Alex Lowes (left as winner of the last race), Jonathan Rea (both Kawasaki) and a somewhat sceptical-looking Scotty Redding (Aruba.it Ducati) photographed by us after the race in Phillip Island (Australia) on March 1st, 2020. The season opener could hardly have gone better for the fast man from Lincoln.

Some preliminary noises before the WSBK season start in Aragon

We had already pointed out in our usual preview that Chaz Davies is the man who is currently leading the winners’ statistics. Should Jonathan Rea win the first race on Saturday, however, there will be a tie. So there could already be a new record holder in Motorland near Alcaniz on Sunday. At least in case everything goes according to plan at Kawasaki. But we hear and read for ourselves what the reigning six-time world champion said before the start of the season.

Jonathan Rea: „I’m really excited to be racing again because it feels like last season was so long. We have done some excellent tests lately which made me feel good with the bike and it will be so nice to get out on track with everyone else to understand where we are. Aragon is a course that we remember very fondly after last year. We were able to convince on the Motorland weekend as well as in the following Teruel round. The goal is to get off to a strong start this year and try to really get the season going. We’re facing some tough weeks in a row, with two consecutive rounds. But it’s great to go to the races in Aragon now, having just finished testing there. I have a good feeling with the bike. Our new Ninja ZX-10RR is definitely an improvement on the previous year’s model. I am very excited about this and, in fact, I feel ready. “

Jonathan Rea photographed by us after the race in Aragon at the beginning of April 2019 when spectators were still allowed. This time it will be a ghost race again, like last year, but the tension is already increasing for some in the almost immeasurable.

Alex Lowes before the Aragon weekend: „I’m ready to start the races too. The 2021 season seems to be going on for a long time. It was a longer winter break than is normal for WorldSBK. Fortunately, it gave me enough time to really get to know my Ninja ZX-10RR. After all the pre-season tests, I feel as well-prepared as possible. I have a good basic setup and am in control of what happens to the bike. This is a good starting point, and now it’s about doing my best every weekend. A big thank you to Kawasaki and all the KRT staff for the extra effort during these strange times. The motivation is extremely high, and now it’s time to race. “

The benchmark for the 2021 season – the Kawasaki ZX-10RR Ninja by Jonathan Rea and Alex Lowes. With some improvements compared to the previous model, it is not a revolutionary new design, but an evolution. This has the advantage that countless data from previous years can be used for the upcoming races (© Kawasaki Racing Team).

WorldSBK Entry List of Aragon

It will be a very special season in which some riders will even sit on their new bikes for the first time on Friday. Even the 13-time WSBK winner Eugene Laverty had only been on the track once with his new BMW private team, luckily it was almost by chance in Motorland. Except for a few privileged works and private drivers, a considerable part of the field of drivers is climbing into the new season with extremely poor preparation. From a sporting point of view, this is unfortunately a bad joke. But if teams like Puccetti Kawasaki prefer to invest their money in impressive hospitality instead of serious preparation of their drivers, then this is not just due to the pandemic. At least that’s how some gentlemen see it behind closed doors in the paddock.

Who are the favourites?
As one should have learned in MotoGP at the season opener, with the express exception of the majority of journalists, speculations should be handled carefully before the first races. This also applies after the Aragon race, even if it is a first indication of the performance of some teams and drivers. Because after that most will do it anyway, it doesn’t matter. In any case, we are sure that Kawasaki, Ducati and Honda have the best prospects for the podium. For Estoril a week later, Yamaha will definitely be one of them, but in Aragon a top five result for Garrett Gerloff or Toprak Razgatlioglu would probably already be a success. For a first judgment on the BMW drivers, you should probably wait until Estoril, but two of their 4 drivers should at least make it into the top ten. Otherwise, the start for the new M-1000RR would be a flop. No matter how the first round turns out, there are a few more to come, but the tension increases with every hour.

Lucas Mahias (Puccetti Kawasaki) photographed by us in Misano 2019 – the fast Frenchman saw his new Kawasaki for the first time a few days ago. Only with a 2-day test in Misano does he and his team start the new season, his first full year in WorldSBK. Mahias had already achieved a top ten result straight away in Assen in 2016 during a brief guest appearance on a Kawasaki.

WorldSSP 600 Entry List of Aragon

As in WorldSBK, the preparation for some drivers was more of a nightmare than that word would be appropriate for it. We worry at least once a day whether there should be a solution. But we haven’t found them (yet). In any case, drivers like Thomas Gradinger have already stood on the podium before our eyes and will be driving the coming season under simply inhuman conditions. It is not only due to the pandemic that the Austrian will not even be able to compete in a full World Cup if there really are overseas races. But what are these disturbing thoughts for, let’s just be happy that it starts first. Even if with at least one crying eye.

Thomas Gradinger (IKallio Yamaha) photographed by us before the start in April 2019 in Aragon. He then only missed the podium by one place, which he should make up for on the next lap in Assen. He recently went to Italy for a first test, but his new team was unable to start his Yamaha R6 in the first place. That’s why we’re keeping our fingers crossed for him next weekend, he has already proven his speed several times anyway.

>Aragon preview: see separate report on this page.

Unless otherwise stated, this applies to all images (© WorldSBK).