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How His Helmet Saved Valentino Rossi, No Honda RC213V-RS until 2015

AGV Helmets released the data and conclusions after analyzing the way Valentino Rossi’s helmet protected his head during his crash in the Aragon Grand Prix more than a fortnight ago. We already knew that AGV’s Pista helmet was deemed the safest motorcycle helmet according to the SHARP (Safety Helmet Assessment and Review Program). Rossi’s tumble and the fact that he did not suffer head injuries come as a confirmation.
Valentino Rossi crashing at Aragon, 2014 10 photos
Photo: AGV Helmets
Data from Rossi's crash at AragonValentino Rossi on the Motegi podium, after the crash in AragonBruises on Rossi's AGV Pista GP helmetImpact and tire marks on AGV Pista GP helmetFirst impactBroken visor stays in placeFirst impact of RossiRossi hit by his bikeRepsol Honda MotoGP bike
Those watching the Aragon race could see Rossi falling in Turn 7 of the Motorland circuit, as a result of riding his bike on the wet artificial grass just outside the track. Since Ducati’s Andrea Iannone suffered the same fate, the GP Safety Commission analyzed the matter and ruled that the astroturf areas be banned from the trackside zones on all MotoGP circuits.

A crash at 100 km/h

According to AGV, Rossi crashed in Turn 7 while he was traveling at around 98.5 km/h (61 mph). The same source says that the helmet analysis showed no sign of structural failure, proving the excellent energy absorption capabilities of the Pista GP helmet.

Rossi first impacted the track with the rear of his head, as the high-side projected him high in the air, and he also took a blow from one of his Yamaha’s tires. The rubber markings the impact left on the surface of the helmet can be observed in the photos after the jump.

At the same time, the tire did break the visor swivel and tore the visor away. Still, even though the visor was cracked on both sides the extra metal screw AGV puts in all racing helmets helped keep it in place. The system is also available as an option for street helmets.

Things could have been much worse, of course, but thankfully Rossi’s brief unconsciousness moment and temporary amnesia were the only outcome this time. AGV reports that they might have been caused by the rotational impact of the wheel, and against which no helmet can offer protection.

Now safe and sound, Rossi needs to use all his experience for the upcoming fierce podium battle, especially as he is locked in second together with Dani Pedrosa, and his team mate Jorge Lorenzo is also lurking, several points adrift the two. Meanwhile, in the Open Class camp…

Honda RC213V-RS will not be ready by the post-race test in Valencia

HRC vice-president Shuhei Nakamoto says that the Honda RC213V-RS production racer bike will most likely not be available for the first official test of the 2015 season, the one after final 2014 round at Valencia. Apparently the teams who will field this bike will have to wait until 2015, most likely at the Sepang test.

After the RCV1000R production race Honda offered to the Open teams proved to be barely acceptable in comparison with the other bikes, especially those with the leased Yamaha M1 engine, Honda promised solid upgrades. The new production race was going to be more expensive, but the package would include pneumatic valves.

Basically, the Honda RC213V-RS should be pretty much the same machine Marquez and Pedrosa are currently riding, but with two “downtuning” items. The bike would not sport the seamless transmission and it would use the Open class ECU. Now, dropping the seamless gearbox and loading the spec ECU software may seem an easy job for the high expertise of the HRC engineers, but Nakamoto-san begs to differ.

No further tech-related details have been offered, gp-inside reports, but it looks like teams Aspar, LCR and Cardion AB, together with riders Jack Miller, Nicky Hayden, Eugene Laverty or Karel Abraham are not going to use new bikes in the Valencia test.

Anyway, this is not the first time Honda is late with the production race schedule. Similar delays have also been noted prior to the delivery of the actual RCV1000R.
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