WSB: Augusto Fernandez to replace injured Jonathan Rea at Portimao

Augusto Fernandez will make his World Superbike Championship debut next month as a replacement for the injured Jonathan Rea.

Rea crashed at turn two during the Phillip Island test and sustained multiple fractures to his left foot. The six-time world champion has since undergone surgery and will miss both the Portimao test (March 14-15) and round two of the season at the same circuit (March 28-30).

Fernandez joined Yamaha’s MotoGP test team after losing his spot on the 2025 grid. The 2022 Moto2 World Champion spent two seasons in the premier class with Tech3 Racing onboard the KTM RC16, securing a best result of fourth during that time.

Fernandez faced the daunting challenge of being Pedro Acosta’s teammate last season and recorded just one top 10 finishes in 2024. The Spaniard’s best result of the year was seventh in the Sprint race at Jerez.

“First of all, I would like to send my best wishes for a speedy recovery to Jonathan Rea and to thank Yamaha for this opportunity,” Fernandez said. “This will be my first experience of racing with the R1 but also of racing in WorldSBK. I can’t wait to get to the Portimão test to spend some time on the bike and to see how it feels.”

Fernandez has raced within the WorldSBK paddock in the past, becoming European Talent Cup Champion at the second attempt in 2024. Fernandez also competed in the Superstock 600 category in 2015, securing one victory on his way to fourth overall.

“Jonathan has been sorely missed here in Phillip Island, but we are happy that the surgery on his injuries was successful and that he has now started the recovery process,” Yamaha’s Road Racing Sporting Manager, Niccolo Canepa said.

“We hope to see him fully fit and back on the bike as soon as possible. In the meantime, we spoke with Augusto and Yamaha Motor Racing about the possibility he could stand in for Jonathan in Portimao and he was keen to do so. He is familiar with the circuit, and with the test scheduled ahead of the race we can give him track time with the R1 WorldSBK ahead of the event.

“We must thank Yamaha Motor Racing and the MotoGP team for their support, and we are looking forward to welcoming Augusto to the team and to the WorldSBK paddock.”

Rea’s teammate Andrea Locatelli finished seventh in both feature races during the opening round of the season in Phillip Island, improving to sixth in the Superpole race. Elsewhere in blue, Dominique Aegerter finished 12^th in all three races.

Remy Gardner failed to finish both feature races at his home round, whilst 10^th in the Superpole race leaves him pointless after round one. Bahattin Sofuoglu scored a single point on his debut with Motoxracing Yamaha.