WorldSBK 2019 Phillip Island Test Day 1 – AM Report
Alvaro Bautista and Jonathan Rea traded places at the top of the timesheets many times during this morning’s two-hour practice session at Phillip Island but Alex Lowes eventually split the pair late in the session.
When the session wound up shortly after 1300 this afternoon, it was the Ducati man topping the charts ahead of Lowes while Rea made it three different manufacturers occupying those top three spots on the timesheets.
Alvaro Bautista – TBG Image
Tom Sykes was the leading BMW rider in seventh place just ahead of the man that replaced him at Kawasaki, Leon Haslam.
Overnight Dorna released updated RPM limits for the 2019 WorldSBK season that will be in place for the start of the season. If a single type of machine looks to have much of an advantage these limits will be reduced further during the season. The new BMW will start season 2019 with a 14,900 rpm limit while the Kawasaki will be pegged to 14,600 rpm.
The new Ducati Panigale V4 R will start with a 16,350 rpm limit, but with both Bautista and Davies clocking by far the fastest speeds in today’s morning session, one would expect that the Ducati rev limit to be reduced in due course…
Leon Camier was 11th quickest on the Moriwaki Althea Honda.
Chaz Davies suffered some mechanical gremlins this morning with the Panigale V4 R rolling to a stop at Siberia. Limiting the number of laps the Welshman could do at pace this morning.
Chaz Davies – TBG Image
Wildcard entrant Troy Herfoss spent the majority of the session in the pits and will be looking to move forward in this afternoon’s second two-hour bout which finishes shortly before 6pm AEDT.
Earlier in the morning World Supersport riders had also hit the track and it was a Yamaha 1-2 for the 600cc machines headed by Caricasulo. Wildcard entrant Tom Toparis was a highly creditable ninth in that opening session.
Tom Toparis – GeeBee Image
WorldSBK – Free Practice 1 Times
Alvaro Bautista – Ducati 1m30.743 – 314.9 km/h
Alex Lowes – Yamaha 1m31.146 – 308.6 km/h
Jonathan Rea – Kawasaki 1m31.189 – 308.6 km/h
Marco Melandri – Yamaha 1m31.445 – 314 km/h
Michael Van der Mark – Yamaha 1m31.458 – 304.2 km/h
Sandro Cortese – Yamaha 1m31.639 – 304.2 km/h
Tom Sykes – BMW 1m31.740 – 303.4 km/h
Leon Haslam – Kawasaki 1m31.886 – 308.6 km/h
Markus Reiterberger – BMW 1m31.992 – 300.0 km/h
Toprak Razgatlioglu – Kawasaki 1m32.425 – 302.5 km/h
Leon Camier – Honda 1m32.459 – 307.7 km/h
Jordi Torres – Kawasaki 1m32.679 – 300.0 km/h
Leandro Mercado – Kawasaki 1m32.789 – 300.8 km/h
Ryuichi Kiyonari – Honda 1m33.171 – 306.8 km/h
Chaz Davies – Ducati 1m33.204 – 313 km/h
Eugene Laverty – Ducati 1m33.353 – 305.1 km/h
Michael Rinaldi – Ducati 1m33.843 – 307.7 km/h
Alessandrio Delbianco – Honda 1m33.965 – 292.7 km/h
Troy Herfoss – Penrite Honda 1m34.961 – 295.1 km/h
Reigning Australian Superbike (ASBK) champion Troy Herfoss is out for redemption on the world stage in the opening round of the 2019 Motul FIM Superbike World Championship at the Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit this February 22-24.
Returning as a WorldSBK wildcard for the second year in succession, the soon-to-be 32-year-old says the difficulties he and his team had in 2018 serve as motivation to really get amongst it in 2019 – in a field that will contain superstars such as Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki), Alvaro Bautista (Ducati), Tom Sykes (BMW), Alex Lowes (Yamaha), Leon Camier (Honda), Leon Haslam (Kawasaki), Chaz Davies (Ducati) and Marco Melandri (Yamaha).
Troy Bayliss and Troy Herfoss raced wheel to wheel in the ASBK season opener at Phillip Island – TBG Image
“The original plan was to do a WorldSBK wildcard in my second year with Deon (Coote), but we got a bit excited and jumped straight in the deep end last year,” said Herfoss, who was raised in Goulburn (NSW) but now lives on the Gold Coast. “As a result, we were underdone but on the flipside we learnt a lot of things which we can bring to the table in 2019.”
Troy Herfoss – Winton ASBK 2018 – Image by TBG
Melbourne-based Coote took ownership of Honda Australia’s official superbike team at the start of the 2018 season and, while the WorldSBK wildcard campaign was eventually scuppered by mechanical problems last year, Herfoss had a great year in the domestic series and went onto win his second ASBK title in three years – adding to a stellar CV already embedded with national supermoto (2006) and supersport (2010) titles.
Troy Herfoss celebrates the 2018 title victory – Winton ASBK 2018 – Image by TBG
However, the disappointing WorldSBK wildcard in 2018 is something that Herfoss is determined to redress, and he says all the elements are in place to make that happen.
“The whole team have put in a lot of effort to build a bike that’s capable of running a lot further up the field,” said Herfoss, who competed in the recent RoadNats cycling titles alongside his partner, Emily.
Penrite Honda – 2018 ASBK Superbike Champions – Image TBG
“We know we are going to be competitive with a more complete package and a wealth of knowledge that we gained last year. If I can get the bike fully up to speed I want to be in that 8-12 group pace – and who knows what can happen after that once tyre life and all those variables come into play.”
Troy Herfoss – Image by Colin Rosewarne
Herfoss is particularly looking forward to the new WorldSBK ‘triple treat’ formula, which will make its debut at Phillip Island with a 10-lap sprint race at midday on Sunday, sandwiched between the traditional pair of 22-lappers at 3:00pm on Saturday and Sunday.
Troy Herfoss – Winton ASBK 2018 – Image by TBG
“The sprint race is a similar distance to the ASBK races, so it’s something that I’m used to,” said Herfoss. “It’s a great concept and is certainly going to make for a hot pace – it’s going to be interesting to see how it all pans out.”
Troy Herfoss – Winton ASBK 2018 – Image by TBG
The opening round of the 2019 ASBK title will also be held alongside the WorldSBK round, but Herfoss is unfazed by the double duties. He said: “I enjoy racing the world championship and ASBK class at Phillip Island, and I deal well with the physical and mental pressures. It really helps me get into a groove.”
Troy Herfoss – TBG Image
In total, 13 races will be held at Phillip Island across Saturday and Sunday, with supersport and production 300 the other two national classes supporting the world championship categories: WorldSBK and WorldSSP.
Goulburn teenager Tom Toparis is the Aussie wildcard in WorldSSP – and just like Herfoss is backing up from 2018. Toparis was 15th in last year’s WorldSSP race on a Kawasaki, but will be riding a Yamaha in 2019.
Tickets now on sale
A three-day general admission for the WorldSBK round is $120* secured in advance, and includes FREE Paddock Access. Add four nights camping to your purchase and the total cost, including event entry and Paddock, is $230* .
If you feel like splashing out, step up to a Bar SBK ticket at $265* (with camping $375*) and enjoy undercover facilities at Doohan Corner, Siberia and Lukey Heights.
World superbikes is free for kids 15 and under, and so is your bike. For all ticket and racing information, visit www.worldsbk.com.au or Ticketek.
Final European shakedown before WSBK hits Australia
Images by 2snap/GeeBee
Portimao hosted the final two-day European pre-season test ahead of the 2019 Motul FIM Superbike World Championship season getting underway in Australia over the weekend of February 22-24 at Phillip Island.
The new race format being introduced for 2019, that adds a 10-lap Sunday morning sprint race to the weekend schedule, saw riders get to test a new Pirelli SCX rear tyre at Portimao this week.
Some riders also slotted in a qualifying tyre for their outright time attack style lap and on Q rubber Jonathan Rea set a 1m40.885 to street the field. Rea also fell on his last lap of the day but was uninjured in the tumble.
Jonathan Rea
Jonathan Rea
“It has been a super-positive test. We came from the Jerez and I was still understanding the bike and the asphalt there. It made it difficult to understand the work we had done over the winter. But coming here we had quite a neutral platform to work with and a lot of data. Although the temperatures did not get into a perfect operating window it gave us a consistent effort over two days. We confirmed the chassis items we tested at Jerez, and electronically we worked a bit better. We started to work on our race performance. I was really happy with how I felt with a lot of laps on the tyre compared to last this time last year. I got to try a qualifier at the end of the day and that felt quite good and I was really fast with it. This test ticked every box, just a couple of little items we could have re-checked and gone over. But the priorities were done and we got to try some new Pirelli tyres as well.”
Jonathan Rea
Pere Riba, Crew Chief for Jonathan Rea
“I am really happy because we have been improving since yesterday morning. Here we confirmed some items that were on the list, mainly with the balance of the chassis. The new engine has a small difference in the character on corner entry or corner exit, and the revs are different, which also changes the character a bit. This also affects the chassis and we tried to put it all together. Honestly speaking we made a step forward and Johnny was flying. On the race tyres we made a lot of laps and after many laps it was we were still doing very strong times. The tyre wear was good and overall everything was very good.”
Jonathan Rea and Crew Chief Pere Riba
Haslam’s best lap of the test was also set on a qualifying tyre but the Briton was halted on his final attempt for a time by a red flag incident on track. Haslam’s 1m42.144 best lap on Q rubber only a tenth quicker than he had managed on race tyres.
Leon Haslam
Leon Haslam
“A good test for us and we made a step with the lap time. I made a 1’42.2 with a race tyre, which I was really happy with. I did not get any benefit from using the soft tyre mainly because with the first chance to go faster there was a red flag and for the second one I got rained on. I never really got a chance to go for one lap again. That was a little bit frustrating but on the race tyre times I was really happy. I made some good steps and tried a few things, including a different front tyre for the first time, which I felt was a bit better. We only had one of them so I could not put it toward an even better lap time. But I was consistently in the 1’42s, so I am pretty happy with things.”
Leon Haslam
Taking the fight to Rea and the green machines, Alex Lowes (Pata Yamaha WorldSBK Team) continued his recent impressive pace and he closed the test second fastest.
Alex Lowes
“It’s been a really positive test for me here in Portimão, a track at which I’ve struggled a little previously on the Yamaha. During this test we’ve found some strong, consistent pace and my fastest lap came on the sprint race tyre as I ran into traffic on the qualifier, so I know there’s more to come. But it’s not the one-off fast lap time that’s important. What’s made me happy is the fact that I posted a lot of fast and consistent laps on every run, we managed to complete the whole test program and we’re now in a good position ahead of the test and race in Phillip Island. We’ve had a really strong winter, put the hard work in, made no mistakes and, hopefully, we can reap the reward with a strong start to the season in Phillip Island next month.”
Alex Lowes
Together with his teammate Michael van der Mark, who finished fifth, the Pata Yamaha WorldSBK Team riders worked on evaluating new parts.
Michael van der Mark
“It’s been quite a difficult test for me here in Portimão. We struggled to find the right feeling with the bike on the first day, despite trying many things in the search for improvement. On the second day we started again, making some big changes on the bike and, immediately, I felt so much more comfortable. It was also difficult with the weather today, as it was quite cold with a lot of wind. We worked really hard to try many things, but there are still a couple of areas where I am missing a bit, so there is still some work to do. This is where we need to focus our efforts ahead of the next test in Phillip Island, an amazing track where I really enjoy riding. I’m confident we can make another step forward there and that we’ll be ready for the first race of the season.”
Michael van der Mark
In the Aruba.it Racing – Ducati garage Chaz Davies and Alvaro Bautista were able to make consistent progress working on the base setup of the all-new Ducati Panigale V4 R.
Testing different tyres and many aspects of his new bike, Alvaro Bautista set a fastest lap time of 1’41.934, taking the third spot of the timesheets. This was promising for both Bautista and the new V4R, as the Spaniard has little experience at Portimao compared to most of his competitors.
Álvaro Bautista
“For me these days testing at Portimão have been positive. Yesterday was a bit more difficult than today because it was my first time ever here at Portimão, a very difficult circuit to learn and full of ups and downs, so I struggled a bit, but today I felt a lot better on the bike and managed to improve. It’s the last time we test the V4 R before leaving for Australia, so I wanted to do as many laps as possible to get to know the bike better. We are confident because we’ve found a good base even though we know there’s still a lot of work to do.”
Álvaro Bautista
Team-mate Chaz Davies was still struggling with back pain from a crash earlier in the month but the Welshman managed 42 laps on the V4 R on Monday.
Chaz Davies
“It’s been a couple of testing days in more ways than one! Physically I’m not really recovered from the twinge in the back I picked up in the Jerez test, so it hasn’t been the most comfortable time for me. On the flip side I’m very happy to have finished the test because I didn’t think it was going to be possible, but I did some good physio between the tests that allowed me to lap. Portimão is really important because it’s another track where we need to find a good base set-up for the V4 R, while I try and get fully acquainted with the bike. We’re not there yet and we’ll keep on working but I’m confident and looking forward to getting to Phillip Island for the opening round.”
Chaz Davies
BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team rider Tom Sykes was sixth quickest on the all new BMW S 1000 RR. The British rider somewhat surprised by how close they were considering they are still in their development phase.
Tom Sykes
Team-mate Markus Reiterberger worked on the geometry of the bike and tyre testing to finish tenth overall.
BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team – Markus Reiterberger
Continuing to adapt to the WorldSBK bike, 2018 WorldSSP World Champion Sandro Cortese (GRT Yamaha WorldSBK) set the seventh fastest lap time.
Sandro Cortese
“Overall this was a very productive test. Portimão is a new track for me with the Yamaha YZF-R1 and we started more or less from zero here. We came with the base set up from Jerez, where we were quite happy, but we had to adapt the bike a lot for Portimão, which is a very special circuit with the changes in elevation. So the first job was to learn the circuit on this bike and only then could we start work on refining the set up. Over the two days we made some big improvements and, day by day, I learnt more about the riding style that these bikes require. It’s a learning process but it is progressing well and we ended with a relatively good feeling. I know what I need to work on over the next two weeks and the team have a clear direction in which to work also ahead of the third and final test in Phillip Island.”
Sandro Cortese
Teammate Marco Melandri was eighth overall and not happy with his progress.
Marco Melandri
“This was a very difficult test for me. I came here expecting a little bit more, but it looks like we’re going around the real problem, unable to find a solution. For me it’s very difficult at the moment to brake how I want; the bike doesn’t respond well to my riding style under braking and on entry to the corner. We tried everything we could here in Portimão, but it looks like it’s not enough. Now we need to try some different options in Phillip Island, go a different way with the set up, in order to find a solution ahead of the first race of the season.”
Marco Melandri
Toprak Razgatlioglu (Turkish Puccetti Racing) had a strong pace on both days as he finished in ninth position. The Turkish rider worked on improving his feeling on board the Kawasaki ZX-10RR that will only be updated into the 2019 version at Phillip Island. Working also alongside a new crew chief, it was a positive two-day test for the young rider and his team.
Toprak Razgatlioglu
Independent team riders Michael Rinaldi (BARNI Racing Team) and Eugene Laverty (Team Goeleven), both worked on the development of their Ducati Panigale V4 R. The Italian rider closed in twelfth position, while Laverty was thirteenth.
Michael Rinaldi
Developing the new Honda CBR1000RR, 2019 WorldSBK rookie Alessandro Delbianco finished fourteenth after two days trying to get acquainted with the WorldSBK machine. The official Honda backed squad were again missing in action…
Jules Cluzel (GMT94 Yamaha) set the fastest lap time among the WorldSSP riders who were also out testing in Portugal. The Frenchman closed 0.573 secs ahead of the MV Agusta F3 675 of Italian rider Raffaele De Rosa (MV AGUSTA Reparto Corse) and 0.879 ahead of Frenchman Lucas Mahias (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing).
The next track sessions for most competitors will be during the official organisers’ tests at Phillip Island in Australia ,on Monday the 18th and Tuesday the 19th of February, shortly before the first round of the championship at Phillip Island on the weekend of February 22-24.
WorldSBK Portimao Test Day Two Unofficial Times
Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing WorldSBK Team) 1’40.855
Alex Lowes (Pata Yamaha WorldSBK Team) 1’41.814 +0.959
Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) 1’41.934 +1.079
Leon Haslam (Kawasaki Racing WorldSBK Team) 1’42.144 +1.289
Michael van der Mark (Pata Yamaha WorldSBK Team) 1’42.191 +1.336
Tom Sykes (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) 1’42.246 +1.391
HRC MotoGP Test rider Stefan Bradl quickest on track, by a whisker…
Images by GeeBee/2Snap
Reigning World Champion Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) took to the track early on what was a warmer second day of testing at Jerez. The four-time world champion was able to return at the top of the timesheets with a 1’39.160 benchmark to head the regular WSBK runners after testing a number of small updates to the pace-setting ZX-10RR.
Jonathan Rea
“That was positive, very positive. I felt much better on the bike today and we found some good tyre consumption results. Yesterday the track was really green and I struggled a bit with that. Pirelli have brought some different tyres that we had to put in the plan today. Aside from that we just kept working with the chassis set-up and we found some big improvements. We are continuing to work with electronics but we are not doing too much fine tuning. We played around with wheelbase length a little bit. We had a clear direction in the last winter test and I preferred the bike a certain way. Here I just sacrificed a little bit of turning-in performance and that is what we tried to look for today, to make the bike a bit a little bit more manageable. I enjoyed today and started to ride with a smile on my face. Finding good improvements throughout the day kept motivation high and the track was in much better shape. I felt like over one lap, and in terms of consistent pace, we are in a really good place.”
Jonathan Rea
Also on track though was HRC MotoGP test rider Stefan Bradl, the German ended the day fractionally faster than the Pirelli shod WorldSBK spec’ Kawasaki ZX-10RR. Bradl only a slender 8-thousandths of a second ahead of Rea on the production based machine.
Stefan Bradl – HRC MotoGP Test Rider
There would certainly have been some effort made between the pair to try and set the pace as top dog, and the times also an interesting comparison pointing to the comparable performances between the Pirelli WorldSBK runners and the MotoGP Michelins…
Stefan Bradl – HRC MotoGP Test Rider
Alex Lowes was next best on 1’39.372 as he continued to make progress with the Pata Yamaha YZF-R1 as he completed 102 laps around the Andalusian race track today.
Alex Lowes
Alex Lowes
“It’s been a good two days here in Jerez. My best lap today was done on a qualifying tyre. I managed a 1’39.8 with the race tyre, so I found half a second on the qualifier, which is quite good because I think there’s not as much of a gap as there used to be. The bike felt good in qualifying trim and we did a good long run in race trim. The new track surface was quite hard on the tyres, especially the front, but it’s good to have this information now, ahead of the race. We tried a lot of things on the bike today, confirming some of the changes we made yesterday, which was positive given the change in track conditions. This afternoon we worked on the front of the bike and, at the start, we went a little bit in the wrong direction, but then came back and found some improvement, so a proper testing day. Now I’m looking forward to Portimão, where we’ll test what we’ve learnt here on a completely different track. Big thanks to the team and to Yamaha for the work they’ve done over the winter; it certainly looks to have paid off.”
Alex Lowes
Working on improving the acceleration of his bike and testing new parts for the YZF R1 machine, his teammate Michael van der Mark closed in seventh position with a fastest lap time of 1’40.145.
Michael van der Mark
“It’s been a really positive test. For me it was important to see how my wrist is after the winter break and I’m feeling quite good with it. I’ll certainly be fully fit once we get to Phillip Island for the first race. Once the track had cleaned up yesterday afternoon we tried so many things on the bike, with some big improvements that I like a lot and I think Alex thinks the same. There’s obviously been a lot of hard work done over the winter and it’s good for the people who put in the work to see their efforts rewarded at the first test of the season. I’m happy with what we achieved here in Jerez and now I’m looking forward to Portimão.”
Pata Yamaha
Focusing on getting more comfortable on his new bike, Leon Haslam (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) had a positive two-day test, as he closed also just 0.342 s off his teammate in third position. The British rider was fast on both days, building confidence with the ZX-10RR.
Leon Haslam
“This test was really good. We made some big steps and played around with a lot of set-up and adapted my style quite comfortably. From a race tyre point of view I am really happy. I am a little frustrated because I messed up while using a qualifying tyre. I was less than a tenth off until the last split and then a made two mistakes on both the qualifiers that I used. So I was actually slower on the qualifiers, but the race tyre lap time was really positive. To finish third with a race tyre, I am really happy with that.”
Leon Haslam
Toprak Razgatlioglu (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing) continued to impress, the Turk ranking fifth fastest.
Toprak Razgatlioglu
Making an important step forward, Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) brought his Ducati Panigale V4 R to fourth position.
Alvaro Bautista
Alvaro Bautista
“It’s been a couple of positive days. After the winter break, it was important to get back on track, in order to readjust to the speed but also to get accustomed to the new bike. The new tarmac made it a bit more difficult for us. The grip was very low and so were the temperatures, so we couldn’t find a good feeling in day one. Today, however, we managed to work better. The track improved and it was warmer outside. We’re still focusing on riding position and the base setup in general. We tried some changes that I’ve liked, and now we’ll make more evaluations at Portimão, a track that I don’t know, so it’ll be very interesting.”
Alvaro Bautista
The Spaniard had a busy day gathering as much information as possible to work on, and design the best base set-up for their all-new Ducati machine.
Ducati Panigale V4R
On the other side of the garage, Chaz Davies sat out on the opening hours of the day and took to the track later in the afternoon putting in only a few laps, closing the day in tenth. Davies was feeling some pain in his back after the crash he had on Wednesday and decided to take it easy as he aims to be back at his full strength for the next pre-season test that will be held later this month in Portimao.
Ducati Panigale V4R
Chaz Davies
“Today we focused on the engine, and in the end the lap time was OK given the short amount of time we had on track, but I think we could have made bigger improvements. Unfortunately, it’s been a tricky day. I just felt some pain in my back yesterday. It had nothing to do with the crash, but it got worse overnight. I managed to get treatment twice so I was still able to get some laps in, which was very important. It seems we’re going in the right direction. Next stop is Portimão, a completely different track, and the foremost priority will be to complete our full program before we head to Australia.”
Chaz Davies
Independent team riders Michael Rinaldi (BARNI Racing Team) and Eugene Laverty (Team Goeleven), finished ninth and twelfth respectively. The pair worked alongside their new teams producing valuable feedback that will be used also by the factory team to improve their Ducati beast.
Ducati Panigale V4R
Continuing to adapt to a new team structure, GRT Yamaha WorldSBK rider Marco Melandri had a busy day as he put in a total of 87 laps onboard his Yamaha to finish eighth overall.
Teammate Sandro Cortese had his progression slowed by a small crash he suffered early in the morning. The German walked away from the accident on his feet but had to wait for his bike to be recovered and repaired before returning to the track in the afternoon and setting the sixth fastest time.
Towards the end of the day, the BWM Motorrad WorldSBK riders Tom Sykes and Markus Reiterberger finally fitted timing transponders to their new S 1000 RR machines. They registered the 14th and 15th best times.
BMW S 1000 RR
Among the WorldSSPriders Federico Caricasulo (BARDAHL Evan Bros. WorldSSP Team) continued to lead the way also on day two with Frenchman Lucas Mahias (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing) closing second just 0.222 s behind him.
Maria Herrera
Making her debut in the class, Maria Herrera was also out testing aboard the Yamaha YZF R6 of MS Racing. The Spaniard focused on getting acquainted with the new bike and finished her second day of testing with a fastest lap time of 1’46.957, the debutante the slowest of the 12 World Supersport riders that took to the track.
Maria Herrera
Whilst the Jerez Test may have finished some of the WorldSBK and WorldSSP riders who attended the two days will now head down to Portugal for the final pre-season test on European soil from 27th-28th January at Autodromo Internacional do Algarve Portimao before the first round of the 2019 FIM Superbike World Championship season in Australia.
WSBK Jerez Day Two Unofficial Times
Stefan Bradl (HRC MotoGP Test Team) 1m39.152
Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) 1’39.160
Alex Lowes (Pata Yamaha Official WorldSBK Team) 1’39.372 +0.212
Leon Haslam (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) 1’39.502 +0.348
Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) 1’39.620 +0.460
Toprak Razgatlioglu (Turkish Puccetti Racing) 1’39.942 +0.782
Sandro Cortese (GRT Yamaha Team) 1’40.075 +0.915
Michael van der Mark (Pata Yamaha Official WorldSBK Team) 1’40.145 +0.985
Marco Melandri (GRT Yamaha Team) 1’40.469 +1.309
Michael Ruben Rinaldi (BARNI Racing Team) 1’40.540 +1.380
Chaz Davies (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) 1’40.621 +1.461
Leandro Mercado (Orelac Racing VerdNatura) 1’40.794 +1.634
Making their final preparations ahead of the 2019 season opener, 16 WorldSBK and 12 WorldSSP riders were out on track around Circuito de Jerez Ángel Nieto for the opening day of testing at the Andalusian circuit.
Despite chilly temperature, the Motul FIM Superbike World Championship riders were able to take full advantage of the good weather, putting in a considerable number of laps and working all day through their testing programs. With the track having been resurfaced over the winter break, they all had to wait for the tarmac to warm up before continuing with the work they had planned for the day.
Alex Lowes tops day one
Completing a positive day one of testing, Pata Yamaha WorldSBK rider Alex Lowes closed the day at the top of the timesheets, impressing with a 1’40.422.
Alex Lowes tops day one
Waiting for track condition to progress, reigning world champion Jonathan Rea sat out the opening hours of the day and came out of his garage around 1400. Working on testing different components for his ZX-10RR, the Kawasaki Racing WorldSBK rider has been focusing in getting the overall package ready for Australia, he will continue with the same program tomorrow. After a few laps done in the afternoon he was soon at the top of the timesheet before Alex Lowes (Pata Yamaha WorldSBK Team) took the lead, pushing the WorldSBK champion back into second position just 0.008s behind him.
Jonathan Rea
Sitting in third the new Kawasaki Racing WorldSBK team recruit Leon Haslam, continued the familiarisation process with the WorldSBK machine. The British rider focused in putting in as many laps as possible, adapting to the new bike and learning the electronics. Thanks to a fastest lap in 1’40.885 he ended the day just 0.435 s off his teammate.
Impressing with his overall pace, Toprak Razgatlioglu (Turkish Puccetti Racing ZX-10RR) finished the day in fourth position.
Toprak Razgatlioglu
Testing a combination of chassis parts, settings and electronics Dutchman Michael van der Mark (Pata Yamaha WorldSBK Team) set the fifth fastest lap.
Michael van der Mark
Working on their full factory configuration for the first time, the brand new GRT Yamaha WorldSBK team took their time to get acquainted with the new package. Both Marco Melandri and Sandro Cortese were able to get used to their machine and finished the day in sixth and seventh positions respectively.
Ducati Panigale V4R
Following just behind Chaz Davies and Alvaro Bautista had a lot of things to work on as they continued to improve their Ducati Panigale V4 R.
Not all clean sailing for Chaz Davies on day one
Davies completed a positive first day, despite suffering a small crash through turn 5 late in the afternoon. The Ducati rider ended the day eighth with a best lap in 1’41.375.
Alvaro Bautista
Spanish star Alvaro Bautista took his time to get used to the WorldSBK machine as he had only two days on the V4 before returning to Jerez today.
Chaz Davies
Davies and Bautista were not the only Ducati riders on track as also Eugene Laverty (Team Goeleven) and Michael Ruben Rinaldi (BARNI Racing Team) were out taming their Ducati Panigale V4 R. The Irishman, made his debut on the new Bologna factory bike today, while Rinaldi was working on new suspension.
Michael Ruben Rinald
Spaniard Jordi Torres (Team Pedercini Racing) rounded out the top ten. The Spaniard put in 82 laps as he tested new components for his Kawasaki ZX-10RR. Another Kawasaki rider, Leandro Mercado (Orelac Racing VerdNatura) finished eleventh as he got to know his new crew.
Tom Sykes – No transponder on the BMW men during the opening day of the test…..
The BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team were also out on track testing today. Both Markus Reiterberger and Tom Sykes were working on getting familiar with their bikes as well as a trying different electronic strategies. The BMW riders elected not to run timing transponders on the opening day of the test thus we can’t tell you how they ranked in what is their first real test of the new S 1000 RR.
Tom Sykes – No transponder on the BMW men during the opening day of the test…..
There were also FIM Supersport World Championship teams taking to the track around Jerez. Federico Caricasulo (BARDAHL Evan Bros. WorldSSP Team) closed the day as fastest World Supersport rider, ahead of Raffaele De Rosa (MV AGUSTA Reparto Corse) and teammate Randy Krummenacher.
Action resumes on track tomorrow for day two of testing at Jerez.
WSBK/WSS Jerez Day One Unofficial Times
Alex Lowes (Pata Yamaha Official WorldSBK Team) 1’40.442
Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) 1’40.450 +0.08
Leon Haslam (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) 1’40.877 +0.435
Toprak Razgatlioglu (Turkish Puccetti Kawasaki) 1’41.001 +0.559
Michael van der Mark (Pata Yamaha Official WorldSBK Team) 1’41.047 +0.605
Marco Melandri (GRT Yamaha Team) 1’41.119 +0.677
Sandro Cortese (GRT Yamaha Team) 1’41.203 +0.761
Stefan Bradl (Honda Test Team) 1’41.370 +0.928
Chaz Davies (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) 1’41.375 +0.933
Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) 1’41.857 +1.415
The refreshed KRT WorldSBK line-up of Jonathan Rea and Leon Haslam will restart their 2019 campaigns with a two-day test at Jerez, on Wednesday the 23rd and Thursday the 24th of January.
Guim Roda, KRT Team Manager
“This Jerez test is a warm-up session to start checking details of things we finished working on last year. The riders have been working hard this winter with their training programmes and now the idea is put it all together and see were we are. Another good point about this Jerez test is that many teams will be there, so everybody will be able to take notes and make final adjustments to be ready for the first race weekend in Australia.”
Jonathan Rea set the pace at Aragon in November
After a long winter break since the most recent test outing at the same Jerez venue last November, four-time WorldSBK champion Rea and current BSB champion Haslam are keen to begin the process of making their final preparations for the first round of the 2019 championship, to be held in mid-February in Australia.
Jonathan Rea
“I am excited to see my team and all the guys. I had a training camp last week in Barcelona and I saw quite a few of them but this will be the first time we will get together as a group. Hopefully we can pick up where we left off at the last test. It has been a long, long winter but I arrive feeling refreshed and recharged after a lot of time at home. We expect some new material in preparation to build our base package at the start of the year. The tests at the end of last year were all about trying out different items and now we can put them all together and begin performance testing. I am excited because we were fast in Jerez in November, so I hope we can have some good weather this time.”
Jonathan Rea – GeeBee Image
After two successful post-season tests at Motorland Aragon and Jerez last year, the entire KRT squad will now concentrate their efforts on making final choices of components and overall machine set-up. With Jerez also returning to the WorldSBK championship race calendar in 2019, the forthcoming track outing at the 4.423 km long circuit in Andalusia will be of great value in its own right.
As well as a new-look riding line-up the most recent Ninja ZX-10RR features a higher-revving stock engine than the 2018 version, achieved in part by the use of finger follower valve technology.
Leon Haslam
“It has been a short winter for me because I got some surgical screws taken out of my ankle. I have done a two-week training camp out in Barcelona, riding Supermoto, flat track and doing numerous other things. The weather has been kind to us. I just want to get back going again on track at Jerez. These tests will be important for me and the more laps the better. Getting used to the bike and how to use it in terms of riding style and electronics, is the key. But also we will get to explore a few more points on the bike, which we have not done at previous tests. The weather looks good for the days on track and all our opposition is going to be there, so it is a key point to see where we are and where we have to improve.”
Leon Haslam – GeeBee Images
After the Jerez tests are completed the KRT team and some of their rivals will swiftly relocate to the Portimao circuit on the Algarve, for two more days of testing on the 27th and the 28th of January.
Here is your 2019 WorldSBK pre-season form guide ahead of Phillip Island’s kick-off of the Motul FIM Superbike World Championship next February 22-24.
The grid forecast for February is hot with a grid of seasoned pros going into battle against World Champions from the Grand Prix ranks, as well as a couple of hotshots returning to the production series for the Yamaha Finance backed season opener at Phillip Island.
The new three-race format also launches at the island, with the 10 lap Sunday morning sprint adding to the 2 x 22 lap traditional WorldSBK races.
A three-day ticket at $120* as it includes free Paddock Access and can be purchased at www.worldsbk.com.au or Ticketek.
Led by reigning world champion Jonathan Rea, 10 riders on the 2019 WorldSBK grid have won a total of 181 races between them. Rea has a whopping 71 one of those, followed by Tom Sykes (34), Chaz Davies (29), Marco Melandri (22), Eugene Laverty (13), Leon Haslam (5), Ryuichi Kiyonari (5), Michael van der Mark (2), Alex Lowes (1) and Jordi Torres (1).
Jonathan Rea – Image by GeeBee
Haslam and Kiyonari return to the WorldSBK ranks in 2019 – the latter for the first time since 2009! – while the grand prix stars are Spaniard Alvaro Bautista and German Sandro Cortese. And they bring with them major firepower: Bautista was the 2006 125cc champion and went onto win 16 races in the lightweight and intermediate classes before moving into MotoGP, where he was a three-time podium finisher; while Cortese was the 2012 Moto3 champion and in 2018 clinched the world supersport title in his first attempt.
WorldSBK 2019 Form Guide
Four-time world champion Rea will remain at home with his Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK. But there’s been a change on the other side of the garage, as Haslam joins the squad. Signing a one-year deal, the British champion returns to WorldSBK for the first time in 2015 – although we have seen him every year since then during wildcard appearances.
Leon Haslam inherits Tom Sykes’ crew chief as the BSB Champion takes Sykes’ place in the Kawasaki WorldSBK squad, while Sykes will be on the new BMW S 1000 RR for season 2019
It’s a similar story over in the Aruba.it Racing Ducati garage, with Davies remaining in the team for a sixth season as he rides the sensational new Panigale V4 R. But he will also have a new face on the other side of the garage, as Bautista joins the factory team for 2019. Davies has finished runner-up on three occasions in WorldSBK but will have his eyes on the world title. For Bautista, his pace in early testing has been impressive.
WSBK Test Jerez Nov GeeBee Alvaro Bautista Panigale V4 R
There will be no changes at the Pata Yamaha Official WorldSBK Team, as van der Mark and Lowes line up with their YZF-R1s for the third season in a row. Both riders took their first WorldSBK wins in 2018; van der Mark took the double victory around Donington Park, and Lowes followed with the race two win around Brno.
Michael van der Mark – Image GeeBee
Welcoming the return of BMW as a factory support, the BMW Motarrad WorldSBK Team, run by Shaun Muir Racing, will be lining up on the grid with reigning STK1000 champion Markus Reiterberger and 2013 WorldSBK champion Sykes. Reiterberger, who dominated the STK1000 class on a BMW in 2018, has experience in WorldSBK, while Sykes boasts some of the most experience in the paddock.
2019 BMW S 1000 RR
Fielding a third Ducati Paniagle V4 R in 2019 will be the Barni Racing Team, which has signed Michael Ruben Rinaldi. The Italian already has one year of experience in the WorldSBK class under his belt. Joining the best independent team of 2018, who secured six podiums last season, his experience and relationship with Ducati will no doubt help to continue this into 2019.
Ducati Panigale V4 R – Image GeeBee
Making the step up from the European Superstock 1000 Championship, Alessandro Delbianco will line up on the grid with the new Althea MIE Racing Team as it makes the switch to Honda in collaboration with the mighty Honda Racing Corporation (HRC) as it returns to the championship for the first time since 2002.
Still without an official team name, Althea will be collaborating with Moriwaki and HRC for 2019. British rider Leon Camier will stick with Althea and Honda after a tough season, while Japanese legend Kiyonari will ride for HRC.
Leon Camier
Camier had a strong start to 2018 with but ended in 12th overall after being plagued by injury and bike problems. Kiyonari has 53 race starts to his name, with three wins overall and experience in many national superbike championships.
Yamaha will be offering a second factory supported team in 2019, with Cortese and Melandri lining up for the GRT Yamaha WSBK Team. Cortese is keen to adapt his riding style for the new season ahead. Bringing in Melandri to join him, the veteran heads back to Yamaha for the first time since 2011 and was a WorldSBK race winner in 2018, so the duo will soon find the right direction for the team.
Marco Melandri back on a Yamaha – GeeBee Image
Sticking with the same team for 2019 will be Toprak Razgatlioglu, who heads into his second season with Kawasaki Puccetti Racing. The young Turkish star was able to secure two podiums in 2018, as he continues to get to grips with the ZX-10RR. Securing the STK1000 title in 2017, Razgatlioglu has a natural speed which he is continuing to define with the WorldSBK machine.
Last but not least, Torres has recently announced he will be making his return to the WorldSBK paddock after a brief stint in MotoGP as a replacement rider. The Spanish rider is joining Team Pedercini Racing for 2019, and will make his debut on the Kawasaki machine, debuting on the ZX-10RR.
Jordi Torres – Aragon MotoGP 2018 – Round 14
The full WorldSBK grid begins pre-season testing again in late January, with the final shakedown at Phillip Island on February 18-19 ahead of round one and the three-race formula debut, an 18-lap world supersport race and nine national support races in superbike, supersport and supersport 300 – the start of the 2019 Aussie title.
Tickets now on sale
As an extra bonus at WorldSBK, all three-day ticket holders are gifted free paddock access kids 15 and under^ are free.
A three-day general admission is $120* secured in advance, or $230* when you add camping to your purchase an available at www.worldsbk.com.au or Ticketek.
*All ticket prices quoted purchased in advance and subject to Ticketek service and handling fees. Book now and save on gate prices.
^Children 15 and under are free and must be accompanied by a paying adult.
World Superbike’s Triple-Treat of action launches at Phillip Island
The Phillip Island round of the 2019 Motul FIM Superbike World Championship from February 22-24 will be the first to host three races for the famed production bike series.
Chaz Davies – Image by TBG
Schedule confirmation came in overnight from international organisers, Dorna and the FIM, with the expanded three-race formula (see below for full Phillip Island WSBK Schedule), for the island’s 2019 WorldSBK season opener, backed by Yamaha Finance. The agenda also features world supersport action and the launch of national championships for Australian superbike, supersport and supersport 300 categories.
Thirteen races will be held on Saturday and Sunday, with the extension of the WorldSBK platform for the first time since the title’s inception in 1988 delivering an exciting new frontier for teams and riders – as well as a boon for spectators. For tickets go to www.worldsbk.com.auor Ticketek.
Jonathan Rea – Phillip Island – TBG Image
The two 22-lap WorldSBK battles around the 4.45km circuit will remain – to be held at 3:00pm on Saturday and Sunday – but they will now sandwich a 10-lap sprint race at midday on Sunday.
And unlike the longer WorldSBK races at Phillip Island, where rear tyre conservation is always a major part of the strategic mix, the sprint race will be a no-holds-barred affair where the likes of defending champion Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki) and WorldSBK rookie Alvaro Bautista (Ducati) will be pushing at 100 per cent from start to finish.
Points will be allocated to the first nine finishers in the Tissot-backed sprint race, while, as per tradition, the top 15 across the line in the 22-lap races will put points in the bank.
WSBK Phillip Island Pits
As for the WorldSBK preliminaries, the number of practice sessions has been reduced from four to three across Friday and Saturday morning, and there will be just one Superpole qualifying session on Saturday afternoon – a structure that will also be replicated in world supersport.
Superpole results in WorldSBK will decide the grid for race one and the sprint. The sharp end of the field in race three will then be determined from the first nine positions in the sprint – and from 10th onwards based on Superpole performances.
Tom Sykes will be on the new BMW S 1000 RR in 2019 after switching over from Kawasaki
Changes to the WorldSBK format will add an electrifying dimension to hostilities for one of the strongest grids in recent memory.
As well as Rea and MotoGP convert Bautista, the snarling pack of four-strokes will also include Chaz Davies (Ducati), Tom Sykes (BMW), Leon Haslam (Kawasaki), Marco Melandri (Ducati), Michael van der Mark (Yamaha), Alex Lowes (Yamaha), Leon Camier (Honda), Ryuichi Kiyonari (Honda), Marcus Reiterberger (BMW), Sandro Cortese (Yamaha), Eugene Laverty (Ducati), Jordi Torres (Kawasaki) and Michael Ruben Rinaldi (Ducati).
WSBK Test Jerez Nov GeeBee Alvaro Bautista Panigale V4 R
Moreover, both BMW and Ducati are fronting at Phillip Island with all-new bikes, while BMW and Honda have recommitted to the championship with factory-backed teams. It all adds up to a crackerjack weekend – and season – of WorldSBK racing!
Meanwhile, the 18-lap world supersport race will be held at 1:15pm on Sunday.
2019 Australian Superbike Championship opener
As well as the four world championship races, the Phillip Island WorldSBK round will also feature nine races across the Australian Superbike, Supersport and Supersport 300 categories – three each across Saturday and Sunday as the seven-round national series kicks off in earnest.
In superbike, that means the return of WorldSBK legend Troy Bayliss, who completed the 2018 domestic title at Phillip Island with some stunning front-running battles against Josh Waters and Wayne Maxwell.
However, it’s Troy Herfoss who’s the reigning Aussie superbike champion, and he’ll be out to kick off his defence in fine style at Phillip Island as well.
Troy Herfoss celebrates winning the final race of 2018 at Phillip Island at MotoGP – TBG Image
Non-stop action
Add all the practice, qualifying and racing elements together and that means a flurry of on-track action at Phillip Island from Friday to Sunday.
On Friday riders take to the track at 9:10am and finish at 4:45pm; on Saturday it’s a 8:45am to 5:45pm affair; and on Sunday the action commences at 8:15am before winding down at 4:45pm.
Tickets now on sale
As an extra bonus at WorldSBK, all three-day ticket holders are gifted free paddock access. For all ticket and racing information go to check below or visit Ticketek.
Jordi Torres returns from MotoGP to WorldSBK in 2019
Having completed the latter part of the 2018 season in MotoGP with Avintia Racing, including earning his first championship point in the premier class, Jordi Torres will return to WorldSBK in 2019, with Team Pedercini Racing.
Jordi Torres – MotoGP 2018 Twin Ring Motegi
Torres has found success in every championship he has competed in, the 31-year-old arriving in WorldSBK back in 2015 with Aprilia, partnering Leon Haslam on the RSV4 RF and picking up a phenomenal race win at the final round in Qatar, as well as several podiums.
Jordi Torres
Torres continued competing in World Superbike after that, riding on a BMW in 2016 and 2017, before making the switch to MV Agusta machinery for 2018.
In late September this year, Torres moved over to the MotoGP paddock to replace the injured Tito Rabat at Reale Avintia Racing for the final races of the season.
A former Moto2 race-winner, the Spaniard adapted well to his new bike and picked up his first point at the season closer in Valencia.
Jordi Torres
Now Torres faces a new and exciting challenge in 2019 and the Spanish rider is ready ahead of his return to the WSBK championship.
Jordi Torres
“I’m happy to have found a historical Team of WorldSBK that runs with a winning bike. Kawasaki is the right bike for the WorldSBK Championship and I cannot wait to try it to express everything that this bike can give on the track. I believe that I and the Team will take away from us a lot of satisfactions. A special thanks to Lucio Pedercini for giving me this opportunity. I trust the team and I know that it has the experience to give me the weapons to fight and express my potential. It is a pride for me to be part of Team Pedercini and a I have a great desire to start working.”
Jordi Torres – Aragon MotoGP 2018 – Round 14
Lucio Pedercini – Team Pedercini Racing Manager
“I am very satisfied with what is happening around the team, after a troubled year now I am sure I have a strong rider at the height of the vehicle we have. With Jordi we will certainly be competitive and ready to always be in competition to enter the top ten. I take this opportunity to invite all the fans to Verona at Motorbike Expo in January where we will present the whole team and the 2019 program and to thank Jordi for having agreed to live with us on 2019.”
Overnight Jerez hosted the second and final day of testing where four Motul FIM Superbike World Championship teams continued to work on their 2019 set-ups.
Ducati Panigale V4 R – WSBK
Over 600 laps of the 4.2km circuit were run by the eight riders, and steps were made ahead of what is set to be an interesting 2019 season with new bikes, new teams and new riders.
Marco Melandri
Despite all the changes, it was still that man, four-time World Champion Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) who led the way. Rea continued with his sensational pace out on track for the second and final day of testing, as the 2018 world champion was continuing to work on getting the chassis in tune with the engine on his ZX-10RR.
Guim Roda, KRT Team Manager
“Jerez has been the final test of the season and the last time all at KRT will work together in 2018 to give our riders the best package to challenge limits and attack the stopwatch. We are so happy with Rea’s end of year performance and we are all together working so hard to start in Australia with a Jonathan Rea nobody has ever seen before. The biggest surprise is that he is the most motivated of any team member! Leon has accepted a difficult challenge this year but after three years out of this championship he has demonstrated a huge motivation to be on top again and to give his best again. In his blood he has racing fuel and we are sure we can help him a lot to make the best of himself. It will not be easy with only three months to arrive at 100% in Australia for the first race. But, for Leon to be so high in the rankings at this test, ahead of several WorldSBK race-winning riders from last year, is something we must recognize in him. Big credit to him and we can be sure he will be in the show next year. I want to use this last event of the year for KRT’s racing activities to thank all our sponsors. Especially Kawasaki but also Monster, Motocard, ELF and all the others that make this dream possible. Thanks to the fans to give us power to continue working hard every year and especially the KRT riders. They are the ones who always give their maximum on our ZX-10RR. Big respect to them.”
Jonathan Rea
Rea explained that his new bike offers even more potential than the 2018 Ninja, he was a force to be reckoned with, setting the fastest lap time of 1.38.713.
Jonathan Rea
“It was a positive final day. We are putting the pieces together and we have to be satisfied with the work. It is always difficult when the track is not in great shape. In all those tight corners, with the ruts developing, it is difficult to feel the confidence to push to the maximum. Aside from that, the track temperatures are very critical here with the base tyre that we have. Like yesterday, we tried some different things with the bike and at the end of the day we tried something quite interesting with the balance. I felt really good with an old tyre so that is something to keep working with in 2019. I also did a longer run in the middle of the day. We did pretty much what we set out to do at this test and I was on the pace on day one, so we could go testing straight away.”
Jonathan Rea
Pere Riba, Crew Chief for Jonathan Rea
“Honestly speaking, maybe we missed a little bit of time to still try a couple of things, but not the important ones. The priorities, the important points to work with and understand the direction for next year, have been tested. They have been good and some we even tested and then tested again to reconfirm. We have a new engine so we have to confirm some points for next year. We have been focused on the balance of the chassis and we have made another step forward. We have been working with Showa, to improve our package, and it has been positive. We also gave Pirelli information on the new tyres. Finally, Johnny was able to do the fastest lap with the qualifying tyre and then the fastest lap with race tyre. We have collected all the information we needed and now we will start thinking about the best points to prepare for more tests in January.”
Jonathan Rea
On the other side of the garage, new team-mate Leon Haslam (Kawasaki Racing Team – WorldSBK) was left with one bike after a big crash on Monday. However this didn’t stop the Brit putting the laps in, as he reached over 100 on the second day. Ending the day in third with a time of 1.39.766, Haslam was able to continue with his base setting of the ZX-10RR and will take some strong pace into the winter.
A few people threw it down the road on Tuesday
Leon Haslam
“I am really happy with these two days. We really worked on my feeling with the bike. Not making too big a change and not trying any of the soft, experimental tyres. Every time we put a new tyre in we did not really gain much time but we just worked on the race set-up and race distance, and on changing my style to adapt to the bike. Every time out, every session, every day, we are getting a few tenths closer and in the end I was really happy with my pace on tyres with a lot of laps on them. I managed to get out on track with Jonathan for a few laps and see how he has changed in his style to make the bike go forward. That helped a lot.”
Leon Haslam
Marcel Duinker, Crew Chief for Leon Haslam
“This test was good because the time we had in Motorland Aragon at the previous sessions was a bit short but we continued our text programme here and I am very satisfied with the result. As everybody knows Leon has been out of this championship for three years, and now he is mixing with riders who have been winning races in the last couple of seasons in WorldSBK. Leon being one of the fastest guys with a qualifying tyre makes me confident. We did 100 laps today and he was fit, motivated and we did not make so many changes to the bike. Leon adapted himself to the bike and in the end, especially over distance, he is there. He is more than there. After ten laps his speed is very, very competitive.”
Leon Haslam
It was a telling two days for the Pata Yamaha Official WorldSBK Team, as they began to understand the work they will need to do to bridge the gap to the green and red machines out on track. Working through their small updates for 2019, Alex Lowes had a strong test sitting in second position for most of the day, bridging the gap to fastest man Rea.
Alex Lowes
“It’s been a good two-day test here in Jerez and we managed to work our way through what was a pretty big list of things, some positive some not so much, but that’s what testing is for. Yesterday we worked on the front of the bike and today on the rear, before putting together the best combination of the two. I was quite happy with how I felt on the bike today; we’ve highlighted two main areas that we want to focus on at the January tests, so it was good to end the season on a positive note. A massive thank you to the guys in the team for all their hard work this year; now we’ve got some time to recharge the batteries before getting back to it here in Jerez in January.”
Alex Lowes
Whilst for team-mate Michael van der Mark, it was a tough test as he was riding injured from his crash in Qatar, which resulted in a fracture to his wrist. Working to get more grip and acceleration on exit amongst other factors, Lowes finished in second position overall, 0.664s off Rea’s pace whilst van der Mark was sixth and 1.379s behind.
Michael van der Mark
“It’s been a really interesting test, but it’s a shame that I’m still not fully fit after sustaining a wrist injury in the final race in Qatar. Still, we completed a lot of work here in Jerez; the first day we had a long list of things to try and I didn’t really feel comfortable on the bike, but today was much better. Again, we were trying many things, mainly with the geometry and suspension but also the electronics. This afternoon I managed to find my rhythm, improve lap by lap and we made some steps forward. Initially we were struggling a little on corner entry, but at the end we found quite a good solution. I’m really happy with the end of the second day and I’m already looking forward to January.”
Michael van der Mark
Lessons continued to be learnt for the Aruba.it Racing – Ducati squad with Chaz Davies and Alvaro Bautista getting to grips with the all new Panigale V4 R.
Ducati Panigale V4 R
British rider Davies is continuing to struggle with his shoulder injury sustained over the summer break, meaning he isn’t riding at 100%. Moving his focus over to electronics and throttle connection on his new machine, it was a busy day for Davies who finished in fifth overall.
Chaz Davies
Chaz Davies
“It was a positive test. We learned quite a lot about the bike, and we have a better understanding of what we need to focus on during the winter break to improve the package. We took several sets of tires to race distance and also tried a new swingarm with positive feedback, but in general the main thing at this stage is to avoid confusion, and I think we have pretty clear idea of the direction we need to go in. We have a lot of information to process, now we just need to put it together. I will undergo surgery next week on my injured shoulder, and then I’ll resume training to make sure to be 100 percent fit come next test.”
Chaz Davies
Whilst for Bautista, he had a more challenging second day with his V4 R, suffering two crashes during the day around Circuito de Jerez Angel Nieto.
Alvaro Bautista
Able to walk away from both crashes, Bautista was still happy with the bike as he works on his base set up and understanding the WorldSBK machine. Putting in an impressive pace on his debut, Bautista was able to finish in fourth, with a lap time of 1.39.845.
Alvaro Bautista
“Today we started to make some changes to the setup to see how the bike reacts, and we found some positives as well as some room for improvement. In terms of pace, we’ve improved a lot as I was able to lap consistently in the 1’40 mark, while on the flying lap I felt there was less grip even though track conditions were a bit better in theory. I still need to understand the limits of the tires, anyway. In general, we’ve completed our program and I’m happy with how these first two days went.”
Alvaro Bautista
For new WorldSBK team GRT Yamaha, Sandro Cortese and Marco Melandri were continuing to get to grips with the YZF-R1. Happy with the progress they have made, 2018 WorldSSP champion Cortese was still working on adapting and adjusting to a Superbike, whilst Melandri was working on his base setting and with the Pirelli tyres.
Sandro Cortese – GRT Yamaha WorldSBK
“I am really pleased with my first WorldSBK test with the new team and with the Yamaha YZF-R1. It was a special experience for me because I’ve never raced a superbike before, but I think we made a big step over these two days and I now have a much better understanding of how to race this bike. Of course, I’m still facing a steep learning curve, and I also need to prepare my body for the demands of racing this bigger bike, as I can feel it wasn’t ready after two full days on track here! Now I understand how I have to work with this bike and I am really looking forward to returning to Jerez with the team in January.”
Sandro Cortese
Andrea Dosoli – Yamaha Road Racing Manager
“This has been a very positive test, from more than one perspective. With the Pata Yamaha WorldSBK team, our reference team in WorldSBK, we were able to evaluate new hardware and start to define the specification of our 2019 machine. Together with his crew Alex worked his way through a very detailed test plan and we achieved our goal of coming away from this test with a clear direction for development. Michael’s test was compromised somewhat by his injury, but we will confirm the direction with him in January, once he’s back to full fitness. Overall it was a positive test with the Pata Yamaha riders, both of whom showed good pace here in Jerez, and it means we are on target to improve our consistency in 2019 and be in a position to fight for podium finishes at every track. The step up to WorldSBK by GRT Yamaha in 2019 is an important milestone in our project. It doubles the number of YZF-R1 machines on the grid but, more importantly, it underlines Yamaha’s commitment to providing a progression path for young riders that stretches from national R3 championships all the way up to the FIM Superbike World Championship; a fundamental aim of our racing program. Bringing together Sandro and a rider as experienced as Marco at GRT Yamaha is already working well, with both team and riders impressing with how quickly they’ve adapted to this new challenge. It required a huge effort from everyone at Yamaha Motor Europe to realise this project, but already we can see those efforts paying dividends.”
Michael van der Mark
Jerez WorldSBK Test Day One Unofficial Times
Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) 1.38.713
Alex Lowes (Pata Yamaha Official WorldSBK Team) 1.39.377 (+0.664)
Leon Haslam (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) 1.39.766 (+1.053)
Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) 1.39.845 (+1.132)
Chaz Davies (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) 1.39.852 (+1.139)
Michael van der Mark (Pata Yamaha Official WorldSBK Team) 1.40.092 (+1.379)
Marco Melandri (GRT Yamaha Team) 1.40.235 (+1.522)
