How do you reward the reigning World Superbike champion and current series leader? For Ducati, it means Alvaro Bautista gets a MotoGP wild card ride in Malaysia, following two recent tests at Misano on the current Ducati Desmosedici GP bike.
The 38-year-old Spaniard spent eight years in the MotoGP championship, taking three podiums from 158 starts with four different manufacturers (factory Suzuki, Gresini Honda and Aprilia, and then Aspar Ducati). He then switched to World Superbikes for 2019.
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Ducati 2023 MotoGP and WorldSBK Teams Launched
After winning both championships in 2022, the Ducati 2023 MotoGP and WorldSBK teams launched at a joint event in the Alps this week. It was a chance to see the unveiling of the bikes, liveries and riders who will be competing in both series this year.
The Ducati Lenovo Desmosedici GP bikes will be ridden by reigning world champion Francesco Bagnaia, and new team-mate Enea Bastianini, who finished third in 2022 riding for the Gresini Racing team. It’s Bagnaia’s third season riding for the team, and will also mark 20 years since the Italian factory debuted in the premier class in 2003.
Alongside the MotoGP machines, the Aruba.it Racing Ducati team were also unveiled with the Panigale V4 R of Alvaro Bautista wearing the number 1 plate. Baustista is once again partnered by Michael Ruben Rinaldi.
Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati #19)
“We have a new challenge ahead of us. After a fantastic season in which we won with Ducati in both Superbike and MotoGP, 2023 will inevitably be a difficult year. Racing with the number 1, in fact, means that our objective can only be one: to win. We’ll have a lot of pressure but at the same time we’ll have to keep calm, try to work with high concentration but also with serenity. We’ll have a new bike and even if it won’t be extremely different from the 2022 one, the work that we’ll be able to do before the first race is crucial: we have to fix all the details that will allow us to get the best performance.
I’d also like to address a thought to all the Ducatistas: I’m very proud of all our fans who followed us last season, and I hope that with the result we’ve achieved, in 2023 there will be even more of them supporting us at circuits all over the world. I am a Ducatista and I feel lucky to be able to defend the colours of the Aruba.it Racing – Ducati team”.
Michael Rinaldi (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati #21)
“I start this new adventure with great enthusiasm. Together with my team we have always made progress in the last two years, managing to improve our results. As a team we won the three titles last season and this means that the package is very strong. During the winter, we have analyzed the points we have to focus on, in order to improve and to be competitive for the title race. I have worked a lot over the last few weeks and I will continue to do so with great dedication as I want to always be able to express my maximum potential. There will be a lot of new things, also on the bike, so I can’t wait to get started. I want to thank Aruba and Ducati for the opportunity to ride this beautiful Panigale V4 R and be part of such an ambitious team”.
With both Ducati teams fielding the reigning world champions, it’s set to be an interesting season for the Italian motorcycle firm.
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Ducati Extend Alvaro Bautista’s WorldSBK Contract For 2023
It’s not really any surprise given that the Spanish rider currently leads the World Superbike championship by 36 points, but Ducati extend Alvaro Bautista’s WorldSBK contract for 2023. With six race wins and only missing the podium in one race so far, it seems the return to the Italian manufacturer is working well for everyone.
The 37-year-old previously signed for Ducati in 2019, finishing the season as runner up to Jonathan Rea after some inconsistent results and retirements. The 2006 125cc GP World Champion, and former 250cc GP runner-up then spent two years with Honda in WSB, before coming back to once again with the Ducati Panigale V4R.
“I am very happy to be able to continue at least one more year with the Aruba.it Racing – Ducati Team, which represents a family to me. I have always felt good with this team and since I have returned, the feelings have been even more positive than in the 2019 season. When something works so well, we can only keep working, looking ahead. I feel I am still at the top, I feel I can still give a lot. Physically and mentally I think this is the best time of my career. I am also delighted to continue working with Ducati, a very important factory, tech-oriented, always looking for development: to be part of this project, of this team is something incredible on a personal level,” said Bautista.
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Chaz Davies Becomes Rider Coach at Aruba.it Racing Ducati
Having announced his retirement from competition at the end of the 2021 season, it seems like the Welshman will still be a regular in the World Superbike paddock, as Chaz Davies becomes Rider Coach at Aruba.it Racing Ducati for 2022.
The first UK rider to win the Daytona 200, and the World Supersport champion in 2011, Davies rode in WSB for nine years, finishing runner-up in the series on multiple occasions, with a total of 32 wins. He’ll now be tasked with helping Alvaro Bautista and Michael Rinaldi in the Aruba.it Racing Ducati World Superbike squad, and Nicolo Bulega in World Supersport. Bulega is making his debut on the Panigale V2 after racing in Moto3 and Moto2 since 2015.
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