European Campaign Begins For KRT
The third round of the FIM Superbike World Championship begins soon for the class-leading Kawasaki Racing Team, at the Motorland Aragon circuit in northern Spain. The first home event of the season for the Barcelona-based team features race days on 1st and 2nd April and will offer up great opportunities for the official riding duo of Jonathan Rea and Tom Sykes.
It has been a rewarding start to the season for the whole Kawasaki factory effort and the Ninja ZX-10RR, with four race wins, two Superpoles and a further three podium finishes already recorded by the KRT riders.
With 2015 and 2016 champion Jonathan Rea making sure of all four-race victories and both Superpole contests so far it has been a perfect start to 2017 for the 30-year-old from Northern Ireland. Rea’s early season statistics have been unmatched in recent times and his current total of 100 championship points has already provided him with a cushion of 30 over Chaz Davies, after just two of the 13 rounds that make up the current season.
Having made modifications to the core of his riding style to maximise his race-long performances, 2013 world champion Sykes, from Yorkshire in England, has now taken three podium finishes in four attempts. He has a total of 62 points and is in overall third place after the Phillip Island and Buriram rounds.
As a WorldSBK venue Motorland Aragon has provided success for both current KRT riders in the recent past. Sykes won a double at the Spanish circuit in 2014 while Rea scored a win in his first year as a Kawasaki rider, in 2015.
Laid out on a grand scale and with every possible modern amenity on-site, Motorland Aragon has been a fixture on the WorldSBK calendar since 2011. It has provided wins for five different riders, on five different makes of machine in that relatively short time. The long back straight allows for slipstreaming in a way few other modern circuits do. Last corner attempted overtakes are often another feature of contemporary races at the 5.077km long Motorland, as the back straight feeds directly into what is now a left hand curve towards the start/finish straight.
As Aragon marks the beginning of the main European-based season it will host not only the WorldSBK and WorldSSP classes, but also the revamped STK1000 and all-new WorldSSP300 categories, in which Kawasaki teams are predicted to play a major part.
Immediately after race weekend at Motorland the second official test of the year will take place at the Spanish circuit, on Monday 3rd April.
Tom Sykes, stated: “I am looking forward to coming back to the European tracks now after a steady start to the season in Australia and Thailand. It has not been too shabby but there are little areas we could have improved on and we will certainly look to improve on them at this forthcoming race weekend in Motorland Aragon. I feel we have learned in the first two rounds and now our aim is to move forward and be stronger in terms of initial lap times. My fastest lap of the race in Thailand was on the last lap. That was not through any lack trying early on but it just shows that I am re-thinking my approach to riding. There is still more to come from me. Off the top of my head I would say we are looking at adjusting my riding style 60-70 percent and adjusting the bike settings 40-30 percent. It is just taking some time.”
Jonathan Rea, stated: “After the two flyway rounds it was nice to get home and back into some domestic normality, especially with the kids. I have enjoyed a few days out riding motocross too so I have been having a really nice time away from the racetrack. Not too long as we will be in Aragon soon. I have really enjoyed the Motorland track since its inception in 2011. I have had one race win there but I have never been the strongest, so I am looking forward to taking the form we have had in the last two races with us into Motorland. Our first winter test was held there in November and we seemed to have a really good steer on things then. I enjoy riding the Ninja ZX-10RR and it seems like it has been in the ballpark at two quite different circuits this year. I am excited and intrigued to get underway at Motorland to see where we stack up.”
2017 KRT Rider Statistics
Jonathan Rea: World Champion 2015 and 2016
2017: Races 4, Wins 4, Podiums 4, Superpoles 2
Career Race Wins: 42 (27 for Kawasaki)
Career Podiums: 92 (50 For Kawasaki)
Career Poles: 10 (6 For Kawasaki)
Tom Sykes: World Champion 2013
2017: Races: 4, Wins 0, Podiums 3, Superpoles 0
Career Race Wins: 31 (31 for Kawasaki)
Career Podiums: 87 (86 For Kawasaki)
Career Poles: 38 (38 For Kawasaki)
Kawasaki FIM Superbike World Championship Statistics
4 x Riders’ Championships (Scott Russell 1993, Sykes 2013, Rea 2015 & 2016), 1 x EVO Riders’ Championship (David Salom 2014)
2 x Manufacturers’ Championships (Ninja ZX-10R 2015 & 2016)
2 x Teams’ Championships (KRT/Provec Racing 2015 & 2016)
Kawasaki FIM Superbike World Championship Statistics
Total Kawasaki Race Wins: 95 – third overall
Total Kawasaki Podiums: 314 – third overall
Total Kawasaki Poles: 65 – second overall