WorldSBK 2021

The 2021 World Superbike Championship and World Supersport Championship fields have taken further shape this week. Tito Rabat announced that he was joining the Barni Racing Team on board a Ducati Panigale V4 R, while Loris Cresson has signed on with TPR OUTDO Pedercini Racing until 2022 and will be campaigning the new Kawasaki ZX-10RR.

In the Supersport class Ten Kate Racing have announced Galang Hendra Pratama will join Dominique Aegerter in their line-up, with the team running as a Yamaha supported outfit on R6s in the new year.

The provisional calendar currently has the season kicking off in Europe with nine rounds spanning seven nations, before being slated to visit Argentina in mid-October, then Indonesia in November. We’re still waiting for a date to be set for Round 12 which is planned for Phillip Island but it looks as though that we could be looking late in the year, possibly as late as November.

---

Tito Rabat to debut in Superbikes with Barni Racing Team

Tito Rabat will make the move to the World Superbike championship for 2021, joining the Italian Barni Racing Team to race a Ducati Panigale V4 R. The 31-year-old Moto2 World Champion and MotoGP star has 13 wins in Moto2 to his name as well as a Championship and two third place finishes overall, as well as six top-ten finishes in MotoGP from 2016 to 2020, with a best result of seventh.

Now a new challenge awaits him in WorldSBK, where he will join former rivals from MotoGP Scott Redding (ARUBA.IT Racing – Ducati) and Alvaro Bautista (Team HRC).

Tito Rabat

“After many years in MotoGP I will have the chance to start a new adventure in WorldSBK and I want to show all my potential in this Championship. I know I’ll have at my disposal a great bike and a good team, for this opportunity I want to thank the Barni Racing Team and Ducati. For me, the new challenge started today when I jumped on the Ducati Panigale V4 R for the first time. I can’t wait to take it on track, and I will work hard to be full prepared for the first test.”

Paolo Cibatti – Sporting Director of Ducati Corse

“We are very happy about the agreement between Marco Barnabò and Tito Rabat. Since many year the Barni Racing Team is a consolidated reality as a Ducati satellite team in Superbike and we are sure that in 2021 the squad will be able to put Tito in the best conditions to express all his talent. Rabat arrives in the WorldSBK championship motivated to achieve important results and we are sure he can count on Barni’s maximum support.”

---

Loris Cresson joins TPR OUTDO Pedercini Racing

Loris Cresson will join TPR OUTDO Pedercini Racing team until 2022, in an agreement that will see him aboard a new-spec Kawasaki ZX-10RR in the 2021 FIM Superbike World Championship.  The Belgian rider made his debut with the squad at the Estoril Circuit at the end of the 2020 season before joining them in post-season tests at the same venue, Jerez and MotorLand Aragon which provided a great opportunity for the #84 rider to further adapt to the Superbike category after several successful seasons in the FIM Supersport World Championship.

Loris is optimistic ahead of his first full season of World Superbike racing and is thrilled to be joining the team on the grid. Off-track preparation is already going well, the twenty-two-year-old determined to be in the best physical shape when the lights go out for Round One at the TT Circuit Assen in the Netherlands in April.

Loris Cresson

“I am happy to join Pedercini Kawasaki for the next two years. In such a hard category, so having a two-year deal takes away some pressure. I don’t have to worry if it takes me a little time to adapt. I have a lot to learn and I know that with this team I will be able to develop fast as a rider. The team is really professional and has been in the paddock for many years. I heard only good things before riding with them in Estoril and they are really a good bunch of people with a lot of experience. I can build a good Superbike base with this team with the best bike on the grid – the Kawasaki ZX10RR. You only have to look at Jonathan Rea to see how good the bike is, and even before that with Tom (Sykes). I have a lot to learn as it’s so different racing in WorldSBK compared to WorldSSP but already in testing with the team we made really good progress, even with the older model of bike. I am eager to try the new bike and to work with the guys again in the new season. I am working so hard in the gym and also off-road to be in the best condition for the opening round. I want to thank everyone who is around me and who is making it happening for me, even when things didn’t go to plan you all stood by my and I will never forget this. I wish everyone a nice time at Christmas, stay safe and let’s have a great 2021!”

---

Ten Kate Yamaha set sights on 2021 World SSP

Ten Kate Racing have announced they’ll be running a Yamaha supported World Supersport team in 2021, with Galang Hendra Pratama to join Dominique Aegerter, in a series where they hold nine rider’s championships.

In 2019, the team joined the FIM Superbike World Championship with Yamaha and French rider Loris Baz and scored four podium finishes earlier this season. For their 2021 WorldSSP assault, Ten Kate Racing Yamaha have selected Moto2 race-winner Aegerter and Indonesian youngster Hendra Pratama as their riders.

Aegerter brings a huge amount of Grand Prix motorcycle racing experience, having spent three seasons in 125cc and 10 years in Moto2. The Swiss rider took victory at the 2014 German Grand Prix and finished on the podium seven times before moving on to contest the 2020 MotoE World Cup.

In his maiden season, the 30-year-old won two races, finishing on the podium four times on his way to third in the standings. Aegerter also has Suzuka 8 Hours experience, finishing twice on the podium with a best result of second in 2015.

Dominique Aegerter

“I am very happy that I will be a part of the Ten Kate Racing Yamaha WorldSSP project in 2021. First of all, I owe a lot to Gerrit and Ronald Ten Kate, and also Kervin Bos for the faith they have shown in me and for giving me a chance in their professional and very experienced team. It is an amazing opportunity and it is my goal to be able to fight for the top positions in every race next season. It will be the first time for me to ride a Yamaha R6 but I have ridden a lot of different machinery in the last couple of months so I do not expect that it will be hard to change my riding style to this machine. Besides that, I will be entering a very experienced team and I am convinced that, together with my crew chief and mechanics, I will get used to this bike quickly and be able to go fast. I can’t wait to start working together and I’m looking forward to finally get on this Yamaha YZF-R6 for the first time in early January. Finally, I would like to thank IXS Hostettler Yamaha in Switzerland for their support.”

After impressing at Valentino Rossi’s VR46 camp in 2016, Indonesian hero Hendra Pratama, who represents “Semakin di Depan”, the message and spirit of Yamaha Indonesia Motor Manufacturing who have helped get him to the level he is today, earned a wildcard entry into the Supersport 300 World Championship at Portimao the following season. He retired from that race, but got a second chance in the Jerez finale, where he became Indonesia’s first race-winner at world championship level.

Galang Hendra Pratama

“First of all, I’d like to say thank you to Yamaha Indonesia, Yamaha Motor Europe and also all my sponsors for giving me another chance to compete in the 2021 WorldSSP season. I’m very happy to be with Ten Kate Racing Yamaha, they have a lot of great experience in this class, I feel good about our prospects. In the 2020 season I learned a lot about how to ride the Yamaha R6, which is totally different to the 300cc bikes. For next season, I will push and try to fight within the top 10 and will always aim to achieve the maximum in each race.”

Two strong WorldSSP300 seasons with Yamaha’s bLU cRU programme saw him graduate to the bLU cRU Yamaha WorldSSP Team by MS Racing in WorldSSP for 2020. The 21-year-old continued to develop throughout the year, with his season highlight coming at Magny-Cours where he qualified an impressive sixth.

The Ten Kate Yamaha WorldSSP Supported Team and riders will now begin their preparations for the 2021 season, which is set to get underway at Assen, The Netherlands, on 23-25 April.

Kervin Bos – Team Manager

“We are really happy to have a young rider like Galang in our team. Our history has always been to focus on developing youngsters and teaching them the skills they need to reach a higher level. He joins Dominique Aegerter, who’s a fast and experienced rider, so overall it’s a very strong line-up for us. We are looking forward to welcoming them to the Ten Kate Racing team and hopefully together we can achieve good results. It’s also great for us to have a strong relationship with Yamaha again and that they will provide support for our 2021 campaign. A big thanks to our partners, especially Yamaha Motor Europe and Yamaha Indonesia, we’re excited to get the new season underway.”

---

2021 WorldSBK provisional calendar

Source: MCNews.com.au