During a very special combined event, Kawasaki has presented both its MXGP and SBK projects via green-tinted live link. The knobby tyres of the KX450 SR machines entrusted to Romain Febrve and Mitchelle Evans were lined up alongside the slicks with which Johnny Rea and Alex Lowes will tackle the tracks in 2023.
Kawasaki continues to believe: a reinvigorated Ninja for Rea and Lowes
Trusting in the positive results seen during testing at Jerez and Portimao, the Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK leaves for the Australia-Indonesia double-header with the intention of winning. This might sound obvious, but if we look at the way the 2021 and 2022 seasons concluded, it's definitely not a given.
Because two years ago the Constructor’s title went to Yamaha, and last year to Ducati. And that’s not all, because Toprak Razgatlioglu’s M1 topped the rider’s classification in 2021, just as Alvaro Bautista did last season with the Panigale V4 R. The heightened revs now available to the ZX-10RR four-cylinder will help numbers 65 and 22, particularly in acceleration and when overtaking.
So it’s only understandable that the very strong Provec team, based in Barcelona, is keen to get back to the top of the production-derived standings, a fact that manager Guim Roda confirms: "We’ve worked hard to iron out a few details, improving the bike and the organization of the team in an attempt to win the title once more. But even more important than this is that the fans enjoy watching the races, and we hope that there’s a green bike leading the way. Johnny and Alex have recharged their batteries and are ready, so we’ll see how we’ve done in preparing for this new season when we get to Australia and round one”.