The long spring break of the 2024 WSBK Superbike World Championship season is today punctuated by a two-day test session at the Misano 'Marco Simoncelli' World Circuit on May 30-31. The two KRT drivers, alex lowes et Axel Bassani, are on track on what is a regular site of the World SBK in Italy, in preparation for the next round of the championship which will take place in mid-June.
The final competition for WorldSBK riders took place in Assen, Netherlands, from April 19-21, meaning Lowes and Bassani can't wait to get back on their official Ninja ZX-10RRs.
After the first three rounds of the championship, Lowes has already won two victories and is in fourth place overall. For Alex and his team, the Misano test will be an opportunity to modify the settings in order to maximize their potential for the rest of the year, as well as to carry out some fine-tuning before the fourth round of the championship which will take place at Misano in two weeks.
In his first season as an official KRT rider, following three previous WorldSBK campaigns on a different machine as part of an independent team, Bassani approaches his first national circuit in 2024, ready to gain new momentum as he features at 16th place in the general classification.
Misano, one of the most visited and popular venues in WorldSBK, is often one of the hottest race weekends on the calendar. KRT hopes that the testing will take place in warm weather conditions in order to continue the progress made in this particular area of machine development over full race distances.
Once the imminent tests are completed, the fourth round of the year will take place at the same venue in Misano, from June 14-16. Following Axel's home round, it will be Alex's turn to race at home, with the fifth round of the season taking place at Donington Park, UK, from July 12-14.
alex lowes (Kawasaki Racing team rider): “I'm really looking forward to the Misano test, as I haven't ridden a motorbike for a long time. We've had a good start to the year, but we've also highlighted a few areas we want to improve. We're going to focus on working with electronics and that's probably our main focus. We have some good ideas both from the bike side and how I ride the bike. We will use this test to work on these points and get back into Superbike rhythm. We will work hard until we are in the best possible position for the Misano race in a few weeks. »
Axel Bassani (Kawasaki Racing team rider): “We are arriving in Italy soon and we are back in action on the track. A break of almost two months between races is very long, but we will resume at this test and I am happy that we will resume at Misano, my home track. We have a lot of work to do and we need to take a step forward with my feelings at the front. I think we know what we need to do, but we need to try to understand if it works. We will see after Misano. I want to get back on the bike to get my feelings back. Two weeks after the test we will have the race in Misano, so we have to do a good job. It is important to have fun working with the team and the bike. Then we'll see what happens. »
Guim Roda (KRT team director): “We are now returning to the “real” championship, when track temperatures increase and grip begins to be difficult to manage. All the tasks we have done so far will need to be checked again to see if they put us one step ahead of last season. Axel will really have to handle this test and continue to get the most out of the ZX-10RR. I'm sure he's making incredible progress and will be able to be at the top, and be there more often. Alex has been training hard and is ready to take on the challenge of the rest of the championship during the summer months. We are determined to get 110% out of our machine, without complaints or excuses, and we will strive to give our best. That's the key. We will see how we do, from this Misano test. »
