Stefano Manzi (Pata Yamaha Ten Kate Racing) was crowned the 2025 FIM Supersport World Champion at the Circuito Estoril after claiming a hard-fought victory in Race 2 for the EICMA Estoril Round. The Italian rider has been incredibly consistent throughout the season as he wrapped up the Championship with a round to spare, ahead of his graduation to WorldSBK for the 2026 season.

TAKING THE TITLE: A three-season journey with Yamaha

Manzi got his first taste of WorldSSP in 2021 with a one-off appearance before moving full-time in 2022 on Triumph, taking five podiums and one win. In 2023, he switched to Pata Yamaha Ten Kate Racing, and took the first of his two silver medals, with 17 podiums and four wins. He added 19 podiums and five wins in 2024 as he finished second again, before jumping on the Yamaha R9 as it was introduced for 2025. 18 podiums and 10 wins helped propel Manzi to the Championship title.

Reacting to his title, and winning in the first year of the Yamaha R9, Manzi said: “It feels amazing! It’s difficult to find the words to describe it. After two years in a row of finishing in second place, winning it is amazing. This is a lifetime goal. When you start riding when you’re young, you dream about it. To achieve it is amazing. It’s very special to win on the R9. Normally it’s difficult with a brand new bike in the first year to win the Manufacturers’ and the Riders’ title, so it’s amazing to do it.”

THE KEY MOMENT: Two crashes re-focus Manzi

While consistency was the key to Manzi’s success, he did endure some moments that could’ve cost him the Championship. He finished Race 1 at Most in 26^th place after a crash, while he retired from the lead on home soil at Misano. This forced him to retire from the race. Since those two tricky rounds, Manzi has only been off the podium once – seventh in Race 2 at Donington – and has won six races out of ten since Misano.

Looking back on the key moments of this season, the Italian said: “The key moment, I want to say, was the bad moment. I had two crashes at Most and Misano but that moment was a big wake up to say I was not unbeatable, I needed to work to stay focused to win the title. From that moment, I tired to work on it and not make mistakes. Finally, I can say I achieved it. It’s amazing.”

FIGHTING HARD ALL YEAR ROUND: “Can was a very good rival!”

While having the title wrapped up with a round to spare suggests rivals were hard to come by, the fact is he battled hard with Can Oncu (Yamaha BLU CRU Evan Bros Team) throughout the season for the title. The Turkish star has six wins and 15 podiums to his name as he took the fight to Manzi. Tom Booth-Amos (PTR Triumph Factory Racing), Jaume Masia (Orelac Racing VerdNatura), Valentin Debise (Renzi Corse) and Bo Bendsneyder all won races throughout the year.

Explaining how he felt to win the title after a fierce fight, Manzi said: “It motivated me a lot and it’s also nice to fight for the title and not win easily. You always learn a lot for the future when you fight a lot, like the last two years when I tried to fight for the title. I prefer to win with a fight than to win easily. Can was a very good rival. It was nice to ride with him.”

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