With a two-day test at MotorLand Aragon resuming MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship action after a well-deserved break, team managers at the four factory teams heading to Spain have revealed what they will be testing at the Spanish circuit. From preparing for the upcoming Aragon Round to looking at the future, there’s plenty to keep an eye on during the test which takes place on Tuesday and Wednesday this week.

“WE NEED TO WORK ON THE SETUP OF THE BIKE” – Ducati looking to refine their package

Ducati, particularly with Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati), have been the team and manufacturer to beat in 2023. The reigning Champion has 18 wins to his name already and will be looking to add to that as he goes in search of a second consecutive title, while teammate Michael Ruben Rinaldi will be looking to finish the campaign on a high. The outing gives Ducati a chance to refine their package after having two 250-rpm reductions on the Panigale V4 R this season.

Explaining Ducati’s plan, Team Manager Serafino Foti said: “We reserved the track because it’s our track. Some other teams are coming. We need to work on the setup of the bike, because after the rpm was reduced, we need to adjust some things. We’ll work on this. As I said, we will be stronger than at the beginning of the season.”

“TRYING TO MAKE STEPS FOR THE FUTURE” – one eye on the present, one on the future for Kawasaki

Kawasaki have one win to their name in 2023 and will be looking to end the campaign on a high to give them a springboard into 2024. Their test programme is split across four riders, with Florian Marino and Adrian Huertas on track on Tuesday and Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) and Alex Lowes riding on Wednesday. For the Japanese manufacturer, the test is a chance to focus on the end of 2023 while also looking ahead to 2024.

Discussing the team’s plan, Team Manager Guim Roda said: “It’s a middle of the year test, so it’s important as we’ll need to test many things during the year to confirm the direction of the past, whether we were right or not. At the same time, trying to make steps for the future to understand how we improve the package. It’s important and we’ll try to extract the maximum.”

“WE’LL HAVE SOME PARTS TO TEST AT ARAGON” – Honda aiming for improvements

Xavi Vierge (Team HRC) scored Honda’s sole podium of 2023 and that came in the second round of the season. This campaign has proven challenging for both Vierge and teammate Iker Lecuona, and Aragon will give the duo a chance to reset, try new items and, potentially, take a step forward. There will be new items for Honda to try on the CBR1000RR-R machine during the two days which, like Kawasaki, will be conducted with an eye to the future.

Team Manager Leon Camier explained: “We’ll have some parts to test at Aragon that will hopefully be used at the end of the year. So, let’s see what happens; when Japan brings the parts, hopefully we make progress, and we’ll go from there. It’s important that we make a step from there until the end of the year. Also, we know that these tracks that we’ve been at haven’t been ideal for us, they’re weak tracks for us at the minute. We have to take this into consideration, but we need to be fast at every track, it’s as simple as that.

“The parts that we bring now will determine what we bring for 2024. Each thing we bring, it changes again what we need from other parts of the bike. Each area of the bike, we need to improve, we’re working on this, and we understand this but it’s one step at a time; you can’t just put three things on a bike and expect it to work.”

“WE HOPE TO COME OUT OF THE BREAK WITH NEW GOODIES” – where will BMW be looking for gains?

BMW introduced a new M1000RR model for 2023 but results, so far, have been hard to come by. Their best result is fourth thanks to Scott Redding (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) on two occasions, while it’s been another injury-hit campaign for teammate Michael van der Mark. The M1000RR has become a regular contender in the top ten and the German manufacturer will be hoping the Aragon test provides a platform to secure podiums this season as well as into the future.

Expanding on their Aragon programme, BMW Motorrad Motorsport Director Marc Bongers said: “You can’t leave one stone unturned. You have to develop in every single area, so chassis, engine, electronics, aerodynamics… parts are very limited due to the regulations. We have gained super concessions so we hope to come out of the summer break with new goodies in terms of chassis, which will hopefully make the next step.”

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Three rounds in July ended the first part of the season as the MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship reached its summer break, but the drama continued right up until the chequered flag in Race 2. It was a rain-affected Czech Round but the Autodrom Most saved the most dramatic moments until the final stages of the weekend after an incredible Race 2. Catch up on all the action from both Race 1 and Race 2 HERE and watch highlights from a stunning Tissot Superpole Race on YouTube – don’t forget to subscribe!

Race 2 was thrilling affair between Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) and Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pata Yamaha Prometeon WorldSBK), with the #1 battling from fourth to the lead whilst the Turk started from P1. For several laps, the reigning World Champion tried as hard as he could to pass the #54 into Turn 1 with the 2021 Champion able to resist, including a mesmerising late-braking show around the outside at the first chicane. The battle raged until the Yamaha star crashed on the exit of Turn 2 on Lap 17 due to a rear tyre failure, ending his hopes of cutting the title gap to 44 points. It allowed Bautista to claim his 50^th WorldSBK and also his 18^th victory of 2023, becoming the rider with most wins in a single season, beating Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) and Doug Polen’s record of 17.

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As the sun loungers begin to be stored away for another season, the umbrellas folded down and the beach towels washed, the WorldSBK break is certainly drawing to a close. That means a return to track action, as well as potential announcements for the 2024 grid. Whilst the silly season rumour mill has certainly not stopped, one key seat up for grabs and to be announced in the coming weeks will be the second factory Ducati seat in the Aruba.it Racing – Ducati team. We’ve been told ‘after summer’ so far and one rider is making the headlines for the seat: Nicolo Bulega, and he’s got the backing of the current factory riders too. Get your full run-down of all silly-season gossip here, with over half the grid and half of the factory seats still to be filled.

It’s been a stellar season for Bulega in the FIM Supersport World Championship, with the #11 giving Ducati a first win in WorldSSP since 2005 at Phillip Island’s season-opener, and he’s been the rider to beat ever since. Nine wins in total, four other podiums and a 46-point lead in the Championship standings over Stefano Manzi (Ten Kate Racing Yamaha), it’s easy to see why Bulega is being touted as Alvaro Bautista’s (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) teammate for next year. Another reason is that he’s enjoyed several tests, where he impressed Ducati Corse General Manager Gigi Dall’Igna, who hailed the 23-year-old as “quite fast” on track.

BULEGA CALM: a big move to a dream seat for 2024?

Coming from the horse’s mouth, Bulega previously provided an update on his future at Most: “Nothing; I just want to stay focused on my Championship as now, it’s the most important. The future is also important but I just want to focus on the present and let my manager and the team do their work.” Prior to that, Previously, Stefano Cecconi, Aruba.it Racing – Ducati team principal, said it “makes sense” to see Bulega in WorldSBK for 2024 and that is “regardless” of 2023’s end result in World Supersport.

Speaking previously about his seat being at risk, Rinaldi stated Bulega deserves a chance: “I think that on Ducati’s side, it can be a move that is normal and for sure, I wouldn’t be upset. It’s normal that a young guy like Nicolo deserves a chance; I think that for him, it could be risky to go straight to a factory seat but if I was in his shoes, I’d do it because who says no to a factory team?”

Teammate Alvaro Bautista echoed Rinaldi’s sentiments: “I read the rumours; I think Bulega is a nice rider and he’s very fast, doing well in WorldSSP. For sure, he wants to go to WorldSBK next year but I don’t know where or with which team. He deserves an opportunity to come to WorldSBK and show his potential.”

Keeping coy, Serafino Foti – team manager for the team in the WorldSBK class – named Bulega as a candidate,whilst remaining open to the fact that others are in the running before a decision should be made at Magny-Cours: “We have some options, but Bulega could be the option at the moment. We haven’t made any decision yet and I think we won’t announce our 2024 line-up until Magny-Cours.”

RINALDI’S FUTURE: a change to come?

It’s not been the strongest of seasons for the four-time race winner, of which three have been achieved in factory Ducati colours since 2021 – in fact, they all came in 2021. Since then, podiums have been bagged but the #21 has struggled to challenge teammate Alvaro Bautista or even stay in touch with Axel Bassani (Motocorsa Racing) at times, as the Independent rider is ahead of him by some distance in the Championship. 

“I don’t know yet,” began Rinaldi when talking of his future at Most, with nothing decided. “I’m quiet for now and we’ll see what’s going to happen. From Ducati, there’s no rush to sign and they haven’t said to me yes or no. We are working to see what our other options can be in case they tell me ‘no’. Last year, we decided in September, which was too late, as I didn’t have another seat available. This year, I tried to find a solution before and for sure I’ll try to stay with this family. However, at this moment, I’m peaceful and I just want to ride the bike and find a good feeling with that.”

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The MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship visited the Autodrom Most for the last round before the summer break and the action was intense as it was dramatic. For one rider, it meant he went into the break on a high after outscoring all his rivals by ending a 252-day wait for victory. Catch up on all the Race 1 and Race 2 HERE and watch highlights from a classic Tissot Superpole Race on YouTube – don’t forget to subscribe to the channel too!

Race 1 at the Autodrom Most was unpredictable after a rain shower shortly before the start mixed-up the tyre strategies and choices on the grid. The correct choice was to go with the intermediate tyres: lose time at the start but make up a whole heap of ground on your rivals when the wet-tyre runners started to struggle and would eventually come into the pits, adhering to the minimum pit intervention time of 58s. This is exactly what Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) did as he stormed to a first win of the season, and a first victory since Race 1 at Phillip Island last year. Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pata Yamaha Prometeon WorldSBK) slashed Alvaro Bautista’s (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) Championship lead down to 54 points from 70, with the Spaniard starting on wets and then losing an additional 18s in the pitlane after a front tyre change problem.

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The MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship is enjoying a well-deserved break in August, and before the French Round hosts the first event after the holidays, we caught up with Serafino Foti, Aruba.it Racing – Ducati’s Team Manager, to look back at 2023 so far. Alvaro Bautista’s record-breaking first eight rounds, his potential teammate and much more, it’s been eventful for Ducati. The reigning Champion is currently first in the standings whilst teammate Michael Ruben Rinaldi is seventh.

“ALVARO DID AN AMAZING JOB… RINALDI WAS UNLUCKY” – mixed fortunes

Bautista broke records at Most, the last round before the summer break, as he took his 18^th win of the season. He stands alone after he beat Jonathan Rea and Doug Polen’s previous record of 17 victories in a single campaign, whilst he also hit the milestone of 50 wins in his WorldSBK career. The #1 heads into the summer break on top with a 74-point advantage over Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pata Yamaha Prometeon WorldSBK). On the other side of the box, Rinaldi sits seventh in the standings after an up-and-down campaign. The #21 has scored five podiums this season but also had four retirements to his name.

Summing up both riders’ seasons, Foti said: “Alvaro did an amazing job, he’s won 18 races and, this year, he reached 50 WorldSBK wins. This is amazing in two and a half years with Ducati. It’s incredible. We know our potential, and now it’s time to disconnect. I think, after the summer break, we will be stronger. To be honest, this year, Rinaldi was unlucky. Sometimes he was in front, sometimes he crashed, and he was also inconsistent. He has unbelievable potential. We’ve seen the data and he is so fast. He needs to disconnect. I hope, at the end of the season, he can fight for the podium in every race.”

“BULEGA COULD BE THE OPTION” – Rinaldi’s future hangs in the balance

Bautista’s future was secured at the Catalunya Round when he inked a one-year deal with the Bologna-based manufacturer to race in red next season. However, the name of his teammate is still unknown. Several riders, including Axel Bassani (Motocorsa Racing) and Danilo Petrucci (Barni Spark Racing Team) have expressed an interest in joining a factory team for 2024, while Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing WorldSSP Team) has tested the V4 R on several occasions. Team Principal Stefano Cecconi said it “makes sense” to see Bulega in WorldSBK next year.

Whilst not giving much away, Foti explained when a decision could be made by, and name-dropped one rider in his answer. He said: “We have some options, but Bulega could be the option at the moment. We haven’t made any decision yet and I think we won’t announce our 2024 line-up until Magny-Cours.”

“WE WILL BE STRONGER THAN THE BEGINNING OF THE SEASON” – Foti sends warning to rivals

At the end of August, several teams will head to MotorLand Aragon for a two-day test just over a week before competitive action resumes at Magny-Cours. It will be a chance for everyone to get back in form after the August break while it will also be an opportunity for teams to work on and refine their packages for the final four rounds of the season.

Giving a preview of the test, Foti commented: “We reserved the track because it’s our track. Some other teams are coming. We need to work on the setup of the bike, because after the rpm was reduced, we need to adjust some things. We’ll work on this. As I said, we will be stronger than at the beginning of the season.”

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Ondrej Vostatek will return to the FIM Supersport World Championship with the PTR Triumph outfit from the French Round onwards as he completes the 2023 season with the team. Having returned to WorldSSP action last time out at his home round, the Prague-born rider will see out the current campaign with the British manufacturer in place of Harry Truelove after he and the team parted ways after the Czech Round.

Truelove started the campaign on the Triumph Street Triple RS 765 machine and took a best result of 11^th in the season-opening Race 1 at Phillip Island. His season kicked off in strong fashion, but it would turn out to be his only points-scoring race of the season and he missed the Czech Round through injuries sustained in a Donington Park crash; he did compete at Imola but recorded two retirements. Following the visit to Most, the team announced that they had amicably split with Truelove. 

Vostatek, who turns 19 before the French Round, was originally slated to ride for the team as a wildcard at Most but took Truelove’s place, finishing 16^th in Race 1 and retiring from Race 2. He showed impressive speed at his home circuit and has WorldSSP experience to his name already having raced on Yamaha machinery in 2021 and 2022. He had been a regular points scorer throughout his time on the YZF-R6, including a best result of 10^th on two occasions: in both races at the Circuito Estoril.

The Czech rider will now step into Truelove’s shoes for the final four rounds of the season at Magny-Cours, Aragon, Portimao and Jerez; all circuits he has raced at before in WorldSSP albeit on Yamaha machinery not Triumph. His best result across all four tracks came at Portimao when he secured 15^th in Race 1 in 2021 with IXS-YART Yamaha and in 2022 with MS Racing Yamaha WorldSSP.

Explaining the decision to bring in Vostatek in Truelove’s place, Team Manager Simon Buckmaster said: “We always want to succeed with every rider that rides for us, but after so many years of riding an inline four-cylinder machine it was difficult for Harry to adapt to our bike, so we have mutually decided to go our separate ways. It’s such a shame we couldn’t make it work but it’s in everybody’s best interests not to keep going. After seven rounds together, track days and testing with the team, we’ve just not been able to find that solution for Harry and for us as a team to achieve what we’d hoped to achieve together. We wish Harry all the best for whatever he does racing wise in the future, and we want to thank him for all his efforts.

“We are pleased that Ondrej Vostatek will join us for the rest of the season. He showed great promise as a substitute rider at Most when Harry Truelove was injured, and we are optimistic he can show us what he can do. We had a meeting at Horice in the Czech Republic last week and signed the deal for him to test with us at Aragon and do the last four rounds. We are looking forward to working with Ondrej, he is young and has great potential. We want to work as best we can as a team to realise that potential and we are looking forward to getting started.”

Talking about his return to WorldSSP, Vostatek commented: “I’m really happy that I get a chance like this to continue with PTR Triumph for the rest of the season. I’m excited and I will put in maximum effort to make a best result.”

Truelove said about his departure: “It’s been a tricky year obviously, adapting to the Triumph hasn’t gone as we would have liked. The team and I have tried as much as we can to get a good feeling, however this has not come. For this reason, we have decided to part ways. I wish the team the best of luck for the remaining rounds, and I’d like to thank them for the opportunity.”

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