#suzuki

For the third time in four seasons, Repsol Honda supernova Marc Marquez claimed the MotoGP world championship. He did it by winning the Japanese Grand Prix while the Bruise Brothers of the factory Yamaha team – Jorge Lorenzo and the legend Valentino Rossi – choked on their own bile, both riders crashing out of a race in which neither could afford the slightest error. This unlikely confluence of events is responsible for, among other things, the very pedestrian championship celebration prior to the podium. Nothing like the Bushido spectacle we watched in 2014.

The latest trend among in motorcycling is introducing a new superbike alongside a higher-spec premium versions. European manufacturers like Ducati and MV Agusta had been doing this for a while but the Big Four Japanese OEMs are now joining in, first with Yamaha and its YZF-R1 and YZF-R1M. Earlier, Tom Roderick gave us a look at Honda’s CBR1000RR SP and SP2 and now he takes us through Suzuki’s new 2017 GSX-R1000 and GSX-R1000R.

Suzuki drew inspiration from its classic DR-Z Dakar racer and its production version the DR-Big, in updating its V-Strom 650 and 1000 models. Each available in regular and wire-spoke XT versions, the 2017 V-Strom 650s are available in dealerships now while the V-Strom 1000 models will arrive in showrooms early next year as an early 2018 model.

The last quarter of each year gives us a glimpse into the future as motorcycle manufacturers begin to display the latest machines we’ll see in showrooms during the upcoming year. Last month saw the introduction of a new engine platform from Harley-Davidson, plus the unveiling of more than 20 new or revised bikes at the biennial Intermot moto show in Germany.

Round 15 of the 2016 MotoGP championship is the first leg of the annual Pacific flyaway, three races in three weeks during which the title will be decided. Unlike 2013 and last year, this year’s finale at Valencia will not be the dramatic season-decider they love hosting in Spain in November. A question gaining traction in the paddock raises the issue of whether it’s the Honda winning the title or the Yamahas losing it. Big Blue hasn’t had a win this year since Valentino Rossi’s win over Marc Marquez at Catalunya back in early June.

We were definite fans of  the GSX-S750 when it was new to the U.S. two years ago, and now that Suzuki appears to have addressed our chief complaints, we’re prepared to be even bigger ones.

If a new GSX-R1000 isn’t exactly what you had in mind, maybe something in a heavily revised Suzuki V-Strom? Both the 650 and 1000 Stroms received a lot of attention, including this V-Strom 650 XT above, complete with wire spoke wheels. They’re 19- and 17-inches of course, to accept more serious rubber for the serious off-road adventure rider. The non-XT version comes with cast wheels.

Well, we knew a new Suzuki GSX-R1000 was on the way, but I don’t know if we were expecting two of them? The one with one “R” is for riding, the one with two – GSX-R1000R – is for racing and packed with lots of things Suzuki says make it ready for Superstock competition right out of the box, oh drool… Both bikes of course are lighter, more powerful and meaner than any GSX-R heretofore. And it’s about time, because it’s been since 2009.

For many, Autumn is the beginning of the end of another riding season. But for any motorcycle enthusiast, Autumn is also the time of the year when we see the fruits of R&D departments being unveiled, enticing us with fresh motorbikes that we’ll be anxious to ride in the year ahead.

The fall motorcycle show season kicks off next week in Cologne, Germany, at the semi-annual Intermot exposition. Although manufacturers try to keep secret the news of upcoming bikes that are nearing production, we already know of several that are due to be revealed this autumn. Here’s a list of some of what we’re expecting to see this year:

Repsol Honda’s suddenly cerebral Marc Marquez took a big step toward seizing the 2016 MotoGP title with a formidable win on the Spanish plain. By thumping the factory Yamaha Bruise Brothers, he increased his margin from 43 to 52 points with four rounds left. A mistake on Lap 3 took him from first to fifth, but he remained patient, kept his powder dry, and went through, all stealthy-like, on Andrea Dovizioso, Maverick Vinales, Jorge Lorenzo and, finally, Valentino Rossi on the way to his first win on Spanish soil since 2014.

Suzuki’s GSX-S1000 is another one of my personal faves; I like the way it looks, nobody can argue with the way the 140-plus horsepower four-banger goes – and the price is right too. Where else are you going to get that kind of grunt in a beautiful blue package for $10,499? Gabe was spot-on with his recent column.

If Motorland Aragon were located roughly 50 miles west of its current location, it would sit in the exact middle of nowhere. In 2010, the dusty outlier was to be a temporary emergency replacement for the ill-fated Hungarian GP track at Balatonring, which never got finished. It has since become a fixture on the calendar, dreaded by journalists, a fourth Spanish round seeming to be exactly what the sport, with its international ambitions, doesn’t need, what with so many countries and venues banging on the door to get in. Nonetheless, here we, or they, actually, are.

The picturesque Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli welcomes the 2016 round at a critical point in the season. Repsol Honda phenom Marc Marquez sits on the cusp of clinching his third premier class title, with the Movistar Yamahas of Vale Rossi and Jorge Lorenzo in desperate pursuit. Four non-Aliens have won the last four rounds. Parity has set in. The Suzuki, factory Ducati and LCR Honda teams are legit. The Aliens finally have company – the premier class is no longer just their sandbox.

A red flag on Lap 1 lead to a 19-lap race on Sunday in the British midlands. For the first time since 2007, a Suzuki won a premier class race, Maverick Vinales ending his day standing on the top step of the podium. He was joined there by Cal Crutchlow, who kept another streak alive, and a desperate Valentino Rossi, who fought Marc Marquez tooth and nail for the final podium spot. Despite this, Marquez leaves Britain leading the season by 50 points, having gotten some angry juju out of his system.