Evaluating World Superbike’s current title picture: Can Razgatliogu and Janathan Rea take the fight to Bautista?
With the Jerez test coming to conclusion last week on thursday, here are my takes on what the title picture looks like going into the second test venue in Portugal.
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2023 was a one man demolition job with Bautista breezing his way to a second world title. However, for this season we have some remarkable rider changes at the front with Razgatlioglu switching to BMW and Rea switching to Yamaha after nine years with Kawasaki. Also, for this year, we will have Nicolo Bulega in place of Rubens Rinaldi in the second Aruba.it Ducati seat and Andrea Iannone making his anticipated World Superbike debut on Motocorsa Ducati.
Furthermore, the addition of new weight-limits along with other factors could also play a major role in deciding the competitiveness of this year’s world championship. So here are my takes after the recent Jerez tests:
Bautista isn’t showing his true colors yet:
During the two-day Jerez test, Alvaro Bautista was’nt exactly feeling himself as he finished the two days in 10th and 16th respectively. The Spaniard is still recovering from injuries to his arm, and will be forced to contend with the new ‘heavier’ combined weight regulations for the upcoming season.
Being one of the lightest riders on the grid and with the new regulations favoring riders with the bigger frame, Bautista will be forced to look for ways to increase more weight. And that’s exactly what the Spaniard has been working on in the two day tests.
Despite working on his physique to gain more, Ducati have estimated an upward of 6kgs to be added on his Panigale V4 R. The new heavier is expected to make life more difficult for the Spaniard, as the newer regulations will limit Bautista’s lightweight advantages such as aided straightline speed, and tyre consumption and in return will cause him further issues in the braking.
“It’s much worse to ride,” explained the Spaniard. “Because, with more weight, you have more inertia, so it’s more difficult to turn in the corners and stop the bike. It’s more physical, and all the areas are worse.”
“With more inertia, the bike goes wide, and it’s more difficult to close the corner. Also, for stopping under heavy braking, we struggle a lot.
“We will concentrate on this and try to be penalized as little as possible and try to be at the best possible performance.”
However, fellow Ducati rider Danilo Petrucci reckons that the reigning world champion will once again remain a ‘super favorite’ despite the added weight, as he doesn’t think it would “change the cards on the table.”
With rookie teammate Nicolo Bulega showcasing the competitiveness of the new Ducati by leading the timesheets in both the days, it would be hard to imagine Bautista not being up to speed in Portugal.
Razgotlioglu and Rea to spice things at the front
With both riders spending little time adapting to their new machines, it would’nt be imaginative to see the duo becoming a thorn to Alvaro Bautista’s run to a third successive world title.
In fact, based on the test results, one might assume Razgatlioglu and Rea to become an even more fierce opposition to the ones he faced last year.
Especially in Rea’s case, last year’s Kawasaki wasn’t competitive at all for the championship, but riding aboard the Yamaha, which finished second in standings last year, and with strong early sensations for the Northern Irishman, you can be assured that he would be a regular feature in the championship.
For Toprak Razgatlioglu, riding aboard a BMW would solve one of his key issues from last year, which was his inability to compete with Bautista in the long straights. With BMW possessing more horsepower than the Yamaha he used last year to compete against Bautista, Toprak can be assured that he won’t be a sitting duck in the straights.
Furthermore, BMW’s bike balance is also regarded as a perfect match for Toprak’s style of riding, as the Turkish rider is notorious for his front-end feel for the bike.
However, one thing that could limit Toprak’s capability to fight at the front would be his inability to utilize the rear tyres effectively, something he himself brought up as the key area to improve going into the season.
“The acceleration is not bad but we need to improve. But with full lean we need more grip.” suggested El Turco, “We are working a lot for the grip, but we are not far. If we improve the rear grip then every race weekend we can fight for the podium. Everything is a step-by-step process.”
Possibility of a lead quartet instead of the usual titanic trio?
Nicolo Bulega has sprung himself into the title picture following an impressive debut performance on his V4R Ducati Panigale by topping both testing days in Jerez. Although still early days and yet to have a race weekend under his belt, many believe that the Italian is already off to a good start with an impressive display of raw speed and wouldn’t take long to figure out the race management side of things.
The Italian suggested: “Maybe we can improve with used tyres. I am fast, especially with new tyres, but I have to work with used tyres.
Another name that fans would love getting used to at the top of the championship is Andrea Iannone, who looked in great spirits following a positive return to two-wheeled action after completing his four-year suspension following a failed drug test.
The Italian made a name for himself with his energetic, fan-friendly style of riding in his MotoGP days, and in both tests he was a regular feature in the top ten.
Iannone focused primarily on getting up to speed with his Ducati and believes to is within striking distance of his competitors on race trim.
“We’re not so far away.” Iannone said while speaking to wordsbk.com, “I think I did my best lap with the SCX tyre, so we are more or less the best rider!”
It is hard to make a clear assessment of Bulega’s and Iannone’s performance since both are yet to undergo a full race weekend. We will get a better picture in the very first race at Philip Island but until then it wouldn’t be wrong to put their names in the list of riders who could possibly become a leading quartet or quintet if possible.
Kawasaki in need of substantial improvement with Honda nowhere to be seen:
Alex Lowes finished the first day in an impressive second place, however, his performance stagnated as he would languish down in eleventh place, finishing both days as the lead Kawasaki rider.
With many of its competitors storming ahead with clear performance gains being made in the winters, it would be hard fought to place Kawasaki any higher than being the fourth-best manufacturer.
Axel Bassani will need more time to adapt to his brand-new Kawasaki which looks to be an arduous task, especially with the expectations of filling the shoes of six-time world champion Jonathan Rea.
With both Iker Lecuona and Xavi Vierge going no higher than 16th in the two-day test, signs are concerning for the HRC team who were looking to compete for the world championship with their new Honda CBR.
Kawasaki and Honda will need to bring more to the table for Portimao if they are to contend with Ducati, Yamaha, and BMW.
