WorldSBK riders reflect on final round and season 2022

2022 FIM Superbike World Championship
Round 12 – Phillip Island

Alvaro Bautista
2022 WorldSBK Champion

“What can I say: I am really happy to have ended the season like this, giving great satisfaction to the whole Aruba.it Racing – Ducati team. I think the Superpole Race was one of the best victories for me in World Superbike. On the grid, I spoke with Giulio (Nava) and I asked to put the slick on. I had confidence even though after the warm-up lap I had some doubts. I’m too old for these things, I have a wonderful family, maybe next time I’ll think twice. Joking aside, it was a wonderful Sunday. Now we go home but the celebrations are not over. What a season!”

Toprak Razgatlıoğlu
P2 in 2022 WorldSBK Championship

“We tried every session to find good grip and good set-up, and also last race was very strange because I feel after ten laps big drop in rear tyre – also I see Alex, he is also pushing a lot and after two laps I see his rear spinning, so I think to myself, last two laps I will pass him. But then we see the red flag – but, I am very happy for him, he needs the bonus because he has two babies! He was very strong this weekend and so we finish the last race in fourth position but second in the championship.

“In the Superpole Race, Alvaro made a good gamble but he is already World Champion so he can take the risk! We were still fighting for second in the championship, so we put the same tyre as Johnny and just we are fighting with Johnny. I saw at the start of the race that everywhere was dry, so I thought Alvaro would win. Congratulations to him again for the championship and also Jonathan, because this year we are fighting together every race – it was also a very good season for fans, everyone is watching the unbelievable races every weekend. I am very happy for this because I am part of it and everyone enjoys my style! Now it is very nice to share with the fans and do many stoppies!

“Three wins in Donington and Mandalika was incredible for me, also a very big thanks to my team and to Yamaha – we are very strong and we will see next year if we can win the championship again.”

Jonathan Rea
P3 in 2022 WorldSBK Championship

“After race two there is a mixture of disappointment and happiness to finish the year this way because I felt in that race that my bike set-up was much better. We had more stability, more traction, side grip and acceleration off the corner. But in sector four I just lost too much. It was everything I could do to be there again at Turn Four, by taking too much risk and using up some tyre. Even doing that the tyre wasn’t dropping, so kudos to Pirelli. I think bringing these harder construction tyres for Phillip Island is the way forward. The race might be a little slower, but to stay in the 1’31 flat lap times, right to the end, was really very good.

“I think we have to be really satisfied with our effort this season. Of course, I made a few mistakes along the way but also I think the final result are a highlight of where we are. We need to improve, but in saying that I think we were more or less 25 points away from Toprak Razgatlioglu at the end of the season – the guy who won the championship last year. This year there was a new weapon to fight at the front so we need to maximise all we can. The team has been fantastic, and in the tough moments we have shown how strong a team we are.”

Michael Rinaldi
P4 in 2022 WorldSBK Championship

“I am happy to have finished the season in fourth position even though the last two races were quite difficult. In the end, though, what counts is the fact that we improved our ranking from the previous season. This is my best result in Superbike even though I must admit that expectations were higher. The top three, however, did something exceptional and for this reason, I will work hard in the winter to be ready for the start of next season”.

Andrea Locatelli
P5 in 2022 WorldSBK Championship

“We finished the season in a really good way, this is very important for testing over the winter and to restart the 2023 season. I am really happy about the last two rounds, but I am a little bit disappointed about a couple of races where we lost a lot of points, so maybe we can fight for fourth position in the championship but we finished a difficult season in fifth place.

“We need to be happy but we need to look forward to prepare for next season, we will see what we can do to come back stronger. Here in Phillip Island, it is a track I know well but it is not easy to ride, especially as my first time here with this bike. The wind was really strong and the conditions on track changed every 30 minutes, so it was really difficult but I think this weekend I learned a lot which is important for the future.

“It’s just my second season, so I need to continue to work, to believe in myself and I think we can improve and close the gap – like in Mandalika we were really close. Here was a little more difficult but we will look to next season, we will be fighting again with my team and this fantastic R1!”

Alex Lowes
P6 in 2022 WorldSBK Championship

“At this track this bike is quite stable and that helps. I have always gone well here. I think without the red flag I could have still fought for third position anyway in the final race. When I knew I could not catch Jonathan and Alvaro I dropped my lap time maybe half a second, trying to look after my tyres on the left side. I knew for sure that I was going to get ‘Topraked’ at the end of the race! When I passed him it looked like he was struggling more than me; his bike was sliding and was a bit unstable. I was sure it was going to be a last lap battle. I was looking forward to it because I have not had a good battle with him this year. It is just good to be up there competing with those guys in the races, in all the track and weather conditions. A strong end to the season for me.”

Scott Redding
P8 in 2022 WorldSBK Championship

“Today was a bit different from the previous days, the weather was again interesting. In the Superpole Race, I gambled on coming in on the warm-up lap and switched to the intermediates which was not bad idea but meant I needed to work my way back through the field. As I started from the pit lane, I lost a lot of time so was probably not the best option, but it was good enough to claim sixth which gave me a second row start for race two. In the second race it was again raining slightly, but we all started with slicks. I got a very good start and was battling at the front for the first five laps but then I had a few tyre issues and managed to take sixth. The race was overshadowed by Eugene’s accident, and I wish him all the best for a speedy recovery!”

Xavi Vierge
P10 in 2022 WorldSBK Championship

“It was another very difficult day due to the weather conditions, but I think we made the right decision to go with an intermediate rear in the Superpole race as it meant we gained a grid position for Race 2. Unfortunately, after making a very good start to Race 2, I was hit by another rider and crashed on the very first lap. I jumped back on the bike and pitted because there was a lot of mud, and I couldn’t be sure the handlebar and everything was OK. I then re-joined the race because, after such a tough weekend, it was important to assess my feeling on the bike after making a setup change. Somewhat regrettably, I have to say I felt good on the bike and that we had a good potential. We were able to lap faster than we had all weekend, and so that was the only positive to come out of this race. Again, I want to thank my team, HRC and everyone involved for working so hard all season long. We’ve not yet achieved the results we want and that I believe we deserve, but we’ve learned a lot and gained so much experience and will soon be back on track as we begin our preparations for next season.”

Garrett Gerloff
P11 in 2022 WorldSBK Championship

“This day has come so quickly, looking back I can’t believe my time with this team is already over. I can’t thank Yamaha enough for the opportunity to come to Europe, we enjoyed some amazing moments, and the GYTR GRT Yamaha team has been incredible to be a part of for the last three seasons. We had some ups and downs, but we were always together. You don’t have that kind of relationship everywhere and I can’t thank them enough for the support. It wasn’t the way I wanted to end the season, I’m somewhat satisfied with the Superpole Race but in Race 2 unfortunately I made contact and wasn’t able to make the second corner. It’s disappointing to end this chapter like this, but I can only look forwards. All the best to the team and Yamaha for the coming years, we’ll see each other on track!”

Loris Baz
P12 in 2022 WorldSBK Championship

“That is not the party we had wanted for Eugene’s last race, but the most important thing is that he is kind of okay. I just hope that he will be back on his feet soon. For me, this Sunday was no better than the rest of the weekend. I was very disappointed after the Superpole Race. The tyre was gone by all the wear. I was in the top nine that determine the grid for race two until three corners from the end but then my front tyre was completely gone. It meant I had to start again from 18th on the grid in race two. That wasn’t easy, but I managed to come back through into the top ten. I had good pace, not enough for seventh or eighth, but it could easily have been ninth. I just lost too much time battling with Michael but at least had fun battling in this last race. It is just so sad as we had planned something for Eugene. I had 50 Dollars in my boot to stop after the chequered flag to drink a beer with Eugene somewhere at the track, so we really have to make this happen next year when we are here. I will send him to somewhere at the track with the scooter and we have a beer. I am just thinking of Eugene now and the race is not important. I just want to thank the team for all their efforts, and we will come back stronger next year.”

Michael van der Mark
P15 in 2022 WorldSBK Championship

“This Sunday was not ideal. In warm-up this morning, I felt okay but we had a technical issue, so I lost a lot of track time. Then before the Superpole Race, it started to rain really hard. We were on the rain tyres, and I knew the track was drying but I did not expect it to dry that quick. From the first lap I knew it was the wrong decision so changed to slicks and did what I could. In race two, I had an okay start but was in the wrong group. I felt that I could go faster if I could just get past all the other guys. I had some nice battles but towards the end I struggled more and more from the edge of the tyre and couldn’t improve. Unfortunately, Eugene then had the accident. I hope he gets well very soon. Overall, it was a season to forget but we will put it behind us and look forward to the start of the new season.”

Kohta Nozane
P20 in 2022 WorldSBK Championship

“It wasn’t easy, I tried to push 100 percent every lap. Unfortunately, I collided with another rider in the earlier stages of the feature race and lost positions, then my pace was consistent, but I couldn’t make it in time for points. That would’ve been a good way to say farewell, but it is what it is. I would like to say a massive thank to Yamaha the GYTR GRT Yamaha team for the two years we spent together, I wish them all the best for next year, they deserve it.”

Tetsuta Nagashima
P21 in 2022 WorldSBK Championship

“It was a fun but tough day. The Superpole race was a bit disappointing because, having I never tried the intermediate tyres, we opted for the wet spec front and rear and after two or three laps the tyres were already cooked. That’s the law of racing! It was a learning experience anyway. Race 2 was not so bad; I was happy enough with my pace but not with my start. I need some more racing practice in that respect, having lost some of that sensitivity. As I’ve said though, our pace was good and my feeling on the bike a bit better than yesterday. I’m still curious as to what we might have been able to do with a bit more time and more stable weather. In FP3 for example I crashed while following Jonathan because I hadn’t yet understood the limit of the Pirelli tyres – I have more to learn that’s for sure. Anyway, overall, this weekend has been a very enjoyable experience and I want to thank Honda and the team for this opportunity. I hope that, with the work done and data I’ve collected, they can keep improving. I look forward to seeing the team do well next year.”

Final 2022 WorldSBK Championship Points