It doesn’t seem that long ago: a bright-eyed 19-year-old Frenchman dropping into Donington, hopping onto a factory Kawasaki and making his MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship debut. It didn’t take much time for Loris Baz (GULF Althea BMW Racing Team) to make a name for himself in WorldSBK. But that was 2012 – six years after that debut day, the Frenchman makes his Donington return, no longer a rookie but a bold and tough competitor.

Despite turning just 25 this year, Baz has a long history with British racing, taking part in the British Superbike championship in 2009 and 2010, and getting good performances at Donington Park in the European Superstock 1000 Championship and during his previous WorldSBK stint.

His two WorldSBK wins to this day dropped in the UK – albeit at Silverstone – in 2012 and 2013. At Donington, his best results were two second places in 2014, behind Tom Sykes (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK).

Four years later, Baz returns to Donington with high hopes: “I’m looking forward to Donington, I haven’t been there for a long time and really like the track. I was actually very strong last time out and so I have some good memories”.

The Italian Round was a mixed affair for the Frenchman, coming in 11^th and 15^th, a step back following two successive top-10 finishes at Assen. But he’s confident that his machine will fit Donington better: “We’ll need to see how the undulating track suits the bike, perhaps the first section of the track will be easier than Imola. We’ll be working hard to improve the bike and try to reduce its tendency to wheelie. We remain positive and really want to give 100%, we’re ready for the fight”.

Catch Baz’s and GULF Althea’s return to Donington in full, thanks to the WorldSBK VideoPass.