Kawasaki’s Jonathan ReaThe official 2016 World Superbike provisional entry list was released – and once again, the field is loaded with talent. Highlighting the grid is an American favorite – Nicky Hayden. The 2006 MotoGP Champion retired from Grand Prix racing following 2015 MotoGP, and is the only American on the 2016 World SBK grid.This year’s grid features 24 riders, including the return of the Yamaha Factory team with riders Sylvain Guintoli (2014 World SBK Champion) and Alex Lowes.
All of the top five World SBK finishers from last season will also compete. Jonathan Rea, the 2015 WSBK Champion, has made it very clear that he’ll be working hard to claim another title in the coming season. The Kawasaki Racing Team ZX-10R Ninja pilot claimed last year’s title two rounds short of the final race, establishing his point domination early on in the season. He wrapped up the season with 548 points, which was well out of reach of anyone else in the top five.Chaz Davies, the runner up in the World SuperBike Championship of 2015, had an impressive year as well. Winning five races aboard the Ducati 1199 Panigale R, and taking a place on the podium several more times, Davies remains a strong contender into the coming season.Rea’s teammate Tom Sykes claimed third place overall. The 2013 WSBK title holder has been attempting to reclaim that glory ever since and in the downtime, also had a direct hand in influencing the new Kawasaki ZX-10R. In the coming seasons, we expect the battle between Sykes and Rea to be particularly close. Let’s hope we’re right because it’ll make one interesting season.Leon Haslam is a name that has been gracing World Superbike for many years now. Having a long career while aboard plenty of different bikes over the years, Haslam is an experienced veteran with the numbers to prove it. During the 2015 season, he got on the podium more than a handful of times and claimed a victory during the final round aboard his Aprilia RSV4.The other factory Aprilia pilot, Jordi Torres, rounded out the overall top five for the 2015 FIM Superbike World Championship. Torres found himself in the top 10 consistently during his debut WSBK season, getting on the podium three times and claiming a victory during the first race of the final round.
2015 World Superbike Standings:
Jonathan Rea, Kawasaki ZX-10R, 548 points
Chaz Davies, Ducati 1199 Panigale, 416
Tom Sykes, Kawasaki ZX-10R, 399
Leon Haslam, Aprilia RSV4, 332
Jordi Torres, Aprilia RSV4, 247
Following is the provisional entry list for 2016 World Superbike. Keep your browsers on Ultimate MotorCycling for the latest news regarding results, teams and riders.
2016 World Superbike Rider Entry List
1, Jonathan Rea GBR Kawasaki ZX-10R Kawasaki Racing Team
66, Tom Sykes GBR Kawasaki ZX-10R Kawasaki Racing Team
7, Chaz Davies GBR Ducati 1199 Panigale R Aruba.it Racing – Ducati
34, Davide Giugliano ITA Ducati 1199 Panigale R Aruba.it Racing – Ducati
60, Michael van der Mark NED Honda CBR1000RR SP Honda World Superbike Team
69, Nicky Hayden USA Honda CBR1000RR SP Honda World Superbike Team
21, Markus Reiterberger GER BMW S1000 RR Althea BMW Racing Team
81, Jordi Torres ESP BMW S1000 RR Althea BMW Racing Team
22, Alex Lowes GBR Yamaha YZF R1 Pata Yamaha Official WorldSBK Team
50, Sylvain Guintoli FRA Yamaha YZF R1 Pata Yamaha Official WorldSBK Team
12, Xavi Fores ESP Ducati 1199 Panigale R Barni Racing Team
11, Saeed Al Sulaiti QAT Kawasaki ZX-10R Pedercini Racing
20, Sylvain Barrier FRA Kawasaki ZX-10R Pedercini Racing
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This week, in the first segment Editor Don Williams talks to us about the new Kawasaki Versys 650 LT. It’s the middleweight ADV style machine that uses the same 650 parallel twin motor as the Ninja 650, so it’s an excellent performer in a user-friendly, good looking package.
In the second segment, I chat with one of my dearest industry friends—now retired Honda PR executive, Jon Seidel. Jon’s fascinating career spans some 30 years with Big Red, and gave him some great experiences with some incredible machines. I was fortunate enough to be invited on many of the press launches that he organized. His new project is documenting and saving many of the old archives from years gone by—and incidentally, if you have anything that may be of value to the project, please contact us by email at producer@ultimatemotorcycling.com and we’ll pass it all on to Jon.
So on that note, from all of us here at Ultimate Motorcycling, we hope you enjoy this episode!
