The final day of the WorldSBK test at Jerez was a washout. The track remained wet all day, rendering the day useless for most riders, so the majority packed up and headed to Portimão, where the next test is due to be held on Tuesday and Wednesday next week. Jonathan Rea ended up as fastest in the wet, ahead of Xavi Vierge and Yari Montella.
Times from Day 2, with press releases from the teams below that.
| Pos | No | Rider | Bike | Time | Diff | Prev |
| 1 | 65 | Jonathan Rea | Yamaha YZF R1 | 1:53.058 | ||
| 2 | 97 | Xavi Vierge | Honda CBR1000 RR-R | 1:53.666 | 0.608 | 0.608 |
| 3 | 5 | Yari Montella | Ducati Panigale V4R | 1:53.978 | 0.920 | 0.312 |
| 4 | 47 | Axel Bassani | Bimota KB998 | 1:54.426 | 1.368 | 0.448 |
| 5 | 45 | Scott Redding | Ducati Panigale V4R | 1:54.893 | 1.835 | 0.467 |
| 6 | 55 | Andrea Locatelli | Yamaha YZF R1 | 1:55.429 | 2.371 | 0.536 |
| 7 | 31 | Garrett Gerloff | Kawasaki ZX-10RR | 1:56.893 | 3.835 | 1.464 |
Press releases:
Rea tops rainy Jerez as focus shifts to Portimao’s final pre-season test
Jerez de la Frontera, Spain
Day 2 of the private test at Jerez unfolded under rainy conditions, limiting track activity to only a handful of riders.
Jonathan Rea topped the timesheets with a best lap of 1’53.058s and completed 40 laps during the session as he and his Pata Yamaha team continued their preparations for race form. His teammate, Andrea Locatelli, also ventured out on track, setting a fastest lap of 1’55.429s despite a small crash in the morning.
Xavi Vierge finished second, 0.608s behind Rea, as he continued testing Honda’s updated machinery equipped with new Öhlins suspension. Read more about the switch to Öhlins here.
Ducati rookie Yari Montella impressed with the third-fastest time of the day, gaining valuable experience in wet conditions. Scott Redding, testing his Panigale V4 R in the wet, clocked a best lap of 1’54.893s. The pair were the only Ducati riders on track today, with Alvaro Bautista and Nicolo Bulega opting not to test.
Axel Bassani, adapting to the bimota KB998, posted the fourth-fastest time despite a crash on his 13th lap. He capitalized on the rainy conditions to gain more wet-weather experience on the bike, which has had limited testing in such conditions. His teammate, Alex Lowes, chose to sit out Day 2.
New Kawasaki recruit Garrett Gerloff was the final rider from the permanent grid to test. After a morning crash, Gerloff finished the day in 10th place, with a best lap of 1’56.893s.
NEXT STOP: PORTIMAO
The testing action now shifts to Portimao next week, with the entire WorldSBK grid gathering on Tuesday 28th and Wednesday 29th January for their final preparations ahead of the season opener in Australia.
Jonathan Rea set the fastest time of the day at Jerez on a damp Day 2, with a 1’53.058s lap that remained unbeaten for most of the session.
Xavi Vierge was the only Honda HRC rider on track as teammate Iker Lecuona missed out due to a training injury. He was the second fastest in wet conditions on Thursday.
Yari Montella completed 32 laps on Day 2, finishing third with a best lap of 1’53.978s—less than a second behind Jonathan Rea—while navigating changing conditions.
Axel Bassani is adapting well to Bimota’s new KB998 in the wet conditions, completing 30 laps and setting a fastest lap of 1’54.426s to finish third overall.
GYTR GRT Yamaha Kick Off 2025 Season with Shortened Test in Jerez
The GYTR GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Team returned to action following the winter break with a one-day test at the Circuito de Jerez-Ángel Nieto, Spain, (22nd January) in preparation for the 2025 FIM Superbike World Championship.
Remy Gardner and Dominique Aegerter enjoyed a full, dry day on Spanish soil on Wednesday with the majority of the WorldSBK field joining them on track for the first day of 2025 action.
It was the first time Gardner had been on track since Round 11 of the 2024 season at Estoril last October, and Aegerter’s first time out since the final round at Jerez, so the duo spent the morning getting back up to speed on the R1. In the afternoon, they were able to get underway with Yamaha’s test programme, which included trying a number of new components for the R1.
Gardner completed 85 laps in total, finding a good feeling to cross the line 12th fastest with a time of 1’40.293. On the other side of the garage, Dominique Aegerter lost some time due to a technical issue, but was still able to produce 68 laps in total, sitting 19th on a 1’41.488 at the end of the day.
The team were due to be on track on Thursday 23rd February, but with heavy rainfall throughout the day, the team sat out the second day to save on test days for the remainder of the year. GYTR GRT Yamaha will now travel to Portugal, for one final pre-season test in Europe between 28th-29th January in Portimão.
Remy Gardner (1’40.293)
“Overall it was nice to be back on the bike, and we had a productive test. Unfortunately, we couldn’t test the second day due to rain, missing some valuable track time, but on the first day we tried new things and the feedback was positive. Now let’s stay focused and hope the weather stays clear in Portimão for the next test, I’m looking forward to produce some more laps there.”
Dominique Aegerter (1’41.488)
“It was good to be back on the bike after a long time and to test my body. It wasn’t easy to get used to the Yamaha R1 machine after a long period, but lap by lap I felt stronger and I wish we could have more laps. Unfortunately some technical issues forced us to lose some time, but we were still able to produce some productive laps in Jerez trying the new parts we have here. I hope the weather stays clear in Portimão and to clock many laps to get ready for the first round of the season.”
Gerloff Completes Another Strong Test Session
Garrett Gerloff (Kawasaki WorldSBK Team) took part in a dry day one and a wet day two of test action at the Circuito de Jerez – Angel Nieto between 22-23 January. He ended up fourth fastest against almost all of his 2025 teams and rivals, thanks to his best dry session lap time of 1’39.332.
This was Garrett’s third test on the Ninja ZX-10RR since he signed to be the official Kawasaki entrant in WorldSBK this year.
There were damp patches around the track surface at the start of the first day, but as they dried out the lap times improved for all, despite increasingly high winds. Garrett tried some new front forks at this test, as well as many other items and set-up options. He posted 62 laps on day one.
Rain and a wet track surface on day two brought about a premature end to the team’s testing plans after 11-laps, as Garrett had suffered a highside crash. He sustained a big impact on his right hip – although with no real injury – so the team decided to halt the on-track action as the weather conditions were not set to improve.
Gerloff will next ride the official Ninja ZX-10RR at the intense Autodromo Internacional do Algarve in Portugal, between 28-29 January.
The opening round of the new championship season takes place at the truly iconic Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit in Australia, between 21-23 February. Prior to that, there will be a two day official pre-season test for the Kawasaki WorldSBK Team – and all their rivals – between 17-18 February.
Garrett Gerloff, stated: “Day One was really positive, even though we didn’t have most amazing riding conditions because of how much wind there was. We did complete some good testing and we were able to set some strong lap times. I think it is positive to leave Jerez with that. The weather on day two wasn’t great, but we did a few laps in the rain. I didn’t have a lot of time to ride as I had a pretty big highside crash in the last corner, taking a big impact on my right hip. So, we decided it was better to wait until Portimao and do more testing there. I’m looking forward to it.”
Manuel Puccetti, Team Principal, stated: “It was an extremely positive test. On the first day Gerloff set the fourth fastest time overall and always maintained a very high pace. Today, unfortunately, the rain changed our plans and the team and rider worked on the wet set-up, collecting useful data anyway. We started our test program in a positive way to approach the first round at Phillip Island. We will continue testing in a few days at Portimao.”
Jerez Test Concludes For BbKRT Riders
The Circuito de Jerez – Angel Nieto hosted the first main WorldSBK test session of the 2025 calendar year between 22-23 January. The regular bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team riders Axel Bassani and Alex Lowes ending up overall fifth and 10th fastest, respectively.
The new bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team project returned to Jerez for on-track testing for the third time since the WorldSBK-spec KB998 Rimini machine first appeared. At this particular test the team, in general, was looking to get closer to a final base set-up for the new four-cylinder machine before the WorldSBK season starts for real in one month’s time.
Alex and his crew mostly worked on his new ergonomic package in dry conditions while Axel’s side of the BbKRT garage concentrated on improving the bike set-up in first dry and then wet track conditions. High winds were present over both days of testing at Jerez, which had a great effect on the riders themselves and team decisions on the best use of track time.
Day One went well in terms of providing dry weather conditions, despite a few damp patches lingering for a while after overnight rain. Day two proved to be wet all the way through, which meant that Lowes did not take to the track.
Bassani set some laps in the wet conditions, as did test rider Xavi Fores. Xavi Artigas, Florian Marino and Fores had been on track even before the official riders started out on 22 January, sharing track time on 21 January with several WorldSSP riders.
Another test at Portimao is scheduled for 28-29 January and then there will be the official team launch in Italy on 6 February. There will be one final chance – on Monday 17 and Tuesday 18 February – for the BbKRT riders to test the bike in readiness for the first races of the year at Phillip Island, Australia.
The first round of the season itself will be held at that same Phillip Island circuit, between 21-23 February.
Alex Lowes (BbKRT Rider): “It’s been nice to get back on the bike. I felt better than I expected straight away, even if there were some damp patches still around. I felt quite good on the bike. After two pitlane exits we started to go into test mode, as we had some new parts for the fuel tank and riding position. It took a few pitlane exits to feel comfortable with these. I did get comfortable so we have confirmed the new, tank, seat and riding position. We made two or three good steps. We had some things to do off the bike here too, with new parts arriving, etc. With the windy conditions we decided just to use four hours of testing on day one. Every time we work with the new bike it is important. The runs we did were quite consistent. There is still loads of things to do and but I think it was a good day of testing at Jerez.”
Axel Bassani (BbKRT Rider): “We have had two good days of testing, even if we did only a half day on track each time. We did not do a lot of laps but we took a lot of data, and this is important. It was especially important as day two was the first time I had ridden in wet conditions on the bimota. The first day in the dry was good, although it was difficult because there was a lot of wind. The base of the bike was not bad and the lap time was not so fast, but also not slow. For us, every day is important so that we can understand what we need to do and what we have to improve. On the rear, I do not have the feeling I want yet, so we are working to find improvements in that area. The team now has some data to work with for the next test in Portimao.”
Pere Riba (Crew Chief for Alex Lowes): “The plan was to do one complete day of testing in dry conditions because we are taking care to follow the rules about how many testing days you can have. On day one with Alex we made a half a day on track because it was really, really windy. With the items we wanted to test we had to be clear and take a good understanding of the decisions and directions we should take. We worked with Alex in many small areas and it was very good. We didn’t have to use any soft tyres, we just focused on the work and the plan we wanted. One day before Alex started we used our new test riders Xavi Fores and Xavi Artigas. Florian Marino did a great job during all the development of this new bike, so I want to say thank you to him. It was raining on the final day of this Jerez test so we decided not to do any laps with Alex, but we did some laps with Fores to collect some information. All his comments were very clear. This has been a quite positive test, even if the weather has not been so good, and now we are looking forward to going to Portimao.”
Marcel Duinker (Crew Chief for Axel Bassani): “Our experience with the new bike and Axel is still quite new. This was only the third day with Axel on the new bike. First of all, I must give a lot of credit to Bimota, Kawasaki and the team for all the progress they have made from the previous test at the end of November. All the material we requested was ready for us to test here. We had quite an efficient four hours of testing on day one and today was our first time with the bike in the wet. We gathered very valuable information. The conditions in November at Jerez and the conditions we had at this test were very different. We moved from high grip to lower grip conditions, so of course the bike was behaving differently. This is not a negative; we just learned a lot that we will bring to the next test. The weather was a bit inconsistent but we gathered very valuable information. I am looking forward to Portimao – and in three weeks we will already be on the other side of the planet. Things are moving!”
Rea Tops Wet Day 2 as Mixed Conditions meet Pata Yamaha WorldSBK in 2025 Jerez Winter Test
Jonathan Rea and Andrea Locatelli undertook two days of pre-season testing at Circuito de Jerez, running a full day in dry conditions yesterday before continuing to work in the wet in preparation for the 2025 FIM Superbike World Championship today.
On Day 1, Rea completed 50 laps as the Northern Irishman wasted no time getting back up to speed on the Yamaha R1 WorldSBK despite lingering damp patches in the morning and strong gusts of wind in the afternoon. The six-time WorldSBK champion continued to work in the wet today, completing 40 laps with a fastest time of 1:53.058 in the inclement conditions.
Teammate Locatelli clocked up 70 laps on the 4.423km circuit on Wednesday, including a long run in the afternoon, plus a further 19 laps for a wet “shakedown” on Day 2.
Neither rider completed a qualifying simulation or time attack, focusing together with Yamaha’s engineers on key development items for the new season and set-up configuration across chassis and electronics packages.
The Pata Yamaha WorldSBK Official Team travels directly to the Autódromo Internacional do Algarve (Portimão) for further development testing from Monday, 27 January.
Jonathan Rea – 1:40.368
“It’s been a positive test and it’s nice to be back – yesterday we got off to a really good start and wasted no time in getting up to speed, I felt good on my Yamaha R1 from the first laps and step-by-step we’ve just built on that. Pace was okay, we didn’t complete any time attacks and worked through the development programme. Held up in the garage a couple of times with just some small issues but I was satisfied with the first day! Woke up today and the weather was bad obviously, so we only managed wet laps and I did enjoy riding round familiarising myself more with the R1 in these conditions and honestly, we made some really positive changes! Big thanks to the crew for their efforts, two days of good information and now we more to Portugal in quick succession to keep putting the package together for Australia.”
Andrea Locatelli – 1:40.989
“Even with the wind yesterday, we tried to ride a lot in the dry conditions and focused on completing a long run to re-establish a good feeling with my R1 after the winter. Today we didn’t do a lot of laps, but we tried some things on the bike to be a bit more ready for Portimão next week. It was helpful to do a small shakedown to check how everything is working in the wet, for example electronics and chassis set-up after yesterday and we will see! We have Portimão to work further, complete more distance and prepare for Phillip Island. The changing conditions here in Jerez were strange, a lot of wind – warm yesterday and today, wet. The most important thing is to continue building the feeling with my R1 and then we will have a clearer idea, working well towards our objectives for the 2025 season.
Elf Marc VDS Racing kick off WorldSBK preparations in Jerez
With the countdown to their much anticipated second WorldSBK Championship campaign well and truly underway, Sam Lowes and the Elf Marc VDS Racing Team have been on track for the first time in 2025 at the Circuito de Jerez-Angel Nieto.
Joining the majority of a star-studded 2025 WorldSBK line-up at a two-day test session, Lowes was eager to get back to work and up to speed on his Ducati Panigale V4R machine ahead of the opening round in Australia in just over four weeks.
Lowes placed inside the top 10 on day one before rain unfortunately prevented the Briton from working through a planned busy testing schedule on the second day.
The Elf Marc VDS Racing Team now leaves Spain to cross the border into Portugal for another two-day test session at the spectacular Algarve International Circuit next week.
Blustery conditions were a feature of the opening day at the 4.42km Andalucia, with Lowes quickly able to reacquaint himself with his Ducati Panigale V4R following the long winter break.
The 34-year-old completed 56 laps on day one, with a best time of 1.40.207 placing him ninth overall. That pace was only 0.072s behind double WorldSBK Champion Alvaro Bautista riding the official factory Ducati, as the Bologna brand impressively filled six of the top nine places on the timesheets.
With wet track conditions denying the team the opportunity to carry out any productive testing, Lowes opted not to venture out on track on the second day.
Sam Lowes: 9th, 1:40.207, 56 laps
“It’s nice to be back and I felt up to speed quickly”
“It was nice after the winter break to get back on a WorldSBK machine for the first time in a while and feel that performance and just cool to be back with my crew. It’s a shame the conditions were tough because we had a busy schedule, but it was quite windy on the first day. We decided to only do half a day, but I felt up to speed quickly and we were able to try a race setting that we used testing here in Jerez back in November. The 56 laps I managed were more than we thought we’d complete because coming here we knew the forecasts were for some poor weather. So, nobody really got any productive testing in because of the conditions. Hopefully we’ll get some better weather next week in Portimao and we can knuckle down and do some more positive work.”
Bulega fastest on Day 1 of the Jerez test. Bautista finished P8. Rain compromised the second day of testing
The first testing session of the 2025 WorldSBK season was held at the Circuito de Jerez – Angel Nieto (Spain).
Despite the adverse weather forecast, the first day of track action went smoothly, even though the strong wind made the task difficult for the two Aruba.it Racing – Ducati team riders.
Nicolò Bulega completed 77 laps, setting the fastest time (1’38.731) in the time attack with the qualifying tyre and finishing more than four-tenths ahead of Iannone (Ducati).
Intense work for Alvaro Bautista (the only rider to have completed 83 laps), who was particularly affected by the wind, finishing in eighth position (1’40.135) but did not dedicate himself to the time attack.
Due to the light rain that fell first during the night and then throughout the morning, the two Aruba.it Racing – Ducati team riders did not take to the track on Day 2.
Nicolò Bulega (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati #11)
“I’m happy with how things went on this day of testing. It was essential to regain the feeling we had in the November test. I can say that the wind didn’t make things easy, and sometimes, I had to concentrate more on correcting the trajectories than riding the bike. In any case, the first day of 2025 was very positive”.
Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati #19)
“The positive news is that we could do at least one day in dry conditions. We continued the programme we started here at Jerez in November, but I couldn’t feel comfortable on the bike because of the strong wind. It is only the first day, and we must continue on this path”.