Cycle News

VOL. 50 ISSUE 42 OCTOBER 22, 2013 such as his Dutch crew chief Marcel Duinker, and grew into a potential championship crew that year. After the harsh season alongside Spies, the near rejection by Kawasaki, the horror everyone in the Kawasaki team felt last year after the paralyzing injury suffered by teammate Joan Lascorz, and then missing the title by only half a point…? Many riders and teams would have been ground down by all this, never mind simply being unable to repeat another season at such a high tempo on and off the track. But Kawasaki, the team and Sykes just got on with the business of getting even better, and won the 2013 title. Sykes was also one of the rela- SPANISH FIREWORKS P83 Briefly... es to push on the development of a new range of road bikes. BMW ambassador and proposed World Superbike team owner Troy Corser was at Jerez with his partner Tom Larsen, hoping to put the final details on a deal that will see them run two full Superbikes in 2014 - one for an Aussie rider at least and maybe one for a rider bringing budget. Not one but two BMW customer relations executives were in Jerez discussing possible projects for 2014 with teams who want to use BMW machines in Evo or Superbike in 2014. Their greatest desire is for unification of Superbike rules between World Superbike and domestic championships. continued on next page Superbikes moved around on the curbs and fastest corners compared to the utterly planted and precise MotoGP bikes that Most people do not realize had visited earlier in the year. that World Superbike was on its With the final race of the second visit to Jerez, although World Superbike season in few remember the first because Jerez it was clear this was it was back in 1990. This time an important round for – still around World Superbike was no relatively new – Dorna World rude adolescent wannabe trying Superbike bosses. It was after anything new that came along all in their home territory, it was as it went through an awkward The World Superbike the prestigious season-ender, experimental phase. It was a mature and established championship, Championship returned to Jerez and it was in firm motorcycle country. after a 23-year absence. Nobody expected a massive crowd, heading to its latest tense finale with the but it was a pure blessing that Sykes had title still to be decided in the top class. not mopped up the championship before everybody got What World Superbike found in Andalusia was a great circuit, changed little in all these years since it kicked off, their Spanish phrase books out. The amphitheater sections of the Jerez circuit, particand a track that most teams had tested at in the winter. ularly in the virtual football stadium of the Nieto/Peluqui Many of their ex-Grand Prix riders were making themsection, need tens of thousands to bring them to really selves re-acquainted with a circuit firmly established on visceral life or a lot of championship winning fireworks the MotoGP calendar. but whether it be for millions or minorities, Jerez provides The flowing corners and occasional hairpins are characteristic of Jerez, but it was interesting to see in the a brilliantly planned and executed track, one of the first in the true modern era of racing. early session how much more even the best behaved

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