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Post by SHE-REX on Sept 20, 2006 10:38:05 GMT
Hodgson 'pushing' for Ducati WSBK return. 2003 World Superbike champion Neil Hodgson is pushing for a return to the world championship paddock, with Ducati, for 2007 - but is waiting to hear from the Italian marque. After clinching his WSBK title with the factory Ducati team, Hodgson made an ill-fated move to MotoGP with the privateer d'Antin Ducati team - and suffered a disastrous season on year-old machinery and a shoe string budget. That prompted the Englishman to leave MotoGP and rejoin Ducati as a factory rider, but was 'placed' in the American AMA Superbike championship - a series Ducati were eager to conquer due to the large American market. However, AMA engine tuning rules are different to those in WSBK and Hodgson's 999 v-twin struggled against the Japanese four-cylinders and the Englishman has taken just one race win. Due to the engine rules, and a lack of title success, Ducati has announced its withdraw from the 2007 AMA Superbike championship, but Hodgson had probably already planned to return to the 'reborn' Corona Extra Superbike World Championship next season - and hopes that his loyalty to Ducati in supporting its AMA campaign will be rewarded with a factory WSBK seat. hope it goes well for him
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Post by floog on Sept 22, 2006 15:30:29 GMT
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Post by bikesnoopy on Sept 25, 2006 19:35:12 GMT
BSB,WSB. . . what was his 3rd title?
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Sunnyzrx
Stuck in the saddle
[glow=red,2,300]Spanish Correspondant[/glow]
Posts: 493
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Post by Sunnyzrx on Sept 26, 2006 7:03:50 GMT
British National 125 Champion 1992
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Post by floog on Sept 26, 2006 19:18:07 GMT
British National 125 Champion 1992 Quite correct sir
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Post by BADGER on Jan 6, 2007 22:39:01 GMT
Foggy 'won't fund Hodgson'. Neil Hodgson's manager, Roger Burnett, has claimed that Carl Fogarty could quickly complete a deal to run the former World Superbike champion this season - if he invested his own money in the project.
Foggy Racing has struggled to find a sponsor to replace Petronas, casting serious doubt on the team's participation in the 2007 championship, while Hodgson - an AMA SBK rider for the past two seasons - is desperately searching for a WSBK seat after being overlooked by long time employer Ducati.
While the two Britons have exchanged bitter words in recent years, each appears ready to bury the hatchet for a marriage of convenience - 2003 world champion Hodgson would provide King Carl's team with the potential to win races (depending on the machinery) plus plenty of sponsor-friendly publicity, while Foggy now represents Hodgson's best chance of racing for a top level team.
However, nothing will happen unless money is found and, with time fast running out before the new season starts in Qatar on February 24, Burnett believes that four-times world champion Foggy funding the project out of his own pocket is one of the last remaining options - but doubts it will happen.
"The only real problem is just the money issues," Burnett said. "We all know that Carl Fogarty is able to fund the project himself should he wish to. But having said that he's not very good at getting his hand in his pocket so I can't see that happening.
"The money that Fogarty has earned out of his Petronas contract for the last four years could be re-invested. One year of that money could be enough for this thing to happen. But I can't see that he's up for it."
While putting pressure on Fogarty to find the funds, Burnett didn't state whether Hodgson is also prepared to help bankroll the project - for example by riding for a wage well below his worth, as Carlos Checa is believed to have done to save his MotoGP career during the 2006 season - but did warn that Hodgson is facing the very real prospect of being left on the sidelines.
"Neil's situation is very, very frustrating," he admitted. "Personally, I think the chance of a ride with a new Fogarty team is looking less and less likely as time drags on.
"The only real option for Neil is to wait and see if anyone is either not performing in the series or gets injured."
Meanwhile, Hodgson's website reports that the 16-times WSBK race winner now has less than a week to reach a final decision for the 2007 season. It also reveals that the potential Foggy project could involve MV Agusta machinery and that a ride for the Klaffi team, which won a race with Alex Barros and Honda in 2006 but recently announced a year out due to a lack of sponsorship, has 'not yet been ruled out'.
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Post by bikesnoopy on Jan 14, 2007 19:10:18 GMT
The trouble is with the Fogarty/Hodgson mix is that they've both got big heads & big egos... Sadly,i think no good will come of it,as Fogarty's mouth is bigger than Hodgson's talent & Hodgson's talent is,sadly no longer world class . If it was,someone would have signed him ages ago,but no one any good wants him . Theres nowhere for him to go...prehaps its time to retire...
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Post by BADGER on Jan 18, 2007 7:38:09 GMT
Foggy, Hodgson absent from 2007 entry list. Ahead of the Qatar season opener on February 24, the FIM has announced the official entry list for the 2007 World Superbike championship.
The proposed 23 rider grid still contains two 'to be announced' participants - one alongside Shinichi Nakatomi at Yamaha France and the other alongside Dean Ellison at Team Pedercini - but there is no mention of Foggy Racing or one of its potential 2007 riders, former world champion Neil Hodgson. It is not known if Hodgson is actively pursuing the listed vacant seats, although the Yamaha France option could possibly be of interest to the Englishman. As expected, Klaffi Honda is missing from the register, having previously announced a year out.
The line-up also confirms that reigning double world champion Troy Bayliss has turned down the chance to defend his latest title with the #1 plate and will remain #21 in 2007. The Australian did run the #1 plate after winning his first WSBK crown in 2001, but lost out to Colin Edwards in a dramatic Imola title showdown before both headed for MotoGP.
Former double world champion Troy Corser will run the #11 during his first season at Yamaha Italia, with Ruben Xaus - who has long used the #11 - changing to #111.
Should Hodgson not secure a last-minute deal, there will again be three former WSBK champions - Bayliss, Corser and Toseland - competing in 2007.
The full entry list can be seen below:
#21 Troy Bayliss AUS Ducati 999F07 Ducati Xerox Team #57 Lorenzo Lanzi ITA Ducati 999F07 Ducati Xerox Team #41 Noriyuki Haga JPN Yamaha YZF R1 Yamaha Motor Italia #11 Troy Corser AUS Yamaha YZF R1 Yamaha Motor Italia #3 Max Biaggi ITA Suzuki GSX-R 1000 K7 Team Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra #71 Yukio Kagayama JPN Suzuki GSX-R 1000 K7 Team Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra #52 James Toseland GBR Honda CBR 1000RR Ten Kate Honda Team #44 Roberto Rolfo ITA Honda CBR 1000RR Ten Kate Honda Team #55 Regis Laconi FRA Kawasaki ZX 10R PSG-1 Kawasaki Corse #10 Fonsi Nieto ESP Kawasaki ZX 10R PSG-1 Kawasaki Corse #84 Michel Fabrizio ITA Honda CBR 1000RR D.F.X. Treme #99 Steve Martin AUS Honda CBR 1000RR D.F.X. Treme #38 Shinichi Nakatomi JPN Yamaha YZF R1 Yamaha Motor France - IPONE #TBA TBA Yamaha YZF R1 Yamaha Motor France - IPONE #111 Ruben Xaus ESP Ducati 999F06 GMB Racing #42 Dean Ellison GBR Ducati 999RS Team Pedercini #TBA TBA Ducati 999RS Team Pedercini #53 Alessandro Polita ITA Suzuki GSX-R 1000 K6 Celani Team Suzuki Italia #31 Karl Muggeridge AUS Honda CBR 1000RR Alto Evolution Honda #75 Joshua Brookes AUS Honda CBR 1000RR Alto Evolution Honda #76 Max Neukirchner GER Suzuki GSX-R 1000 K6 Suzuki Germany #73 Christian Zaiser AUT MV Agusta LBR Racing Team #36 Jiri Drazdak CZE Yamaha YZF R1 Pro SBK CZ Republic
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Post by SHE-REX on Mar 4, 2007 12:33:10 GMT
Neil's been trying his hand at moutain biking(6 out of 60) and is hoping to represent the Isle of Man in the island games,he got through the first qualifing round and hopes to get through the 2nd round in 2 weeks..good luck to him,
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Post by BADGER on Mar 5, 2007 6:45:13 GMT
good luck to him, and for going back to grass roots biking. A season of trail riding well teach him loads (like how to ride a bike ) IMHO, Trails riders are 100% more skillful than Moto-X any day. I know a lot of top class riders practice on Moto-X in the off season, and i always think they should be doing trails, you need far more bike control and really become one with the bike.
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