2025 WorldSBK
Jerez Test November 2024
Bimota, Yamaha and Kawasaki teams took part in a two-day test this week at Jerez alongside a wide variety of other race teams, including some from the FIM EWC and British Superbike paddocks, along with a few MotoGP prototypes.
Axel Bassani and Alex Lowes only rode the new KB998 bimota on the second day only, preserving their allowed test days by utilising test rider Florian Marino for feedback and evaluations on day one.
Bassani and Lowes found warm and sunny conditions on track on Wednesday, with both putting in an impressive lap count and working through their test plans in a methodical fashion. Alex recorded 83 laps on the final day and Axel 86.
With a best of 1m38.355 best Lowes was the quickest rider on track across both days of action, with Axel a fraction behind at 1’38.358.
Alex Lowes – Bimota
“It was a good day of testing, and a busy day. I spent a lot of years on the Kawasaki so there were two main targets for me. To be on the bike a bit more, and understand how to ride the bike in the best way. This is something I need to think about during the winter break. It was important to see if I have to change my style a bit. We did a long run and tried to work on used tyres to get a feeling with the bike. I started to work a bit on my confidence with the front. I had a little crash in T6, pushing the front to understand a bit more. We used one qualifying tyre only and we made a good step with that. Even if that was not our main target, it was nice to be fast. With all the information we have, I am sure we can improve quite a lot. We have an understanding of the bike but I know also where I need to work to just refine my style to get the most out of it.”
Pere Riba – Crew Chief for Alex Lowes
“This is the second test we have done with Alex, after we were here in Jerez one month ago. The bike is similar but we have some different items to let the rider be more comfortable on the bike, with the riding position and these kind of things. You can imagine how early in the project we are. This bike has a different character from the Kawasaki we raced in the past, in terms of riding. So the approach from the rider has to be a little bit different. We are working to understand how to create a base bike for Alex to be comfortable, to understand it and get the feeling. We have been testing quite linear changes in terms of set-up, not big up and down changes, as I want to give time for the rider to really understand the new bike. We made some changes in terms of balance to understand the direction we want to go in. We are still at the beginning, but even like this the lap times are quite promising. Alex used only one Q tyre to set a good lap time. It was a very positive test.”
Axel Bassani – Bimota
“We worked a lot on race pace and I am quite happy. It was really good and I am also quite happy about doing a fast lap. I am not the best of all but we ran the same pace of Alex and he is one of the best riders in the world over one lap. We did more or less the same lap time, so that is really good. I think we understand which way we have to take during the winter break. Now, I think everyone needs to relax a little bit, to enjoy home and family. For sure we will think about the bike but it is also important to stop and relax and we will see everyone again next year. Thank you to everybody.”
Over at Pata Prometeon Yamaha Oriol “Uri” Pallares stepped into his new role as Crew Chief for Jonathan Rea, replacing Andrew Pitt in the team, who also welcomed highly-experienced technician Gregory Rebeyrat into the squad.
Rea finished the test with a fastest lap time of 1’38.452, less than one tenth from the top of the timing sheet.
While a crash at Turn 7 before lunch slightly restricted running for Locatelli on the second day, Andrea was able to make positive progress on Day 1 with 77 laps and continue to working through the test programme later this afternoon.
Across a combined total of 241 laps, the focus was on a combination of chassis and electronics strategy improvements while simultaneously fine-tuning the individual R1 WorldSBK set-up for both Rea and Locatelli.
Jonathan Rea – Yamaha
“I’m satisfied with the work that we’ve done over these two days! In the end, we have a lot of items to try this winter but during this test in particular it was important to work on my feeling with the R1 and regain some confidence in areas that I struggled with a bit this year. We focused on the front end of the bike, being able to stop and be more aggressive flicking the bike to the apex. Working with Uri as my Crew Chief for the first time was nice, the vibe in the team is good and he has slotted right in – so we were able to get to work quickly. We tried some different electronic items and fine-tuned our base set-up – the start point when we arrived was good so we were able to move through the programme efficiently. I’m happy because we were able to be fast on the Q tyre, race tyres and deliver consistency in the lap times, building my feeling again. Clocking off now for the winter, we’ll be back in January to get really into the meat of the test plan. I’d like to wish everyone a happy holiday period and say a massive thanks to the whole team and Yamaha – plus a warm welcome to my new mechanic Gregory Rebeyrat and “chapeau” to Uri for a great first 2025 test.”
Andrea Locatelli – Yamaha
“The rhythm with the race tyre was good – it was a shame to have such a big crash this morning on the second day and miss some of the test programme. But, now we are looking forward and waiting for January so I can ride on my R1 again. We have time to analyse the data from both days and make another upgrade to prepare the bike for four more days of testing in January – which will be important to finalise everything ready for the season. We did 72 laps yesterday and in general for the first day I was happy, immediately with a good pace even though we were not in search of a fast lap time. It is important after a long time I have been with Yamaha that we push to the maximum, no matter what the condition. If we can be fast immediately it can be a big advantage for us both in testing and during the race weekends, in this area I have improved a lot. It is a step-by-step process overall in testing, we stay positive and I always believe that we can make a difference in all the areas where we work. Thank you to the team and Yamaha, and I want to wish everyone a Merry Christmas!”
Riccardo Tisci – Yamaha Motor Europe Road Racing Technical Manager
“These two days of testing at Jerez were very interesting for the Yamaha WorldSBK project – we found some positives and a few areas where we have to continue to work on refining the details, but it was very useful because we have a clear direction for the next steps in development. We followed our test plan working on mainly chassis and electronics improvements, also towards making steps forward ahead of our next tests in January, in parallel with ongoing R1 WorldSBK set-up refinements and general rider preparation for the first race. Now, we have a month and a half to thoroughly check all the data collected during this test to confirm the next evolution of our bike specification ready for the 2025 season.”
Garrett Gerloff (Kawasaki WorldSBK Team) took part in his second winter test with the official 2025 Ninja ZX-10RR running in the team’s 2025 season livery for the first time.
After a promising first test at Jerez last month Gerloff had the opportunity to make even more progress since recently joining Kawasaki, finding out more about his bike and team.
Gerloff set a best of 1m38.839 on the second day, after trying out qualifying tyres as well as race tyres. Garrett was the fastest WorldSBK rider on day one of the two-day test. The American completed 150 laps across the two day.
Garrett Gerloff – Kawasaki
“The test was good and I think it was positive. For sure I think we made one step compared to the last time we were here, so that feels good. We are still looking for more but I am pretty happy with how it went here. I used Q tyres because I am trying to work on my qualifying pace – but that is what I am still a little frustrated about. I feel like I get to a wall and I cannot go any faster. But it has been like that on each bike I have ridden in WorldSBK, so it is not this bike. It is really nice to be running in the official colours at this test and to have everything like we can see it now. It is a really big programme and a very big effort from these guys. I know it is going to be good so we just need to keep focusing on ourselves.”
Manuel Puccetti – Kawasaki Team Principal
“It was a very positive test, especially considering that Garrett was only on his second outing with Kawasaki. He was always very fast and helped us gain a complete vision of the potential of our bike and what are the areas we need to focus on in the next tests. We used the 2025 livery for the first time, which I really liked. It is the one that Kawasaki customers will find on the production bike, to which we have obviously added our sponsors.”
The first test of 2025 is again at Jerez, on January 22-23, followed by Portimao the next week for the final European test before they all wing their way to Phillip Island where they will test on February 17-18 ahead of the season opener at the Victorian venue on the weekend of February 23.
WorldSBK Jerez Test Times
November 2024
- Alex Lowes (Bimota) 1m38.355
- Axel Bassani (Bimota) 1m38.358
- Jonathan Rea (Yamaha) 1m38.452
- Garrett Gerloff (Kawasaki) 1m38.839
- Andrea Locatelli (Yamaha) 1m39.508
