It was in the air and it's now official. Danilo Petrucci will be a WSBK rider in 2023, on a Barni team Ducati. It is a clearly personal choice for Petrux while the Ducati staff had not given him any opportunity to join the world, preferring to confine him to the project, also very honorable, of MotoAmerica. It now remains for Borgo Panigale to find a successor in this strategic category for its conquest of the American market...
It is therefore official, Danilo Petrucci will contest his first campaign in World Superbike, making his return to the paddock since he has already rubbed shoulders with him in the days of fire on 1000 Superstock and it was already with the Barni Ducati team…
Petrucci made his first appearance in the paddock of World SBK in 2007 when he made his STK600 debut on a Yamaha , remaining in the Championship for three seasons, with six pole positions and three victories. In 2010 he moved to STK1000 for two seasons, first with Team Pedercini on Kawasaki, then with Barni Ducati. Four wins and six leading positions in ten races followed in 2011, before moving to MotoGP.
He spent ten full seasons in MotoGP and won twice, winning the 2019 Italian Grand Prix at Mugello and the 2020 French Grand Prix at Le Mans. He spent most of his career racing for Ducati, he was with the Italian brand between 2015 and 2020 and it was with her that he enjoyed the most success. He scored two wins and 10 podiums on Ducatis, while his final full season was spent with KTM, and that he made a one-off appearance with Suzuki in 2022.
After his last full season in MotoGP, Petrucci returned to production machines with a stint in the United States in MotoAmerica, on the Ducati Panigale V4R. Petrux challenged for the title in his only season in the United States, taking five wins to finish in second place in the Championship behind Jake Gagne. He also ventured into the Dakar Rally with KTM in early 2022, winning a stage of the iconic Rally-Raid event.
Danilo Petrucci: “ I can't wait to measure myself against the competition«
In 2023, Petrucci will stay on the Ducati Panigale V4R and return to Barni Ducati for his first WorldSBK campaign. He declared on this subject: “ I'm really happy to be back at Barni. 2011 was one of my best seasons but more importantly, I couldn't say no to the chance to race in World Superbike with such a competitive bike. This is a Championship I have never competed in, and I can't wait to test myself against the competition. I would like to thank the entire Barni team for giving me this opportunity and everyone who helped make this deal possible »
The team manager Marco Barnabo added : " I am very happy to welcome Danilo back to the team. As always, we will do our best to provide the driver with everything they need to be competitive. His talent is not up for debate. We know there is a lot of work to do as we will be facing riders who have much more experience than him in WorldSBK, but with his motivation and our hard work we know we can succeed. A big thank you to all the sponsors for their support in this new adventure and to Ducati »
