The rumors of Tom Sykes leaving WorldSBK for the British Superbike paddock have come true, as the former World Champion has signed up with the Paul Bird Motorsports crew for the 2022 season.
Sykes will lineup alongside Josh Brookes, and ride the PBM Ducati Panigale V4 R in the British domestic series, which is sure to make him a BSB Superbike favorite, as PBM hunts for its 9th BSB title.
Last weekend I attended my first race meeting since 2019, shooting photography at the final round of the 2021 British Superbike Championship, at the iconic Brands Hatch circuit.
Interestingly enough, British Superbikes at Brands Hatch in 2008 was the first event I attended with a media pass outside of the Isle of Man.
That particularly weekend didn’t go very well after heavy overnight snow on Saturday brought about the cancellation of racing. The organizers did manage to reschedule the race weekend later in the year, which I attended but I haven’t been back to Brands Hatch since.
When the Isle of Man government started to relax the islands COVID border restriction this year, I decided I was going to try and make it to a round of the British Superbike Championship.
Plans to attend a couple of early rounds didn’t come-off for various reason, so I decided to go to Brands Hatch for the culmination of the BSB Showdown.
Two months ago, we showed you the Honda CBR1000RR-R SP in its British Superbike spec, as Honda Motor UK was gearing up for the 2020 season (which we should point out, starts this coming weekend).
Now, the squad has begun a YouTube series about how the new liter bike was readied for the 2020 BSB Championship, and so far it is actually a pretty interesting process to watch.
With racing getting started around the world in the coming weeks, we see that the Honda CBR1000RR-R Fireblade SP (officially the longest name in the superbike category) is ready for British Superbike duty, with Honda Racing unveiling the bike’s livery today.
With black fairings, and notably few sponsors on the machine’s fairings, this CBR1000RR-R might be a bit of a statement about the status of the world’s economy, and the role that motorcycle racing plays within it, but we appreciate the clean look nonetheless.
Got big plans for the coming weekend? Of course you don’t, you’re probably stuck inside like the rest of us. But, we can help with that and ease your motorcycle cravings at the same time.
On Saturday, May 2nd at 8am PDT / 5pm CEST, Asphalt & Rubber will be sitting down with former WorldSBK champion and current MotoGP test rider Sylvain Guintoli, for a live chat on YouTube.
We will be talking a bit about Sylvain’s racing career, as well as his new efforts on YouTube, which have seen him making great videos that provide motorcycle riding advice to the masses.
German suspension brand Bilstein (rhymes with Frankenstein, for those debating the pronunciation) is about to get into the motorcycle business.
One of the more historic brands in automotive suspension, Bilstein is known best for its products in the four-wheeled realm, and in most current history for its off-road offerings in that space.
But now, Bilstein is setting its eyes on the two-wheeled realm, and for the past five years has been developing its first crop of motorcycle suspension pieces. As such, Bilstein is poised to debut its first wave of motorcycle suspension pieces later this year.
It had been known unofficially for weeks, but today, the Aruba.it Ducati team announced that they have signed Scott Redding to ride for them in WorldSBK for the 2020 season.
Redding has had a very strong season in BSB since losing his ride in MotoGP with Aprilia, and is currently second in the standings behind Be Wiser Ducati teammate Josh Brookes.
There is nothing quite like the Isle of Man TT. It is the most spectacular race on the motorsport calendar. The Senior TT is the Superbowl and Indy 500 combined. It is a national holiday where the race track takes center stage.
It is also one of the most dangerous races in the world. For every rider that swings their leg over their bikes at the TT, they know the risks and they accept them.
But what is it that makes a rider willing to take those risks? The “buzz” is obviously high on the list but another factor for some is a simple basic fact of life; they need to work.
Last year he broke the lap record and claimed the Senior TT, and while Peter Hickman might start this year’s TT as the firm favorite for overall honors, the 32-year-old faces the end of his career unless he was willing to race on the roads.
One of the bikes we are most looking forward to seeing debut this new bike season is the Ducati Panigale V4 R. This weekend, we got part of that hope fulfilled, as the race version of the Panigale V4 R debut at the British Superbike round at Brands Hatch.
On the machine was Ducati MotoGP test rider, Michele Pirro, who undoubtedly has been helping hone the superbike for its true racing debut next season, in the World Superbike Championship.
Peter Hickman and Josh Brookes are two riders who have proved that short circuit riders can still make the switch to the roads.
Twenty years ago the, top British short circuit riders were all racing on the roads. Whether you were an up and coming John McGuinness, or an established star like Michael Rutter, it was expected that you would join the list of short circuit racers that raced on the roads.
The practice was as old as factory contracts, and it was expected that if you wanted to have the best bikes in the British championships, you would race at the North West 200 and the Isle of Man TT.
That practice has slowly faded out, but in recent years the move has been made by some short circuit riders to return to the roads.
Josh Brookes and Peter Hickman have both shown exactly what short circuit riders can do on the roads, and with Hickman having won a series of international races, and Glenn Irwin’s recent North West 200 victory, it’s clear there are still some short circuit riders keen to test their nerves.
Above: Glen Irwin is a man fast on the roads and on the short circuits. He won the feature race at last year’s North West 200 and backed that up with a win in Macau. As I write this, he’s just won a race at the North West 200 on his Ducati.
If MotoGP contracts were handed out based solely on the character of a race track, then Oulton Park in England would be at the top of the list.
The city is set in the idyllic Cheshire countryside, only 30 miles from the Beatles hometown of Liverpool, and 13 miles from the historic city of Chester. The track is fast, techinical, with natural elevation changes and spectacular scenery.
There are few finer places to watch motorcycle racing when the sun is shining than at Oulton Park. The natural banking around the track offers great unobstructed views.
If you’re a keen photographer the circuit offers fantastic opportunities with very few fences getting in the way.