MISANO TEST: Sykes back with BMW, Mackenzie up to Superbike, Rea and Lowes not in action
Two days of testing await the majority of the WorldSBK field with plenty of headlines to keep an eye on from Misano…
Just a few days after the Prosecco DOC Catalunya Round, the majority of the MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship are heading to Italy and the Misano World Circuit “Marco Simoncelli” for a two-day test.
The test is a Dorna Supported Test with the five factory teams having representation as well as some new and returning faces after a recent switch up in the WorldSBK field. The two-day test will be a good opportunity for teams and riders to prepare for the Emilia-Romagna Round at the same venue at the start of June.
The test takes place on Thursday 11th and Friday 12th May at the Misano World Circuit, with two sessions per day. The morning session will take place from 09:00 Local Time (GMT+2) until 13:00, with an hour break for lunch. The afternoon session will start at 14:00 and finish at 18:00, giving teams and riders eight hours on track per day to test upgrades, refine setups and prepare for the upcoming event at the same circuit.
SYKES AT BMW, MACKENZIE AT MIE: changes to teams at the test
After his split from Kawasaki Puccetti Racing and subsequent temporary return to the ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team, Tom Sykes will make his on-track return to the German manufacturer at the Misano test, alongside Scott Redding. With Sykes returning to BMW, Puccetti Kawasaki will field Lucas Mahias at the test after he substituted in WorldSSP for Can Oncu for the same team; he raced for the team in WorldSBK in 2021 and 2022.
The PETRONAS MIE Racing HONDA Team will field only one bike in the test, with their WorldSSP rider, Tarran Mackenzie getting a chance to return to a Superbike machine – Eric Granado and Hafizh Syahrin are both injured, although Granado was scheduled for MotoE™ World Cup duty at Le Mans anyway.
The Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK will be at the test but with just one rider testing for the team. Due to the forecast showing cold temperatures and rain, KRT have opted to run with a small structure and test rider Florian Marino will carry out tasks without Jonathan Rea and Alex Lowes on track. Lowes recently stated that the team needs to test when the track temperature is 50 degrees, not when it is cooler, as their package is already strong.
With BMW riding with Redding and Sykes and KRT’s slimmed down approach to the test, three other factory teams will be on track with their regular line-up.
Championship leader Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) and teammate Michael Ruben Rinaldi will be joined by Pata Yamaha Prometeon WorldSBK’s Toprak Razgatlioglu and Andrea Locatelli, whilst Honda will have Iker Lecuona (Team HRC) and Xavi Vierge testing at Misano.
At last year’s Misano test in June, Honda brought an upgraded swingarm for the first time, tested by Tetsuta Nagashima and Iker Lecuona, as Vierge was out injured. All eyes will be on Honda again, to see if they bring any further new items, particularly after the attendance of Tetsuhiro Kuwata (HRC Director) and Yuzuru Ishikawa, the Large Project Leader of the CBR1000RR-R SP, in Barcelona last weekend.
As well as representatives from the five factory teams, plenty of Independent riders will take to the Misano track as well. Home rider Axel Bassani (Motocorsa Racing) will look to start bouncing back from a difficult Catalunya Round at the test whilst compatriot Lorenzo Baldassarri (GMT94 Yamaha) will continue adapting with his team to WorldSBK.
Team GoEleven will be on track with Philipp Oettl at the two-day test whilst there will be two Independent teams with two riders each on track. Dominique Aegerter (GYTR GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Team) and Remy Gardner will both continue their adaptation to WorldSBK machinery, joined by Garrett Gerloff (Bonovo Action BMW) after his strong Catalunya Round and teammate Loris Baz making it two riders for Bonovo BMW. In WorldSSP, Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing WorldSSP Team) will be on track.
