VSC needed on opening lap in Monaco!
F1: The VSC was needed almost immediately after Gabriel Bortoleto hti the wall on the opening lap in Monaco.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
News.com.au
4 hours ago
- News.com.au
Is this the fastest thing you can legally ride?
I've never flown a fighter jet into battle, but I have ridden Ducati's Panigale V4 S, and that's pretty much the same thing. Don't believe me? Ask former Top Gun instructor and F/A-18 Hornet pilot Vincent Aiello, an author who will tell you high-performance super bikes are the closest you or I might come to experiencing the thrill of air combat. And nothing will get take to the danger zone faster than this Ducati. Powered by an 1103cc V4 'Desmosedici Stradale' engine developed from Ducati's dominant MotoGP team, it makes a staggering 159kW (or 216 horsepower) while weighing just 187 kilos. MORE: Riding Ducati's Multistrada V4 RS. It's difficult to put those numbers into context. It's like a fast-forward button for when the world is moving too slowly. Or a personal roller coaster you control with your right wrist. Or a fighter plane you can ride to the office. Jet jockeys and Panigale pilots have much in common, including unwavering self-belief, the use of wings to stay in control, and the need to exercise their vehicles in government-approved locations. Both feel as though they could break the sound barrier inside city limits, but neither are allowed to do so. A bike that hits 160km/h in first gear (and more than 300km/h in sixth) must be exercised on track from time to time. The Panigale's rampant acceleration is unlike anything I've experienced on four wheels. Sure, there are fast cars out there. But they don't feel like they'll rip your arms off under heavy throttle, and they don't work out your arms, thighs and abdomen when braking from speed. They don't assault you with cyclone force winds, frenzied vibration and a snarling, serrated roar you can hear days later. This engine is nothing short of a triumph. It will go down in history as one of the greatest motors offered to motorcyclists of any era. Bikes like this are a visceral experience that get under your skin in a manner that feels almost sinful. No one needs a Panigale in the shed. But some folks burn with a lustful passion for these machines. The good news is that this MotoGP bike for the road was developed for folks who aren't professional riders. Heavily revised for 2025, the bike has a bigger seat that accommodates the – ahem – potentially larger posteriors of middle-aged people ready to drop fat stacks of cash on a shiny red bike, while giving jockey-sized athletes more room to shift their weight from front to back, and side to side. Comparatively wide handlebars make it easier to live with than some sports bikes, and optional cruise control makes highway motoring less of a torture session. It has smarter electronics to help save riders from themselves, including traction control, wheelie control and cornering ABS with a clever interlinked braking system that helps elicit maximum braking power from the rear tyre. Priced from $49,300 ride-away, the Panigale V4 S is packed with hardware that makes riders dribble, including race-spec Brembo brakes, gooey Pirelli rubber and active Ohlins suspension. The bike's brain listens to 70 electronic sensors, taking a variety of factors into account to help you go faster than ever, in relative safety. Running changes to the chassis saw Ducati dispense with its traditional (and stylish) single-sided swingarm in favour of a more conventional unit designed to offer a touch of confidence-inspiring flexibility when riding on the side of those massive tyres. The outrageous performance potential of modern rubber required engineers to throw away their usual rules to develop a bike capable of 60-degree lean angles – the sort of insanity that can have riders dragging their elbow and shoulder along a smooth racetrack surface. Back on the road, the genius of the Panigale is how flexible and adaptable it can be in real-world conditions. A wet weather riding mode limits power and heightens the sensitivity of safety systems to help you stay upright. Road, Sport and Race modes dial up the aggression incrementally, working with suspension that reads the road and your riding style, making constant adjustments to deliver the right balance of compliance and support. There's a scalpel-like precision to every element of the bike that makes it truly addictive to ride. Naturally, there are more than a few compromises to such a focused machine. For starters, there's no fuel gauge. And that 17 litre tank doesn't last long when you're up it – this is a bike that will pass anything except a service station. The nuclear reactor of a motor generates enormous amounts of heat. That's no bad thing on cool mornings or at highway speeds, but it's genuinely unpleasant in stop-start traffic. And then there's the matter of relevance. What do you do with a bike like this? Do you risk life, limb and licence by riding it daily on the street? Does it become a lounge room ornament? Do you become a track addict? Ducati describes the bike as 'magical and irrational', with an appeal that transcends common sense. Until you feel the need for speed. DUCATI PANIGALE V4 S POWER 1103cc V4, 159kW and 120NM
News.com.au
15 hours ago
- News.com.au
‘Chaos in Darwin!' Wheel goes flying
Supercars: Australian Jack Le Brocq's left front wheel was torn off and bounced over the wall following a crash during a safety car restart in first Supercars race of the weekend in Darwin.
News.com.au
16 hours ago
- News.com.au
Wirtz wants to 'win everything' for Liverpool after record move
Florian Wirtz said he wants to win it all at Liverpool after completing a blockbuster move from Bayer Leverkusen on Friday, which could reportedly rise to a Premier League record fee. Reports in England said the Premier League champions will pay an initial £100 million ($134 million) for Wirtz, comfortably surpassing their own record outlay, with a further £16 million in performance-related add-ons making it a British record deal. However, German media suggested the fee could be even higher, starting at 130 million euros (£111 million, $149 million) with add-ons taking it to 150 million euros. One of European football's elite young stars, Wirtz has been hailed as one of the "best in the world" by former Leverkusen coach and ex-Liverpool midfielder Xabi Alonso, who is the new boss of Real Madrid. "I would like to win everything every year!" Wirtz told the club's website. "In the end, we want to be successful. Last season they won the Premier League so my goal is for sure to win it again and also to go further in the Champions League. I'm really ambitious." The 22-year-old played a crucial role in Leverkusen's greatest season as they claimed a first-ever Bundesliga title and the German Cup in 2023/24 without losing a single game under Alonso. Their only defeat that season, during which Wirtz was crowned Bundesliga player of the year, came in the Europa League final to Atalanta, denying Leverkusen a memorable treble. Bayern Munich restored their grip on the German game last season, with Leverkusen a distant second, and Wirtz is joining an exodus from the BayArena. Netherlands defender Jeremie Frimpong has already made the move from Leverkusen to Liverpool last month. - 'New adventure' - "I'm really excited to have a new adventure in front of me," added Wirtz, who turned down the option of joining Bayern for the move to England. "This was also a big point of my thoughts: that I want to have something completely new, to go out of the Bundesliga and to join the Premier League." After largely keeping their powder dry in the transfer market during Arne Slot's first season in charge, the Reds are splashing out to strengthen a side that romped to a record-equalling 20th English top-flight title. Bournemouth left-back Milos Kerkez is poised to make the move to Anfield in a £40 million deal. Liverpool have also been linked with Newcastle striker Alexander Isak and Crystal Palace centre-back Marc Guehi. Where Wirtz's fits into Slot's plans remains to be seen. He largely played behind a central striker at Leverkusen and has operated from a wider role for Germany. A return of 57 goals and 65 assists in 197 games for Leverkusen is evidence that he carries a threat both as a creator and a goalscorer. "The people say I'm a creative player, and I hope I can bring this creativity to the team and also the joy on the pitch," said Wirtz. "I try to make assists, goals and run for the team to defend. I hope I can just make the team one step better." Liverpool are already blessed with an abundance of forward options, with Mohamed Salah, Luis Diaz and Cody Gakpo all offering a goal threat. However, Diogo Jota, Darwin Nunez and Federico Chiesa now face even stiffer competition to get into Slot's starting line-up, raising the prospect of Liverpool selling some of that trio to free up further transfer resources.
