Jonathan Rea was in Jerez this week for two days of World Superbike testing, completing 173 laps. The Pata Yamaha rider worked with three different bikes and various components, already feeling competitive aboard the YZF-R1.

The six-time world champion told worldsbk.com: ‘It’s been really positive and I’ve really enjoyed riding the bike at this test, especially on day one when the temperature was warmer than expected and similar to the race. We were able to get a lot of work done. I had 3 bikes to try different options on and loads of different parts. We never managed to put everything together to be perfect but we still have a lot of time and we got through the main test items. We managed just about everything on the list; some items we can discard, some very interesting going forwards’.

While acknowledging he hasn’t yet reached the bike’s limits, Rea ensured he already feels competitive: ‘I completed the test with a race simulation which was positive; the more laps I do on the R1, the more I understand it and how it behaves in certain conditions and also, the more confidence I get. I don’t feel like I’ve found the limit with the bike yet. I’m understanding the last part of braking but I feel competitive already’.

O conteúdo ‘I don’t feel like I’ve found the limit with the bike, but I feel competitive already’ – Jonathan Rea aparece primeiro em Motorcycle Sports.

Honda debuted the new CBR1000RR-R for the World Superbike Championship this Thursday in Jerez, during the first of two days of testing with Iker Lecuona and Xavi Vierge. Initial indications are positive, but there is caution

Speaking to the championship’s official website, team manager Leon Camier stated: ‘There are a few changes with the new bike; the split throttle bodies is something that’s a good step in the right direction for the race bike and what we want on track. The normal thing to expect is more edge grip and better connection when you first touch the gas because you are only opening two cylinders, not four. Many other manufacturers are running this but for us, it’s something we wanted for the race bike. For the lighter crankshaft, it’s a small difference but we should expect a little bit better acceleration and deceleration. We have a different weight distribution of the bike; Honda wanted to go in this direction because it’s better for what we need for racing; it’s all going in the right direction’.

Regarding the innovations in the motorcycle, the official detailed: ‘The first feelings with the bike are quite good, even though there are positives and negatives. With it being the first test, it’s good that the riders are feeling the positives and with the negatives, they are things we have to work with. Setting the bike up, putting things in the right places… it’s normal that it takes time to smooth things out. Both riders need time to set it up for their style and their way of riding. First impressions are positive so we need to get through these two days, see where we are at the end of it and keep making a step forward’.

Despite the innovations, Camier revealed that the super concession, which Honda is entitled to for 2024, has not been incorporated. The British leader talked about more details about the new CBR1000RR-R: ‘It’s done in a different way with a different weight distribution; the centre of gravity is a little bit different. Overall length, I’m actually not sure where we are but I think it’s something similar but you can play around with that anyway. Alter the swingarm length a little bit and you can have a big change, so it’s just done in a slightly different way’.

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O conteúdo New CBR1000RR-R encourages Honda for the next WSBK season aparece primeiro em Motorcycle Sports.

The week after the Malaysian MotoGP Grand Prix, Álvaro Bautista underwent tests carried out by Dr. Angel Villamor in Madrid.

After consulting with the specialist and analyzing the cervical MRI performed due to the loss of strength and numbness in the left upper limb that arose after the crash at the Jerez test and during the Malaysian MotoGP Grand Prix, the Aruba.it Racing – Ducati rider was diagnosed with a C6-C7 cervical hernia and C5-C6 disc protrusion.

Further specialized tests are scheduled for the next few days to determine any damage due to nerve compression at cervical level.

At the moment, however, no surgical intervention is planned for the Spanish rider and current WSBK world champion.

O conteúdo Álvaro Bautista with cervical hernia and disc protrusion after MotoGP wild card in Malaysia aparece primeiro em Motorcycle Sports.

Jonathan Rea, now an official Yamaha rider, has quickly adapted to his new team, as evidenced by his initial tests with the Yamaha R1. He humorously noted that the blue color of Yamaha matches well with his eyes. However, his focus has shifted towards Ducati, the dominant force in the World Superbike Championship (WSBK), indicating a change in his stance since joining Yamaha.

In WSBK, as in MotoGP, Ducati is often the target due to its strong performance. This rivalry extends beyond the track to the off-season, as demonstrated by Rea during a visit to the Milan Motorcycle Show. He commented on the weight handicap of 7 kilograms that Alvaro Bautista will have to carry on his Ducati Panigale V4R in the upcoming WSBK season. Rea expressed skepticism about the impact of this weight penalty, believing that Bautista’s fitness and Ducati’s capabilities would allow them to remain competitive.

Rea stated, “Seven kilos of ballast? Alvaro Bautista is super trained and prepared, and with the Ducati, they will find a solution to stay ahead.” He further explained that in the Superpole Race, the bikes might use about seven kilos less than in longer races, so the impact would be minimal, and Bautista would manage well.

Rea also raised concerns about the cost disparity between motorcycles in the series. He pointed out that it’s problematic to have bikes costing 44,000 euros competing against those priced at 20,000 euros, especially when the rules are close to standard production. He emphasized the need for Dorna, the organizing body of WSBK, to address this issue. Rea hopes to be competitive with the Yamaha R1, but he also questioned whether it’s Ducati’s fault that Yamaha doesn’t produce a more expensive superbike to match Ducati’s pricing.

Rea’s comments reflect the ongoing debate in WSBK about balancing competition and maintaining fairness in a series that features production-based motorcycles. His move to Yamaha and his observations on the competitive landscape indicate a new chapter in his career and in the dynamics of the WSBK championship.

O conteúdo Jonathan Rea goes public with his war against Ducati: ‘We cannot let motorcycles that cost 44,000 euros race against motorcycles that cost 20,000’ aparece primeiro em Motorcycle Sports.

GMT94 Yamaha has announced Philipp Öttl as its rider for the 2024 World Superbike Championship. In the past two years, he competed in the category with Team GoEleven on a Ducati, consistently performing as a regular contender for top-ten results.

With Andrea Iannone joining Team GoEleven and the team having only one rider, Öttl had to look for another challenge. GMT94 Yamaha was the solution, after parting ways with Lorenzo Baldassarri.

Öttl particularly caught the eye in the latter part of the season. Since the Magny-Cours round, he finished outside the top ten only once. Nevertheless, his best result is a fifth-place finish in the second race at Phillip Island.

The German rider said in a press release: ‘I am very happy to join GMT94 for the 2024 season. Christophe [Guyot] and his team have been working at a very high level for decades and I am honored to be able to join the team. During the last events of the 2023 season I took a step forward and I would like to continue it next year too. Of course, it’s a difficult goal, but I will prepare well during the winter holidays to be ready for the first tests. I can’t wait to meet the team and start working’.

O conteúdo Philipp Öttl moves to GMT94 Yamaha in WSBK aparece primeiro em Motorcycle Sports.

Niccolò Antonelli has been announced as a rider for Althea Racing in the upcoming World Supersport season, alongside Piotr Biesiekirski. Both will be making their debut in the category, riding the Ducati Panigale V2 955.

After a season that fell far short of expectations in Moto2 World Championship, Antonelli competed in the Moto2 European Championship in 2023, seeking a new direction in his career in production-based motorcycles. He is 27 years old. As for Biesiekirski, at 22 years old, he has had sporadic appearances in the Moto2 World Championship, and this year he competed in the Moto2 European Championship.

Genesio Bevilacque, Althea’s General Manager, stated in a press release: ‘I welcome two riders who I believe they can go a long way in World Supersport. I believe in Niccolò Antonelli and I believe in Piotr Biesiekirski. Both have already demonstrated their grit and value in championships where the fight is close and the competition is truly aggressive. They are two tenacious athletes, with a great desire to grow. It’s important to work with those who want to improve and are still hungry’.

The team manager of Ecosantagata Althea Racing will be Moreno Coppola. The leader added: ‘The team manager of Ecosantagata Althea Racing will be Moreno Coppola. Moreno has all my trust due to the many years of experience and results achieved with us’.

O conteúdo Niccolò Antonelli and Piotr Biesiekirski in WSSP with Althea in 2024 aparece primeiro em Motorcycle Sports.

Nicolo Bulega won the Supersport world title this season and made himself be worthy of a place at the Ducati factory in the Superbikes. After his first tests earlier this week at Jerez, the italian didn’t hide his desire to be better than everybody else, even from his teammate, the world champion Alvaro Bautista.

Bulega, still at a very first stage of his work with the new team spoke of the job done in the first two days: ‘It was very good but unfortunately, we didn’t ride a lot during these two days. On day one, we only did 20 laps. On day two, we did half a day. I’m happy because I didn’t ride a lot but I was already fast. I was fast, but I was at 85%. I’m learning the bike, learning to speak with my new team so it’s important for me to do a lot of kilometres with this bike’.

As for what his teammate have done, Bulega confesses he has no clue, not showed right away his determination to beat everyone on track, despite the difficulties he expects: ‘Honestly, I don’t know what kind of work Alvaro did. I don’t want to beat Alvaro, I would like to beat everybody! Alvaro is now the reference point for Ducati because he’s the best. He’s fast and it’ll be very difficult to beat him’.

And gave then a brief comparison from the new bike to that he used this season: ‘We still have a lot of work to do and I’m still trying to learn the bike to understand better the DNA of this bike because it’s more difficult than WorldSSP. It’s all more. More brakes, more engine, more electronics’.

O conteúdo Nicolo Bulega «targets» his teammate and not only: ‘I don’t want to beat Alvaro, I would like to beat everybody!’ aparece primeiro em Motorcycle Sports.

O piloto da HRC Honda no Mundial de Superbike, Xavi Vierge revelou que a saída de Marc Márquez da Repsol Honda no MotoGP acabou por ser um dos temas mais abordados no paddock do campeonato das motos derivadas de produção.

‘Também se notou isso no SBK, porque está tudo interligado. Por isso, houve esta demora em anunciar as renovações’, confessou o piloto, citado por vários meios de comunicação social espanhóis.

No âmbito desportivo da sua parceria com a Honda, Vierge sublinhou que o objetivo é claro e passa por chegar aos títulos:

– Houve um momento que parecia que essa notícia poderia ter afetado a parceria, mas o objetivo de todos é tentar levar a Honda a ganhar o Mundial de Superbikes, o objetivo não é estar no top- três, mas sim ganhar.

O conteúdo Saída de Marc Márquez foi tema nos bastidores do WSBK, revela Xavi Vierge aparece primeiro em Motorcycle Sports.

The lineup for the Petronas MIE Racing Honda Team for the upcoming World Superbike season is now finalized. Adam Norrodin and Tarran Mackenzie are being promoted to the premier category after competing in the World Supersport Championship this year with the same team.

Currently 25 years old, Norrodin entered World Supersport this year and achieved a fifth-place finish as his best result. It was the same round where 28-year-old Mackenzie secured his historic first win at the Most round. Last year, Mackenzie had his first encounter with World Superbike when he was a wildcard entry at Donington Park, earning points in both main races.

Midori Moriwaki, owner of the MIE Racing Honda Team, stated in a press release: ‘I’m very happy to be able to announce that both Adam Norrodin and Tarran Mackenzie will remain part of the Petronas MIE Racing Honda Team family and will step up to the WorldSBK category, in line with our project to help young riders develop on the international racing stage. Two very fast and talented young riders, they are committed to the task and ready to fight on every occasion. They have already demonstrated this in WorldSSP, with Tarran scoring the team its first win and Adam always battling hard to achieve the strongest possible results, with a best of P5, in what is a very competitive championship. They will undoubtedly provide a boost to our SBK project’.

O conteúdo MIE Racing Honda Team promotes World Supersport pair to World Superbike in 2024 aparece primeiro em Motorcycle Sports.

Andrea Iannone began his preparation for his debut in the World Superbike Championship in 2024 this week with the two days of testing in Jerez. It was his first contact with a racing bike nearly four years after being suspended, and upon his return, despite the fatigue, he didn’t forget to have fun.

The Italian rider from Team GoEleven revealed to GPOne.com that he was even at a higher level than expected: ‘I had a lot of fun on Wednesday, the sensations with the bike are good, as well as with the tyres. That’s the important thing; for sure, I need to improve in some areas, but we also have time for that. We started at a very good level, and I didn’t expect this at all; I expected worse. Fortunately, we are ahead; I don’t think anyone expected that’.

Despite the good start and its significance, Iannone doesn’t get carried away with excessive enthusiasm: ‘You have to keep your feet on the ground; that’s normal. You can’t think that there’s no work to be done, that you’ve arrived. You have to stay humble and work, but the starting point is important. It was essential to have felt this way, and I have to say I’m happy. An important day in many ways. […]. I have to be aware of everything that is needed, but I also want to enjoy this day and this return. It’s important that I didn’t take anything for granted; it’s really meaningful for me’.

O conteúdo ‘We started at a very good level; I expected worse’ – Andrea Iannone aparece primeiro em Motorcycle Sports.