In November 2018, BMW Motorrad announced its new organization for the SBK World Championship at the EICMA show in Milan and its return with an official team (managed by Shaun Muir) for this year's Superbike World Championship. A year later, BMW Motorrad Motorsport has taken stock of this first season and looks towards 2020 with Eugene Laverty, who replaces Markus Reiterberger, and Tom Sykes.
In 2019, BMW finished fourth in the Manufacturers' World Championship, behind Kawasaki, Ducati and Yamaha, and ahead of Honda. The German brand has been on the podium twice with Tom Sykes' good second places at Misano and Donington. The Briton finished eighth in the World Championship.
According to Tom Sykes, who are " Looking ahead to the 2019 season, I think the BMW S 1000 RR has proven its potential very clearly. Considering the fact that the project started quite late, what we achieved this year is quite impressive. »
“This season we were able to collect a lot of data and information which will help us this winter to improve the machine in preparation for the 2020 campaign. I am very happy to continue the adventure within the BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team. »
“Of course now the goal is to win races and I believe that with a little more time, and the development of the bike, we will be able to do that. I can't wait to start the season. »
According to Eugene Laverty, who are " I am very grateful for this opportunity that BMW is giving me for 2020 and for the trust placed in me. My goal is to bring back victories and I know that the bike is capable of it because we have already seen the RR on the podium several times. I hope it will be the same with me in 2020.”
For the team director, Shaun Muir, “The season was pretty crazy, the relationship between BMW Motorrad Motorsport and SMR started quite late, so the challenge looked difficult for a first year. But now we can use the good things done this season as a basis for next year. »
“I am all the more satisfied that we were able to develop the BMW S 1000 RR at our own pace and in such a way that we managed to regularly climb into the leading group. We must now progress and raise our level. With Eugene Laverty joining Tom Sykes for 2020, I believe we can once again rise to the challenge and fight for victory. »
To Markus Schramm, Director of BMW Motorrad, “ It was a fantastic debut season for the new BMW S 1000 RR. The BMW Motorrad WorldSBK team and our employees in Munich have done an outstanding job. Our first season in WorldSBK was a learning year for race bike development, but we didn't have to wait long to celebrate our first podium with Tom Sykes. »
“More podiums followed, and we always fought in the top six in this series with a top class field, so we exceeded our own expectations. Our new Superbike also saw success in national championships, such as the IDM, where the RR dominated. All these successes in the different racing categories show that our production version of the RR is the perfect basis for developing racing versions meeting different requirements. »
According to Marc Bongers, director of BMW Motorrad Motorsport, “When we started development, we could not yet predict these good results. We knew, however, that the new RR had a solid foundation. The first winter tests have already shown that the bike has racing potential. During the season we continued to improve the bike. »
“The biggest impact came from two engine updates. In addition, we have made considerable electronic updates and chassis modifications. In general, development is a continuous process to close the gap with our main competitors. We acquired a lot of data during our first season, which allows us to analyze our strengths and weaknesses. This will be our working base for the winter. »
Tom Sykes and Eugene Laverty
Photos © BMW Motorrad Motorsport
