INTERVIEW
P92
WORLD SUPERBIKE CHAMPION TOM SYKES
"
I THINK WE
WOULD REALLY
BENEFIT IN GOING
BACK TO TWO BIKES
PER RIDER. FIRST
AND FOREMOST, FOR
SAFETY, AND ALSO
TO KEEP THE SHOW
RUNNING.
"
tion. And if someone notices the
way he approaches riding a 240
hp 1000cc full factory bike with
his MotoGP-esque electronics
experience and astounding consistency to put in truly fast laps
everywhere, he may just get the
chance.
If his former British Supersport teammate Cal Crutchlow
is a British bulldog in MotoGP,
- all fight and spirit and making
up for any machine deficiencies
with self-sacrifice and audacious
skill - Sykes is Spencer-esque in
his desire to hit the front and go
faster than anybody. An utterly
ruthless competitive streak is hidden by his natural shyness, supposed aversion to elbow banging
and his long view of a race and a
season. And a career?
His assets worked for him in
2013 and have now worked for
Kawasaki. As the fourth British
rider to become World Champion (the 15th rider to take at least
one Superbike crown) his talents
have worked better, for him than
other top British Superbike talents like Jonathan Rea, Leon
Haslam, Leon Camier, Eugene
Laverty, Chaz Davies and the
one-year Superbike typhoon that
was Crutchlow. Crutchlow and
Davies were World Supersport
champs, but not so far in World
Superbike.
Riders who become their generation's king of Superpole seldom (he is now fourth best of
all time) make the most effective
racers. But in scoring nine race
wins in 2013 - despite some injuries, one silly fall in warm-up and
two technical DNFs - Sykes was
champion after scoring points in
26 of 27 races. He is also the joint
(Right) Sykes got
the very most out
of the Kawasaki
ZX-10R and in the
end gave the Green
Team its first World
Superbike title in
20 years.
(Above) Sykes
wrapped up the
title in style at the
final round in Jerez,
Spain.
14th winningest rider in World Superbike history with 14 victories.
He shares that status and win total with – guess who? Spies and
Russell… and another American
World Superbike Champion,
John Kocinski.
Sykes and his Kawasaki still
have room for improvement and
they may need it with Marco Melandri on a factory Aprilia in 2014.
