New RSV4R

RSV4 video by Raptors and Rockets

Dirtrider tests MXV

Dirtrider is the first US magazine to test the new Aprilia MXV 450. Go read the test here

Sorry for not posting much lately. Expect some big changes at Aprilia News coming in the next months...

Chaz Davies gets 2nd place on the RSVR at Laguna Seca

Monterey, CA – July, 2009 – The Factory Aprilia Millennium Technologies Team scored its first podium of the year with a brilliant second place finish by Chaz Davies. The race was a hard fought, epic battle that saw Davies fight all the way to the finish line. This is the team’s first podium finish of the year and Davies’ first podium finish since Daytona 2008.

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Movie of the weekend

Aprilia plans mid-size sportsbikes by 2012

Piaggio issued its development plan for 2009-2012 on Friday and while most of the news is relatively boring, there is one extremely interesting tidbit.

As for motorcycles, the Group intends to work on the growth of different brand names, also through the development of sport bikes with mid-sized engines.

It'd only be speculation to guess a capacities and configurations, but since Aprilia is Piaggio's sportsbike brand and participates in Superbike racing as a way to market its products, it'd make sense for that mid-size sportsbike to fit into current racing classes.

Source: Hell for Leather

Aprilia wrap up Brno testing

Aprilia Racing have wrapped up two days of testing at Brno, the Italian manufacturer team's designated SBK test track. Conditions were generally good although the rain fell on the afternoon of the final day, cutting short the session by a couple of hours. The team tested numerous components on the RSV4 in view of the upcoming Brno round and the second part of the season.

Despite a hairline crack in his right foot, Max Biaggi completed a total of 122 laps in the two days, the Italian getting down to a time of 2'00"75.

"It's a pity about the rain because it meant that we missed the last two hours," declared Biaggi, "and we could have done some more work. However we did get positive feedback, especially regarding the front suspension. I'm quite confident for the race at Brno at the end of the month, we've got another twenty days to work on the bike, this for us has more or less been the first real test since the start of the championship".

Shinya Nakano did 135 laps, including 16 in the wet, and was a shade slower than Max, with a time of 2'00"78 set on the first day. The Japanese rider also had a crash from which he emerged unscathed.

"I am very satisfied," said Nakano. "We tested a lot of engine and chassis components, and found improvements. The fact that we were there on our own allowed us to do a great job and really focus on the work. It will be interesting to test the new solutions at Imola against our main competitors".

"For sure it was a positive test," declared Luigi Dall'Igna, Aprilia Racing Technical Director. "We tested a lot of electronic, suspension and chassis components on the RSV4. We'll be using them again at the Pirelli tests at Imola in a fortnight's time, and if they continue to give a good response we'll use them for the Brno race".

WSBK Donington: Podium and Crashes for Aprilia

Max Biaggi started off well and was right behind the poleman Spies at the first curve, followed by Haga in third place. The three drivers had that something extra over their adversaries and they broke away from the pack, maintaining a pace that was just under the record set at the Bayliss track in 2007. After four laps, Haga began to lose ground and about halfway through the race he was losing one second per lap with respect to the pacesetters.

Spies continued to push ahead at a maniacal pace, but Biaggi didn’t budge at all, and recovered what he had lost on the final and slowest part of the track during the second part of the race, which was much more technical and had a faster pace. The two continued that way until Biaggi’s motorcycle suddenly died out at the last chicane due to a problem with the gas pump.

Fortunately, Max was able to restart his RSV4 and thanks to a lead of more than nine seconds on Haga, he still managed to finish the race in second place. The Roman driver and Noale’s four-stroke V cylinder motorcycle returned to the podium following the two third place finishes that were secured in Qatar, and a parenthesis surrounding the much discussed penalty in Race 1 at Monza.

Shinya Nakano finished in sixth place, at 21:286 behind Spies. The Japanese driver, who started off from fourth place, lost some ground at the beginning and fell behind the lead group. After recovering some ground thanks to a good rhythm, Shinya found himself battling Haslam and Byrne for fourth position. It was only during the final two laps that he lost a bit of ground against the two English drivers who were racing on their home turf.

Race 2 didn't went so well. During the second lap Nakano ran into in a frightening high side that fortunately didn’t result in any injuries. During the fourth lap Biaggi lost his front tyre at the first curve and slipped to the ground, but quickly got back on his bike and returned to the race. Upon re-entry, Max came into contact with one of his adversaries along the outer kerb and slipped back to twentieth place. During the crash, the Roman pilot ended up with a bruise and a minor injury to the third metatarsal of his right foot, but he still managed to finish the race in twentieth place. The degree of his injuries will not prevent Max from participating in the Aprilia’s private test run on the Brno track that is scheduled for July 1st and 2nd.

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RSV4 under the fairings

The guys at superbikeplanet posted some great pics of the RSV4 WSBK under the fairings. Go check them out here

Fourth place for KWS Aprilia at Barber Motorsports park

The Factory Aprilia Millennium Technologies scored it’s best finishes of the year in Sunday’s Daytona SportBike race with a sixth place result from Ben Thompson and a fourth place finish from Chaz Davies, only .027 of a second off the podium.

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Motorcycleusa reviews AMA Daytone Sportbikes competitors

Motorcycleusa tested three bikes that compete in the AMA Daytona Sportbike Championship. THe Buell 1125R, Aprilia RSV1000R and Kawasaki ZX-6R. There has been some contreversy about the rules in the series. Racing a 1125cc V-Twin against a 600cc inline four doesn't make a lot of sense. Or does it make sense? The guys at Motorcycleusa tested the bikes on the track to find out.

Read the review here and check out the video here

MCN tests the RSV4 on the road

Biaggi finishes strongly in Monza

Monza is synonymous with excitement, not only on the track, but also in the stands and more than 118,000 people rushed to the historic Autodrome throughout the weekend to witness two amazing races.

Race 1 was almost unbelievable both for how it evolved and its incredible final. Spies took off like a rocket with Fabrizio, Haga, Biaggi and Kagayama right behind him but the Yamaha and the Ducati broke away after five laps at a pace that was just under this little track’s record from last year. The three drivers battled it out for first place up to the very end, and Spies seemed to be in the best position up until the entry to the last curve, the legendary Parabolica, when his R1 ran out of gas and died. So, Fabrizio took the victory, just ahead of this teammate Haga, while Biaggi conquered third place, followed by Kiyonari who had moved up from the rear. However, when he climbed atop the podium, the loudspeaker announced a 20 second penalty for the Roman driver because of a suspected, yet highly debatable cut at the second chicane in the seventh lap. So Kiyonari took Biaggi’s place on the podium and Max dropped down to eleventh position. Nakano finished in thirteenth place after a decent recovery.

Instead, Spies made no mistakes in Race 2. He started off strong and broke away from everyone else, holding on to a five second margin halfway into the race up until he reached the chequered flag. Behind him there was a battle for the podium among Fabrizio, Kiyonari and Rea and Biaggi also got back in to the groove in the fifth lap after a bad start. However, at the tenth lap, the Roman driver made an error at the first chicane and lost contact with the group. He tried to recover, but ended up in fifth position in Rea’s wake. Michel Fabrizio stepped onto the second level of the podium after beating out Kiyonari in a gruelling battle. It was a twelfth place finish for Nakano, who had a good race and drastically improved his time.

Full report

Biaggi 7th in WSBK Monza Superpole

Max Biaggi qualified 7th in today's WSBK superpole at the famous Monza track in Italy. Nakano didn't do that good with a 17th place.

Full results

MCN RSV4 Launch report

Race report WSBK Valencia

Race 1

Biaggi had a good start from the eighteenth position, but got stuck in the pack at the first curve, miraculously remaining upright after a series of contacts with his adversaries. The Roman driver pushed forward, trying to recover as many positions as possible on the track, even though it proved to be extremely challenging to pass the other drivers. After the first lap he was in fifteenth place and by the fifth lap he had moved up to eleventh. Halfway through the race he was in ninth place and during the sixteenth lap he managed to pass Byrne on his Ducati to take over eighth position. Max tried his best to catch up to Sykes and Kagayama, but the attempt failed and in the end he crossed the finish line in eighth place at 16:316 behind Haga.

"We analyzed all of the available data after yesterday’s Superpole,” declared Luigi Dall’Igna, Technical Director of Aprilia Racing, “and we didn’t encounter any specific problems with the bike. We brought a number of novelties with us to try out here in Valencia. Some of them were used during the race, and gave us very positive results. We decided not to use the others because they still need to be developed. We can certainly say that we brought a much more evolved RSV4 here with respect to the round in Qatar.”

Race 2

Biaggi started off well, but just as in Race 1 ended up stuck in the pack at the first curve. This time, however, he managed to avoid contact with his adversaries. The Roman driver threw himself into the race in an attempt to recover as many positions as possible and he was in tenth place by the eighth lap. Then a battle for eighth place ensued with Sykes, Kiyonari and Hopkins, which saw the drivers fighting for impossible breakaways along the backstretch, perhaps the only place where it is possible to pass on this track. During the twentieth lap Max managed to launch a final attack and finished the race in eighth place.
Shinya Nakano is doing well after undergoing surgery yesterday to repair the compound fracture to his left shoulder blade.
The operation, which required the application of a metal plate and eight screws, went off without a hitch and now Shinya and his physicians are deciding if he will undergo physical therapy here in Spain or return to Japan.

"It was a very difficult race,” said Biaggi. “I gave it my all, but it’s very difficult to pass on this track and I also took a lot of risks trying to do even better. These two eighth place finishes may seem disappointing, but after the bad results in the Superpole, it really was impossible to do any better. We did pretty well during the single-lap trials, but we weren’t able to set the pace with the racing tyres. My team-mate and I, to whom I wish a speedy recovery, experienced the same problem with vibrations at the back of the bikes that we had at Philip Island. We tried changing the alignment but the situation didn’t improve and the Superpole reflected the situation we found ourselves to be in. This can be viewed as a success in that it has taught us to better evaluate the problems that we encounter and find solutions as quickly as possible.”

Bad saturday for Biaggi and Nakano

Friday was a good day for the Aprilia team with Biaggi scoring a 1st place in the Qualifying session. On Saturday the team wasn't that fortunate. Nakano broke his collarbone during the 2nd Qualifying this morning and will be out all weekend. It is unknown how serious his injury is and how long it will take until he is recovered. Biaggi also had a bad saturday with a Superpole that didn't went according to plan. He didn't make it through the first round and now he needs to start in 18th place..

Full results of Superpole

Biaggi, Aprilia claim Friday pole at Valencia

Max Biaggi has put the new Aprilia RSV4 on provisional pole for round three of the 2009 World Superbike Championship, at Valencia.

During a topsy-turvy opening day, when many riders struggled to set fast lap times in both sessions, Biaggi claimed a solid third place in free practice - then lowered his best lap time by one-second during the afternoon qualifying hour, allowing the Italian to edge out Ben Spies by 0.132sec.

Superstar rookie Spies, winner of three of the first four races, had been just 17th fastest in free practice, but made quick progress up the order during qualifying. The American steered his factory-backed Yamaha around the Spanish circuit a massive 1.783sec than he'd managed in free practice, squeezing out Ducati's championship leader Noriyuki Haga by just 0.001sec as a result. Haga was ninth fastest in free practice.

Biaggi's Aprilia team-mate Shinya Nakano qualified eleventh.

Aprilia RSV4 launch videos and pictures

Official pics

New RSV4 videos

Aprilia Shiver 750 GT and GT ABS official video

Great weekend for Aprilia at Qatar

Yamaha's WSBK rookie rider Ben Spies took a spectacular double win in the second round of the Hannspree FIM Superbike World Championship at the Losail circuit in Qatar. The 24 year-old Texan powered to his third win in the opening four races, dominating both today's 18-lappers and twice finishing ahead of Noriyuki Haga (Ducati) and Max Biaggi (Aprilia), who were classified second and third to make up identical podiums. Nakano scored 4th in the first race and 7th in the 2nd race.

Max Biaggi (Aprilia Racing): "I tried to keep up and have a good rhythm without losing concentration. We have a new bike and every session we try to improve, but it's not easy to win right away. These guys did a great job, I rode very hard and today I was comfy, both front and rear, and looking good."

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Biaggi starts 3rd at Qatar, Nakano 6th

After dominating the two WSBK qualifying sessions, Ben Spies (Yamaha World Superbike) powered to the same result in Superpole with his second success in two races. The 24 year-old Texan lapped the 5.380 km Losail desert circuit in a time of 1 minute 57.280 seconds, almost eight-tenths of a second quicker than Troy Corser's best mark from 2008. The starting-grid was similar to the opening round in Australia, but this time Jakub Smrz on a customer Guandalini Ducati 1098R placed second, a fraction of a second behind Spies, and ahead of Max Biaggi (Aprilia Racing) in third. The front row of the grid was completed by Noriyuki Haga (Ducati Xerox), who managed to move up to a fourth place slot following two below-par qualifying sessions.

With fifth place on the grid, Tom Sykes (Yamaha World Superbike) confirmed that the four-cylinder Japanese R1 machine is proving to be a very competitive machine indeed this year, and the British rider will start tomorrow's two 18-lap races with Japan's Shinya Nakano (Aprilia Racing), Spain's Carlos Checa (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda) and Shane Byrne (Sterilgarda Ducati) from the UK alongside.

Max Biaggi (Aprilia Racing): "I'm very happy again to be fighting for the pole position, I think we did a very good job today. We tried to find the best set-up on both bikes, and I'm going to chose the one that feels the most comfortable. I have already made my tyre choice and feel quite comfortable so thanks again to my squad, they are great guys."

Biaggi 4th in 1st WSBK Qualification at Qatar

Yamaha's Ben Spies storms to provisional pole position for the second round of the World Superbike Championship in Qatar, ahead of Jonathan Rea and Carlos Checa.

The first qualification of the WSBK race in Qatar also went quite well for the Aprilia team. Biaggi finished strong in 4th place and Nakano followed in 10th.

Full results

Aprilia USA's Sales Were Up 66.4% In 2008

Aprilia USA, the U.S. importer and distributor of innovative, technology-driven motorcycles and scooters, finished 2008 with strong sales gains across its expanding product range. The company sold 66.4 % more bikes and scooters to customers in the U.S. market, spurred by the addition of four all-new motorcycles, three fresh scooter models and continued strengthening of its dealer network. Along with plenty of new product arriving from the Noale, Italy based factory, Aprilia USA also continued to add racing successes to its long list of championships, such as the U.S. company’s second consecutive MOTO-ST road race championship and first place in the 2008 Pikes Peak International Hill Climb 750cc category.

For 2009, company executives see more opportunity. “Our 2008 sales results are remarkable, especially in light of overall declining motorcycle industry sales,” says Gary Pietruszewski, Vice President Sales and Marketing, Piaggio Group Americas. “Much of our success can be attributed to a broader product range in dealer showrooms. For 2009 we expect to continue sales growth, thanks to new product like the much-anticipated RSV4 superbike and continued expansion of the dealer network. Add our new Aprilia Adventure demo program, new race teams competing in the AMA Daytona SportBike series and Aprilia’s return to World Superbike racing, and you have all the ingredients for a very exciting year.”

Aprilia’s U.S. motorcycle sales rose over 19 percent, fueled by new introductions like the company’s first-ever mid-size V-Twin, the SL 750 Shiver. Industry accolades for the Shiver include its superior rideability, all-day comfort and signature technical innovations, such as its unique tri-map ride-by-wire system.

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Chaz Davies 7th on the KWS RSVR at Daytona

Debuting under the lights at Daytona International Speedway, the new Daytona SportBike series kicked off the season with a first-ever night-time running of the Daytona 200 on March 6. No less than 9 different motorcycle brands lined up in the 84 bike field giving a very different and very welcomed new tone to two wheeled racing in the US.

Chaz Davies scored a very admirable 7th place on his KWS Aprilia RSVR in the Daytona 200 last weekend. He also scored the fastest lap of the race. His teammate Ben Thompson finished 22nd.

Full results

Biaggi fights for podium to the end

The Aprilia WSBK team got off to a pretty good start of the season. While Race 1 was not so succesful because of tire problems(Biaggi finished 11th and Nakano 15th), race 2 was a lot better with Biaggi taking the lead in the beginning of the race and battling for podium positions. After that he dropped back a bit to 4th place where he was battling with Fabrizio and Haslam. Unfortunately he ended up in the gravel in the last lap because he had to go wide not to hit the riders in front of him who took a strange line into the corner. But a 4th or 5th place was definately possible, unfortunately the gravel incident caused Biaggi to finish in 15th place. Nakano finished in 12th place but was battling for place 6 the whole race untill he dropped back with tyre problems.

It looks like the Aprilia RSV4 certainly has some great potential but they need to put some more development time into it to unleash its full potential.

Detailed report with interviews

Biaggi gets 2nd place in WSBK Superpole!

Texan WSBK rookie Ben Spies (Yamaha World Superbike) powered to the first Superpole win of the season in an exciting opening round session at Phillip Island in Australia. The 24 year-old took the top slot on his YZF R1 machine with a time of 1 minute 31.069 seconds. In the new ‘knock-out' formula, Italian Max Biaggi scored a second place grid slot, his best ever performance in Superpole, on the brand new Aprilia, the Italian manufacturer returning to Superbike after a seven-year break. The front row of the grid is completed by Britain's Jonathan Rea (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda) and Jakub Smrz of the Czech Republic, top Ducati rider on a private Guandalini machine. Shinya Nakano finished at a respectable 9th place.

Max Biaggi (Aprilia Racing) commented: "It's a big sensation for me to come back after so many years to Aprilia with this new project, the bike is good already. We still have to see which is the best way to go but for now qualifying was very good and exciting. I don't know about race pace for tomorrow but this is an encouraging start. When I saw everyone going 31s, I thought 'wow, that is fast'. I had some trouble in the free practice before qualifying, we swapped bikes and it was not my favourite one but we made a great job."

Full results

Highlight video of the Superpole

Nakano 6th in First Practice at Philip Island

Today was the first official Practice of the WSBK round at Philip Island.

Shinya Nakano, who put in another impressive performance on the Aprilia to go a provisional sixth. Team-mate Max Biaggi had run second in the early stages, but failed to better his time as the conditions improved and would eventually end up 11th.

Full qualifying times

Aprilia RSV4 magazine video #1

RSV4 WSBK in 2009 Livery

Aprilia finally presented the RSV4 in its 2009 Livery colors. It's looks a lot like the testing version only now it has white numberboards, a couple of small sponsors and a RSV4 logo on the sides. The small sponsors are Rifle (a jeans brand) and Midac (batteries manufacturer). The lack of a big sponsor is also surprising. Just like the BMW team, the WSBK Aprilia team doesn't seem to have a big sponsor. In the post below this one you can also see Max Biaggi in his new leathers.

Superbikeplanet interviews Max Biaggi

Superbikeplanet interviewed Max Biaggi about the new Aprilia project and his thoughts about the new season. Very interesting read. Go check out the interview here

Biaggi fastest at Philips Island WSBK test

Max Biaggi has shown the Aprilia RSV4 to be competitive ahead of the 2009 FIM Superbike World Championship by topping the test times in Australia.

Ahead of the first race of the season at Phillip Island on March 1 the Italian was quickest despite suffering a fall.

Biaggi was also close to the the quickest race lap at the circuit set by Troy Bayliss last season on his way to the world title on Ducati.

Biaggi said: "We completed every test possible with all the material available, in every condition and we know exactly the problems we are facing.

"Now is the time to make some important modifications, obviously not for the next race because that's impossible, but shortly after."

Biaggi's team-mate Shinya Nakano was also on the pace along with Regis Laconi who was able to resume testing on the privateer DFX Ducati 1098RS even after he fell and fractured a finger on his left hand.

Kawasaki's Broc Parkes set good laps on the Kawasaki ZX10R F09, no doubt helped by the attendance of nine engineers from the Japanese company's racing division.

Honda Stiggy duo Leon Haslam and Roberto Rolfo also showed good from and their team-mate Anthony West set the best time of the four FIM World Supersport Championship riders on duty.

The final test session at Phillip Island takes place on Saturday and Sunday, with factory teams from Ducati, BMW, Suzuki Alstare, Honda Ten Kate and Yamaha taking part.

Simoncelli completes test on top

Reigning champion Marco Simoncelli completed his two-day 250GP test at Valencia by claiming the fastest time once again.

The Italian, returning to action after winning last year's title, lapped quicker than he did on the first day, lowering his best time to 1min 36.4secs, while his 80 laps also made him the busiest rider on track.

The Metis Gilera RSA rider was run closer this time though, edging out Roberto Locatelli by two tenths of a second, while Honda's Hector Faubel rounded out the top three.

Rathapark Wilairot, Alex Baldolini and Karl Abraham completed the top six runners.

Valencia 250cc test – day two (top six)

1. Marco Simoncelli Gilera 1min 36.4secs
2. Roberto Locatelli Gilera 1min 36.6secs
3. Héctor Faubel Honda 1min 36.7secs
4. Rathapark Wilairot Honda 1min 36.8secs
5. Alex Baldolini Aprilia 1min 37.6secs
6. Karel Abraham Aprilia 1min 38.5secs

Simoncelli quickest on return

Marco Simoncelli kicked off preparations for the defence of his 250GP crown in style, the Italian topping the timesheets during pre-season testing at Valencia.

With his anticipated closest rival Alvaro Bautista restricted to the sidelines after breaking his collarbone during the last test at Valencia, Simoncelli was free to comfortably out pace his rivals with a best lap of 1min 37.2secs.

The Metis Gilera RSA rider's closest competition came courtesy of Héctor Faubel on the Thai Honda, although he was left half a second down on Simoncelli after a full day of action.

Elsewhere, four other 250GP riders were on track, with Alex Baldolini third quickest, ahead of Roberto Locatelli, Rathapark Wilairot and Karel Abraham, the latter completing a total of 80 laps but proving almost four seconds slower than Simoncelli.

Valencia 250cc test – day one (top six)

1. Marco Simoncelli Gilera 1min 37.2secs
2. Héctor Faubel Honda 1min 37.7secs
3. Alex Baldolini Aprilia 1min 38.3secs
4. Roberto Locatelli Gilera 1min 38.4secs
5. Rathapark Wilairot Honda 1min 38.5secs
6. Karel Abraham Aprilia 1min 41.0secs

Another Biaggi video

Short clip of Biaggi on the street RSV4

Aprilia will also field a Superstock team

Roadracing World has the entry list and there are two Aprilia RSV4s entered under the JiR Junior Team Gabrielli banner.

One going to Max Biaggi's 21 year old Nephew Federico, and the other to part time 250 GP rider Federico Sandi.

Though Superstock does not generate the publicity of Superbike, the competion in that series is always close and almost always a better indication of the performance envelope possible from the machine that you will actually get to buy. Superstock regulations allow far less modification than Superbike, with the occasional exception of Ducati shoving an RS model into the series...

Aprilia won 4 races in Superstock from seasons 1999 to 2001 with Daniel Olivier of Spain riding the original Mille-R.

RSV4 in windtunnel

The factory Aprilia World Superbike team have conducted a number of wind tunnel tests to optimise the aerodynamics of the all new Aprilia RSV4.

Japanese rider Shinya Nakano spent a day in the wind tunnel at the Department of Industrial engineering at the University of Perugia, Italy.

Working with Aprilia race technicians, the aim of the test was to ascertain the current aerodynamic qualities of the bike and rider with a view to making additional improvements throughout 2009.

Nakano said: "It has been a very positive and interesting experience and I was impressed by the ability of engineers and the staff at the University of Perugia.

"We conducted several tests on my riding position, making the last little adjustments to obtain the best possible aerodynamics. The data that we collected will work to bring new solutions during the course of the season.

"I have to say that the current aerodynamics of the RSV4 are already good and did not need any immediate action.

Italian Max Biaggi will get his day in the wind tunnel in order to make adjustments to his set-up on 10th February.

Both Biaggi and Nakano will be back in action on 16th and 17th February where they will test at the Phillip Island circuit prior to the opening round of the WSB championship on 1st March.

Chaz Davies will ride the RSVR in AMA Daytona Sportbike

The Factory Aprilia Millennium Technologies Team signs Chaz Davies to Race Aprilia RSV1000R in AMA Daytona SportBike.

Charleston, SC - Jan. 2009 - The Factory Aprilia Millennium Technologies team is proud to announce the signing of 2008 Daytona 200 winner Chaz Davies. Davies brings a wealth of experience to the team and will be an integral part in developing the Aprilia RSV1000R for Daytona SportBike competition.

Davies has a storied carrier in professional racing. Since his first mini-moto race at age seven, Davies has gone on to become one of the brightest young stars in the international racing community. Twenty-one year old Davies raced in the 125cc and 250cc Grand Prix World Championships for five years and MotoGp at the end of 2007. Davies still carries the honor of being the youngest rider to score points in a World Championship event. In 2006 Davies 250cc Gran Prix folded due to lack of sponsorship and Davies came to the US to race for Celtic Racing. America has been good to Davies, as he has been able to score two poles, three podiums and a race win in his two years in the AMA Championship.

Chaz Davies - "I am very excited about this new project. I have rode Aprilias in the World Championship and I know what Aprilia can do when they decide to go racing. I had a chance to test the RSV1000R with the KWS Motorsports team last week and I was very impressed. The Aprilia is awesome and the team is spot on."

Kevin Hunt (Team Owner) - "Chaz is going to be a great addition to the team. He has raced at a world level and he has won races here in the US. He knows how to get the job done. I think that Chaz and Ben Thompson will work well together and their riding styles will compliment each other. The best equipment in the world is useless without a great rider and we feel like we have two of the best riders in the paddock with Chaz and Ben."

The Factory Aprilia Millennium Technologies Team is proudly sponsored by:
Aprilia USA, Millennium Technologies, Pit Bull, LeoVince Exhaust, Motion Pro, K&N Filters, Bazzaz Performance, Sebimoto, Yoyodyne, EK Chains, BG Lubricants, Performance Friction Brakes, Worldwide Bearing, Zero Gravity, Chicken Hawk Racing, Slednecks, Hel Brake Lines

Bautista tops opening day at Jerez

Alvaro Bautista set the pace during the first day of 2009 250cc testing, at Jerez on Monday, when the local star outpaced fellow former 125cc world champion Thomas Luthi by just over 0.3sec.

Third fastest behind the Aprilia one-two was Thai Honda rider Ratthapark Wilairot (+0.525sec), while former factory KTM rider Hiroshi Aoyama was a fraction slower in fourth on his debut for Team Scot Honda.

Another pair of 125cc world champions, Gabor Talmacsi (+1.1sec) and Mike di Meglio (+2.007sec), will be stepping up to the quarter-litre class in 2009, and the pair set the fifth and sixth fastest lap times on Monday.

Reigning 250cc world champion Marco Simoncelli was not present.

Jerez 250cc test - day one:

1. Alvaro Bautista Aprilia 1min 44.351sec
2. Thomas Luthi Aprilia 1min 44.675sec
3. Ratthapark Wilairot Honda 1min 44.928sec
4. Hiroshi Aoyama Honda 1min 44.978sec
5. Gabor Talmacsi Aprilia 1min 45.361sec
6. Mike Di Meglio Aprilia 1min 46.358sec
7. Raffaele De Rosa Honda 1min 46.425sec
8. Lukas Pesek Aprilia 1min 46.500sec

Julian Simon led an Aspar Aprilia one-two during the first day of 2009 125cc testing at Jerez on Monday.

Simon lapped the Spanish Grand Prix circuit in a best time of 1min 48.875sec, almost half a second quicker than Smith, with Marc Marquez a fraction slower in third for KTM.

Sandro Cortese was almost two-seconds from Simon in fourth place for Derbi, with 2008 British Grand Prix winner Scott Redding a further 0.12sec back for Blusens Aprilia.

Biaggi and Nakano about the Portimao test

Biaggi: "I came here convinced that my times could be improved from the last test, but we have found several small and unexpected problems. We are not leaving Portimao cheerful but at least our technicians have recorded a lot of information that should be used to find solutions to our problems. In the last lap I had an ugly crash but I was lucky to only get some hematomas."

Nakano: “We expected big improvements on these three days but the unstable weather hasn't given a chance to test much, which added to my track unawareness has made everything more difficult. We have found some new and small problems in the bike, but we now have a good basis and the right direction to follow to improve and develop the RSV4"

Portimao test - Superpole simulation

Shane Byrne has made it a clean sweep of fastest times as the first World Superbike test of the 2009 season came to a close with a simulation of the new 'Superpole' format.

Adopting a Formula 1-style knockout system for 2009, organisers allowed the 20 fastest riders from yesterday's afternoon session to participate, eliminating the four slowest initially before splitting the group from 16 to the final eight. This method will be adopted for the remainder of the year.

British riders featured well, with Jonathan Rea and Leon Haslam posting the third and fifth quickest times respectively, the pair being split by Max Neukirchner in second and Noriyuki Haga in fourth.

One lap specialist Troy Corser proved his qualifying skills transfer well to the new format as he hauled BMW into sixth position for easily their most convincing showing yet, while Yukio Kagayama and DFX's Regis Laconi also made an appearance in the mock 'shootout'

In addition, the flag-to-flag practice was included in the very last practice session of all three days, with riders coming in to change to their spare bikes when the signal was given, without any interruption of the simulated race session.

Previously, eight riders had been eliminated from the running, including the Hondas of Carlos Checa and Ryuichi Kiyonari, the Yamahas of Ben Spies and Tom Sykes, the Aprilias of Max Biaggi and Shinya Nakano, as well as Michel Fabrizio and Jakub Smrz.

Broc Parkes, David Salom, Alex Polita and Brendan Roberts were cut following the first session.

Biaggi finished 11th and Nakano 12th in the final rankings.

Day 2 at the Portimao WSBK test

Shane Byrne resumed his status as the rider to beat so far during day two of World Superbike testing at Portimao, the Brit breaking the lap record in the process.

With the circuit finally reaching a state with which to set representative lap times, Byrne, who skipped the damp morning session, went straight back to the top of the timesheets with a best lap of 1min 43.294secs – just under a tenth quicker than Troy Bayliss' lap record and also on Pirelli race rubber.

Shinya Nakano, meanwhile, got the better of Aprilia team-mate Max Biaggi, albeit down in 17th and 18th positions respectively, two seconds from the lead.

Full Results

First day of testing on Portimao

The first day of testing at the circuit of Portimao in Portugal has ended. It was a rainy day which didn't help the Aprilia team that don't have a lot of experience testing the RSV4 in the rain.

Both Max Biaggi and Shinya Nakano proving off the pace in 16th and 23rd, two and four seconds away from the leading pace as they continue to work on the bike's development.

Testing will continue over the next two days.

Bill will ride MX1 for Aprilia in 2009

Swiss rider Julien Bill has signed a long term contract with the Aprilia MX1 factory team; in the 2009 MX1 World Championship he will profit from the number one status.

After his last appearance on Honda two weeks ago in front of his home crowd at the Supercross of Geneva, Bill will entirely concentrate on his new task.

“The race in Geneva was very difficult for me. Due to a strong flu the week before Geneva, there I could not show my full potential. Furthermore I had to undertake a small surgery to get finally rid of a 5 year old injury,” the Swiss said.

“This intervention allows me to be again at 100% of my capacities. I am now very happy being able to focus entirely on my new bike.

“A two day test session in Italy has already been done and I am really surprised how well the bike behaved. The engine is really powerful and the general impression of the bike is good too. In order to improve it further on, we will work on the suspensions and we might change them but our aim is to surprise everybody by realising some really good results.

“Of course, there is still a huge work ahead of me but I am delighted to do a major part of this development. Apart from Aprilia I will be supported next year by Sinisalo, Tcx, Shoei, Scott and Agip."

At first I would like to state that Aprilia News is not dead! There is just absolutely no Aprilia news to be found these dark and cold days. News will pick up again at the end of January when Aprilia returns to testing the RSV4. In the meanwhile I found a cool picture gallery full of high res pics of the RSV4. With and without clothes. They come from the Aprilia Press database.

Go check out the pics here