Petrucci to WorldSBK
The Barni Racing Team has will join forces with Danilo Petrucci for their 2023 WorldSBK campaign.
This week, at the Barni Spark Racing Team’s factory in Calvenzano, Italy, Danilo has signed a contract that will see him compete with Marco Barnabò’s team for one season.
And so it is that, twelve years on, Barni and Petrux will race together once more. It was the Bergamo-based team that launched Petrucci in the Superstock 1000 class in 2011. That year, aboard the Ducati 1098R, Danilo secured the Italian championship title as well as second place in the FIM World Cup, after scoring four race wins. A new adventure with the Barni Spark Racing Team now begins, in WorldSBK.
Born in Terni on 24 October 1990, the Italian rider competed in MotoGP for ten years, six of which with Ducati, and won two races in the process (Le Mans 2020 and Mugello 2019). 2022 also saw Petrucci compete in the Dakar Rally, where he became the only rider to have ever won at least one MotoGP race and a Dakar stage. He also competed in MotoAmerica, riding a Dunlop-shod Ducati Panigale V4 R and placing second in the championship, and in MotoGP for one race with Suzuki. Now a new world championship challenge awaits, again with the Panigale V4 R but in its Superbike configuration.
Danilo Petrucci
“I’m really pleased to be back with Barni. 2011 was one of my best ever seasons but, more importantly, I couldn’t say no to the chance to race in World Superbike with such a competitive bike. It’s a championship in which I’ve never competed, and I can’t wait to measure up against the competition. I want to thank the entire Barni team for giving me this opportunity and everybody that has contributed to making this agreement possible.”
Marco Barnabò, Team Principal
”I’m very happy to welcome Danilo back to the team. As always, we will do our best to provide the rider with everything he needs to be competitive. His talent is not up for debate. We know there’s a lot of work ahead because we’ll be up against riders with a lot more experience in Superbike than he has, but, with his motivation and our hard work, we know we can do well. A massive thank to all sponsors and to Ducati”.
