WorldSBK champions look to 2023 development

While the dust has barely settled on the final race of 2022, WorldSBK development continues in earnest for the fast approaching 2023 action.

Aruba.it Ducati’s Alvaro Bautista may have clinched the title with a round to spare but the Spaniard, and his Italian squad are not resting on their laurels. Bautista should have a revamped V4R to race as the championship returns to Australia in three month time and while he admitted all he knows about it so far is from a photo, Ducati has confirmed it will be more evolution than revolution for 2023.

“What Ducati told me, the bike is quite similar,” Bautista said on his new year’s steed. “They changed some small details, but nothing crazy.”

He is therefore unsure if any of the new items will be better for racing. “Well, I don’t know because I think they are using more RPM, but we cannot use in the race so at the end, for me it will be the same. We have some ideas for the bike, but I don’t know if they make in the new bike or not. Sincerely, I know nothing about the new bike. I hope to at least not be worse than the bike we have now. I’d be happy if the bike worked at least as good as this one!”

And what of the man who held the title until the Spaniard clinched it in Indonesia? While there will be some new or at least uprated bikes in 2023, Toprak Razgatlioglu does not think he is getting one of them.

“Yamaha not building a new R1, but my team is working,” the 2021 Champion confirmed. “Also, we have many new parts. We will try in the first testing.

“I think next month we have a test. We will try directly the new parts. Okay, not coming new bike, but also I believe in my team because there are now very a lot of new parts. I hope they improve. Also, the engine side we improve a little