The major road racing categories return this weekend, with the start of the World Superbike Championships season. As usual, Phillip Island hosts the inaugural round.
In WSBK, the premier class, Álvaro Bautista will go for his third title, but the Aruba.it Ducati rider will face strong competition – notably from his teammate Nicolò Bulega, who, despite being a rookie, has shown to be quite competitive throughout the pre-season. The same can be said for the runner-up Toprak Razgatlioglu (ROKiT BMW).
Other contenders for top positions exist, such as Jonathan Rea, who will compete for the first time with the Pata Prometeon Yamaha, or his former teammate Alex Lowes, who is now the most experienced rider at Kawasaki. There is also curiosity to see what Andrea Iannone (Team GoEleven/Ducati) can do upon returning to racing after a four-year suspension.
As for WSSP, last year’s champion, Bulega, has been promoted, and there are many contenders to succeed him in winning the title. Throughout the pre-season, several riders have shown speed, such as Yari Montella (Barni Spark Racing/Ducati), Stefano Manzi (Pata Yamaha Ten Kate), or Adrián Huertas – who takes Bulega’s place at Aruba.it Ducati.
Other riders should not be dismissed, such as Can Öncü (Kawasaki Puccetti), Bahattin Sofuoglu and Marcel Schrötter of MV Agusta, or Lorenzo Baldassarri (Orelac Racing VerdNatura/Ducati) and Niccolò Antonelli (Ecosantagata Althea Racing Team/Ducati) with extensive experience in motorcycling.
There are plenty of reasons to follow the Phillip Island round, whose schedules are presented in this article (CET time).
- Friday, February 23
- 00h25-01h05: WorldSSP FP
- 01h20-02h05: WSBK FP1
- 04h55-05h35: WSSP Superpole
- 06h00-06h45: WSBK FP2
- Saturday, February 24
- 00h00-00h20: WSBK FP3
- 00h30-00h40: SSP Warm-up 1
- 03h00-03h15: WSBK Superpole
- 04h30: Corrida 1 WSSP Race 1
- 06h00: Corrida 1 WSBK Race 1
- Sunday, February 25
- 00h30-00h40: WSBK Warm-up
- 00h50-01h00: WSSP Warm-up 2
- 03h00: WSBK Superpole Race
- 04h30: WSSP Race 2
- 06h00: WSBK Race 2