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The Rimini-based factory team returns with their ascendant rider duo of Axel Bassani (bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team) and teammate Alex Lowes! Now with the 2026 MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship season opener just weeks away, Bimota have unveiled their new livery, and given a glimpse into their expectations for the manufacturer’s sophomore season after a hiatus from WorldSBK competition of more than a decade.

READY TO ROCK AND ROLL:” We know, as always, the challenge ahead of us but we are ready”

Lowes has continued to show, throughout 2026’s albeit-abridged preseason tests, the same impressive speed he enjoyed in the second half of 2025. He earned the manufacturer’s four podiums in their return season, including a hat-trick of podiums at Magny-Cours. These results propelled him to a P6 finish on the season. One issue that Bimota engineers have been focusing on is the bike’s straight-line speed. Provided that the team can find a step there, the bike has looked responsive and agile in corners with Lowes at the helm. This season, the manufacturer looks to be on-pace for more rostrum results, if not their first race win since their return.

On his return in 2026, Lowes said: “Normally, the winter is very short and busy for us. We use the time to engage as a full team with our sponsors and partners and reveal our new colours for 2026. We have a year’s worth of data now with this new Bimota project, along with some improvements over the offseason, so we can't wait to get to Phillip Island and start racing. We know, as always, the challenge ahead of us, but we are ready. It's time to have fun and see what we can achieve.”

PUSHING FOR THE PODIUM: “There is no real rest period in WorldSBK and to be honest, that’s what I prefer as I fuel my ambition to podium on the KB998 Rimini”

Riding alongside Lowes, Bassani hasn’t shown quite the same pace yet atop his Bimota KB998 Rimini as Lowes has, however, the 26-year-old Italian has followed the same upward trajectory as his older teammate. ‘El Bocia’ finished four places behind Lowes for P10 in the Riders’ Championship in 2025. Helping him do so will be his new crew chief, Uri Pallares, who was part of Jonathan Rea's legendary run as a mechanic before reuniting with Rea last season as his crew chief at Pata Maxus Yamaha. In particular, if Bassani can improve his Tissot Superpole results, it would greatly help him manage his races rather than having to push hard to make up positions.

On his feelings ahead of the 2026 season, Bassani said: “There is no real rest period in WorldSBK and to be honest, that is what I prefer as I fuel my ambition to podium on the KB998 Rimini. As an Italian, I see it as my duty to give my best to the Bimota racing project. BbKRT are making a super strong effort building up to our first race. It’s going to be an epic season, so please join us for the ride.”

MAKING IT COUNT: The number one target in 2026 is to maximise the resources Bimota and Kawasaki gave us

Team Manager Guim Roda oversaw the manufacturer’s first season back in WorldSBK, a campaign which, in many ways, overperformed the Italian manufacturer’s expectations. While the team talked about their first season as an effort to collect data, improve their platform, and grow as a team, their four podiums tied them with Yamaha for the third-most podiums among the six manufacturers.

On his goals for the upcoming campaign, Roda said: “The number one target in 2026 is to maximise the resources Bimota and Kawasaki gave us. This means we must first make sure everybody is giving 100%. This needs to be done with motivation and a common target for all the staff, partners and sponsors involved. Target number two is to continue with the good feedback we got in 2025 about the market and potential customers interested in Bimota machines and the brand itself. It is fascinating to help create this new branding and introduce new bike to the market that can accomplish the wishes and dreams of many fans around the world.”

Pierluigi Marconi, Chief Operating Officer of Bimota, added: “2025 was the first year of Bimota's return to SBK competition after many years of absence, and it was an exciting one in terms of performance and the fact that the team never had a mechanical breakdown. This was only possible because the three entities of Bimota, Kawasaki, and Provec really managed to work well together. After the Championship was completed, we organised a track test with some journalists, and the test riders were able to appreciate the riding characteristics of the KB998 Rimini in its fully road-going version - and in the race-ready version created by Provec, which is based on the experience gained in the 2025 WorldSBK Championship. We worked hard during the winter, and I am convinced that there will be improvements in several areas, including aerodynamics, engine, and chassis. So, we hope for excellent sporting results, even better than 2025! From a production and sales point of view, I hope that the good image we are creating in the WorldSBK community will continue to help sales growth and market penetration.”

Don’t miss a moment of Bimota’s battle back to the top of the order with the WorldSBK VideoPass!