13-way journey through 10 countries of the 30th WSBK motorbike racing (Part 2)

Regarding the situation of personnel of the racing teams, most of the most notable names of the tournament have found themselves a new stop.

Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) and Chaz Davies (ARUBA.IT Racing – Ducati) both have a new 2-year contract from last summer and will continue the new season with the teams they have been attached to from 2015 to the present.

Rea set a new WSBK record with his fifth consecutive championship with Kawasaki in 2019. And in the sixth championship campaign, the British driver will have a new teammate, Alex Lowes, a fellow countryman. have the most successful 2019 season with Yamaha with 9 podiums and 3rd place on the individual standings.

Alvaro Bautista, after a year of disappointing performance at Ducati, decided to join Honda in his second year at the WSBK. In 2020, Honda will return as a factory racing team, supported by HRC with the ambition to win from the first stages. Bautista will be the main driver of the racing team with the second steering wheel Leon Haslam (racing for Kawasaki in 2019), bringing a new color to the tournament.

Bautista switched from Ducati to Honda in hopes of winning the championship

The other place at ARUBA.IT Racing Ducati next to Davies, is a veteran of MotoGP (2008-2018), British driver Scott Redding will have the opening stage of WSBK after winning the British Superbike in 2019.

Toprak Razgatlıoğlu independent race team (Turkey) will be given the opportunity at Yamaha factory team when replacing Lowes. He will accompany Michael van der Mark, creating a youthful squad capable of standing in the top of the next few years.

The last factory team, BMW Motorrad retains their main driver, Tom Sykes after his good results in 2019. Accompanying him in 2020 is Irish steering wheel Eugene Laverty, two names previously used to compete for the WSBK 2013 championship together, and Sykes took the throne. Both will have the opportunity to compete with each other again in the same car next year.

Overall, the picture of the championship race in 2020 will still be the presence of names that have proven their ability in the past year. However, it is impossible not to mention Scott Redding and Ducati, who are considered the “dark horse” of the new season.

I know that the British steering wheel can create waves as what Bautista did in the first half of 2019. Will the 6th championship for Rea and Kawasaki or a new name crowned? Let’s wait for WSBK 2020.

13-way journey through 10 countries of the 30th WSBK motorbike racing (Part 1)

Besides MotoGP, another 2-wheel drive racing tournament has also received a lot of attention, that is the World Superbike will also have major changes in 2020.

By the end of November, the tournament organizers have confirmed the official schedule for the 2020 season, with 13 races, no increase (decrease) compared to 2019 but there are some changes in destinations. Taking place in 10 countries on 4 different continents, the 2020 season will once again start in Australia at the beginning of March.

The Philips Island racetrack will mark the 30th time in history of organizing a WSBK race, no race in the world has achieved this milestone yet. In addition, there will also be an official test before the final season on February 24-25, 2020.

Philips Island will be the start of the WSBK 2020 season

Two weeks later, the teams will come to the race in Qatar, where all new riders will ‘visit’ at the end of October, with the last race of 2019. Losail racecourse will have 2 consecutive weeks. continue to be busy when organizing 2 tournaments MotoGP and World SBK. The change of Thai GP stage in MotoGP race when moving to March forced this race to break up with WSBK this year.

In addition, the only race in North America at Laguna Seca racetrack, California, USA will not appear next year.

The usual European season starts at Jerez in late March, then returns to Spain twice in Aragon in late May and the first time WSBK goes to the Barcelona-Catalunya racetrack in mid-September. Italy will remain the country with more than one race, with two races at Imola and Misano in about 35 days.

July and August is a break time for riders to take only 2 stages in the first week of the month. The WSBK will return to Germany, but with a new Oschersleben race, the fourth fixed race track in Germany, after Nürburgring, Hockenheimring and Sachsenring.

Oschersleben racetrack (Germany) is the new destination of German GP

September is a sprint stage with 3 races at Algarve (Portugal), Barcelona (Spain) and Magny-Cours (France) in less than 25 days. The season-ending race will take place in South America, with the Argentine GP race at the San Juan Villicum racetrack on October 11, 2020. In addition, the middle of the season will have an official test but the time and place have not been announced.