This year, Axel Bassani has taken a new direction in his World Superbike career, moving from Motocorsa Racing and Ducati to the official Kawasaki team. As with any transition to a new environment, it takes time to adjust.

His manager, Alberto Vergani, told GPOne.com that this is a challenge Bassani does not fear, and Kawasaki is aware of the type of program they have:

– With Axel, there is a growth project aimed over two years with the goal of quickly adapting to the bike. It is obvious that moving from a Ducati to a Kawasaki is not easy, but he is a rider who is not afraid of these challenges. In these first few races, I think he has shown growth, already finishing in the top ten.

Vergani acknowledged that while Bassani hasn’t always achieved the maximum possible in the early part of the season, the task of adaptation is significant: ‘In other situations, he might have done more but had some bad luck. However, everyone at Kawasaki is aware that Bassani is in a growth project without haste or stress. I think Bassani is experiencing his first real season as a professional, in which he is learning various new dynamics, making Kawasaki the challenge he needs’.

In the first three rounds, Bassani has four finishes in the points, with his best result being ninth place in the first race at Assen. He is currently in 16th place in the championship.

O conteúdo ‘Axel Bassani is experiencing his first real season as a professional’ – Alberto Vergani aparece primeiro em Motorcycle Sports.

It’s not just in MotoGP that Honda is working to have a competitive bike and emerge from the crisis of results it finds itself in. Even in the World Superbike Championship, they are going through the same process, even though in the production-derived motorcycles championship, the bike is more competitive.

At the moment, there is a second team from the Japanese manufacturer – the Petronas MIE Racing Honda Team. However, the level of support provided is still not as desired, nor can it be until solutions are found for the CBR1000RR-R to reach the intended level.

José Escamez, team manager of HRC in WSBK, explained to the SPEEDWEEK.com website: ‘Of course, we support them. As soon as we have found the right path with our bikes, we can support another satellite team. Midori has a great team, it is important for us to give them our best. Unfortunately, we are not ready yet. When we have solved our problems and improved our bike, we want to send them more of our developments. But how are we supposed to do that at this moment if we ourselves are not ready? We know what level we can achieve, that’s what we are working for’.

On the other hand, the official admitted that he would like to have more satellite teams in WSBK: ‘What is certain is that it is important to support our satellite team, we would like to have several. Unfortunately, that is not the case’.

After three rounds, the Petronas MIE Racing Honda has seven points, sitting in 12th place in the championship. The Team HRC is in tenth place with 28 points.

O conteúdo Honda unable to support MIE Racing further in WSBK aparece primeiro em Motorcycle Sports.

The testing sessions for the Women’s World Circuit Racing Championship (WorldWCR) concluded this afternoon in Cremona. Ana Carrasco, the 2018 Supersport 300 World Champion, emerged as the fastest rider, being the only one to lap in the 1m41s range.

The lap times improved during the final afternoon session, and the Spaniard from the Evan Bros. Racing Yamaha Team completed her fastest lap with an impressive 1m41.446s in the seventh and final session. Roberta Ponziani (Yamaha Motoxracing) led the morning session but ended up second in the afternoon and overall, trailing Carrasco by 0.675s.

Third place went to Sara Sánchez (511 Terra&Vita Racing Team), followed by Beatriz Neila (Ampito Pata Prometeon Yamaha) and Adela Ourednickova (DafitMotoracing) who completed the top five. Both Neila and Ourednickova worked with Jonathan Rea’s chief mechanic in MotoGP, Andrew Pitt, during this test.

The WorldWCR will return to action from June 14-16 for the inaugural round in Misano. The first season of the championship will include five more races, concluding in Aragón, with stops at Donington Park, Portimão, Hungary, and Cremona.

O conteúdo Ana Carrasco dominates competition in Women’s World Championship testing aparece primeiro em Motorcycle Sports.

Preparations for the inaugural season of the new Women’s World Motorcycle Championship (WorldWCR) began this Thursday in Cremona and continued today.

After a rainy first day, the sun shone on the Italian track this morning, giving the riders a chance to continue adapting to the bikes, track, teams, and tires.

The fastest was Roberta Ponziani (Yamaha Motoxracing), who completed her first lap on the circuit in 1m42s. She finished with a time of 1m42.438s, beating Ana Carrasco (Evan Bros. Racing Yamaha) by 0.606s. Adela Ourednickova (DafitMotoracing) was third, 0.936s off the top.

The top five were completed by Lucy Michel (TSL-Racing) and Sara Sánchez (511 Terra&Vita Racing Team), both over a second behind Ponziani. Beatriz Neila (Ampito Pata Prometeon Yamaha) followed.

The tests in Cremona continue this afternoon, with 23 riders in action.

O conteúdo The Fastest Women in the World: Tests for the First Season of WorldWCR Have Begun aparece primeiro em Motorcycle Sports.

As the Superbike World Championship continues the teams are riders are already working on what is to come for 2025 and more, with many teams yet to have their lineups closed. Still there are some changes to come, that is pretty much a certainty.

The riders aiming to secure a ride

The biggest name without a deal for next season is reigning Champion Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati), who opted to sign a one-year contract last season. Both GYTR GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Team riders, Dominique Aegerter and Remy Gardner (GYTR GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Team), Tito Rabat (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing), Michael Ruben Rinaldi (Team Motocorsa Racing), Danilo Petrucci (Barni Spark Racing Team), Bradley Ray (Yamaha Motoxracing WorldSBK Team), Philipp Oettl (GMT94 Yamaha) and Sam Lowes (ELF Marc VDS Racing Team) are all yet to sign for next year. Alex Lowes (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) is also out of contract, while teammate Axel Bassani is on a multi-year deal– of course, next year, it’ll be the Bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team squad. Garrett Gerloff (Bonovo Action BMW) revealed last year he was contracted for 2023 and 2024, so he’s a free agent for 2025 as it stands. Elsewhere, Andrea Iannone’s (Team GoEleven) contract expires at the end of 2024.

What is known already

Iannone addressed rumours about his future at Assen, saying: ‘I’m happy I’m being spoken about. I know if I’m on top, I have many chances. My target is to be in a factory team, but we will see. I’m happy because after a long time, I felt many things, and interest from many manufacturers. I’m honoured. I think, after Assen at Misano, we will know something more about this’.

Alex Lowes was also asked about silly season at Assen, and the #22 said: ‘I don’t really know, it’s very early. Like we’re seeing in MotoGP and previous years in WorldSBK, everything starts really early. We have a break after the Assen round, so maybe there’ll be some more news in the break. From my side, I don’t know yet’.

At BMW, van der Mark gave an answer to rumours about his future, saying the only thing he can do is deliver results. When asked about rumours linking Iannone to BMW, van der Mark simply replied: ‘I need to have some good results and that makes everything a bit easier’. During Free Practice 1, BMW Motorrad Motorsport Director Marc Bongers spoke about their rider line-up for 2025, refusing to give anything anyway: ‘We’re happy the way it is and it’s way too early to say anything’.

Although his future is secure, Razgatlioglu was asked about who he wanted as a teammate and stated van der Mark as his preference: ‘I am happy with Michael as a teammate and the atmosphere in the garage is very good and we work well together. If BMW ask me, it’s easy to say Michael, he’s a good teammate, a good guy and respectful; we work together in the race and Superpole’.

Gardner has been quoted by Motorsport-Total.com as saying he has an option for 2025 to be with GRT Yamaha, while Aegerter – in the same article – said: ‘The conditions must be right’ to stay with the team and that there are ‘other alternatives’ for the double WorldSSP Champion.

Source: WorldSBK

O conteúdo Silly Season at WorlSBK: Some riders without a place for 2025 and some changes incoming aparece primeiro em Motorcycle Sports.

The season in the Superbike World Championship is on the way but it is time, slowly, for decisions to take place and there are a few names on the spotlight as some big news should be made public in the upcoming weeks.

While some riders are already secure for the next season, others are not at the same place and have their future yet to be set.

Who has a place secured?

The easy place to start is who has a 2025 contract in their pocket already. Nicolò Bulega (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) is under contract for next year, as are Pata Prometeon Yamaha duo Jonathan Rea and Andrea Locatelli. At Team HRC, both Iker Lecuona and Xavi Vierge’s renewal was announced as two years to cover the 2024 and 2025 seasons. It’s been confirmed by both Kenan Sofuoglu and Shaun Muir that Toprak Razgatlioglu’s (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) contract covers both this and next season.

How about… Bautista?

The current world champion is, in fact, one of the riders who haven’t decided if he will continue riding or will retire. The spaniard said in an interview that: ‘He doesn’t have anything in his mind’, and that he’ll keep racing while he’s having fun,  but isn’t in a hurry to make a decision. However, in his media debrief on Friday, Bautista made a contradictory statement by saying he wants to decide soon: ‘If the top management in Ducati want me, it’s always a pleasure! I’m focused on riding with my best performance. I think I will make a decision soon for me and for my team’.

2025 WorldSBK grid (TBA = To Be Announced)

Aruba.it Racing – Ducati: Nicolò Bulega and TBA
Pata Prometeon Yamaha: Jonathan Rea and Andrea Locatelli
Bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team: Axel Bassani and TBA
Team HRC: Iker Lecuona and Xavi Vierge
ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team: Toprak Razgatlioglu and TBA

O conteúdo Silly Season at WorlSBK with Álvaro Bautista in the spotlight aparece primeiro em Motorcycle Sports.

Álvaro Bautista returned to Aruba.it Ducati in the World Superbike Championship for a second stint in 2022, and since then, he has been dominating the championship. Currently, his contract is ending, and his future remains uncertain despite his continued success.

Even after a challenging start with the new minimum weight rules introduced this year, the Spaniard seems to have adapted and is competing at the top. However, at 39 years old, he is in the later stages of his career.

Nevertheless, his manager Alberto Vergani believes that Bautista will stay where he is: ‘I think Álvaro will continue to race with Ducati next year. At Aruba, he is so comfortable that he has won two World Championships. Besides the team, he has an excellent relationship with Stefano Cecconi and Serafino Foti, so he lacks nothing’, he said to GPOne.com.

Regarding the age factor, the Italian downplayed it: ‘The clock is ticking for him too, but Álvaro is a rider who trains a lot to stay in top physical condition, and his fitness level is evident for all to see’.

O conteúdo Alberto Vergani believes Álvaro Bautista will stay with Aruba.it Ducati in 2025 aparece primeiro em Motorcycle Sports.

BMW Motorrad is restructuring and, starting June 1, Sven Blusch will become the new racing director, succeeding Marc Bongers. However, the leader of the manufacturer in the World Superbike Championship (WSBK) will not lose importance but will instead focus on the goal of winning titles in that championship.

Blusch will be in charge of overall sports programs, including evaluating the expansion of activities… as BMW is rumored to be a potential new manufacturer in MotoGP from 2027. This is not the only recent change in the structure: last November, Markus Flasch became the director of BMW Motorrad, succeeding Markus Schramm.

Speaking to SPEEDWEEK.com, Flasch clarified Bongers’ situation, assuring that it is not a dismissal or demotion: ‘Marc Bongers is not and has not been replaced, he is firmly in place. He is doing an excellent job in WSBK. What we are doing is strengthening the team with someone who handles the strategic work outside WSBK. We are not demoting him. We are considering whether we can expand our motorsport program at Motorrad. This is not just in MotoGP, it can be in other formats where we might get involved. It makes sense that solving this is not something you do on the side when you are trying to become world champion in WSBK’.

He emphasized: ‘I said it is a duty for us to succeed in WSBK. We have the best and fastest rider [Toprak Razgatlioglu] and have made great progress in terms of technology. Marc is in charge of making us world champions. Sven Blusch will handle the long-term strategy and see where the journey after a world title in WSBK takes us’.

O conteúdo BMW will have a new racing director while exploring more programs in motorcycling aparece primeiro em Motorcycle Sports.

This week, the new MotoGP regulations for 2027 were announced, which entail a decrease in motorcycle performance in favor of safety and entertainment in races. However, the FIM will not risk diluting the performance difference between the premier class and MotoGP.

The assurance was given by President Jorge Viegas in a press conference, as there will also be new rules for WSBK: ‘Obviously we want to have MotoGP in top and Superbike it was meant to be stock bikes with some changes, and we have also started working two years ago in changing the regulations in Superbike. Some things will happen very soon, but in a way to keep a distance between MotoGP and Superbike obviously’.

The leader of the federation then said: ‘We are talking with all the the manufacturers – you know that we have still more manufacturers in Superbike than in MotoGP. But it’s also a great work being done and a consensual solution’.

According to Viegas, the British Superbike Championship (BSB) is being used as a laboratory for the new rules, which should be defined by 2026: ‘We are working also in the new gen for the ex-Supersport 300 and we are using a bit the British championship as a test so see how these new rules apply, but I hope in 2026 the new gen will be on and will be defined’.

O conteúdo FIM works on new rules for WSBK and promises performance gap from MotoGP aparece primeiro em Motorcycle Sports.

Álvaro Bautista is in the final year of his contract with Aruba.it Ducati in the World Superbike Championship. After two titles, with a third being entirely possible, speculation is rife about what the future holds for the rider.

Will there be a renewal, a contract with another team, or retirement? The possibilities are on the table at the moment, with nothing officially announced or signed.

But for Danilo Petrucci, there is almost a certainty – Bautista will not retire just yet. The Italian from Barni Spark Racing Team, a Ducati customer team, stated to GPOne.com:

– In my opinion, Álvaro won’t leave. He’s still fit, he does what he loves, and it doesn’t weigh on him. He has also found his method that makes him feel good, considering he has a supportive family and his entire team. He’s still competitive on the track today.

O conteúdo Danilo Petrucci makes a prediction about Álvaro Bautista’s future in 2025 aparece primeiro em Motorcycle Sports.