Chun Mei Liu (WT Racing Team Taiwan) was a consistent performer in the inaugural FIM Women’s Circuit Racing World Championship as she fought for the top-ten positions, securing a best of seventh in the opening race of the season. She’s had a different journey to racing on the world stage, starting out relatively late compared to some of her rivals but has helped grow the sport back in her native country.

FROM NEW TAIPEI CITY TO MISANO AND BEYOND: her journey to WorldWCR

Chun Mei Liu proudly represents Taiwan in the WorldWCR’s historical first season and she’s an inspirational figure for many young riders from her country and region. The 42-year-old from New Taipei City is an experienced rider and is also a trained motorcycle mechanic and technician, who is comfortable working on her own bikes. The WT Racing Team Taiwan rider confesses to loving all kinds of motorcycles and it is now on the Yamaha YZF-R7 that she is enjoying racing with the fastest women on the planet in 2024.

HOW IT STARTED: on a bike at 17, playing other sports

Liu describes her initial forays into the world of motorcycling, commenting: “I first started riding when I was 17 years old and the Yamaha Cygnus was my first bike. I immediately felt excited and thought about being able to ride long distances.” She continues: “I also played basketball, tennis and badminton when I was younger, but it was motorcycles that I was most into. This has always been my passion and something that’s in my blood. Compared to other sports, motorcycle racing is the only one I can be truly focused in and concentrate on.”

RECENT RACING ACTIVITY: strong performances in Asia

Over the last five seasons between 2019 and 2023 Liu has ridden in the Asia Road Racing Championship building up her experience in China and Japan, racing against male competitors. She also competed in the 2021 Taiwan Motorcycle Road Race Championship and the 2022 Taiwan Superbike Series, enjoying great success along the way. She started competing on 50cc and 125cc bikes, making her way onto more powerful machinery as her experience increased, riding on bikes such as the Yamaha R3 and Kawasaki 250cc.

INCREASING THE SPORT’S POPULARITY IN TAIWAN: limited race tracks, finding fans

Liu explains the local racing scene in her home nation saying: “We don’t have so many tracks for racing like in Europe. Even compared to China or Japan, we’ve only got three or four motorcycle tracks. It’s still hard for people here, the fans, to get into contact with motorcycle races. I feel like I’ve made a good contribution to motorcycle racing in Taiwan, because I was really the only one to go overseas for so many races and represent Taiwan. So now my fans and most fans of motorcycle racing in Taiwan have got to know how racing works because of me.”

She continues to describe how more Taiwanese riders are themselves becoming more interested in racing due to the increased presence of more powerful bikes on the road in the East Asian country. “Motorcycles are a very frequently used mode of transport in Taiwan, not everyone has a car, but most people have a motorcycle, like a 50cc or 125cc, both men and women,” she explains. “Now interest in the sport is increasing because more people are intrigued and there are more heavier bikes around. In the past the bigger capacity bikes were more restricted, but now more people are riding bikes of 500cc or more, so it’s developing.”

A DEDICATED MOTORCYLIST: day trips on motorbikes

When it comes to her riding habits away from the racetrack, Liu admits: “I’ll ride every type of bike I can get my hands on! I mostly ride around Taiwan because it’s a small island and it’s easy to get around. Usually, I take four to five days trips, just riding around. I go onto mountain roads and explore as well as riding on the expressways, all kinds of roads. I hope to ride more on the roads and explore in Europe too, but for now I’m too busy with racing and work.”

CREDIT WHERE CREDIT IS DUE: praise for her manager

Acknowledging the role her biggest motorcycling influence has had on her career, Liu reveals: “My manager and coach is really the person who has taught me most in racing. Every time I make a mistake in training, he doesn’t go easy on me! That’s one of the reasons why I’ve developed in the sport. He has made me one of the best riders in Taiwan. In fact, he is my manager, my coach and my mechanic! We’ve been working together for 23 years.”

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After taking victories at Barcelona-Catalunya and Assen, Toprak Razgatlioglu (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) claimed his first ever MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship hat-trick at the Misano World Circuit “Marco Simoncelli”, finishing ahead of rivals Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) and Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) to take the Championship lead on Saturday, the first time BMW had led the way in over a decade. Watch the highlights from Race 1 and Race 2 HERE.

RACE 1: Toprak takes the Championship lead

The surprise came on Saturday at Misano: Razgatlioglu took pole position in Superpole and in the afternoon, took victory on Ducati soil, a second and a half ahead of Bulega and three ahead of Bautista. That was the Turk’s fourth win of the year, his second in a row, which he would eventually extend to thirteen. In addition, Toprak broke Bautista’s run of four consecutive Misano wins, which stretched back to Race 2 in 2022.

PERFECT SUNDAY: Razgatlioglu continues dominating and completes the triple

On Sunday, things continued in the same way, with the Turk dominating from Warm Up. In the Superpole Race, he took his second win of the weekend ahead of Bulega and Alex Lowes (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK). Bautista crashed at Turn 10 on Lap 5, when he was running fourth with another mistake adding to a tricky season. In the afternoon, the Talavera native returned to the podium but finished almost seven seconds behind Razgatlioglu, who completed the triple as Bulega took a third second place of the weekend. Elsewhere, a first top six back in action for Danilo Petrucci (Barni Spark Racing Team), nothing short of a miracle.

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With another high-octane season in the books, Mallorca’s Palma Convention Center played host to the FIM awards ceremony bringing together the highest-achieving riders in the Motul FIM Superbike World Championship paddock. Circuit racing legend Dominique Meiland presented awards to each of the champions in each racing discipline, including but not limited to: two-time WorldSBK champion, Toprak Razgatlioglu, WorldSSP champion Adrian Huertas, WorldWCR champion Ana Carrasco and WorldSSP300 champion Aldi Satya Mahendra. Click above to  see the photos from the event celebrating the brightest stars in motorsport!

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Riders from all around competed in the 2024 Women’s FIM Circuit Racing World Championship, with Luna Hirano (Team Luna) representing Japan on the world stage. A country with a proud racing history, on two wheels and four, Hirano adapted to the Yamaha R7 machine across the six rounds held in 2024 as she became a regular points scorer and here, you can learn more about the Tokyo-born rider.

HEADING WEST TO RACE WITH THE BEST: competing outside Asia for the first time

Hirano rode outside Asia for the first time this year, proudly representing Japan in the historical, inaugural season of the WorldWCR. Alongside Taiwan’s Chun Mei Liu – the only other Asian rider on the 2024 grid of the FIM Women’s Circuit Racing World Championship – Hirano has made the leap from racing in Asia to battle with the best female riders on the planet in Europe this year and it’s an experience she is relishing.

IT ALL STARTED AT MOTEGI: iconic venue to begin her career

Hirano’s love affair with motorcycles all began at another iconic racing venue when she first rode an electric kids’ bike in the amusement park zone at Twin Ring Motegi, the circuit which annually hosts MotoGP™ for the Japanese Grand Prix. She recalls that first contact with a motorcycle saying: “I first encountered a bike in 2006 when I was six years old. I rode an electric minibike at the amusement park at Mobility Resort Motegi. I loved riding and my mother recommended a pocket bike. As I had many friends my age also riding it wasn’t so much about wanting to become a rider, I just continued because I wanted to play with my friends.”

MAKING CONTINUAL PROGRESS: rising through the ranks

Hirano gives the details of her journey to elite level racing from those playful beginnings at Motegi as a child, saying: “I actually began in motorsports at the age of six, as I also started riding pocket bikes in 2006 after trying the electric bike. Then for six years, from ages 6 to 12, I continued to ride pocket bikes. When I was 13 I switched to a NSF100 mini bike and at 14 I raced on an international circuit on a CBR250R. By this time, I had grown to nearly 170 cm tall and then I moved onto larger bikes when I was 16 and participated in regional championships on a CBR600RR at Mobility Resort Motegi and the Tsukuba Circuit. I started racing in the All-Japan Road Race Championship in 2018, fully participating in the ST600 class at the age of 18.”

TESTING HERSELF IN ENDURANCE RACING: a Suzuka 8 Hours debut

Once she was already competing in road racing at a high level, as one of very few women to ride in Japan’s national championship, Hirano then decided to test herself in one of her country’s most prestigious motorsports events in a different format, entering the world-renowned Suzuka 8-Hour race. “When I was 19, I competed in the EWC Suzuka 8-Hour Endurance Road Race Championship and the EWC Malaysia Sepang 8-Hour Endurance Road Race Championship on a GSX-R1000. In 2022 and 2023, I also participated in the Suzuka 8-Hour race on the GSX-R1000. After experiencing the EWC endurance road race championship several times, I sense a significant physical difference between men and women. It is challenging for women to succeed in the top categories of MotoGP™, WorldSBK, and EWC. Overcoming these differences is not easy.”

HAVING FUN AND SURPRISING PEOPLE: “People say I don’t look like someone who rides a motorcycle regularly. They are 100% surprised”

Hirano takes the challenge of making it to the very top level in racing seriously, understanding the commitment and determination involved. However, she’s also quick to recognise the simple joys of riding high-speed motorcycles and surprising onlookers with her talent. “While it may be possible to aim for the upper tier with a lot of training, there are physical and strength differences that cannot be overcome, no matter how hard one tries,” she asserts. On what motivates her to participate in such a demanding discipline, the rider from Tokyo adds: “Just the experience of riding a larger 600cc bike was the catalyst for me. You can ride at speeds that you can’t experience on regular roads. It’s a lot of fun. People say I don’t look like someone who rides a motorcycle regularly. They are 100% surprised.”

HIRANO’S HOBBIES AND HEROES: Spies and Pedrosa her inspiration

Hirano works as an instructor at Bridgestone and in her spare time she enjoys playing games on her PC, watching anime cartoons, and reading novels. She lists World Champions Ben Spies and Dani Pedrosa alongside her compatriot Kazuki Watanabe as her favourite riders. Regarding the female athlete who inspires her most, she reveals, “That’s Saori Yoshida who is a well-known Japanese wrestler. She’s a multiple-time world champion and Olympic gold medallist, recognised for her outstanding achievements in women’s wrestling.”

THE HUGE CHALLENGE AND PRESTIGE: aiming to be a benchmark

As the sole Japanese rider on the first ever WorldWCR grid, Hirano describes her exciting 2024 adventure as the biggest challenge of her life. “I go through almost everything alone – booking flights, reserving hotels, renting cars and hiring mechanics,” she acknowledges. “The experience of doing all these things by myself will surely become my strength in the future. I hope that by participating, I can set a benchmark for future female riders in Asia. It’s very difficult to go overseas from Japan, so I want to be a guiding light. I am very honoured to be able to participate in the inaugural year of the WorldWCR.”

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The MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship moved from Barcelona to the TT Circuit Assen at the end of April and it was a round that had everything. Rain greeted the field on Saturday and led to shocks in Race 1 as debutant Nicholas Spinelli (Barni Spark Racing Team) claimed victory in his first WorldSBK race. There was a first-time podium finisher in Race 2 as well with Australian star Remy Gardner (GYTR GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Team) claimed his first rostrum after knocking on the door in the early part of the season. Catch up on the Race 1 and Race 2 action and watch highlights from a thrilling Tissot Superpole Race on WorldSBK’s YouTube channel – and don’t forget to subscribe for more!

SPINELLI’S DEBUT TO REMEMBER: intermediate tyre choice comes off

Spinelli stepped in to replace the injured Danilo Petrucci after the latter’s life-threatening motocross training crash. The #9 was cheering on his compatriot and even played an important role in Spinelli’s shock victory with a pre-race phone call helping with tyre choice. With the track damp but rain no longer falling, most riders opted for slicks but Spinelli went for intermediates at the front and rear, while Andrea Locatelli (Pata Prometeon Yamaha) had a mix of slicks and intermediates. Spinelli burst into the lead from 11^th on the grid and soon had a 25-second advantage over his rivals. However, with the track drying, Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) and Toprak Razgatlioglu (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) were closing him down before a well-timed red flag – if you were in the Barni Ducati garage – at just over two-thirds race distance meant Spinelli was a WorldSBK winner in his first race.

GARDNER LANDS FIRST ROSTRUM: the #87 claims third in Race 2

Gardner had been closing in on a first podium towards the end of 2023 and he was even closer during his home Australian Round. Barcelona was tricky for all Yamaha riders but at Assen, the #87 was back in the grove. He took fourth in Race 1, just five seconds away from victory, and finished in the same position in the Tissot Superpole Race. It was in Race 2 where he finally stood on the podium, fighting for a well-deserved third place to stand on the iconic Dutch rostrum and finishing only a second away from victory, behind Razgatlioglu and Championship leader Bautista.

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