2015

Year: 2015

Month: ALL

Homologation changes for World Superbikes

16 December 2015 by Gordon Ritchie

Homologation changes for World Superbikes

Arguably most significant of all the new rules announced today by World Superbike organisers Dorna are that there will be less stringent homologation rules in terms of outright numbers of new machines...

World Superbikes to end two-race format

16 December 2015 by Gordon Ritchie

World Superbikes to end two-race format

The long-awaited official notification that WSBK racing will now be run in a two-day format has come through from the FIM. In a heavily revamped weekend schedule WSBK race one will now be held on...

Brookes and Abraham to make shock WSBK switch with Milwaukee BMW

02 December 2015 by Simon Patterson

Brookes and Abraham to make shock WSBK switch with Milwaukee BMW

Reigning MCE British Superbike champion Josh Brookes will have his wishes granted for 2016, as he and his title-winning Milwaukee SMR team step to the World stage – but with a dramatic switch from...

Sykes leaves Jerez fastest on busy final day

28 November 2015 by Gordon Ritchie

Sykes leaves Jerez fastest on busy final day

The last day of the final 2015 season group WSBK tests at Jerez saw the top WSB riders lap as fast if not faster than the top GP riders, with Tom Sykes (KRT) posting a 1’39.316 lap that was easily the...

Guintoli peaking about new Yamaha performance

27 November 2015 by Gordon Ritchie

Guintoli peaking about new Yamaha performance

2014 World Champion Sylvain Guintoli continues to be amazed by the performance of his new Pata Yamaha WSBK machine this early in its development cycle. He said after day one, “I immediately felt the...

Jacobson carries on despite sponsor loss

27 November 2015 by Gordon Ritchie

Jacobson carries on despite sponsor loss

With his WSS future up in the air still after the loss of 2016 sponsorship from his 2015 team, Core” Motorsport Thailand, America’s PJ Jacobsen was carrying on regardless at Jerez, checking out the...

Ten Kate explains VDM medical plan

27 November 2015 by Gordon Ritchie

Ten Kate explains VDM medical plan

After pulling out of the tests at Jerez after only part of day one had been completed, Honda WSBK rider Michael van der Mark will now wee two specialists to examine his problem, according to his team...

Rea back on track and back into the 1’40s

27 November 2015 by Gordon Ritchie

Rea back on track and back into the 1’40s

After one day of rest, having worked on track at Jerez with his KRT squad on Monday and Tuesday, world champion Jonathan Rea was on track again on Thursday. With an all-new 2016 Ninja ZX-10R to still...

Giugliano builds his way back into WSBK

27 November 2015 by Gordon Ritchie

Giugliano builds his way back into WSBK

In making a return to the track after recovery from what was his second vertebrae injury of the 2015 season, Aruba.it Racing Ducati WSBK rider Davide Giugliano has had to ease his way back into action...

Davies evaluates major Ducati test items

27 November 2015 by Gordon Ritchie

Davies evaluates major Ducati test items

Chaz Davies made up for some track time lost to bad weather at Motorland Aragon last week by working through some major component changes on his official Aruba.it Racing Ducati WSBK Panigale vee-twin...

Sykes fastest as track conditions change

27 November 2015 by Gordon Ritchie

Sykes fastest as track conditions change

The fourth day of tests at Jerez for the WSBK riders was the third for the Kawasaki Racing Team riders, but they dominated the time sheets for those running transponders, with Sykes on a 1’40.316 and...

Aprilia Chief Speaks About Last WSBK Chances

26 November 2015 by Gordon Ritchie

Aprilia Chief Speaks About Last WSBK Chances

Romano Albesiano, Aprilia Racing chief, was hard at work at Jerez getting the final version of the 2015 RS-GP vee-four to work with the new control electronics and Michelin tyres, but he took some...

Lowes ruled out of Jerez test

26 November 2015 by Steve English

Lowes ruled out of Jerez test

Alex Lowes has been forced to sit out the remaining two days of the Jerez WSBK test following his crash yesterday afternoon. The Yamaha rider had a heavy crash at turn three that left him with a...

Lowes Fast, Then Crashes

25 November 2015 by Gordon Ritchie

Lowes Fast, Then Crashes

Alex Lowes (Pata Yamaha) was not running a transponder on his new YZF-R1 machine on his first test day at Jerez but independent sources say he did a 1’40.8 best to make him the quickest rider on day...

Camier Finds Improved MV After Melandri Test

25 November 2015 by Gordon Ritchie

Camier Finds Improved MV After Melandri Test

On the first two days of the tests at Jerez Leon Camier (MV Agusta Reparto Corse) gave way to new test rider Marco Melandri, but on Wednesday he got to ride how own bike again with some improvements...

Rea At Near Track Best Pace at Jerez, Ellison fifth

25 November 2015 by Gordon Ritchie

Rea At Near Track Best Pace at Jerez, Ellison fifth

A quick lap, one of many from Jonathan Rea (KRT), saw him edge away from the chasing pack once again at Jerez on the second day of testing. His 1’40.139 was done on a race tyre but was tantalisingly...

Rea Fast In Pace And Race Modes

24 November 2015 by Michael Guy

Rea Fast In Pace And Race Modes

On the first day of the Jerez tests Jonathan Rea (KRT) was as fast as we have come to expect and again he was out ahead of the rest with a 1’40.826 lap, only closely followed by his own team-mate Tom...

Sykes Falls Trying New Options

24 November 2015 by Michael Guy

Sykes Falls Trying New Options

On an opening day at Jerez, when Kawasaki’s normally metronomic riders each had crashes, Tom Sykes had not one but two of them, as he and his team tried to push the boundaries a little in set-up and...

Torres Taking First Althea BMW Steps at Jerez

23 November 2015 by Michael Guy

Torres Taking First Althea BMW Steps at Jerez

The Althea Racing BMW squad makes its first test at Jerez with their new line-up of Markus Reiterberger and Jordi Torres. Reiti is no stranger to a BMW after his stellar IDM career but Jordi Torres –...

Cluzel Returns At Jerez

23 November 2015 by Michael Guy

Cluzel Returns At Jerez

Having lost his chance of the 2015 WSS championship at Jerez last season French rider Jules Cluzel returned to the track with his MV Agusta squad for his first test, the last one of 2015. He broke his...

Melandri Speaks MV First Contact

23 November 2015 by Michael Guy

Melandri Speaks MV First Contact

Marco Melandri was the lone rider on the WSBK MV Agusta in the first morning of the Jerez tests, running a machine set-up similar to the one used by team regular rider, Leon Camier. There were some...

Krummenacher Takes First WSS Ride

23 November 2015 by Michael Guy

Krummenacher Takes First WSS Ride

Former Moto2 rider Randy Krummenacher has joined the championship winning Puccetti Racing Kawasaki team for 2016, and had his first test on the Ninja ZX-6R WSS machine at Jerez. Despite some issues...

World Superbikes finally release 2016 calendar

19 November 2015 by Simon Patterson

World Superbikes finally release 2016 calendar

The World Superbike championship has brought to an end months of waiting by finally released a provisional calendar for the 2016 season. The new schedule doesn’t bring the massive shake-up expected by...

Nicky takes first steps

17 November 2015 by Gordon Ritchie

Nicky takes first steps

New Honda WorldSBK signing Nicky Hayden set his first laps on the CBR1000RRSP at Motorland at lunchtime yesterday despite a largely wet circuit after morning mist and fog had settled on the track...

Lausitzring back in the WorldSBK Inner Circle

17 November 2015 by Gordon Ritchie

Lausitzring back in the WorldSBK Inner Circle

After having no round for two years Germany will return to the WSBK fold in 2016, after championships organisers Dorna WSBK Organisation (DWO) signed a three-year deal with the former WSBK venue in...

GP racer Krummenacher joins Sofuoglu at Kawasaki WSS

06 November 2015 by Simon Patterson

GP racer Krummenacher joins Sofuoglu at Kawasaki WSS

Former 125GP podium finisher Randy Krummenacher will make the step from Moto2 to World Supersport for 2016, as he joins reigning champion Kenan Sofuoglu at the Puccetti Kawasaki squad. The Swiss rider...

WSB Yamaha breaks cover as KRT share Jerez test

05 November 2015 by Gordon Ritchie

WSB Yamaha breaks cover as KRT share Jerez test

After an often highly successful 2015 season in most of the categories it has competed in the Yamaha YZF-R1 took its first track-bound laps in full WSB specification on Tuesday 3 November in the hands...

New Europe-only Supersport class within existing WSS grid for 2016

04 November 2015 by Gordon Ritchie

New Europe-only Supersport class within existing WSS grid for 2016

The FIM and DWO (Dorna in WorldSBK form) have created a class-within-a-class for the 2016 World Supersport Championship, and killed off the Superstock 600 European Championship at a stroke. Dorna has...

Engine updates for Davies’ Ducati

30 October 2015 by Simon Patterson

Engine updates for Davies’ Ducati

Chaz Davies has spent two days at Motorland Aragon working on engine updates for his Ducati Panigale R, as the Welshman gets preparations underway for the 2016 World Superbike season. Completing a...

Sykes gets 2016 underway on hybrid ZX-10R

30 October 2015 by Simon Patterson

Sykes gets 2016 underway on hybrid ZX-10R

Tom Sykes has gotten the 2016 World Superbike season underway in a three-day test at Motorland Aragon, running a hybrid ZX-10R based on the 2015 model but running significant new parts from the 2016...

Melandri and Forward Racing link up at MV Agusta

20 October 2015 by Gordon Ritchie

Melandri and Forward Racing link up at MV Agusta

Rumours of big changes in the official MV Agusta WorldSBK team abounded at Losail as the story changed day by day. It was everything from a full stop and all the mechanics fired to an expansion in...

Kyle Smith moves to CIA Landlords Insurance Honda

19 October 2015 by Liam Marsden

Kyle Smith moves to CIA Landlords Insurance Honda

24-year-old Brit Kyle Smith will ride for the CIA Landlords Insurance Honda team in World Supersport for the 2016 season, after signing for the team on Saturday (October 17). The Brit, who rode with...

Heartbreak for Rea as Haslam wins race two

18 October 2015 by Gordon Ritchie

Heartbreak for Rea as Haslam wins race two

A great second race saw six riders competing for the win at one stage, and Leon Haslam (Aprilia Racing Team – Red Devils) take his second win of the year. Chaz Davies (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati WSB)...

Smith wins night fight in Losail

18 October 2015 by Gordon Ritchie

Smith wins night fight in Losail

British rider Kyle Smith (PATA Honda World Supersport Team) won what was at one stage a four-way fight for the race victory in the FIM Supersport World Championship race at Losail, his first win at...

Torres takes his first WSB win at Qatar

18 October 2015 by Gordon Ritchie

Torres takes his first WSB win at Qatar

Jordi Torres (Aprilia Racing Team – Red Devils) secured his first ever WorldSBK race victory in race one under the floodlights in Qatar, after an epic last-lap fight with Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing...

Sykes wins final Superpole of 2015 season

18 October 2015 by Gordon Ritchie

Sykes wins final Superpole of 2015 season

Tom Sykes (Kawasaki Racing Team) scored a new track best of 1’56.821 at Losail in Qatar on his way to his 30th career Superpole win and his sixth of the season. He is only the second rider to reach...