With the New World Supebike season kicking off at the end of February I think we are in for a feast of 2-wheel racing. We have several new riders and the team structures have changed. And then of course we have lost the talent of Ben Spies to Moto GP.

The biggest change for me is the move by Davide Tardozzi from Ducati to BMW. I know he says that he was just looking for a new challenge but several commentators believe that he was fired from Ducati for not using team orders to secure the championship for Haga. If that is the case, it does seem like a strange decision. I mean why would you give the most successful manager in the sport the boot rather than just having a quiet word with him. And of course Fabrizio is a talented enough rider to win the championship in his own right so why should he be held back? I wonder how he will cope this year under new management being told not to win races.

All of this is of course a huge benefit to BMW who do have the money and technical expertise. With Tardozzi at the helm and Corsa on the bike, I think it is going to be a strong team. They only fly in the ointment is Xaus who lets be honest hasn’t really been on the same pace as his teammate. I think I would have signed Shakey Burne who was looking for a ride at the time.

Leon Haslam will be on the Alstare Suzuki this year

Aprilia showed impressive form last year considering they had a completely new bike. Sure they have more motorcycle race experience than BMW but it was still an impressive performance. I am expecting big things from the Italian Team this year. Celebrating success in British Superbike, Leon Camier will accompany Max Biaggi as the second rider. I like Leon and he does have the talent. It’s just that Max Biaggi is without question the number one rider and hasn’t been known for working in harmony with teammates.

Yamaha too have a pretty strong line-up. Cal Cruthlow was particularly impressive last year on the Supersport bike although he does need to calm down and stay on the bike more often. Coming back to World Superbike with his tail between his legs is James Toseland. Despite his lack of success in Moto GP, James does have 2 superbike world championships to his name. He may not be as impressive as Ben Spies but he is nevertheless going to win races this year.

Ten Kate Honda with Johnny Rea and Max Neukirchner should be up there with the frontrunners. Johnny is a talent that I have tipped for the top in previous articles. Max on the other hand is a bit less of a sure fire bet. He has shown moments of brilliance but he has spent so much of last season injured that it’s difficult to know if he has the consistency.

Alstare Suzuki has finally given Leon Haslam the ride that he deserves. Strange to see him move away from Honda given the family connection with that manufacturer. He will have Sylvain Guintoli sharing garage space with him.

That covers the “Works” Teams, excluding Kawasaki who I think have a reasonable lineup but I’m not sure they have a competitive bike.  As we have seen before,

privateer teams do often get onto the podium. So it looks like we are in for some good racing. That’s why I haven’t stuck my neck out and predicted a champion. Let us know what you think.

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