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Another name has been confirmed for the 2022 FIM Supersport World Championship with Lorenzo Baldassarri joining the Evan Bros. WorldSSP Yamaha Team for the 2022 campaign as the team look to re-gain the Riders’ Championship. Baldassarri brings with him eight years of Moto2™ experience as well as title-winning pedigree after claiming the Red Bull MotoGP™ Rookies Cup title in 2011.

Baldassarri got his first taste of WorldSSP machinery in a test at Jerez in November with the MV Agusta squad, but the Italian has now signed for the Evan Bros. WorldSSP Yamaha Team for 2022, where he will race alongside Hungarian Peter Sebestyen. The team won the Riders’ Championships in 2019 and 2020 but were denied a hat-trick in 2021 and will be hoping they can re-gain the title in 2022.

25-year-old Baldassarri brings a wealth of experience to the team having won the 2011 Red Bull MotoGP™ Rookies Cup before making his debut on the world stage in 2013, debuting in the Moto3™ class. He spent one campaign in Moto3™ before moving up to Moto2™ in 2014, a class he would call his home until now.

He took part in 134 races competing in Moto2™ and claimed five wins, the first of which came at Misano in 2016, as well as 12 podiums including his first in 2015 in Australia. In 2018, Baldassarri claimed fifth in the Championship which turned out to be his best Championship result during his time in Moto2™. He started 2019 with three victories in the opening four races but was unable to continue that form as he slipped down to seventh in the standings. Following his time in Moto2™, Baldassarri’s attention will now be focused on WorldSSP as he looks to get back to winning ways.

Explaining the decision to switch to Evan Bros. Yamaha and WorldSSP, Baldassarri said: "I’m looking forward to a new challenge in the World Supersport Championship with the Evan Bros. WorldSSP Yamaha Team and Yamaha. I'm very happy and motivated so I'll be preparing as best I can to be ready for the start of the season, scheduled for April 10th. I would like to thank the people around me who support me and the team, who believe in me and have given me this opportunity. I'm sure I've been included in a very solid project with very professional people. My main goals are to give always my best, adapt to the category as soon as possible and start immediately to fight for positions that count. I can't wait to get on the bike for the tests and I look forward to the start of the season.”

Fabio Evangelista, Team Principal of Evan Bros., added: "I'm very satisfied to have finally completed the lineup of the team. After “saying goodbye” to Steven Odendaal, to whom I'd like to say a special thank you and with whom we fought for the title right up to the penultimate round, and confirming Peter Sebestyen, in whom I have great confidence, we managed to finalise the agreement with Lorenzo. I believe that Lorenzo, together with the whole team, will form a very strong and highly motivated duo. I have only got to know Lorenzo personally over the last few months, and day by day I liked him more and more: I am sure that thanks to the family atmosphere within our team he will be able to show his full potential again. I want to thank Yamaha Motor Europe, who helped us in the success of the operation, and in particular Andrea Dosoli, with whom I have had a fantastic relationship for years.”

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