After the Grand Prix Commission abolished penalty points at their meeting at Qatar, it was inevitable that they would meet the same fate in World Superbikes.
At the latest meeting of the Superbike Commission, the rule-making body for the WorldSBK series, the penalty point system was abolished in the World Superbike Championship, just as it has been in MotoGP.
The reasons given are the same: Race Direction has enough penalties already to deal with any infringements of the rules. The aim is to punish riders immediately, at the same event, rather than collect up penalties over multiple rounds, and only serve a penalty later.
Beyond that, the Superbike Commission adopted a number of minor tweaks to the rules. Electric bicycles were banned for track familiarization, adding to the ban on using scooters.
Given that electric bicycles covers a wide range of vehicles, from bikes with moderate pedal assistance to those capable of 80+ km/h, this is understandable. It does mean that riders with leg, foot, or ankle injuries will face greater problems scouting the track.
There were also a host of minor updates to the WorldSSP300 regulations. This should not come as a surprise, given that Aragon was the first outing of the newly created support series. The race itself proved to be highly entertaining, living up to the billing provided beforehand.
Source: WorldSBK
This article was originally published on MotoMatters, and is republished here on Asphalt & Rubber with permission by the author.
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