It was almost two months ago that the arrival of the Dutchman was officially announced Michael van der Mark within the BMW Superbike team, led by another citizen of the Netherlands, Marc Bongers, Director of BMW Motorrad Motorsport. It then appeared jointly that one of the two current pilots, Tom Sykes ou Eugene Laverty, was going to have to leave the German team.
Ultimately it is the Englishman, currently tenth in the provisional general classification with 47 points, who will be retained to the detriment of the Irishman, fourteenth with 16 points. The difference in performance between the two men was so clear that it surprised no one.
Sykes, 35, has been part of the BMW Motorrad WorldSBK team since its creation, with the Briton as team manager Shaun Muir. In the team's debut season in 2019, he achieved one pole position and four podiums with the BMW S 1000 RR. He has since added another pole position at the opening round of the 2020 season at Phillip Island (AUS).
World Superbike champion in 2017 with Kawasaki, the resident of Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, achieved this year's best result of seventh place in Race 2 in Portimão.
“Tom has been part of our WorldSBK team since the very beginning and is an important pillar of this project,” said Marc Bongers, Director of BMW Motorrad Motorsport. “We are happy to be able to continue on the common path in 2021, which we took with the first tests in December 2018.”
“This gives us continuity, which is very important for the successful development of a project. We have already achieved a lot together, and the goal now is to definitively close the gap that separates us from the leaders. »
“Tom’s extensive knowledge of the BMW S 1000 RR and his contribution will play a key role in achieving this. »
The announcement is bad news for Eugene Laverty, who appears to have been dropped from the factory team with less than halfway through his current contract. However, there could be a reprieve for the Irishman if BMW's plan to introduce a satellite team comes to fruition, with WorldSSP's dominating Bardahl team Evan Bros. And as another driver the current dominator of the World Supersport Andrea Locatelli.
Photos © BMW Motorrad Motorsport
