Image: Supplied.

The schedule for round one of the 2020 Motul FIM Superbike World Championship (WorldSBK) at Phillip Island has been made official, the weekend set to also feature the Mi-Bike Motorcycle Insurance Australian Superbike Championship (ASBK) opener on 28 February-1 March.

The three-day Yamaha Finance supported round will see four world championship races take place- three WorldSBK and one WorldSSP – and 12 hit-outs across the four ASBK classes. The ASBK will feature the Australian Superbike, Supersport, Supersport 300 and the young riders of the Oceania Junior Cup.

Track goers will be able to see the WorldSBK riders for the first time in free practice one at 10:30am on Friday, as Kawasaki Racing Team’s Jonathan Rea begins his title defence in a grid that features a number of new riders – Scott Redding’s the standout on the factory Ducati – and a return of the mighty Honda Factory Corporation with its all-new CBR1000RR-R SP.

Alvaro Bautista, who took a clean sweep of victories at Phillip Island in 2019, and Leon Haslam have signed with Honda to spearhead its renewed WorldSBK offensive.

The traditional 22-lap WorldSBK races will be held at 3:00pm on Saturday and Sunday, sandwiching the 10-lap Superpole sprint at midday on Sunday.

Meanwhile, the single WorldSSP race at Phillip Island will be held at 1:15pm on Sunday, with reigning champion Randy Krummenacher now collaborating with MV Agusta after winning the 2019 title on a Yamaha.

Local attention though will focus on Australia’s 16-year-old Oli Bayliss, son of three-time world superbike champion Troy, who has been granted a wild card in WorldSSP for the Phillip Island opener and will campaign the Cube Racing Yamaha YZF-R6. For more information, visit www.worldsbk.com.au.

2020 WorldSBK Rd1 Phillip Island schedule

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Yamaha Motor Australia will roll out an extensive activation for fans to experience at the Yamaha Finacial Services opening round of the 2020 Motul FIM Superbike World Championship (WorldSBK) at Phillip Island on 28 February-1 March.

The Yamaha Financial Services main stage of the expo area will be a hive of activity across the three days including interviews with special guests and Yamaha WorldSBK riders.

While visiting the Yamaha stand, fans will be able to check out the 2020 range of Yamaha motorcycles, including the all-new WR250F, 2020 YZF-R1 and YZF-R1M, and the first Australian public appearance of the latest YZF-R15.

Fans keen to take a ride in the virtual world with Yamaha motocross legend Stephen Gall can slip on the Yamaha Financial Services 360-degree virtual reality goggles and headphones then climb aboard the all-new Tenere 700 adventure bike for a quick blast through the forest.

Yamaha Genuine Parts, Accessories and Shop Yamaha once again present their popup retail outlet, displaying a large range of accessories and merchandise. The expert team will also be on hand to answer any questions about getting kitted up with the best Yamaha gear.

The Yamaha bLU cRU truck will be located right next to the expo area, along with the bLU cRU pop-up kids fun bike come-and-try arena. Free fun bike rides for the next generation of riders aged 5-10 years will be available daily.

Youngsters can cut laps of the supervised test arena on Yamaha’s popular PW50 and TT-R50 fun bikes, or try four wheels with the YFZ50 fun ATV for those aged 6-10 years. All the required safety gear is provided, including boots, jersey, pants, helmet, goggles and gloves, with riding tips and encouragement provided by professional coaches from Oates MX.

It’s all free, and there’s no need to pre-register. Some conditions apply, so see the friendly Yamaha staff for more details.

Image: Russell Colvin.

Max Croker is plotting a racing return with Mladin Racing Yoshimura Suzuki at Phillip Island’s Mi-Bike Motorcycle Insurance Australian Superbike Championship (ASBK) opener, the youthful talent coming back from a number of injuries sustained at Wakefield Park in March 2019.

The 21-year-old crashed while testing at the New South Wales’ venue last year, where he was air-lifted to hospital after suffering a badly-broken right hand, wrist and clavicle in two places, as well as lacerations to his small finger that had to be operated on.

Croker returned to riding in the later months of 2019 in preparation for this season, the number 41 most recently participating in the official two-day test at Phillip Island.

“It was a positive two-day test for the team gathering a lot of information,” said Croker. “Although my hand and wrist held us back from track time we still managed to find a good direction with the setup of the bike.

“It was great to be back in the paddock after such a long break and I’m really looking forward to round one in just a few weeks time. We’d like to thank our sponsors and now look forward to the first round of the ASBK in conjunction with WorldSBK at Phillip Island next month.”

The opening round of the ASBK will run in conjunction with the round one of the Motul FIM Superbike World Championship (WorldSBK) on 28 February-1 March.

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Australian Broc Parkes has been called into the Wojcik Racing Team for the 24 Heures Motos at Le Mans on 18-19 April, marking round three of the 2019/2020 FIM Endurance World Championship (EWC).

Parkes, a former Yamaha Austria Racing Team (YART) regular in the EWC, will fill-in for Christoffer Bergman – who will be racing WorldSSP – at the French round in two months’ time.

The Polish team’s Yamaha number 77 surged into the lead at the start of the race on a soaking wet track at Bol d’Or season-opener, finishing on the second step of the podium with British rider Gino Rea, Swedish rider Bergman and Frenchman Axel Maurin.

Now third in the provisional standings after the 8 Hours of Sepang, the second race of the season, Wojcik Racing Team are targeting another podium at the 24 Heures Motos.

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MotoGP rookie Alex Marquez has established that understanding his bike set-up in various conditions will be the focus in Qatar after gaining valuable track time last week in Malaysia.

The Repsol Honda rider posted the strongest times amongst the rookies, going 13-17-16 on the timehseets throughout the three days at Sepang.

The Spaniard admits his feeling is improving aboard the RC213V, mentioning he left the test in a positive frame of mind.

“The general feeling everyday was better, we were faster and felt better,” Marquez commented. “This is the most important thing. There are only three more days of the pre-season left to be ready for the Qatar GP but we are closer every day – still we need to learn more but every time we ride my knowledge is growing and I’m pleased with everything we’ve achieved.

“For Qatar our aim is to continue to understand the set-up of the bike for myself and in various conditions. We’ve tried a lot this test so I leave happy.”

Marquez will be out on track next on 22 February in Qatar for the final pre-season test ahead of round, scheduled for 8 March at the Losail circuit.