The World Superbike Championship has issued a provisional entry list for the 2021 season, with 24 riders representing 16 teams and five different manufacturers.

The factory Kawasaki team will carry an unchanged line-up this year, with six-time champion Jonathan Rea partnering Alex Lowes for the second consecutive season after the latter’s switch from Yamaha in 2020.

Kawasaki customer Pedercini Racing will expand to two bikes, with Loris Cresson staying on after his one-off appearance with the team in 2020, and joining ex-Barni Ducati rider Samuele Cavalieri.

Puccetti Kawasaki will promote 2017 World Supersport champion Lucas Mahias to replace the outgoing Xavi Fores, while Isaac Vinales will ride the final  ZX-10RR on the grid for Orelac Racing.

The Ducati’s line-up has witnessed a few changes over the winter, with Michael Ruben Rinaldi promoted to the factory squad alongside Scott Redding and Chaz Davies going the other way and joining the Go Eleven customer team.

Tito Rabat has joined the Ducati fold after losing his Avintia MotoGP ride, and will compete for the Barni squad. The Motocorsa Racing team will field Axel Bassani, the youngest rider in the field at the age of 21.

Over at Yamaha, Toprak Razgatlioglu will lead the works outfit and will be joined by reigning WSSP champion Andrea Locatelli. 

Garrett Gerloff has retained his GRT seat following a strong rookie season that saw Yamaha call him to take part in Friday practice for the Valencia MotoGP race while Valentino Rossi waited for his COVID test results. Gerloff will share the GRT garage with one-time grand prix starter Kohta Nozane. 

The Ten Kate team was crucially absent from the entry list, months after its 2020 rider Loris Baz cast doubt about the future of the team in the series. Ten Kate has been effectively replaced by a new Yamaha satellite team in the form of Gil Motor Sport, which will compete with Christopher Ponsson – the son of team owner Jean-Christophe Ponsson.

Both Alvaro Bautista and Leon Haslam will continue to ride for Honda following the Japanese manufacturer’s return to form last year. There will be two additional CBR1000RR-Rs on the grid run by MIE Racing, but the team is yet to reveal its line-up for 2021.

Finally, BMW will enjoy an increased presence in WSBK following the news that it has added two customer teams to its roster. Eugene Laverty and Jonas Folger, both with past MotoGP experience, will pilot the two satellite bikes run by RC Squadra Corse and MGM Racing respectively.

BMW’s factory team has also undergone a major change, with ex-Yamaha star Michael van der Mark joining the fledgling marque to partner 2013 champion Tom Sykes. 

2021 World Superbike entry list:

Source: Read Full Article