Like<br />

other <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> vehicles the <strong>BMW</strong> S<br />

1000 RR uses the CAN (Controller Area<br />

Net) Bus System to control the motorcycle’s<br />

various functions. The control unit is<br />

compact and light and has been incorporated<br />

into the instrument cluster.<br />

A clear increase in safety under braking on<br />

production versions of the <strong>BMW</strong> S 1000<br />

RR when ridden under sporting conditions<br />

is provided by the specially-developed<br />

optional Race ABS system, which is available<br />

from the plant as an extra. In addition,<br />

incremental riding safety under acceleration<br />

is provided by the optional electronic<br />

traction control system DTC (Dynamic<br />

Traction Control).<br />

47<br />

<strong>BMW</strong> S 110000 RR


Various set-up options, which alter the engine’s<br />

characteristics to suit specific riding<br />

conditions such as a wet surface (Rain),<br />

street (Sport), track use with stock tyres<br />

(Race), or track use with slicks (Slick), are<br />

available at the twist of a button. Where fitted,<br />

Race ABS and traction control are fully<br />

integrated into the system in order to provide<br />

the highest levels of performance and<br />

safety. Under straight line acceleration the<br />

<strong>BMW</strong> S 1000 RR has another feature unique<br />

in its sector: The HP Gearshift Assis -<br />

tant, well-known through its availability on<br />

other <strong>BMW</strong> motorcycles, enables decisive<br />

metres to be scored under acceleration, but<br />

also allows the rider to shift up through the<br />

gears cleanly and quickly in the lean position,<br />

resulting in a smoother and cleaner line<br />

out of the corners.<br />

IMPRESSED RIDERS.<br />

With the production version of the <strong>BMW</strong> S<br />

1000 RR constantly impressing Team<br />

<strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> <strong>Motorsport</strong>’s professional<br />

racers, Troy Corser is convinced <strong>BMW</strong><br />

<strong>Motorrad</strong>’s customers appreciate this<br />

motorcycle as much as he does his racing<br />

version, saying: “It’s a neat and innovative<br />

bike. The electronics and many safety features<br />

such as Race ABS and DTC are very<br />

impressive. It’s easy to ride and the seating<br />

position is comfortable. The engine provides<br />

an abundance of power for normal<br />

riders using the bike on a daily basis. I must<br />

add before I first rode the <strong>BMW</strong> S 1000 RR<br />

I had not spent much time on a production<br />

machine – yet found it to be extremely<br />

enjoyable.”<br />

49<br />

<strong>BMW</strong> S 110000 RR


DEVELOPMENT CONTINUES.<br />

Since its debut in the <strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>World</strong><br />

<strong>Championship</strong>, the racing version of the<br />

<strong>BMW</strong> S 1000 RR has been continually<br />

developed within the regulations. “If you<br />

compare the current bike with the version<br />

with which we made our debut in 2009, virtually<br />

everything has been changed,” says<br />

Rainer Bäumel, Head of Race Operations.<br />

The <strong>FIM</strong>’s regulations permit certain motorsport-orientated<br />

modifications to the<br />

engine. The inline four cylinder of the production<br />

motorcycle proved to be an outstanding<br />

basis for development of a racing<br />

engine. Since its entry in 2009 Team <strong>BMW</strong><br />

<strong>Motorrad</strong> <strong>Motorsport</strong> has regular upgraded<br />

this unit. The 2011 racing package again<br />

includes major engine upgrades.<br />

“Normally we plan for two engine upgrades<br />

per year. We start the 2011 season with<br />

specification number nine, then at mid-season<br />

we will introduce specification ten,”<br />

explains Bäumel. “Our target is more power<br />

at the top end without jeopardising midrange<br />

torque.” This was achieved by optimising<br />

engine and exhaust tuning, and engine<br />

mapping. An important component is the<br />

shorter exhaust system. The new specification<br />

engine delivers 220 bhp – five horsepower<br />

more than its predecessor.<br />

However, maximum power is not the only<br />

criterion in the <strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>World</strong> Champion -<br />

ship, with throttle response being equally<br />

crucial. Thus the <strong>BMW</strong> S 1000 RR’s throttles<br />

are controlled via a ride-by-wire system.<br />

This too has been continuously developed<br />

in line with experience gleaned on the race<br />

track. Fuel injection and ignition are controlled<br />

by the RSM5 management system,<br />

developed in-house by <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong><br />

<strong>Motorsport</strong>.<br />

The weight distribution of the bike has also<br />

been optimised by Team <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong><br />

<strong>Motorsport</strong>. “With the new bike we have<br />

moved the weight more to the rear,” reports<br />

Bäumel. “In addition we shifted the seating<br />

position of the rider slightly backwards in<br />

order to increase weight over the rear<br />

wheel.”<br />

The tank is new, as is the rear frame. In addition,<br />

<strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> <strong>Motorsport</strong> has specified<br />

new Öhlins front forks, dubbed TRS-<br />

P 25. The racing version of the <strong>BMW</strong> S<br />

1000 RR now incorporates cast rear swing<br />

arms rather than fabricated items. “The characteristics<br />

of the swing arms remain the<br />

same. However,” explains Bäumel, “the cast<br />

version represents significant cost savings.”<br />

The bikes of <strong>BMW</strong> works riders Troy Corser<br />

and Leon Haslam will race with new liveries<br />

in 2011 – modelled on the new ‘look’ of the<br />

production bike. Even here <strong>BMW</strong> Motor -<br />

rad’s production departments and racing<br />

division are co-operating closely.<br />

51<br />

<strong>BMW</strong> S 110000 RR


TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS:<br />

<strong>BMW</strong> S 1000 RR.<br />

Capacity: 999cc, four-stroke, four cylinder, liquid-cooled<br />

Transmission: 6-speed<br />

Output: 220 bhp at over 14,000 rpm<br />

Bore x stroke: 80 x 49.7 mm<br />

Compression ratio: 14.5:1<br />

Fuel system: Dell’Orto injection 48 mm<br />

Tank capacity: 23.5 litres<br />

Lubrication: Wet sump<br />

Dry weight: 165 kg<br />

Wheelbase: 1.428 mm<br />

Length: 2.056 mm<br />

Width: 532 mm<br />

Front suspension: Öhlins upside down telescopic fork<br />

Rear suspension: Öhlins<br />

Front brakes: Corser: Double disc 320 mm,<br />

Nissin, 6-piston caliper<br />

Haslam: Double disc 320 mm,<br />

Brembo, 4-piston caliper<br />

Rear brakes: Corser: Single disc, 220 mm,<br />

Nissin, 2-piston caliper<br />

Haslam: Single disc, 220 mm,<br />

Brembo, 2-piston caliper<br />

Wheels: Front 16.5" x 3,5"; Rear 16" x 6.25"<br />

Tyres: Pirelli<br />

53<br />

<strong>BMW</strong> S 110000 RR


PRODUCTION-BASED BIKES<br />

DELIVER THRILLING RACING.<br />

The <strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>World</strong> <strong>Championship</strong> sees<br />

some of the most talented motorcycle riders<br />

mounted on production-based bikes fighting<br />

for points, victories and championships.<br />

Since its debut season in 1988, the series<br />

has attracted a massive worldwide fan-base.<br />

The enthusiasm of the fans is no coincidence:<br />

The sporting regulations have been<br />

devised so as to provide action-packed race<br />

weekends. The technical regulations laid<br />

down by world motorcycling’s governing<br />

body, the <strong>FIM</strong>, require that the relationship<br />

between production bikes and their racing<br />

counterparts remains close, while ensuring<br />

equalised performance for the category’s<br />

various eligible models and concepts. For<br />

fans the result is maximum excitement and<br />

pure, non-stop action.<br />

Starting grid.<br />

The grid for both races is decided by a<br />

thrilling ‘Superpole’ contest, for which<br />

riders qualify during official qualifying sessions.<br />

The regulations governing Super -<br />

pole have been amended for 2011, with<br />

the top 16 riders (previously 20) from both<br />

qualifying sessions now contesting the first<br />

phase of Superpole, with the fastest dozen<br />

progressing to the second of which a further<br />

four fall by the wayside. Therefore the<br />

third and final phase sees a shoot-out of<br />

SPORTING AND TECHNICAL<br />

REGULATIONS.<br />

the top eight to determine the order of the<br />

first two starting rows. In the event of a<br />

Superpole dead-heat, results of qualifying<br />

will determine the starting order.<br />

The fastest four riders in Superpole 3<br />

occupy the front row of the grid, with Row<br />

2 featuring riders placed fifth to eighth.<br />

Those who are placed ninth to 12 th occupy<br />

Row 3, with the remaining riders from<br />

Superpole 1 taking up places 13 to 16 in<br />

Row 4. Places further back are based on<br />

the results of the qualifying sessions. From<br />

this season tyre warmers are permitted on<br />

the grid, as are the necessary generators<br />

to power the warmers and cooling fans.<br />

Points structure.<br />

The <strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>World</strong> <strong>Championship</strong> provides<br />

for two champions at the end of the<br />

season: top rider and top manufacturer. In<br />

the latter championship the best-placed<br />

bike of a given manufacturer scores points.<br />

A rider is recorded in the race results if he<br />

has completed at least 75 percent of the<br />

race distance and crosses the finishing line<br />

on the race track (not in the pit lane) no<br />

later than five minutes after the winner.<br />

The rider must be in contact with his<br />

motor cycle.<br />

<strong>World</strong> championship points are awarded according to the following table:<br />

Points structure.<br />

Position 1 st 2 nd 3 rd 4 th 5 th 6 th 7 th 8 th 9 th 10 th 11 th 12 th 13 th 14 th 15 th<br />

Points 25 20 16 13 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1<br />

55<br />

REEGULATTIOONS


Eligible motorcycles.<br />

The <strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>World</strong> <strong>Championship</strong><br />

caters for production-based motorcycles<br />

powered by four stroke engines of four,<br />

triple or twin cylinder configurations. For<br />

triple and four cylinder machines the maximum<br />

capacity is 1,000cc, with 1,200cc<br />

being the maximum capacity for twins. All<br />

motorcycles must a weight a minimum of<br />

165 kilograms (previously 162 kg for triple<br />

and four cylinder motorcycles; 168 kg for<br />

twins). In addition, at the start of the season<br />

twin cylinder engines are subject to air<br />

restrictors of 50 millimetres diameter.<br />

A complex ‘Balance of Performance’ index<br />

has been formulated to equalise performance<br />

between the various engine concepts<br />

during the course of the season.<br />

Therefore a handicap system is in place for<br />

twin cylinder motorcycles, with the sport’s<br />

regulators being empowered to amend<br />

minimum weights and air restrictor dimen-<br />

EQUAL CHANCES FOR ALL.<br />

sions in order to prevent unfair advantages<br />

to be gained by one or other concept. The<br />

regulations allow for complex changes to<br />

be made after three races, with the results<br />

of the previous events being aggregated.<br />

Tyres.<br />

Since 2003 Pirelli has been the sole designated<br />

tyre supplier for the <strong>Superbike</strong><br />

<strong>World</strong> <strong>Championship</strong>. For the practice sessions,<br />

a maximum of 13 rear and nine front<br />

tyres may be used per rider, per event.<br />

This total includes dry, intermediate and<br />

wet weather tyres.<br />

Race weekend timetable.<br />

Friday 11:30 – 12:30 hrs Free practice<br />

15:30 – 16:30 hrs Qualifying<br />

Saturday 10:45 – 11:30 hrs Qualifying<br />

13:45 – 14:30 hrs Free practice<br />

15:00 – 15:14 hrs Superpole 1<br />

15:21 – 15:33 hrs Superpole 2<br />

15:40 – 15:50 hrs Superpole 3<br />

Sunday 09:20 – 09:35 hrs Warm-up<br />

12:00 hrs Race 1<br />

15:30 hrs Race 2<br />

Race distance varies between 90 and 110 kilometres, according to the circuit.<br />

57<br />

REEGULATTIOONS


CLOSE TO THE PRODUCTION BIKES.<br />

Homologation.<br />

Strict homologation procedures laid down<br />

by the <strong>FIM</strong> ensure a close relationship between<br />

racing bikes and their production<br />

counterparts. To qualify for homologation<br />

at least 250 examples of a particular model<br />

need to be produced prior to initial inspection,<br />

with a total of 3,000 identical models<br />

manufactured by the end of the year.<br />

Homologation is issued for a five-year<br />

period, with a possible two-year extension.<br />

Engine.<br />

The engine housing of the racing bike<br />

needs to be identical to the production version,<br />

with no modifications permitted to the<br />

shape of the oil sump. In addition the 2011<br />

technical regulations demand that production<br />

fuel pumps be fitted, while transmissions<br />

must be identical to those fitted to<br />

production versions. The engineers,<br />

though, enjoy greater latitude with the<br />

cylinders: Cylinder heads may be modified,<br />

while compression ratios, pis tons and connecting<br />

rods are unrestricted.<br />

Chassis.<br />

The racing bike must use the same frame<br />

as the production version, with fairings,<br />

windscreens, seats and fuel tank remaining<br />

stock. Fuel tank capacity is capped at 24<br />

litres, with forks and dampers being free.<br />

Use of titanium in the frame, front forks,<br />

steering mechanism, swing arms and axles<br />

is expressly forbidden. Nuts and screws,<br />

though, may contain titanium alloys.<br />

Electronically controlled springs are banned,<br />

unless they have already been installed<br />

in the production motorcycle. The use<br />

of carbon-fibre brake discs is not allowed.<br />

Testing.<br />

After the start of the season, test sessions<br />

on circuits listed on the race calendar are<br />

forbidden. There are, though, some exceptions:<br />

Private tests are permitted at listed<br />

circuits until six days before the start of the<br />

event, provided all riders are permitted to<br />

attend. Testing is permitted at listed circuits<br />

after their scheduled race meetings.<br />

In addition, teams may nominate a home<br />

circuit at which unlimited testing is permitted<br />

except for the six days before a scheduled<br />

race meeting.<br />

59<br />

REEGULATTIOONS


2011 RACE CALENDAR.<br />

CHALLENGES AROUND<br />

THE GLOBE. Date Circuit Venue<br />

27 th Feb 2011 Phillip Island Circuit Phillip Island (AU)<br />

27 th Mar 2011 Donington Park Circuit Donington (GB)<br />

17 th Apr 2011 TT Circuit Assen Assen (NL)<br />

08 th May 2011 Autodromo Nazionale di Monza Monza (IT)<br />

30 th May 2011 Miller <strong>Motorsport</strong>s Park Salt Lake City (US)<br />

12 th Jun 2011 Misano <strong>World</strong> Circuit Misano (IT)<br />

19 th Jun 2011 Motorland Aragón Alcañiz (ES)<br />

10 th Jul 2011 Automotodrom Brno Brno (CZ)<br />

31 st Jul 2011 Silverstone Circuit Silverstone (GB)<br />

04 th Sep 2011 Nürburgring Nürburg (DE)<br />

25 th Sep 2011 Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari Imola (IT)<br />

02 nd Oct 2011 Circuit de Nevers Magny-Cours (FR)<br />

16 th Oct 2011 Autódromo Internacional do Algarve Portimão (PT)<br />

61<br />

CCIIRCUIITTS


113.5 km/h<br />

Gear 3<br />

2<br />

10<br />

309.5 km/h<br />

Gear 6<br />

64.0 km/h<br />

Gear 1<br />

173.3 km/h<br />

Gear 4<br />

1<br />

9<br />

116.5 km/h<br />

Gear 3<br />

4 5<br />

3<br />

8<br />

56.8 km/h<br />

Gear 1<br />

6<br />

7<br />

217.4 km/h<br />

Gear 5<br />

133.4 km/h<br />

Gear 3<br />

189.2 km/h<br />

Gear 4<br />

92.4 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

Apart from in 1993, the <strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>World</strong><br />

<strong>Championship</strong> has been a regular visitor to<br />

Australia’s Phillip Island Circuit since 1990.<br />

The circuit is named after the island with<br />

the same name, which is connected to the<br />

State of Victoria via a 600-metre bridge,<br />

and was built in 1956 alongside a coastal<br />

stretch. It has since been modified on<br />

numerous occasions. Big changes in elevation<br />

and windy conditions are its main<br />

characteristics. Beside the <strong>Superbike</strong><br />

<strong>World</strong> <strong>Championship</strong>, Phillip Island also<br />

hosts MotoGP <strong>World</strong> <strong>Championship</strong> and<br />

V8 Supercar rounds. In 1996 Troy Corser<br />

claimed his first world title here in front of<br />

his home crowd, and tops the victors’ list<br />

with seven wins. Leon Haslam claimed his<br />

first <strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>World</strong> <strong>Championship</strong><br />

career pole position and maiden victory at<br />

the Australian circuit in 2010.<br />

Circuit characteristics.<br />

The last corner of the Phillip Island Circuit,<br />

taken in fourth gear, is particularly crucial to<br />

fast lap times for it determines the speed<br />

the rider carries down Gardner Strait. The<br />

pulling of wheelies or wheel spin is to be<br />

avoided. In addition, riders need to adopt<br />

27 TH FEB 2011,<br />

PHILLIP ISLAND CIRCUIT,<br />

AUSTRALIA.<br />

the ideal line for Doohan Corner in order to<br />

set themselves up perfectly for the challenging<br />

Southern Loop which follows.<br />

Thereafter they head downhill along the<br />

Bass Strait towards “Honda”, the first and<br />

most important hairpin bend on the circuit.<br />

Rider’s view.<br />

Troy Corser: “To me Phillip Island is definitely<br />

one of the best circuits on the calendar.<br />

It is just something extremely special<br />

– and not only due to its layout. I always<br />

enjoy racing here. It is my home race, and<br />

the support of the fans gives me an additional<br />

boost. The circuit offers something<br />

of everything. It’s a great race track.”<br />

Circuit information.<br />

Length: 4.445 km<br />

Turns: 12<br />

Start/Finish straight: 835 metres<br />

<strong>Superbike</strong> debut: 1990<br />

Most successful riders: Troy Corser (7 wins)<br />

Troy Bayliss (6)<br />

Anthony Gobert (5)<br />

63<br />

CCIIRCUIITTS


93.8 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

1<br />

48.6 km/h<br />

Gear 1<br />

252.3 km/h<br />

Gear 4<br />

9<br />

207.5 km/h<br />

Gear 3<br />

189.6 km/h<br />

Gear 3<br />

2<br />

204.2 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

222.0 km/h<br />

Gear 3<br />

10<br />

116.2 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

3<br />

58.8 km/h<br />

Gear 1<br />

8<br />

7<br />

75.9 km/h<br />

Gear 1<br />

186.3 km/h<br />

Gear 4<br />

4<br />

261.2 km/h<br />

Gear 4<br />

106.3 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

5<br />

206.1 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

6<br />

110.9 km/h<br />

Gear 3<br />

Donington (GB), which opened in the heart<br />

of England in 1931 and has been regularly<br />

upgraded since, is one of the old bedrocks<br />

of the <strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>World</strong> <strong>Championship</strong><br />

calendar, having been visited by the series<br />

since 1988. This year Rounds 37 and 38<br />

are scheduled for the classic Donington<br />

Park Circuit, which lies extremely close to<br />

Troy Corser’s heart: not only did he celebrate<br />

two victories at the circuit in 1996,<br />

but met his wife Sam here. However, no<br />

other rider knows the venue as well as<br />

Leon Haslam: It is truly his home race, for<br />

father Ron Haslam operates his race<br />

school at the circuit.<br />

Circuit characteristics.<br />

Donington is effectively a flowing circuit,<br />

although it does include some ‘stop-go’<br />

sections. These demand heavy braking,<br />

and need to be factored into the set up<br />

equation. The Craner Curves, a set of lefthanders,<br />

are crucial as they require an<br />

extremely stable motorcycle. The circuit<br />

offers a technically challenging mix of fast<br />

corners and slow sections such as the tight<br />

Melbourne Hairpin chicane – taken in first<br />

27 TH MAR 2011,<br />

DONINGTON PARK CIRCUIT,<br />

EUROPE.<br />

gear – and the Goddards left-hander. The<br />

weather, too, plays its part: cool temperatures<br />

and the ever-present possibility of<br />

rain add to the challenges of Donington.<br />

Rider’s view.<br />

Leon Haslam: “I have put in countless laps<br />

at Donington – on racing and production<br />

bikes. After all, I live just 20 minutes from<br />

the circuit. We brake very hard at<br />

Donington, which is actually unique where<br />

braking is concerned. I am looking forward<br />

to the meeting here because it is truly my<br />

home race. After last year’s break it’s great<br />

to return to this circuit again.”<br />

Circuit information.<br />

Length: 4.023 km<br />

Turns: 15<br />

Start/Finish straight: 550 metres<br />

<strong>Superbike</strong> debut: 1988<br />

Most successful riders: Carl Fogarty (6 wins)<br />

Scott Russell (5)<br />

Noriyuki Haga (3)<br />

65<br />

CCIIRCUIITTS


226.2 km/h<br />

Gear 4<br />

209.8 km/h<br />

Gear 4<br />

6<br />

7<br />

5<br />

97.2 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

105.3 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

268.3 km/h<br />

Gear 5<br />

236.8 km/h<br />

Gear 3<br />

94.9 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

211.8 km/h<br />

Gear 4<br />

171.2 km/h<br />

Gear 4<br />

4<br />

9<br />

8<br />

3<br />

120.7 km/h<br />

Gear 3<br />

10<br />

152.5 km/h<br />

Gear 3<br />

193.1 km/h<br />

Gear 3<br />

268.1 km/h<br />

Gear 4<br />

287.8 km/h<br />

Gear 5<br />

2<br />

53.5 km/h<br />

Gear 1<br />

1<br />

98.7 km/h<br />

Gear 1<br />

The “TT Circuit Assen” was specifically<br />

tailored to suit motorcycle racing, with<br />

some of its 11 left and six right-hand corners<br />

being banked. The legendary Dutch<br />

circuit has a total capacity of 100,000<br />

spectators. Motorcycle racing has a long<br />

tradition in Assen: since 1949 a race at this<br />

circuit has regularly featured in the world<br />

championship. In 1955 a permanent<br />

7.705-kilometre circuit replaced the previous<br />

street circuit running through the<br />

communities of Borger, Schoonloo and<br />

Grollo. In 2006 the circuit’s length was<br />

reduced to 4.555 kilometres. Assen, the<br />

capital of the Dutch province Drenthe, has<br />

a population of some 66,000 inhabitants.<br />

17 TH APR 2011,<br />

TT CIRCUIT ASSEN,<br />

THE NETHERLANDS.<br />

Circuit characteristics.<br />

The layout of the “TT Circuit Assen”<br />

encourages a flowing style. In the hairpin,<br />

the turn-in characteristics and acceleration<br />

of the bike are of utmost importance. The<br />

rest of the circuit flows easily, requiring<br />

bikes to be set up for good corner entry.<br />

The penultimate turn demands a stable<br />

bike, with heavy braking being the order of<br />

the day for the final chicane which follows.<br />

Rider’s view.<br />

Leon Haslam: “Assen is absolutely one of<br />

my favourite circuits. The circuit has a long<br />

history and a unique layout. In Assen the<br />

most important thing is finding a good<br />

rhythm. You can’t just put the power down<br />

blindly – then you will simply be slower.<br />

You need to ride with your head. It is a circuit<br />

where the fight usually goes down to<br />

the final lap. Thrilling races are guaranteed.<br />

I am looking forward to it very much.”<br />

Circuit information.<br />

Length: 4.555 km<br />

Turns: 17<br />

Start/Finish straight: 560 metres<br />

<strong>Superbike</strong> debut: 1992<br />

Most successful riders: Carl Fogarty (12 wins)<br />

Troy Bayliss (6)<br />

Colin Edwards (3)<br />

Chris Vermeulen (3)<br />

67<br />

CCIIRCUIITTS


109.8 km/h<br />

Gear 3<br />

11<br />

307.1 km/h<br />

Gear 6<br />

321.1 km/h<br />

Gear 6<br />

10<br />

9<br />

8<br />

111.4 km/h<br />

Gear 3<br />

1 2<br />

92.7 km/h<br />

Gear 1<br />

76.0 km/h<br />

Gear 1<br />

305.4 km/h<br />

Gear 6<br />

232.0 km/h<br />

Gear 5<br />

214.2 km/h<br />

Gear 5<br />

3<br />

7<br />

110.2 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

271.5 km/h<br />

Gear 5<br />

4<br />

5<br />

81.3 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

6<br />

204.0 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

213.3 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

114.2 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

08 TH MAY 2011,<br />

AUTODROMO NAZIONALE DI MONZA,<br />

ITALY.<br />

Two features particularly characterise<br />

Monza: the enormous top speeds reached<br />

on the circuit, and its tradition. Since its<br />

opening in 1922 the circuit – situated in the<br />

Royal Park and surrounded by high walls<br />

– has regularly hosted two- and four-wheel<br />

events. In fact, no other circuit has staged<br />

more Formula One Grands Prix than the<br />

“Autodromo Nazionale di Monza” has. The<br />

track has been altered on numerous occasions,<br />

with the remains of banked corners<br />

standing in silent testimony to its brooding<br />

past, while the oval, which formed part of<br />

the original layout, fell into disuse in 1967.<br />

The town of Monza has 120,000 inhabitants,<br />

and is situated in Italy’s northern<br />

Lombardy region. Monza saw <strong>BMW</strong><br />

<strong>Motorrad</strong> <strong>Motorsport</strong> celebrate its first<br />

major milestone: in 2010 Troy Corser’s<br />

third place delivered a maiden podium for<br />

the still-young team.<br />

Circuit characteristics.<br />

Top speed is paramount at the “Auto -<br />

dromo Nazionale di Monza”. However, the<br />

brakes of the <strong>BMW</strong> S 1000 RR are also<br />

tested to the limit, while at low speeds too<br />

the bike must react well to steering input.<br />

Good stability through the long arcing corners<br />

eases the workload for the riders.<br />

Exiting the extremely slow first chicane<br />

requires good acceleration through the<br />

gears, while the correct braking point for<br />

the legendary Lesmo corners is equally<br />

crucial. Through Parabolica the tyres ride<br />

their sidewalls, making ‘edge grip’ vital in<br />

order to ensure maximum momentum<br />

down the long straight.<br />

Rider’s view.<br />

Leon Haslam: “Monza is another unique<br />

circuit. It is completely different to any of<br />

the others at which we race. The circuit is<br />

extremely fast, and the bike needs to be<br />

set up completely differently to other circuits.<br />

It has to be set up for long straights<br />

and the ultra-fast corners.”<br />

Circuit information.<br />

Length: 5.793 km<br />

Turns: 13<br />

Start/Finish straight: 1,195 metres<br />

<strong>Superbike</strong> debut: 1990<br />

Most successful riders: Troy Bayliss (6 wins)<br />

Fabrizio Pirovano (4)<br />

Carl Fogarty (4)<br />

Pierfrancesco Chili (4)<br />

69<br />

CCIIRCUIITTS


1<br />

111.4 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

2<br />

131.5 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

186.6 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

187.2 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

134.3 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

302.0 km/h<br />

Gear 6<br />

5<br />

77.3 km/h<br />

Gear 1<br />

3 4<br />

239.2 km/h<br />

Gear 3<br />

225.7 km/h<br />

Gear 3<br />

197.1 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

71.9 km/h<br />

Gear 1<br />

6<br />

144.7 km/h<br />

Gear 3<br />

7<br />

99.7 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

8<br />

88.5 km/h<br />

Gear 1<br />

9<br />

144.9 km/h<br />

Gear 1<br />

12<br />

13<br />

153.7 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

87.2 km/h<br />

Gear 1<br />

105.1 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

11<br />

228.8 km/h<br />

Gear 3<br />

104.5 km/h<br />

206.2 km/h Gear 2<br />

Gear 2<br />

10<br />

30 TH MAY 2011,<br />

MILLER MOTORSPORTS PARK,<br />

USA.<br />

Miller <strong>Motorsport</strong>s Park is situated a 30minute<br />

drive from Utah’s capital, Salt Lake<br />

City, and is one of North America’s most<br />

modern motorsport facilities. Beside<br />

American motorcycle series, the circuit<br />

has, since opening in 2006, hosted various<br />

four-wheel categories, including the<br />

American Le Mans Series (ALMS). Since<br />

2008 the 4.907-kilometre circuit has staged<br />

rounds of the <strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>World</strong><br />

<strong>Championship</strong>. Miller <strong>Motorsport</strong>s Park<br />

has 24 turns, and offers fans everything<br />

their hearts desire. At the Performance<br />

Training Center enthusiasts are able to<br />

hone their driving skills, while the Larry H.<br />

Miller Museum contains some of the<br />

world’s most spectacular motorsport exhibits.<br />

Salt Lake City has approximately<br />

180,000 inhabitants, and is situated on the<br />

east coast of the Great Salt Lake. The<br />

state of Utah and the city are home to the<br />

headquarters of Mormonism.<br />

Circuit characteristics.<br />

In Salt Lake City grip is in short supply –<br />

accordingly the bike needs to be set-up to<br />

deliver as much mechanical grip as possible.<br />

Due to the circuit’s high altitude,<br />

engine power is an important factor. The<br />

<strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> <strong>Motorsport</strong> engineers<br />

have a specific mapping for this circuit. The<br />

bike needs to react perfectly to the many<br />

changes in direction demanded by the<br />

infield.<br />

Rider’s view.<br />

Leon Haslam: “A remarkable aspect of<br />

Miller <strong>Motorsport</strong>s Park is its altitude,<br />

which affects the power output of all bikes.<br />

The circuit layout offers a little bit of everything.<br />

It is a circuit at which you have to<br />

fight, and is also extremely technical.”<br />

Circuit information.<br />

Length: 4.907 km<br />

Turns: 24<br />

Start/Finish straight: 1,050 metres<br />

<strong>Superbike</strong> debut: 2008<br />

Most successful riders: Carlos Checa (2 wins)<br />

Ben Spies (2)<br />

Max Biaggi (2)<br />

71<br />

CCIIRCUIITTS


67.7 km/h<br />

Gear 1<br />

4<br />

70.7 km/h<br />

Gear 1<br />

7<br />

113.2 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

5<br />

3<br />

230.7 km/h<br />

Gear 3<br />

270.5 km/h<br />

Gear 5<br />

2<br />

79.7 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

1<br />

271.0 km/h<br />

Gear 5<br />

6<br />

112.5 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

77.7 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

262.3 km/h<br />

Gear 4<br />

226.8 km/h<br />

Gear 5<br />

8<br />

11<br />

101.9 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

197.4 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

257.6 km/h<br />

Gear 5<br />

10<br />

123.1 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

152.6 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

56.6 km/h<br />

Gear 1<br />

9<br />

Together with Monza, Misano <strong>World</strong><br />

Circuit is a very special circuit for Team<br />

<strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> <strong>Motorsport</strong>: In 2010 Troy<br />

Corser scored the team’s first pole position<br />

and its second podium here. The Austra -<br />

lian first stood on the top step of Misano’s<br />

podium back in 2000 – even doing it twice<br />

on the day. The circuit, formerly known as<br />

‘Autodromo di Santa monica’, was opened<br />

in Misano on Italy’s Adriatic coast in 1972.<br />

The circuit’s then-length was 3.488 kilometres;<br />

in 1993 it was comprehensively<br />

upgraded and extended to 4.060 kilometres.<br />

A change in direction of travel in 2006<br />

facilitated additional run-off areas. The<br />

<strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>World</strong> <strong>Championship</strong> has visited<br />

Misano since 1991. Although the Misano<br />

is situated in Italy, the <strong>Superbike</strong> event is<br />

staged under the national flag of San<br />

Marino.<br />

12 TH JUN 2011,<br />

MISANO WORLD CIRCUIT,<br />

SAN MARINO.<br />

Circuit characteristics.<br />

Good turn-in through the various chicanes<br />

at the Misano <strong>World</strong> Circuit is vital to good<br />

lap times. The venue has some interesting<br />

braking points, some of them found well into<br />

the corners. High top speeds are achieved<br />

on the straight leading to Tramonto, so courage<br />

is required to negotiate Curvone perfectly.<br />

Overall Misano is a flowing circuit<br />

which rewards good acceleration.<br />

Rider’s view.<br />

Troy Corser: “Of all circuits Misano is probably<br />

the one upon which I have scored the<br />

most success, and have managed to be on<br />

the podium with every make of bike I have<br />

ever ridden there. In addition, I was able to<br />

claim numerous pole positions. Misano is a<br />

circuit at which I have always had a lot of fun<br />

and always performed well on, even before<br />

they changed its direction of travel in 2006.”<br />

Circuit information.<br />

Length: 4.226 km<br />

Turns: 16<br />

Start/Finish straight: 510 metres<br />

<strong>Superbike</strong> debut: 1991<br />

Most successful riders: Troy Bayliss (5 wins)<br />

Giancarlo Falappa (3)<br />

John Kocinski (3)<br />

Regis Laconi (3)<br />

Ruben Xaus (3)<br />

73<br />

CCIIRCUIITTS


252.6 km/h<br />

Gear 4<br />

7<br />

6<br />

8<br />

84.6 km/h<br />

Gear 1<br />

94.5 km/h<br />

Gear 1<br />

208.0 km/h<br />

Gear 3<br />

82.0 km/h<br />

Gear 1<br />

62.1 km/h<br />

Gear 1<br />

5<br />

9<br />

81.4 km/h<br />

Gear 1<br />

82.6 km/h<br />

Gear 1<br />

73.1 km/h<br />

Gear 1<br />

10<br />

11<br />

4<br />

161.5 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

180.7 km/h<br />

Gear 1<br />

3<br />

203.1 km/h<br />

Gear 3<br />

140.7 km/h<br />

Gear 3<br />

207.4 km/h<br />

Gear 3<br />

2<br />

87.2 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

1<br />

276.3 km/h<br />

Gear 4<br />

311.1 km/h<br />

Gear 6<br />

14<br />

167.2 km/h<br />

Gear 3<br />

13<br />

176.5 km/h<br />

Gear 3<br />

12<br />

39.9 km/h<br />

Gear 1<br />

The Motorland Aragón circuit, known in<br />

Spanish as ‘Ciudad del Motor de Aragón’,<br />

makes its debut on the <strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>World</strong><br />

<strong>Championship</strong> calendar in 2011. The circuit,<br />

situated near Alcañiz in the Spanish province<br />

of Aragón, was designed by German circuit<br />

architect Hermann Tilke in conjunction with<br />

Britain’s Foster and Partners architectural<br />

practice, and was opened in 2009. Beside<br />

the circuit, this development includes a kart<br />

track, and technology and leisure centres.<br />

The layout has two different lengths: the FIA<br />

version, intended for four-wheeler categories,<br />

has a length of 5.344 kilometres, with<br />

motorcycles using the 5.078-kilometre <strong>FIM</strong>approved<br />

layout. 2010 saw the venue host<br />

its first motorcycle grand prix, to be followed<br />

this year by Aragón’s first <strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>World</strong><br />

<strong>Championship</strong> event. Troy Corser and Leon<br />

Haslam tested the <strong>BMW</strong> S 1000 RR here<br />

in the autumn of 2010.<br />

Circuit characteristics.<br />

The sheer number of blind corners constitutes<br />

Motorland Aragón’s primary challenge,<br />

with numerous flowing sections making it<br />

absolutely vital to exit a corner correctly in<br />

order to be on the right line for its successor.<br />

19 TH JUN 2011,<br />

MOTORLAND ARAGÓN,<br />

SPAIN.<br />

The layout is characterised by a mix of high<br />

speed corners and slow sections, with the<br />

Turn 7/8 complex reminding particularly of<br />

the famous Corkscrew in Laguna Seca (US).<br />

The last corner, too, is interesting: Riders<br />

need to exit at full throttle in order to carry<br />

momentum down the start/finish straight<br />

and into the following 90-degree left-hander<br />

which offers numerous overtaking possibilities.<br />

Rider’s view.<br />

Troy Corser: “With blind corners which drop<br />

away and constant gradient changes Aragón<br />

reminds me a bit of Portimão. The test here<br />

helped us in learning the circuit. Technically<br />

it is a very challenging layout, and finding the<br />

right set up is not easy. That is a challenge I<br />

am looking forward to. If we are able to set<br />

up the bike correctly, we should be able to<br />

post a good result.”<br />

Circuit information.<br />

Length: 5.078 km<br />

Turns: 17<br />

Start/Finish straight: 630 metres<br />

<strong>Superbike</strong> debut: 2011<br />

Most successful riders: ---<br />

75<br />

CCIIRCUIITTS


1<br />

119.9 km/h<br />

Gear 3<br />

286.9 km/h<br />

Gear 5<br />

274.8 km/h<br />

Gear 5<br />

120.5 km/h<br />

Gear 3<br />

12<br />

3<br />

2<br />

95.6 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

11<br />

102.7 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

100.1 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

86.6 km/h<br />

Gear 2 5<br />

258.8 km/h<br />

Gear 4<br />

257.4 km/h<br />

Gear 4<br />

95.5km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

4<br />

92.2 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

132.5 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

7<br />

6<br />

197.2 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

91.6 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

103.8 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

10<br />

93.8 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

9<br />

267.7 km/h<br />

Gear 4<br />

216.0 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

88.2 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

8<br />

The “Automotodrom Brno” – situated in<br />

the Czech Republic, and previously known<br />

as the Masaryk-Ring – draws on a long<br />

motorsport history, with the first event<br />

taking place in 1930 on a 29-kilometre<br />

street circuit. In the 1950s motorcycle<br />

racing dominated activities, with the world<br />

championship making its first appearance<br />

in 1965. In 1986/7 the circuit was totally<br />

renovated, with the <strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>World</strong><br />

<strong>Championship</strong> making its debut in Brno in<br />

1993. The second running, staged three<br />

years later, saw Troy Corser win both<br />

rounds. In 2005 he celebrated the latest<br />

comeback of the circuit with a third win.<br />

Circuit characteristics.<br />

Brno presents some interesting challenges<br />

for engineers. It is a flowing circuit, and has<br />

comparatively few heavy braking points.<br />

Due to the changes in elevation, riders<br />

need to brake for both uphill and downhill<br />

corners, necessitating detailed set-up work<br />

in order to instil maximum confidence in<br />

the riders. Most of them like Brno as they<br />

10 TH JUL 2011,<br />

AUTOMOTODROM BRNO,<br />

CZECH REPUBLIC.<br />

need to be extremely sensitive through its<br />

corners. The bike needs a well-balanced<br />

set-up for this.<br />

Rider’s view.<br />

Troy Corser: “Brno is technically a very<br />

challenging circuit due its undulating<br />

nature and wide corners. In the past I have<br />

been very successful here. I have celebrated<br />

double victories and many other<br />

successes at Brno. Last year I unfortunately<br />

injured myself during a fall, and was<br />

forced to sit out the race. However, this circuit<br />

suits our <strong>BMW</strong> S 1000 RR as its rollercoaster<br />

layout demands a lot of engine<br />

power. Therefore I am quietly confident<br />

about our race chances.”<br />

Circuit information.<br />

Length: 5.403 km<br />

Turns: 14<br />

Start/Finish straight: 636 metres<br />

<strong>Superbike</strong> debut: 1993<br />

Most successful rider: Troy Corser (3 wins)<br />

Max Biaggi (3)<br />

Yukio Kagayama (2)<br />

Troy Bayliss (2)<br />

77<br />

CCIIRCUIITTS


257.3 km/h<br />

Gear 4<br />

8<br />

7<br />

14<br />

70.6 km/h<br />

Gear 1<br />

13<br />

89.3 km/h<br />

2 Gear 2<br />

80.5 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

226.1 km/h<br />

Gear 3<br />

6<br />

105.1 km/h<br />

Gear 3<br />

274.9 km/h<br />

Gear 5<br />

130.4 km/h<br />

Gear 3<br />

1<br />

72.0 km/h<br />

2<br />

176.7 km/h Gear 1<br />

Gear 3<br />

11 12 3<br />

142.8 km/h<br />

Gear 3<br />

10<br />

9<br />

4<br />

61.7 km/h<br />

195.2 km/h Gear 1 5<br />

Gear 3<br />

292.1 km/h<br />

Gear 6<br />

257.7 km/h<br />

Gear 5<br />

142.8 km/h<br />

Gear 3<br />

132.0 km/h<br />

Gear 3<br />

102.3 km/h<br />

Gear 3<br />

Silverstone is also known as the Home of<br />

British Motor Racing. The classic circuit<br />

situated in Northamptonshire was established<br />

after the <strong>World</strong> War on a former bomber<br />

airfield opened in 1943. The first races<br />

were hosted here five years later, with<br />

Silverstone staging Formula One’s inaugural<br />

<strong>World</strong> <strong>Championship</strong> race in 1950. The<br />

<strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>World</strong> Champion ship visited<br />

Silverstone between 2002 and 2007,<br />

returning in 2010 after a two-year hiatus.<br />

The layout of the new Silverstone Arena<br />

has been specifically tailored to suit the<br />

demands of motorcycle racing. An almost<br />

800 metre-long section has been inserted<br />

between Abbey and the Brooklands curves,<br />

causing the start/finish straight to be<br />

relocated. Famous corners such as<br />

Maggotts, Becketts, Copse and Stowe<br />

have, though, been retained. For Leon<br />

Haslam Silverstone represents his second<br />

home race of the season. Troy Corser, too,<br />

feels at home here, as he spends a lot of<br />

time in England.<br />

31 ST JUL 2011,<br />

SILVERSTONE CIRCUIT,<br />

GREAT BRITAIN.<br />

Circuit characteristics.<br />

Due to Silverstone’s numerous long<br />

straights the engine power of the <strong>BMW</strong> S<br />

1000 RR comes into play. In addition, the<br />

layout incorporates numerous sweeping<br />

corners in which the tyres are unilaterally<br />

loaded. Therefore tractability and throttle<br />

response are equally important. The new<br />

layout is further characterised by some<br />

stop-go sections, making it physically very<br />

demanding. In addition the circuit’s bumpy<br />

surface needs to be factored into set up<br />

considerations.<br />

Rider’s view.<br />

Leon Haslam: “I really enjoy Silverstone’s<br />

new layout. It is a fast, flowing circuit. The<br />

circuit is a bit like a mix of Monza and<br />

Assen. In some sectors the set up of the<br />

motorcycle is a major factor. In addition,<br />

thrilling racing is always guaranteed at<br />

Silverstone. Naturally it is a home race for<br />

me which I aim to win.”<br />

Circuit information.<br />

Length: 5.902 km<br />

Turns: 18<br />

<strong>Superbike</strong> debut: 2002<br />

Most successful rider: Troy Bayliss (5 wins)<br />

Cal Crutchlow (2)<br />

Neil Hodgson (2)<br />

79<br />

CCIIRCUIITTS


72.3 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

6<br />

218.5 km/h<br />

Gear 4<br />

250.9 km/h<br />

Gear 4<br />

143.9 km/h<br />

Gear 4<br />

7<br />

8<br />

245.7 km/h<br />

Gear 4<br />

4<br />

5<br />

82.9 km/h<br />

Gear 3<br />

105.7 km/h<br />

Gear 3<br />

155.0 km/h<br />

Gear 3<br />

119.7 km/h<br />

Gear 3<br />

106.7 km/h<br />

Gear 3<br />

10<br />

9<br />

235.4 km/h<br />

Gear 3<br />

48.7 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

69.9 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

3<br />

83.2 km/h<br />

Gear 3<br />

1<br />

251.0 km/h<br />

Gear 6<br />

2<br />

140.4 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

292.6 km/h<br />

Gear 5<br />

234.6 km/h<br />

Gear 6<br />

11<br />

271.8 km/h<br />

Gear 6<br />

12<br />

116.10 km/h<br />

Gear 3<br />

13<br />

172,0 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

14<br />

79.6 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

>= 0.750<br />

>= 0.800<br />

>= 0.850<br />

>= 0.900<br />

>= 0.950<br />

1.000<br />

>= 1.050<br />

Straight<br />

v_sat [km/h] MAX<br />

dbw_gang_is t [Gang] @v_s at MAX<br />

Corner<br />

v_s at [km/h] MIN<br />

dbw_gang_is t [Gang] @v_s at MIN<br />

The Nürburgring was opened at the end of<br />

1927, and is therefore one of Europe’s most<br />

classic circuits. In the 1980s the circuit was<br />

radically changed, receiving further renovations<br />

between 1999 and 2002. Upon its<br />

<strong>Superbike</strong> debut in 1998 the track’s 4.556kilometre<br />

layout was used; however, since<br />

2008 racing has been staged on the longer<br />

5.137-kilometre version. The legendary<br />

Nordschleife is, at over 20 kilometres in<br />

length, a popular venue for long-distance<br />

sports car racing. The “Ring” features capricious<br />

climatic conditions: Here in the Eifel<br />

Mountains sunny, dry weather can change<br />

within a short time to storms and hail. In<br />

1999 Troy Corser won a race here. Leon<br />

Haslam scored his maiden <strong>World</strong> <strong>Superbike</strong><br />

podium at the Nürburg ring in 2004. This<br />

season sees the “Green Hell” hosts its sixth<br />

<strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>World</strong> <strong>Championship</strong> event.<br />

Circuit characteristics.<br />

The Nürburgring’s challenge starts with its<br />

first turn, the Yokohama-S. The riders<br />

need to brake late, yet adopt a good line for<br />

the Mercedes Arena which features a<br />

series of reducing radii corners. Good turnin<br />

is important in order to allow early acceleration<br />

out of corners. Bit Corner is the<br />

04 TH SEP 2011,<br />

NÜRBURGRING,<br />

GERMANY.<br />

most important bend on the circuit: A good<br />

line is vital to carry maximum speed<br />

through the subsequent high speed section.<br />

The NGK Chicane demands heavy<br />

braking prior to heading uphill to the<br />

Start/Finish area.<br />

Rider’s view.<br />

Troy Corser: “The Nürburgring has a lot of<br />

history, and I always enjoy racing here. It<br />

offers a lot of overtaking opportunities, and<br />

is undulating. Thus we generally have thrilling<br />

and spectacular races. Last year I was<br />

well on my way to our best result of the<br />

year. Having been fastest in all practice<br />

and qualifying sessions I fell during the<br />

Superpole shoot-out. It was a great pity as<br />

that weekend we could have taken a big<br />

step forward.”<br />

Circuit information.<br />

Length: 5.137 km<br />

Turns: 17<br />

Start/Finish straight: 800 metres<br />

<strong>Superbike</strong> debut: 1998<br />

Most successful riders Noriyuki Haga (3 wins)<br />

Jonathan Rea (2)<br />

81<br />

CCIIRCUIITTS


83.4 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

250.3 km/h<br />

Gear 4<br />

13<br />

76.0 km/h<br />

Gear 1<br />

68.0 km/h<br />

Gear 1<br />

12<br />

11<br />

238.7 km/h<br />

Gear 4<br />

2<br />

1<br />

67.2 km/h<br />

Gear 1<br />

110.0 km/h<br />

Gear 3<br />

9<br />

214.8 km/h<br />

Gear 3<br />

232.2 km/h<br />

Gear 3<br />

88.9 km/h<br />

Gear 1<br />

240.8 km/h<br />

Gear 4<br />

10<br />

272.3 km/h<br />

Gear 5<br />

3<br />

4<br />

7<br />

6<br />

5<br />

68.7 km/h<br />

Gear 1<br />

8<br />

93.5 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

189.3 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

102.2 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

131.7 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

248.3 km/h<br />

Gear 4<br />

25 TH SEP 2011,<br />

AUTODROMO ENZO E DINO FERRARI,<br />

ITALY.<br />

The motor racing history of Imola – population<br />

66,000 – stretches back to the<br />

1940s, when events took place on a street<br />

circuit. In 1950 a track was commissioned,<br />

which first saw use two years later. On 7 th<br />

September 1963 the motorcycle world<br />

championship celebrated its debut in<br />

Imola, with the <strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>World</strong> Cham -<br />

pion ship making its first appearance at the<br />

circuit situated in Italy’s Emilia Romagna<br />

region in 2001. At the end of 2006 the<br />

“Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari” was<br />

totally revamped and its safety standards<br />

improved. In 2009 the <strong>World</strong> Champion -<br />

ship made its return to Imola following a<br />

two-year break.<br />

Circuit characteristics.<br />

The many challenges posed by Imola are<br />

due not only to the circuit’s bumpy surface,<br />

but also to its layout. Immediately after the<br />

start the riders face the first of numerous<br />

chicanes. Therefore bikes need to have<br />

excellent braking, turn-in and acceleration<br />

abilities. In addition, the chicanes have high<br />

kerbs which unsettle the bikes, making<br />

stability crucial.<br />

Rider’s view.<br />

Leon Haslam: “Imola is an old, classic circuit.<br />

The surface is uneven in various parts,<br />

and some sections are extremely tight. At<br />

the same time overtaking is very difficult.<br />

You have to be very aggressive in order to<br />

improve position. Last year I had a bit of<br />

bad luck, but am looking forward to racing<br />

the <strong>BMW</strong> S 1000 RR at Imola.”<br />

Circuit information.<br />

Length: 4.959 km<br />

Turns: 16<br />

Start/Finish Straight: 358 metres<br />

<strong>Superbike</strong> debut: 2001<br />

Most successful riders: Ruben Xaus (3)<br />

Regis Laconi (3)<br />

Colin Edwards (2)<br />

Carlos Checa (2)<br />

83<br />

CCIIRCUIITTS


69.9 km/h<br />

Gear 1<br />

10<br />

11<br />

247.7 km/h<br />

Gear 4<br />

235.6 km/h<br />

Gear 4<br />

198.9 km/h<br />

Gear 3<br />

155.3 km/h<br />

Gear 3<br />

125.7 km/h<br />

Gear 3<br />

1<br />

249.4 km/h<br />

Gear 4<br />

137.2 km/h<br />

Gear 3<br />

134.3 km/h<br />

Gear 3<br />

8<br />

9<br />

7<br />

6<br />

2<br />

68.1 km/h<br />

Gear 1<br />

57.9 km/h<br />

Gear 1<br />

3<br />

4<br />

5<br />

46.6 km/h<br />

Gear 1<br />

290.4 km/h<br />

Gear 6<br />

137.5 km/h<br />

Gear 3<br />

252.1 km/h<br />

Gear 4<br />

The “Circuit de Nevers” is situated 250<br />

kilometres south of Paris in the French<br />

region of Nièvre. It was opened in 1961,<br />

and variously upgraded during subsequent<br />

decades. The surface is particularly<br />

smooth, and therefore generally offers low<br />

grip levels. Squally winds and unpredictable<br />

weather add to its challenges, while rain<br />

can turn the circuit into a skating rink within<br />

minutes. The <strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>World</strong> Cham -<br />

pion ship made its debut at the circuit in<br />

1991 before taking a break until 2003,<br />

since when the French venue has been a<br />

fixture on the calendar.<br />

Circuit characteristics.<br />

The first turn, taken in fourth gear, requires a<br />

stable bike, while strong acceleration is vital<br />

when exiting the sweeping Estoril corner in<br />

order to build up maximum speed before<br />

braking for the Adelaide hairpin – the slowest<br />

point on the entire <strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>World</strong><br />

<strong>Championship</strong> calendar. Equally important is<br />

ensuring front wheels don’t lift under acceleration.<br />

The circuit rewards bikes which turn<br />

02 ND OCT 2011,<br />

CIRCUIT DE NEVERS,<br />

FRANCE.<br />

in well and accelerate smoothly out of its<br />

various chicanes and hairpins.<br />

Rider’s view.<br />

Troy Corser: “At Magny-Cours it is usually<br />

already cold when we race there. Autumn<br />

is not exactly the best time of the year to<br />

contest a race in Magny-Cours. However,<br />

the circuit has a great layout, and is fun to<br />

ride. Its three hairpins mean it is a unique<br />

stop-go circuit. I have generally been successful<br />

here, and have taken both wins and<br />

pole positions. In 2005 I won my second<br />

world championship title here. The circuit<br />

has a long motorsport tradition, including<br />

motorcycle racing, having hosted some<br />

thrilling long distance events.”<br />

Circuit information.<br />

Length: 4.441 km<br />

Turns: 16<br />

Start/Finish Straight: 250 metres<br />

<strong>Superbike</strong> debut: 1991<br />

Most successful riders: Noriyuki Haga (5 wins)<br />

Doug Polen (2)<br />

James Toseland (2)<br />

Troy Bayliss (2)<br />

85<br />

CCIIRCUIITTS


149.2 km/h<br />

Gear 4<br />

210.0 km/h<br />

Gear 3<br />

11<br />

66.0 km/h<br />

Gear 1<br />

9<br />

10<br />

82.1 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

151.9 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

167.5 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

8<br />

7<br />

70.3 km/h<br />

Gear 1<br />

169.0 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

80.3 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

192.5 km/h<br />

Gear 3<br />

4<br />

6<br />

170.0 km/h<br />

Gear 3<br />

306.2 km/h<br />

Gear 6<br />

236.6 km/h<br />

Gear 3<br />

203.7 km/h<br />

Gear 3<br />

5<br />

3<br />

74.8 km/h<br />

Gear 2<br />

2<br />

1<br />

54.9 km/h<br />

Gear 1<br />

16 TH OCT 2011,<br />

AUTÓDROMO INTERNACIONAL<br />

DO ALGARVE PORTIMÃO,<br />

PORTUGAL.<br />

After doing so in 2008 and 2009, the<br />

<strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>World</strong> <strong>Championship</strong> ends in<br />

Portimão (PT) for the third time.<br />

Construction of this elaborate circuit was<br />

completed in October 2008, with the<br />

<strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>World</strong> <strong>Championship</strong> immediately<br />

baptising the circuit with its season<br />

finale on 2 nd November. Two thousand<br />

and eleven sees the venue’s fourth Super -<br />

bike race. In a short space of time the circuit<br />

established itself as an attractive<br />

venue for various two- and four-wheel<br />

championships. Stable all-year weather<br />

conditions and a challenging layout make<br />

Portimão a popular test venue.<br />

Circuit characteristics.<br />

The final turn of Portimão is crucial in order<br />

to carry maximum speed down the almost<br />

one kilometre-long Start/Finish straight.<br />

The long flowing corners of the<br />

“Autódromo Internacional” demand a reliable<br />

chassis set-up in order to enable the<br />

bike to hold the ideal lines as it exits corners.<br />

This applies particularly to the circuitous<br />

infield.<br />

Rider’s view.<br />

Leon Haslam: “Portimão is a circuit which<br />

truly has its own character. It is extremely<br />

undulating, and has a lot of changes of<br />

both direction and gradient. It is crucial to<br />

have the right set up to deal with all these<br />

challenges. Therefore it is not easy to set<br />

up the bike to work optimally at all points<br />

on what is a very special circuit.”<br />

Circuit information.<br />

Length 4.658 km<br />

Turns: 15<br />

Start/Finish straight: 969 metres<br />

<strong>Superbike</strong> debut: 2008<br />

Most successful riders: Troy Bayliss (2 wins)<br />

Ben Spies, Michel Fabrizio, Cal Crutchlow,<br />

Max Biaggi (1 win each)<br />

87<br />

CCIIRCUIITTS


THE <strong>BMW</strong> S 1000 RR AS<br />

GUARANTEE FOR SUCCESS.<br />

<strong>BMW</strong> MOTORRAD ITALIA SUPERBIKE.<br />

Highly-motivated newcomer from Italy: the<br />

works-supported <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> Italia<br />

<strong>Superbike</strong> team will make its debut in the<br />

<strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>World</strong> <strong>Championship</strong> in 2011.<br />

The team from San Donato Milanese competed<br />

at international level for the first time<br />

in 2010, gaining attention in the Super -<br />

stock 1000 <strong>FIM</strong> Cup with comfortable<br />

Rider and Manufacturer titles. Rider Ayrton<br />

Badovini (IT) dominated proceedings in<br />

this series right from the first race. Badovini<br />

won nine of the ten races on his <strong>BMW</strong> S<br />

1000 RR, most of them by a clear margin.<br />

<strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> Italia and its rider were<br />

able to celebrate winning the title in early<br />

August, with three races still remaining.<br />

The team that won the Italian Superstock<br />

series is now moving up to the pinnacle of<br />

production-based motorcycling. Badovini<br />

has been joined by a vastly experienced<br />

team-mate: two-times <strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>World</strong><br />

Champion James Toseland (GB). The<br />

team is run by Andrea Buzzoni, Director of<br />

<strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> Italia and manager of the<br />

<strong>Superbike</strong> project. Sports Director Serafino<br />

Foti and Technical Director Gerardo<br />

Acocella also form part of the team<br />

management. The <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong><br />

<strong>Motorsport</strong> works team is providing engines<br />

and electronics for the <strong>BMW</strong> S 1000<br />

RR. In addition, both teams will work closely<br />

together, exchanging know-how, solutions<br />

and development ideas with the joint<br />

goal of continuously improving performance.<br />

“It is in <strong>BMW</strong>'s genes to strive for maximum<br />

performance, innovative ideas,<br />

respect and trust, and to concentrate on its<br />

objectives with a clear, strategic focus.<br />

These are the pillars of our strategy, upon<br />

which was based our decision to compete<br />

on an international stage,” says Christian<br />

Kremer, CEO of <strong>BMW</strong> Group Italia. “We<br />

will line up in the <strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>World</strong><br />

Champion ship with the same professionalism<br />

and enthusiasm we have shown up to<br />

this point. We are certain this will result in<br />

more, important successes.”<br />

“<strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> Italia provided impressive<br />

proof of just how successful the team can<br />

be with the <strong>BMW</strong> S 1000 RR in last year's<br />

Superstock 1000 <strong>FIM</strong> Cup,” says Hendrik<br />

von Kuenheim, General Director of <strong>BMW</strong><br />

<strong>Motorrad</strong>. “Although the <strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>World</strong><br />

<strong>Championship</strong> poses a considerably larger<br />

challenge, I am convinced <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong><br />

will benefit from this newcomer in the field.<br />

Competition ultimately stimulates business.<br />

We wish the team every success.”<br />

<strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> Italia will also compete in<br />

the Superstock 1000 <strong>FIM</strong> Cup with two<br />

<strong>BMW</strong> S 1000 RR bikes in 2011. Lorenzo<br />

Zanetti and Sylvain Barrier are on board as<br />

the riders, and will be looking to follow on<br />

from Badovini's success in this series.<br />

89<br />

CCUSTTOOMMEER RACIING


In James “Giacomo” Toseland, the <strong>BMW</strong><br />

<strong>Motorrad</strong> Italia <strong>Superbike</strong> team has signed<br />

up a rider with an enormous amount of<br />

international experience. The Brit has plied<br />

his trade in both MotoGP and the Super -<br />

bike <strong>World</strong> <strong>Championship</strong>, which he won in<br />

2004 and 2007.<br />

The 30-year-old entered the international<br />

motorcycle racing stage in 1998, when he<br />

lined up in the Supersport <strong>World</strong> Cham -<br />

pionship. In 2001, Toseland took the step<br />

up to the <strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>World</strong> Champion ship,<br />

where he rode for Ducati and then Honda.<br />

After seven successful years in the series,<br />

he decided to try his luck in MotoGP and<br />

rode for Tech 3 on a Yamaha in 2008 and<br />

2009. Toseland returned to the <strong>Superbike</strong><br />

<strong>World</strong> <strong>Championship</strong> in 2010, competing<br />

for the Yamaha works team.<br />

From 2011 he is looking to use his experience<br />

to drive the <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> Italia project<br />

forwards. “I am delighted to be a<br />

member of the <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> Italia family.<br />

JAMES TOSELAND.<br />

I felt at home there on my very first visit,”<br />

says Toseland. “I have already witnessed<br />

the enormous potential of the <strong>BMW</strong> S<br />

1000 RR on the track. Contri buting to the<br />

further development of the <strong>BMW</strong> Super -<br />

bike flagship is a great challenge for me.<br />

Teamwork is the most important factor in<br />

racing, and I believe in the team and engineers<br />

that <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> Italia has selected<br />

for this project.”<br />

Toseland's gifts are not restricted to two<br />

wheels. He also possesses great ability in<br />

another field: music. The old hand is a<br />

talented singer and pianist, and regularly<br />

thrills fans with his rock band “Crash”.<br />

Toseland is also very active in the community<br />

and supports numerous charities.<br />

Profile.<br />

Date of birth: 5 th October 1980 in Doncaster (GB)<br />

Place of residence: Isle of Man (GB)<br />

Marital status: Single<br />

Height: 1.77 m<br />

Weight: 70 kg<br />

Hobbies: Motocross, piano, fitness training<br />

Career highlights: 2004 and 2007 <strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>World</strong> Champion<br />

Website: www.jamestoseland.com<br />

91<br />

CCUSTTOOMMEER RACIING


There was simply no way past this Italian in<br />

the 2010 Superstock 1000 <strong>FIM</strong> Cup. Ayrton<br />

Badovini made his mark on the series right<br />

from the first race. Making their debuts in the<br />

series, he and his <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> Italia team<br />

won the curtain-raiser in Portimão, Portugal,<br />

and dominated the cup from that point on.<br />

Race after race Badovini put together his<br />

impressive run of victories, winning the next<br />

eight races – most of them with a clear lead.<br />

His run only came to an end at the finale in<br />

Magny-Cours, when he crossed the finish<br />

line in second place, just behind the leader.<br />

However, that did not alter the fact that<br />

Badovini had gained a lot of attention. The<br />

Italian had already secured the riders’ title in<br />

August, with three races remaining.<br />

And so it was a logical progression for Ba -<br />

dovini and <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> Italia to move into<br />

the <strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>World</strong> <strong>Championship</strong> in 2011.<br />

In doing so he achieved the goal he had had<br />

his sights set on for a long time. However,<br />

the road to the <strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>World</strong> Champion -<br />

ship was initially a rocky one for the 24-yearold.<br />

Badovini had already been riding in the<br />

Superstock 1000 <strong>FIM</strong> Cup since 2003, but<br />

had been battling in vain for years with infe-<br />

AYRTON BADOVINI.<br />

rior material. Only in 2006 did he claim his<br />

first pole position and first victory in the<br />

series. In 2008 he lined up in the <strong>Superbike</strong><br />

<strong>World</strong> <strong>Championship</strong> for the first time with<br />

the Pedercini Kawasaki, but endured a difficult<br />

year. He used the 2009 season to take<br />

stock, only competing in individual races in<br />

the <strong>World</strong> <strong>Championship</strong> and the Super -<br />

stock 1000 <strong>FIM</strong> Cup. <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> Italia<br />

signed Badovini up for the 2010 season,<br />

finally giving him his long-awaited breakthrough.<br />

“I had two goals for 2010: to win the<br />

Superstock title and return to <strong>Superbike</strong>s,”<br />

says Badovini. “The fact we have achieved<br />

this is not a dream, but the result of hard and<br />

meticulous work on race preparation and<br />

concentrating on details. It is also the result<br />

of the unbelievable support I have been<br />

given by everyone in the team. I know the<br />

<strong>BMW</strong> S 1000 RR very well. However, I also<br />

know I face a challenging and long season,<br />

in which I will be up against strong and<br />

experienced opponents. Having said that, I<br />

am also convinced we are well equipped for<br />

the new season, following all the hard work<br />

the entire team put in over the winter.”<br />

Profile.<br />

Date of birth: 31 st May 1986 in Biella (IT)<br />

Place of residence: Castel Bolognese (IT)<br />

Marital status: Engaged<br />

Height: 1.67 m<br />

Weight: 63 kg<br />

Hobbies: Sport, photography, fishing<br />

Career highlights: 2010 title in the Superstock 1000 <strong>FIM</strong> Cup<br />

Website: www.ayrtonbadovini.it<br />

93<br />

CCUSTTOOMMEER RACIING


© speedbrain/Hubert Stanka<br />

The topic of off-road racing has always been<br />

synonymous with <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong>. For that<br />

reason it was an obvious step some years<br />

back when the 450 Sports Enduro marked<br />

<strong>BMW</strong>'s move into a very special motorcycle<br />

segment and competitive racing. In 2006,<br />

speedbrain race management was launched<br />

for <strong>BMW</strong>’s commitment to off-road<br />

sport. Top pros with years of success on the<br />

scene were employed in key positions.<br />

Director Wolfgang Fischer has managed the<br />

team since then, alongside Markus Theo -<br />

bald, who is responsible for the technical<br />

aspects as Project Manager.<br />

Following initial individual successes in<br />

2006 and 2007, <strong>BMW</strong> made its definitive<br />

return to professional enduro racing with the<br />

<strong>BMW</strong> G 450 X in 2008. Simo Kirssi (FI) claimed<br />

both the German and European Cross<br />

Country <strong>World</strong> <strong>Championship</strong>s in the very<br />

first year. At the WEC <strong>World</strong> Enduro Cham -<br />

pionship, Kirssi presented <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong><br />

with its first podium finish in its first complete<br />

<strong>World</strong> <strong>Championship</strong> season.<br />

In the 2009 season the <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> offroad<br />

team moved into the <strong>Motorsport</strong><br />

Competence Center in Stephanskirchen, in<br />

which the entire racing <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong><br />

racing team has been working together ever<br />

since. The same year yielded more success<br />

in the <strong>World</strong> Enduro <strong>Championship</strong>, cross<br />

country races and extreme enduros.<br />

OFF-ROAD RACING.<br />

In the 2010 season, <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong><br />

<strong>Motorsport</strong> lined up in the E2 class in the<br />

<strong>World</strong> Enduro <strong>Championship</strong> under the<br />

name “<strong>BMW</strong> Husqvarna <strong>Motorsport</strong>”. The<br />

off-road racing know-how of the two brands<br />

<strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> and Husqvarna Motor -<br />

cycles were systematically bundled on this<br />

project. Husqvarna Motorcycles has been<br />

part of the <strong>BMW</strong> Group since September<br />

2007. The team initially used the <strong>BMW</strong> G<br />

450 X, before moving to the TE449. This<br />

bike was developed by Husqvarna Motor -<br />

cycles in cooperation with specialists from<br />

<strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> and speedbrain. It is based<br />

on the Husqvarna chassis concept and<br />

combines the innovative, tried and tested<br />

450cc four-stroke engine developed by<br />

<strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong>.<br />

The successor is the TE511, which features<br />

a 450cc four-stroke engine from <strong>BMW</strong><br />

<strong>Motorrad</strong> and a frame from Husqvarna<br />

Motorcycles. The TE511 is used in 2011 in<br />

the E3 class of the <strong>World</strong> Endurance<br />

<strong>Championship</strong> by the “Husqvarna – CH<br />

Racing” team. <strong>BMW</strong> subsidiary Husqvarna<br />

Motorcycles is also lining up in other WEC<br />

Classes, the Motocross <strong>World</strong> Champion -<br />

ship (MX2), the Supermoto <strong>World</strong> Cham -<br />

pion ship, and the Gran National Cross<br />

Country series in the USA.<br />

95<br />

CCUSTTOOMMEER RACIING


© speedbrain/Willy Weyen<br />

<strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> has already mastered the<br />

first great adventure of 2011: the brand<br />

was once again represented at the legendary<br />

Dakar Rally by “<strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> by<br />

speedbrain”. Riders on bikes coming out<br />

of Munich had celebrated overall victory<br />

there in the 1980s and, most recently, in<br />

1999 and 2000.<br />

The team ran four <strong>BMW</strong> G 450 RR bikes<br />

at the desert marathon, which covered<br />

10,000 kilometres from Argentina, over the<br />

Andes, to Chile and back. They were ridden<br />

by Frans Verhoeven, whose role as a<br />

development rider was crucial in developing<br />

a competitive, independent rally bike<br />

from the <strong>BMW</strong> G 450 X, Brazil's Jose Helio<br />

Gonçalves Rodrigues Filho, also known as<br />

“Ze Helio”, Paulo Goncalves and Pedro<br />

Bianchi Prata.<br />

The comeback at the Dakar Rally started<br />

promisingly. Paulo Goncalves emerged as<br />

the spearhead of the team and picked up<br />

a podium finish on the third stage. The<br />

other three riders also remained within striking<br />

distance of the leading group. The<br />

fifth stage was a milestone for the young<br />

“<strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> by speedbrain” team:<br />

Goncalves rode his way to a superb stage<br />

victory – <strong>BMW</strong>'s first stage win at the<br />

Dakar Rally for ten years.<br />

THE DAKAR CHALLENGE.<br />

However, just one day later the notoriously<br />

tough Dakar Rally struck back. Ze Helio<br />

crashed and broke his collarbone, ending<br />

his rally. At the same time, Goncalves lost<br />

a lot of time due to a faulty generator. But<br />

there was worse to follow for him too: leading<br />

brilliantly on the eighth stage, he crashed<br />

heavily and broke his collarbone.<br />

Goncalves’ Dakar Rally was also over.<br />

Frans Verhoeven and Pedro Bianchi Prata<br />

battled on together through the tricky stages<br />

on the way to the finish in Buenos<br />

Aires. They also experienced the adversities<br />

of the rallying’s toughest test, in which<br />

success frequently alternates with setbacks.<br />

Having won the final stage from<br />

Cordoba to Buenos Aires, Verhoeven reached<br />

the finish in 15 th overall. Bianchi Prata<br />

ended the rally in 30 th .<br />

97<br />

CCUSTTOOMMEER RACIING


<strong>BMW</strong> MOTORRAD MOTORSPORT:<br />

THE SUCCESS STORY.<br />

SUCCESS AFTER SUCCESS –<br />

FOR NEARLY 90 YEARS.<br />

<strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> has been closely involved<br />

in motorsport since its earliest days. When<br />

Troy Corser and Leon Haslam start in the<br />

2011 <strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>World</strong> Champion ship with<br />

the <strong>BMW</strong> S 1000 RR they will follow in the<br />

tyre tracks of legends such as Ernst Jakob<br />

Henne (DE) and Schorsch Meier (DE), who<br />

almost 90 years ago laid the foundation for<br />

the most successful period in <strong>BMW</strong><br />

<strong>Motorrad</strong>’s motorsport history.<br />

In 1923 <strong>BMW</strong>, using its <strong>BMW</strong> R 32, first<br />

caused a furore on the track, while in<br />

1925/26 the <strong>BMW</strong> R 37 was the bike to<br />

beat. Various riders powered these machines<br />

to a total of over 200 victories and two<br />

German championship titles.<br />

In the 1930s <strong>BMW</strong> works riders scored<br />

impressive successes in International Six<br />

Day Trials events, thereby publicly proving<br />

the robustness, durability and power of the<br />

machines from Bavaria. Arduous tests in<br />

all-terrain competitions proved the production-readiness<br />

of <strong>BMW</strong> developed hydraulic<br />

telescopic forks, while the company’s<br />

unusual rear suspension was painstakingly<br />

tested to the limit in major off-road events.<br />

Ernst Jakob Henne went on to achieve<br />

remarkable fame with <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong>:<br />

Having set a new world speed benchmark<br />

on 19 th September 1929, he went on to<br />

improve his records on numerous occasions.<br />

Eventually, on 28th November 1937,<br />

the then-33-year-old rode a fully-enclosed<br />

500cc <strong>BMW</strong> producing 100 bhp to a new<br />

outright record of 279.503 km/h on a<br />

stretch of motorway near Frankfurt am<br />

Main. This was to stand for 14 years.<br />

In 1939 <strong>BMW</strong> works rider Meier made his<br />

name in the legendary Tourist Trophy on<br />

the Isle of Man by becoming the first foreigner<br />

to win the event’s famous Senior<br />

Race. After the war he became a German<br />

folk hero after riding a <strong>BMW</strong> Boxer motorcycle<br />

to no less than six titles up to 1953.<br />

<strong>BMW</strong> proved remarkably successful in<br />

sidecar racing, too: the “Königswellen”<br />

Boxer engine powered <strong>BMW</strong> riders to 19<br />

world titles between 1954 and 1974. With<br />

former German champion Walter Zeller’s<br />

(DE) second place behind John Surtees<br />

(GB) in the 1956 500cc Motorcycle<br />

<strong>Championship</strong>, <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong>’s first<br />

works motorsport campaign, though,<br />

came to an end.<br />

99<br />

HIISTTOORYY


THE SUCCESS STORY CONTINUES.<br />

Even without official works support, privateer<br />

riders continued proving the worth and sportiness<br />

of <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> products, particularly<br />

in the German Cross Country Cham -<br />

pion ship. In 1964/65 Se bastian Nachtmann<br />

(DE) won the title twice on a <strong>BMW</strong> R69S; the<br />

following year Kurt Tweesmann (DE) managed<br />

the same feat.<br />

Herbert Schek (DE), Richard Schalber<br />

(DE) and Werner Schütz (DE) also won<br />

championships on the forerunner of the<br />

GS models, with Rolf Witthöft (DE) in<br />

1980 even taking the European title.<br />

Thereafter the <strong>BMW</strong> R 80 G/S went into<br />

production – promptly writing the first<br />

chapter of <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong>’s enduro<br />

history. For over 30 years the abbreviation<br />

“GS” has stood for “Gelände and<br />

Sport” (Offroad and Sport). The <strong>BMW</strong> R<br />

80 G/S is thus the blood ancestor of current<br />

successes such as the <strong>BMW</strong> R 1200<br />

GS and the <strong>BMW</strong> F 800 GS.<br />

In the 1980s Rally versions of the <strong>BMW</strong> R<br />

80 GS shone on the Paris-Dakar Rally, with<br />

Hubert Auriol (FR) and Gaston Rahier (BE)<br />

each scoring two wins in the classic offroad<br />

event. In 1999 Richard Sainct added another<br />

Paris-Dakar victory to <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong>’s<br />

record by riding a modified single-cylinder<br />

<strong>BMW</strong> F 650 to overall victory. Twenty-eight<br />

at the time, the Frenchman won with a lead<br />

of four minutes and nine seconds – no more<br />

than a blink of an eye after 9,062 kilometres.<br />

That, though, was only the beginning: In<br />

2000 <strong>BMW</strong> claimed the first four places in<br />

the final classification, with Sainct once<br />

again taking top honours. Positions two to<br />

four were occupied by <strong>BMW</strong> riders Oscar<br />

Gallardo (ES), Jimmy Lewis (US) and Jean<br />

Brucy (FR).<br />

<strong>BMW</strong>’s first <strong>Superbike</strong> victory was scored<br />

in 1976 in Daytona (US) when Steve<br />

McLaughlin (US) won the first-ever AMA<br />

<strong>Superbike</strong> race by a photo-finish from <strong>BMW</strong><br />

team-mate Reg Pridmore (GB). They rode<br />

<strong>BMW</strong> R 90 S models entered by American<br />

<strong>BMW</strong> importer Butler & Smith. At the season<br />

finale, however, it’s Pridmore who takes<br />

the title, entering the history books as maiden<br />

American <strong>Superbike</strong> Champion. Nine<br />

years later plans for a Super bike <strong>World</strong><br />

<strong>Championship</strong> – catering specifically to production-based<br />

bikes – took shape. The<br />

series made its debut in 1988, and has since<br />

been consistently characterised by hardfought<br />

and spectacular races.<br />

For its works motorsport comeback, <strong>BMW</strong><br />

<strong>Motorrad</strong> elected to concentrate on endurance<br />

racing: Since 2007 its new Endurance<br />

Team has competed with the <strong>BMW</strong> Boxer<br />

HP2 in selected 24 Hour events staged within<br />

the framework of the Endurance <strong>World</strong><br />

<strong>Championship</strong>. In addition, <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong><br />

<strong>Motorsport</strong> has, since 2008, contested the<br />

Enduro <strong>World</strong> <strong>Championship</strong> with the <strong>BMW</strong><br />

G 450 X. 2011 also sees a return to the<br />

Dakar Rally with the “<strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> by<br />

speedbrain” team. <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> Motor -<br />

sport has officially contested the <strong>Superbike</strong><br />

<strong>World</strong> <strong>Championship</strong> since 2009. In that<br />

debut season the team’s riders scored 17<br />

top ten placings, with the team’s first pole<br />

position and podiums following in its second<br />

year.<br />

101<br />

HIISTTOORYY


IN REVIEW: THE 2009 SEASON.<br />

The stage was set for <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong><br />

<strong>Motorsport</strong> in the <strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>World</strong> Cham -<br />

pionship: in 2009 the team from Munich<br />

and Stephanskirchen faced the challenges<br />

of the elite class for production-based<br />

motorcycles for the first time. The decision<br />

by <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> to enter the <strong>World</strong><br />

<strong>Championship</strong> fray undoubtedly came in<br />

one of the toughest and most competitive<br />

phases in the history of the championship,<br />

which spans more than 20 years. The<br />

team went up against six renowned manufacturers.<br />

The 2009 season at a glance.<br />

The debut season was clearly intended as<br />

a learning and development year. Troy<br />

Corser and Ruben Xaus (ES) formed the<br />

riding line-up for Team <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong><br />

<strong>Motorsport</strong>. After 14 weekends, 28 races<br />

and 17 top-ten finishes, the new team<br />

could reflect positively on the season.<br />

At the end of 2009, the road version of the<br />

<strong>BMW</strong> S 1000 RR made its much-awaited<br />

debut. The feedback was extremely positive<br />

from the specialist press and customers<br />

alike. The supersports bike from<br />

Munich immediately became one of the<br />

top-sellers in the superbike sector.<br />

Event Troy Corser Ruben Xaus<br />

Qualifying Race Points Qualifying Race Points<br />

Phillip Island 17 th 8 th / 22 nd 8 19 th 19 th / 11 th 5<br />

Losail 16 th 9 th / 9 th 14 15 th 13 th / 10 th 9<br />

Valencia 14 th DNF / 15 th 1 19 th 13 th / 16 th 3<br />

Assen 15 th 10 th / 10 th 12 20 th 14 th / 11 th 7<br />

Monza 11 th DNF / DNS - 14 th 7 th / 9 th 16<br />

Kyalami DNS DNS / DNS - 15 th DNF / DNF -<br />

Salt Lake City 21 st 15 th / 17 th 1 24 th 21 st / 16 th -<br />

Misano 15 th DNF / 19 th - 18 th 14 th / 16 th 2<br />

Brno 6 th 5 th / 10 th 17 7 th DNF / DNS -<br />

Nürburgring 6 th 8 th / 6 th 18 DNS DNS / DNS -<br />

Imola 9 th 11 th / DNF 5 19 th 12 th / 13 th 7<br />

Magny-Cours 8 th 9 th / 10 th 13 15 th 11 th / 12 th 9<br />

Portimão 8 th DNF / 9 th 7 19 th 8 th / DNF 8<br />

103<br />

HIISTTOORYY


IN REVIEW: THE 2010 SEASON.<br />

After the 2009 debut season had served<br />

as a learning year, the <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong><br />

<strong>Motorsport</strong> team had undertaken to be up<br />

there challenging at the front of the field in<br />

the 2010 <strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>World</strong> Champion ship.<br />

One of the goals for the season – the first<br />

podium finish – was achieved by Troy<br />

Corser, once again alongside team-mate<br />

Ruben Xaus, as early as the fifth race<br />

weekend of the season in Monza. The<br />

team stepped onto the podium on two<br />

occasions and also clinched pole position<br />

in Misano. Corser and Xaus scored 201<br />

points between them, 60 more than the<br />

previous year.<br />

The 2010 season at a glance.<br />

However, the <strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>World</strong> Champion -<br />

ship was not the only stage, upon which<br />

the <strong>BMW</strong> S 1000 RR showed its potential.<br />

Other international and national series also<br />

saw <strong>BMW</strong> riders taste success, none more<br />

so than Ayrton Badovini. The Italian was<br />

the dominant force in the Superstock<br />

1000 <strong>FIM</strong> Cup and won nine of the season's<br />

ten races. Badovini already had his<br />

hands on the title by the end of the<br />

seventh race.<br />

Event Troy Corser Ruben Xaus<br />

Qualifying Race Points Qualifying Race Points<br />

Phillip Island 13 th 9 th / 7 th 16 15 th DNS / DNS -<br />

Portimão 8 th 9 th / 10 th 13 10 th 10 th / 12 th 10<br />

Valencia 5 th 4 th / 12 th 17 17 th 12 th / 11 th 9<br />

Assen 3 rd 5 th / 5 th 22 12 th DNF / 10 th 6<br />

Monza 12 th 8 th / 3 rd 24 6 th 6 th / DNF 10<br />

Kyalami 13 th 12 th / 7 th 13 15 th 14 th / 11 th 7<br />

Salt Lake City 15 th 5 th / 5 th 22 9 th 10 th / 11 th 11<br />

Misano 1 st 3 rd / 10 th 22 12 th DNF / DNF -<br />

Brno DNS DNS / DNS - 4 th 5 th / DNF 11<br />

Silverstone 7 th 10 th / DNF 6 8 th 17 th / 11 th 5<br />

Nürburgring 14 th DNF / 12 th 4 11 th 7 th / 9 th 16<br />

Imola 6 th 15 th / 11 th 6 8 th 12 th / 9 th 11<br />

Magny-Cours 9 th DNF / DNF - 11 th DNF / DNS -<br />

105<br />

HIISTTOORYY


1923:<br />

In September, <strong>BMW</strong> presents the first<br />

<strong>BMW</strong> motorcycle, the R 32, at the German<br />

Automobile Show in Berlin.<br />

1924:<br />

Franz Bieber claims the first title<br />

in the 500cc class of the German<br />

<strong>Championship</strong>. <strong>BMW</strong> picks up nine<br />

German <strong>Championship</strong>s in this class<br />

by 1939.<br />

1925:<br />

Josef Stelzer wins the 250cc class of the<br />

German <strong>Championship</strong>.<br />

1926:<br />

Rudolf Schleicher wins a gold medal at<br />

the international six-day race in England.<br />

1929:<br />

Ernst Henne clocks 216.75 km/h to set<br />

his first land speed world record.<br />

1933-1935:<br />

<strong>BMW</strong> claims three wins in the national<br />

competition of the international six-day<br />

race.<br />

1937:<br />

Ernst Henne sets his final land speed<br />

world record at 279.503 km/h.<br />

1938:<br />

Georg Meier wins the European<br />

<strong>Championship</strong> in the 500cc class.<br />

MILESTONES: 1923 TO 2000.<br />

1939:<br />

Georg Meier becomes the first non-Brit<br />

on a non-English bike to win the Senior<br />

TT on the Isle of Man.<br />

1947 to 1962:<br />

<strong>BMW</strong> wins 14 German <strong>Championship</strong>s in<br />

the 500cc class. The most successful<br />

riders are Georg Meier, Ernst Hiller and<br />

Walter Zeller.<br />

1954 to 1974:<br />

19 Drivers' and 20 Manufacturers' <strong>World</strong><br />

<strong>Championship</strong>s in the sidecar class.<br />

1956:<br />

Walter Zeller finishes runner-up in<br />

the 500cc <strong>World</strong> <strong>Championship</strong>s.<br />

1976:<br />

Reg Pridmore wins the AMA <strong>Superbike</strong><br />

<strong>Championship</strong> on a <strong>BMW</strong> R 90 S. It is the<br />

first <strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>Championship</strong> ever to be<br />

staged.<br />

1981 to 1985:<br />

Hubert Auriol and Gaston Rahier claim<br />

four victories at the Paris-Dakar Rally<br />

(two victories each).<br />

1999 and 2000:<br />

Richard Sainct claims two victories at<br />

the Paris-Dakar Rally.<br />

107<br />

HIISTTOORYY


MILESTONES: 2000 TO PRESENT DAY.<br />

2006:<br />

speedbrain race management formed for<br />

the <strong>BMW</strong> commitment to off-road racing.<br />

2007:<br />

Preparation for the <strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>World</strong><br />

<strong>Championship</strong>. Alpha Racing GmbH & Co<br />

KG is formed as a subsidiary of alpha<br />

Technik, and implements the superbike<br />

project together with <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong><br />

<strong>Motorsport</strong>. Work starts on developing<br />

the <strong>BMW</strong> S 1000 RR.<br />

2007:<br />

The endurance team starts at selected<br />

24-hour classics and races in the<br />

Endurance <strong>World</strong> <strong>Championship</strong> with<br />

the Boxer <strong>BMW</strong> HP2 Sport.<br />

2008:<br />

Return to professional enduro racing with<br />

the <strong>BMW</strong> G 450 X. Simo Kirssi wins the<br />

German and European Cross Country<br />

<strong>Championship</strong>s.<br />

2008:<br />

Move to the Competence Center at<br />

Kronstaudener Weg in Stephanskirchen<br />

(foundation stone laid on 26 th October<br />

2007). Initial test rides with the racing<br />

version of the <strong>BMW</strong> S 1000 RR in<br />

autumn.<br />

2009:<br />

On 17 th February, the new <strong>Superbike</strong><br />

<strong>World</strong> <strong>Championship</strong> Team <strong>BMW</strong><br />

<strong>Motorrad</strong> <strong>Motorsport</strong> is launched in<br />

Munich with riders Troy Corser and<br />

Ruben Xaus. The team competes in its<br />

first race in the series on 1 st March in<br />

Phillip Island, Australia. Corser clocks the<br />

fastest race lap at the first attempt with<br />

the <strong>BMW</strong> S 1000 RR. Corser and Xaus<br />

finish in the top ten on 17 occasions in<br />

the team’s debut year.<br />

2010:<br />

Troy Corser achieves Team <strong>BMW</strong><br />

<strong>Motorrad</strong> <strong>Motorsport</strong>’s first podium finish<br />

in the <strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>World</strong> <strong>Championship</strong> on<br />

9 th May in Monza, Italy. Corser also<br />

claims the first pole position on 26 th June<br />

in Misano, Italy.<br />

2011:<br />

<strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> returns to the Dakar<br />

Rally. <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> gives financial<br />

support to the private “<strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> by<br />

speedbrain” team.<br />

109<br />

HIISTTOORYY


STRONG PARTNERS.<br />

Premium Partner.<br />

3asy Ride is an attractive financing programme<br />

from <strong>BMW</strong> Financial Services for<br />

purchasers of new <strong>BMW</strong> motorcycles, with<br />

the enjoyment beginning even before you<br />

get on it. This offer is characterised by the<br />

figure 3: 3.3% annual percentage rate, 33month<br />

term, 33% down payment, 33%<br />

final rate and three options at the end of<br />

the contract (return the vehicle, follow-up<br />

financing, pay the final rate to acquire the<br />

bike) to give you access to your dream<br />

<strong>BMW</strong>.<br />

Official Partners.<br />

PARTNERS.<br />

The implementation of the <strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>World</strong><br />

<strong>Championship</strong> project for and with <strong>BMW</strong><br />

<strong>Motorrad</strong> <strong>Motorsport</strong> is conducted by alpha<br />

Racing GmbH & Co KG, an alpha Technik<br />

subsidiary specially founded for this purpose.<br />

alpha Technik has been involved in<br />

the highest level of motorsport since 1996.<br />

After just four years the team won the 2000<br />

<strong>World</strong> <strong>Championship</strong> in the Supersport<br />

class with Jörg Teuchert. More supersport<br />

and superbike titles were to follow in the<br />

IDM.<br />

Altran is a high-class, innovative technology<br />

consultancy company, combining<br />

qualified consultancy with the ability to<br />

independently handle large projects. At<br />

the heart of the innovation is Altran's<br />

general approach, which allows the company<br />

to transfer technology and knowhow<br />

from one industry to the next. With<br />

a passion for progress, Altran is willing to<br />

venture away from established methods<br />

and initiate new, trend-setting technological<br />

developments, making the firm an<br />

avant-gardist among innovative, hightech<br />

companies for all demanding re -<br />

search, development and consultancy<br />

projects. For us, passion means constantly<br />

enhancing and updating our deepseated<br />

engineering competence to<br />

master the increasingly complex techno-<br />

111<br />

PPAARTTNEERS


logy used by our automotive customers.<br />

Altran has been "Official Partner of <strong>BMW</strong><br />

<strong>Motorrad</strong> <strong>Motorsport</strong>" since 2009.<br />

The renowned fashion label bomboogie,<br />

which has its headquarters in Baldissero<br />

near Turin (IT), takes the American “nose<br />

art” from the 1940s and 1950s and combines<br />

this design style with its products’<br />

outstanding technical properties. “Low<br />

Visibility” is the bomboogie motto.<br />

--<br />

When you think of Castrol, you automatically<br />

think of the high-performance lubricant.<br />

Whether on the racetrack or on the<br />

roads: the name Castrol is synonymous<br />

with the most technologically advanced<br />

lubricant there is. With offices in about 70<br />

countries and over 100 agencies worldwide,<br />

Castrol is able to meet the diverse<br />

requirements of its customers around the<br />

world.<br />

Based on turnover, Pirelli Tyre is the fifthlargest<br />

tyre manufacturer in the world –<br />

and with profit levels among the highest on<br />

the entire market. In 2009 Pirelli Tyre<br />

generated a turnover of approx. 3.99 billion<br />

Euros. Pirelli has been the sole tyre provider<br />

for the <strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>World</strong> <strong>Championship</strong><br />

since 2003.<br />

Technical Partners.<br />

Sensors and data loggers from 2d Data -<br />

recording combine maximum measuring<br />

sensitivity and outstanding reliability with low<br />

weight, handy dimensions and a minimum<br />

resolution of 12 bit. The product range comprises<br />

all current sensors for data recording,<br />

as well as special developments.<br />

Akrapovic motorcycle exhaust systems set<br />

the benchmark on roads and racetracks.<br />

Along with the performance, appearance<br />

and fitting accuracy, the workmanship is<br />

among the best around when it comes to<br />

exhaust systems.<br />

A fascination with carbon fibre and the<br />

desire to implement his own creative ideas<br />

prompted Christian Becker to found<br />

Becker Carbon in 1999. Using this hightech<br />

material improves bikes’ aerodynamics,<br />

weight and performance.<br />

BMC, with its headquarters in Medicina<br />

near Bologna (IT), was founded in 1973<br />

and began producing air filters in 1995.<br />

BMC air filters can withstand extraordinary<br />

conditions and guarantee top performance<br />

on the racetrack.<br />

The name Brembo is synonymous with<br />

high-performance braking systems.<br />

Formed in 1961, the Italian company has<br />

played a part in the success of top motorsport<br />

teams for over 30 years. Brembo<br />

offers a wide range of products developed<br />

exclusively for competitive motorcycling<br />

and motorsport, which are designed to<br />

cope with the extreme demands experi -<br />

enced on the racetrack. Brembo now has<br />

over 36 production sites in 15 countries<br />

and employs around 6,000 workers.<br />

Dellorto has been manufacturing intake<br />

systems, carburettors, oil pumps, compressors<br />

and accessories for motorcycles and<br />

cars for three generations. The Italian company,<br />

with its headquarters close to Milan, is<br />

also active as a sponsor in numerous categories<br />

of motorsport. Dellorto has also been<br />

manufacturing in India since 2006.<br />

As the largest independent development<br />

partner in the world, the EDAG Group<br />

develops tailored and production-optimised<br />

concepts and solutions for the automobile<br />

and aviation industry. The range of<br />

services includes the development of<br />

complete modules, vehicles, derivatives<br />

and production facilities, as well as the construction<br />

of models, prototypes, specialpurpose<br />

vehicles and small batch production.<br />

In addition to its development service,<br />

the EDAG Group also provides complete<br />

production facilities for automotive welding<br />

and assembly lines.<br />

113<br />

PPAARTTNEERS


ESJOT-Antriebstechnik GmbH is a<br />

medium-sized company that has specialised<br />

in sprocket, gear systems, stamped<br />

and milled parts for over 80 years. As a<br />

system supplier, ESJOT supplies flanged<br />

bearings, axles, sprockets and matching<br />

roller chains from its own factory. The products<br />

are used in the motorcycle, automobile<br />

and foodstuffs industry, warehouses<br />

and transport systems, and plant construction.<br />

MRA-Klement GmbH from Teningen-<br />

Nimburg (DE) has been involved in racing<br />

for years and supplies high-quality windscreens<br />

for all established brands of<br />

motorcycle. Racing teams from around the<br />

world and many different racing series rely<br />

on MRA.<br />

Nissin Kogyo was formed in 1953 in Japan<br />

and manufactures various brake components.<br />

Nowadays the company operates<br />

14 manufacturing plants in nine countries<br />

throughout Europe, Asia and America.<br />

Nissin specialises in ABS solutions, the use<br />

of aluminium, and is committed to the consistent<br />

reduction of the weight of its products.<br />

NGK Spark Plug Co., LTD has its headquarters<br />

in Nagoya (JP). With subsidiaries<br />

in Europe, USA, Canada, South-East Asia,<br />

China, Korea, India, Brazil and Australia,<br />

NGK is one of the world’s leading suppliers<br />

of spark plugs, ignition cables, spark-plug<br />

connectors, glow plugs and lambda probes.<br />

Regina Chain was founded in 1919 in<br />

Merate near Milan (IT). It was initially known<br />

for production of bicycle chains. In 1939<br />

the Italian company manufactured the first<br />

motorcycle chain. Over 50 years later it is<br />

difficult to imagine motorsport without it.<br />

More than 250 world championship titles<br />

have been won with Regina Chain.<br />

O·Z Racing is the world’s market leader in<br />

the manufacturing of alloy wheels, not least<br />

thanks to numerous successes achieved in<br />

30 years on racetracks around the world.<br />

O·Z is represented in the <strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>World</strong><br />

<strong>Championship</strong>, Formula One, and many<br />

other four wheel motorsport series series.<br />

The Italian company is the supplier to<br />

various Euro pean manufacturers.<br />

Stahlwille manufactures high-quality<br />

assembly tools and intelligent torque technology<br />

for use in industry, car factories and<br />

aviation. The company was certified in<br />

accordance with DIN EN ISO 9001 in<br />

1992. Stahlwille products are manufactured<br />

internally, from design through to the<br />

finished product, at locations in Germany.<br />

Detailed precision is the motto of Thiel<br />

Frästechnik. Based in Biburg (DE), the<br />

company equips racing engines with chassis<br />

parts such as fork crowns, footrests,<br />

and brake and clutch levers.<br />

Titan Riedmeier is a company from<br />

Karlshuld (DE) specialising in titanium<br />

screws. Titan Riedmeier primarily manufactures<br />

special screws for motorcycles,<br />

including the <strong>BMW</strong> S 1000 RR. The company<br />

also uses titanium to make high-class<br />

jewellery rings.<br />

115<br />

PPAARTTNEERS


SERVICE.<br />

<strong>BMW</strong> Group<br />

Corporate Affairs<br />

Sports Communications<br />

Benjamin Titz<br />

D-80788 München<br />

Phone: +49 (0) 89–382 229 98<br />

Fax: +49 (0) 89–382 285 67<br />

Email: benjamin.titz@bmw.de<br />

SERVICE.<br />

Press information is available in German and English via email in various formats<br />

(text only, pdf, html), or per fax.<br />

Distribution list amendments to be communicated to Benjamin Titz:<br />

benjamin.titz@bmw.de<br />

Previews are usually distributed on the Monday before each<br />

<strong>Superbike</strong> <strong>World</strong> <strong>Championship</strong> race weekend.<br />

Practice, qualifying and race reports are distributed promptly after the respective<br />

session or end of the second race during race weekends.<br />

The latest <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> <strong>Motorsport</strong> media information and media kits are available<br />

online at: www.press.bmwgroup-sport.com<br />

Copyright-free photographs (for editorial use only) are available at:<br />

www.press.bmwgroup-sport.com<br />

Results and latest news are available on the official <strong>BMW</strong> <strong>Motorrad</strong> website,<br />

<strong>Motorsport</strong> section, at: www.bmw-motorrad.com<br />

117<br />

SEERRVVICEE

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