To conclude the two days of private testing (see here) on the Motorland Aragon circuit, some riders of the Superbike World Championship (World SBK) expressed themselves on the official website WorldSBK.com, others through press releases, and others not at all.
As a reminder, Toprak Razgatlıoğlu (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) set the fastest time of 1'48.598 on Tuesday, slower than the Superpole achieved by Nicholas Bulega (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) last year in 1'47.840.
The latter, 3rd in the combined ranking of the two days, is above all trying to find something to fight against the Turkish rider for the 2025 title, and in this respect declares himself mixed on the results of this test, even if at the same time he tried with some success the 2026 bike.
“This test was important because we understood some aspects of our setup that I like and others that I don’t. It was important to learn more about both of these aspects. My feeling isn’t perfect, so we need to understand how to improve the weak points of my bike. It was important to better understand the setup before Magny-Cours.”
No comments were made on the 2026 Panigale, which is very different from the 2025 model and already competitive, neither from the Emilian nor from his teammate Alvaro Bautista.
“It was a positive test; it was good to get back on the bike after the long summer break. I immediately felt good on the bike. Aragon is a circuit I've already had success on, so I got used to it easily again. On Monday, I spent the whole day with the 2025 bike; we didn't make many changes, as our goal was to get used to the bike again and get back into the rhythm. The track conditions weren't good in the morning because of the rain, but later in the day, the feeling improved as the track dried. On Tuesday, I rode the new 4 Panigale V2026 R. We tried a lot of things to give our feedback to the engineers and improve the bike. Overall, I think it was a positive test.”
3rd Monday and 2nd Tuesday, Sam Lowes (Marc VDS Racing Team) did not miss its comeback, after almost a whole month without competition.
“It was a very productive test and I’m pleased with my performance on day two as I felt we made progress on used tyres. I was able to be very fast on tyres that had been run close to race distance, which was really positive. We were able to try a few parts that we wouldn’t normally get the chance to test on a race weekend, and that was the same as always. There are positives and negatives, but I feel we made progress with braking and were able to stop the bike better. Aragon is a track I’ve always liked and the layout suits the Ducati well, but it’s nice to go back knowing we’re competitive and strong. It was also nice to be back with my team after a few weeks off and I’m really looking forward to getting back to racing at Magny-Cours next weekend, where I think we can be competitive again.”
Sergio Garcia, potential replacement forIker Lecuona (Honda HRC) was alongside Xavi Verge (Honda HRC), who placed his CBR 1000 RR-R in 5th position thanks to a 1'49.600 achieved on Tuesday morning.
“It’s nice to be back on track after the long summer break. Unfortunately, we lost Monday morning, as the track was half wet, half dry. So we had a busy afternoon, working hard to test everything in our work plan: electronics, brakes, and many other things. The track conditions improved as the day progressed, and the feeling was pretty good. We achieved most of our objectives, finding some positives along the way. We worked with the race tires, which was important, and the pace was pretty good. On the second day, the conditions were sunny until an hour before the end, which allowed us to work on many aspects of the bike and collect a lot of data. I think we found some positives that will help us close the gap to the leaders a little in the next races.”
Just behind, alex lowes (bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team) clocked a time of 1'49.682 on Tuesday morning, having not ridden on Monday. This bodes well for the Briton...
“It was really nice to be back with Team 22, all the other team members, and back on track with Axel. We did the second day of testing, and it was hot. By midday, I think it was 34-35°C in the air and 55°C on the track. We know this circuit could be one of the toughest for us, so it was important to come here to test. I felt pretty good on the bike, so it was nice to get back on track and do some laps before coming back here to race for the first time with the Bimota KB998 Rimini. We tried a few things on the front of the bike, a few different Showa bits, and we made some small improvements. But generally, it was mostly about getting back up to speed and trying the bike for the first time at Aragon. Now we’re ready for the next round at Magny-Cours.” A big thank you to the whole team, who worked very hard.”
Important test for Garrett gerloff (Kawasaki WorldSBK Team) which had had to miss the Sunday races of the final round in Hungary at the end of July, following a back injury sustained on Saturday.
The Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10RR rider had clearly recovered enough to ride at a good pace, and his Kawasaki WorldSBK team had also made new equipment and settings available for its American rider. He learned real lessons from the evaluation of this new equipment and leaves this riding session with a 1'49.928, achieved on the morning of the last day, giving him renewed confidence and determination.
“The test was good. I think it was productive because we had new parts to try. In the end, I think I like everything, so we'll keep using them. It's always nice to go to a test, try something, and see that it works and feels better. I think, overall, it was a productive test. It was also nice to ride again, finally, before the Magny-Cours round. I think we're in a good position to do well.”
Photo credits: WorldSBK.com
