Rea gets acquainted with Yamaha World Superbike
Just 24 hours after the end of the 2023 season, six-time FIM Superbike World Champion Jonathan Rea stepped into the Pata Yamaha Prometeon WorldSBK pit box for the first time to meet his #65 Yamaha R1 WorldSBK – featuring a special grey, white and carbon-fibre winter test livery which hints at some of Yamaha’s historical colour schemes.
Welcomed by his new crew and Yamaha’s engineers, Rea enjoyed a detailed riding position fitting in advance of one of the most highly-anticipated manufacturer changes in WorldSBK history.
Tuesday will be the first chance to see Rea and the #65 R1 WorldSBK on track, as two days of testing commence at Circuito de Jerez – Ángel Nieto.
Jonathan Rea – Pata Yamaha Prometeon WorldSBK
“It’s been an incredible first day and it was so surreal putting on my Pata Yamaha Prometeon WorldSBK polo – the feeling in blue is really nice – and when I walked into the box, everyone was so enthusiastic.
“I felt a lot of love and support straight away – the attention to detail on the team is amazing. From even my rider office having personalised logos in there already, to getting perfectly fitted on the bike – the attention to detail on that process was incredible.
“I just can’t wait now to spin my first laps on the R1. It’s a bike that I’ve seen up close on track but never had an opportunity to ride, so for tomorrow the main idea is to get comfortable on the bike – to understand my crew, for them to understand me and of course, to learn and have a positive outcome.
“Between now and Phillip Island we have a lot of time, but first impressions are always important and today was a really good one. I’m really excited to start and I want to thank everyone from Crescent Racing, Yamaha Motor Europe and all the sponsors for this opportunity because I think it’s going to be a great partnership and I’m looking forward to it.”
Paul Denning – Team Principal, Pata Yamaha Prometeon WorldSBK
“We witnessed one of the most exciting race performances ever in WorldSBK yesterday afternoon, and here we are only 24 hours later looking forward to a surreal moment. Back in the day, I honestly never dreamed we would get a rider of Jonathan Rea’s stature to join our team and to see him climbing on the R1 today with a huge smile on his face has created an incredibly enthusiastic atmosphere and a lot of hope for the 2024 season.
“The next two days will be extremely interesting, but we want to start in a very step-by-step way without any pressure. The plan is to allow Jonathan to learn the R1 after so many years on a different bike and to treat this as the “first touch”, the first experience together and build from here. “JR” is a rider that history has shown will always deliver the goods, and we can’t wait to start this journey together.”
