Italy’s national airline, Alitalia (CAI) as we all know by now, will be the title sponsor Aprilia’s World Superbike effort for the next two years.

Alitalia, who is still in the red (on Tuesday there was a 4 hour strike) will be spending three million euros to see the RSV4 machines ridden by Max Biaggi and Leon Camier with Alitalia tricolor livery, even if according to Italian financial daily Il Sole 24 Ore, there was a foreign company who offered more than Alitalia to sponsor the team, but it was judged that bringing the two Italian brands together would be more profitable.

The all Italian alliance saw Roberto Colaninno through his IMMSI (50,009% owned) and share holder and chairman of Alitalia (7,08%) and who controls the the Piaggio Group (53,6%) abstain from voting on the sponsorship deal to avoid any conflict of interest …

Continue reading: Alitalia-Aprilia Racing Sponsorship

Back in November we reported that Alitalia would probably sponsor Aprilia in WSBK as a marketing move to promote both Italian brands.

Alitalia and Aprilia (Piaggio Group) are both part of CEO’s Roberto Colaninno’s financial empire and will officially announce in February their sponsorship of Aprilia in World Superbikes and will reveal the RSV4’s new livery which will probably be based on the classic colors of the Italian flag, green, white and red.

Let’s hope that among those 5000 former Alitalia employees that were laid off last year after the acquisition by Colaninno’s consortium, someone is a WSBK and an Aprilia fan and Alitalia’s acronym, Always Late in Arrival doesn’t rub off on Aprilia.

Source | gpone

Continue reading: Aprilia and Alitalia Together in 2010

Alitalia, Italy’s former national airline company, now called Alitalia-CAI is close to closing a two year sponsorship deal with Aprilia’s Superbike factory team.

CAI is owned by a group of Italian investors led by Piaggio’s President Roberto Colaninno who also controls Aprilia, Derbi, Gilera, Vespa, Guzzi and Scarabeo. Colaninno is believed to be behind Aprilia’s dropping out of Moto2 in order to concentrate all their efforts in winning the Superbike title next year.

Alitalia has sponsored four wheel racing teams in the past such as the FIAT 131 Abarth and the Lancia Stratos.

Source | sbkpoint

Continue reading: WSBK - Alitalia to sponsor Aprilia?