2025 Portimão WorldSBK January Test Day 2 Times: Rain Disrupts Testing

By David Emmett |

The weather has not looked kindly on testing for the WorldSBK series so far in 2025. After a windy but relatively dry day on Tuesday, testing on Wednesday was mostly wet, with only occasional dry spells. Even when the track was dry, the times were 1.6 seconds off Toprak Razgatlioglu's best time.

As a result, nine of the 21 WorldSBK riders who rode on Tuesday decided to sit out the Wednesday session and save their testing days, while Philipp Oettl was the only WorldSSP rider of the six who rode on Tuesday to take to the track on Wednesday.

Paddock Pass Podcast Episode 463: Lin Looks Back - Yamaha's MotoGP Boss On Biaggi, Rossi, Lorenzo, And Burnout

By David Emmett |

In this episode of the Paddock Pass Podcast, David sits down for a very long interview with Yamaha's now former MotoGP boss looking back over his career. Jarvis tells of how he ended up in Europe, how he had all his belongings stolen in the Vatican, how he ended up suffering with burnout, and how he ended up in MotoGP, He also talks about what working with Max Biaggi taught him, how signing Valentino Rossi saved Yamaha's MotoGP project, how he managed Valentino Rossi and Jorge Lorenzo, and the fallout from Sepang 2015. He also tells us how he sees the project he leaves behind to his successor, Paolo Pavesio.

Before the interview, Neil, David and Adam discuss the VR46 Ducati launch, David Alonso's shoulder injury, and a very brief update on KTM. Plus news of exciting new opportunities for Patreon supporters! 

2025 Portimão WorldSBK January Test Day 1 Times: Razgatlioglu Back On Top

By David Emmett |

Toprak Razgatlioglu ended the first day of the Portimão WorldSBK test as fastest on his first day back in the saddle of his BMW M1000RR. Despite an injured right index finger, which he hurt in a training crash and which forced him to wear a special glove, the reigning world champion mastered rather tricky conditions, with a lot of wind and a track that was still damp in patches, to just nip ahead of Bimota's Axel Bassani. 

Jerez WorldSBK Test Round Up: Lessons Learned Despite The Rain

By Steve English |

In four weeks time the lights will go out at Phillip Island and the 2025 WorldSBK season will start. The campaign is already underway, as WorldSBK is in the middle of the Iberian Winter Test season. Two days at Jerez followed by two days at Portimao are ideal for getting ready for the new season. Four days of running will be complimented by two days of testing in Australia before the first race of the season.

It’s hard to find a better way to prepare for the year. The south of Spain offers the promise of good weather and the Algarve almost guarantees it. These winter sun destinations are popular tourist traps at the time of year. What could go wrong?

Quite a bit it seems. Two days of rain-interrupted testing saw the value of the Jerez days questioned by teams. WorldSBK regulations limit teams to just ten days of testing throughout the season for their race riders. Was it better to get track time now to be ready for Australia or to save the days for later in the year? The majority of teams opted to sit it out. The expense of travelling to Jerez was balanced by the value of running.

Alpine To Become New 'Main Partner' For Prima Pramac Yamaha MotoGP Team

By David Emmett |

French sports car maker Alpine is to join with the Prima Pramac Yamaha MotoGP team to become 'main sponsor'. Though details of the exact role Alpine will play remain vague, the press release issued by Prima Pramac suggest that Alpine will be working with Pramac to improve performance. Given Pramac is embarking on a new partnership with Yamaha in 2025, that could be an important link up.

Bagnaia vs Marquez: Can Ducati Make Their Dream Team Work?

By David Emmett |

In the second half of the Ducati Lenovo MotoGP team presentation, the host, Barbara Pedrotti, asked Ducati test rider Michele Pirro how he would sum up the Bologna factory's 2025 MotoGP project in a single word. Pirro chose the phrase "Dream Team", which prompted Pedrotti to give him a pass for ignoring the set criteria as, she said, he had said the phrase quickly enough for it to be a single word.

In the context of MotoGP in 2025, the pairing of Pecco Bagnaia and Marc Márquez certainly qualifies as a dream team. The rider who finally brought the riders championship back to Ducati after 15 years, then followed it up with another and came close to making it three in a row, paired with the greatest rider of his generation, and possibly of all time. As team manager Davide Tardozzi pointed out, they have 11 titles between them.

KTM's €2.4 Billion Debts 'Largest Bankruptcy In Upper Austria', 23 Investors Found

By David Emmett |

The hearing to present the current status of the insolvency proceedings around KTM and its subsidiaries revealed that the companies have nearly €2.4 billion of collective debt. But that Pierer Mobility is in talks with 23 investors to save the company. The hearing established that there are grounds to believe that KTM will be saved as a going concern, and will be able to repay the statutory minimum 30% of debts owed to creditors within the 2 year time period required by Austrian law.

But the scale of KTM's financial problems are huge. "The insolvency proceedings of the KTM group is the largest bankruptcy ever filed in Upper Austria," according to Petra Wögerbauer of KSV1870, the credit protection agency managing creditors' claims. Upper Austria is the federal state of Austria where KTM's Mattighofen headquarters are located.

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