Sykes Presented with his 2013 Championship Winning Ninja
2013 WorldSBK Champion receives his title-winning machine as a gift after breaking records at Donington
On a weekend when Tom Sykes dominated the UK round of the WorldSBK Championship, his celebrations were given an extra boost with the surprise presentation of his actual 2013 Championship winning machine. Sykes won both races at Donington Park in 2016, making a new record on Saturday that he subsequently beat on Sunday – the Yorkshireman has now won the last 8 races in a row at the British track, which is the most on one circuit for any rider in history.
In 2013 when Sykes took the title, the Kawasaki rider took 18 podium places, including nine race wins and eight Superpoles, amassing an unassailable 447 points on a machine that could trace its roots back to 2011. Developed into a Championship winning bike, the final part of the jigsaw was the formidable partnership between Sykes and his Crew Chief, Marcel Duinker. Together the duo not only created the platform for success but laid the foundations for the 2016 Ninja, which leads the title fight this season so far with Jonathan Rea and Tom Sykes in P1 and P2 respectively.
Previously on display at various shows and events across Europe and then in secure storage at the KRT workshops in Barcelona, the UK round of WorldSBK was seen as the most fitting location for the presentation, as Biel Roda of KRT explained:
“On behalf of KHI, KRT and the many technical sponsors who were part of creating this historic machine we were delighted to pass this title winner over to Tom in recognition of not just his amazing 2013 Championship season but also his ongoing commitment and success on Kawasaki Ninja machinery.”
For Sykes, the surprise came just after the podium celebrations of his back to back wins over a stunning weekend at Donington Park.
“What a fantastic surprise!” said Sykes. “This really is the icing on the cake of an amazing weekend. There has been a lot of hard work put into this bike by countless people and companies. I feel honoured to now be trusted to look after her. I am not sure if my wife Amie will allow me to keep the bike in the house but let’s see shall we!”
Sykes and teammate Rea now test at the Circuito de Jerez in Andalucia before jetting east to Italy for Round 8 in June, to be held at Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli.
