News

This week has seen one of, or perhaps, the biggest transfer in MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship history with the news that Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) would move to the Pata Yamaha Prometeon WorldSBK team for 2024 and 2025. It comes after the Ulsterman won six titles and more than 100 races with Kawasaki, but a new challenge awaits next year and, for the first time, Paul Denning and Andrea Dosoli have reacted to the news that the six-time Champion will race for them.

CREATING SHOCKWAVES: Rea moves from Kawasaki to Yamaha

Rea’s career started with Honda in WorldSBK, and his talent was on display immediately as he became a race winner with the Japanese manufacturer before, he switched to Kawasaki for the 2015 season. He won the title in his first season in green and won six on the bounce. He was beaten to the 2021 title by Toprak Razgatlioglu, the rider he will replace at Yamaha, after a season-long fight while Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) stormed to the 2022 title.

At the Pirelli French Round, key figures from Yamaha have reacted to the news for the first time. With Rea racing for Paul Denning’s Pata Yamaha Prometeon WorldSBK squad alongside Andrea Locatelli, the Team Principal was on hand to discuss his thoughts on Rea’s signing as was Yamaha Motor Europe Road Racing Manager Andrea Dosoli, both of whom were delighted with the signing of the 119-time WorldSBK race winner.

DENNING’S THOUGHTS: “It’s a nice story… exciting for us and Yamaha, but also for the Championship”

Discussing the news, Denning said: “First of all, we have to go back to the loss of Toprak which was a big disappointment, and to replace a rider of Toprak’s skill level, you have to start at the very top of the list. Luckily, we didn’t have to work our way down very far and we achieved our first target. We’re delighted to do that; it’s been a real team effort in terms of Yamaha Motor Europe, and everyone involved in the process. It’s a nice story in the end which is of course exciting for us and Yamaha but also for the Championship. We’re lucky that it’s a six-time World Champion who seems to be highly motivated and as passionate about winning another Championship as he’s ever been. 

“I can’t speak for Jonny but the reason for the move is purely to perform better. Hopefully on the technical side, we can give him something that is a step ahead. His target is clearly to win another Championship and this time in blue. He brings a huge rebound from the loss of Toprak into something that we couldn’t even imagine would be this exciting and motivating for the team. Just by him agreeing to join us, it gives everyone the development and operational side a fresh motivation. I don’t see any difficulties in how he can fit in.”

DOSOLI REACTS: “I was impressed by his motivation despite all the results!”

A buoyant Dosoli was thrilled with Rea’s arrival and he added: “It was a big announcement! We’re really happy to welcome Jonathan to the Yamaha family. I was impressed by his motivation despite all the results he has achieved in his career, with six titles and a lot of wins. He kept pushing always. This means a lot to us. I strongly believe that it’s special. His motivation will match our motivation very well and push our project. We are all looking forward to working together with Jonathan.”

“I’M NOT SURPRISED”: Razgatlioglu speaks out on Rea’s move

Rea is taking the seat vacated by Razgatlioglu as the 2021 Champion moves to BMW for 2024. At Magny-Cours, the #54 reacted to the news that his rival would be replacing him at Yamaha. He said: “I’m not surprised. I respect him because he’s deserved everything. I think, for him, it’s a new challenge. I think, for him, it’s a good idea because he’s thinking about changing team. We will see next year. I think everybody’s waiting for next year because I’m changing brand, he’s also changing brand. It’s been a strange silly season for next year! I think it’s good for WorldSBK. I hope he enjoys it.”

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