Corser is quoted in the release: "It's been great working with Ducati these past seasons --especially in 96 when we won the World SuperBike Championship and in 98 when we were so close to winning back the title. Now I am looking forward to a new challenge in 2000."

Rumors as to why Corser was replaced on the team by Ben Bostrom abound. 

About every team in the paddock is wishing they'd known Ducati was going to dump Corser before they'd signed their riders. Yamaha still has an opening ... and if 'Ginio Ferrari can convince 1994 AMA Superbike champion Corser to join with him on Hondas, together they will be formidable. 

A "stock" Suzuki Haybusa went 208mph last week at Bonneville, backing it up with a 204mph run. 

Discover Today's Motorcycling's Beverly St. Clair, a certified amasb.com junkie, was featured on NPR's Marketplace this morning. St. Clair said that 25% of all new bike buyers are women. Another cool bike boom stat not stated by St. Clair: Yamaha sold 6000 PW50 mini-bikes this year; up from 4000 last year and 2000 the season before. 

Josh Hayes cleaned up this past weekend at the PACE/CCS finals at Daytona. 
The big roundtable discussion between PACE and the manufacturers happened at Daytona and many thoughts were passed back and forth. PACE will probably release their schedule late this week or next. 

Many are wondering if there is a future to the Kenny Roberts' owned Proton/Modenas Grand Prix team. Results have not been what the King and others had hoped for this season, and some are wondering if the team will continue on in 2000. Insiders in the team know that they need a big gun in the riding department and are hoping to lure a Corser or a Biaggi to the team for 2000. 

Insiders state that the FIM and WSC will raise the decibel limit for WSC machines to over 105 for 2000 (it's at 102 now) making for some very loud four-strokes. Kel Carruthers and others have long said that race bikes today are too quiet for their tastes and don't convey the excitement of the old Honda 250 six-cylinder and other machines from days gone by. 

Shirt sales here at amasuperbike.com have been brisk and we are down to a small pile of XLs remaining. If you are going to get in on the first in a series site shirt, you are advised to do so quickly. Buy one by clicking here. 

More later, maybe. 

--Dean Adams