An intense and complicated first day for the Kawasaki WorldSSP Team at Phillip Island

The Supersport World Championship got underway today at the Australian track of Phillip Island. On this first day of action, which took place on a dry track in warm, sunny conditions, the WorldSSP riders were out for morning practice followed by Superpole in the afternoon.

Jeremy Alcoba was unlucky during the practice unfortunately. The Kawasaki WorldSSP Team technicians worked to resolve an electronic problem with his bike but as soon as they’d done this, the session was halted with a red flag due to oil on track. Work to clean the track took time and the session was ultimately brought to a premature end.

In the first Superpole of the season, the Spanish rider set a best time of 1’33”451 with which he closed fifteenth. This result means that Jeremy will start from the fifth row of the grid for tomorrow’s race, which will run over a distance of 18 laps and will include a mandatory tyre change, to be carried out between laps nine and ten.

Phillip Island – Australia
Supersport World Championship
Superpole: 1) Bensneyder (MV Agusta) – 2) Booth-Amos (Triumph) – 3) Mahias (Yamaha) – 4) Oncu (Yamaha) – 5) Debise (Ducati) – 6) Masia (Ducati)…….. 15) Alcoba (Kawasaki)

Jeremy Alcoba: “Luck was not on our side today. This morning, I had an electronics issue and once that was sorted, the red flag came out, putting an end to the session. In Superpole we completed the work that we should have done in FP1 but we haven’t yet found a setup that allows us to fully exploit the potential of our bike, also because the track conditions were different today with respect to the test. We’re making progress, but we’re not yet as competitive as we want to be. In the weekend’s races, I’ll do my best to push as hard right from the start; I’m sure that both races will provide us with the opportunity to continue developing our bike.”

Kawasaki WorldSBK Team Starts 2025 Season For Real

Garrett Gerloff and his Ninja ZX-10RR took their first steps together into the 2025 FIM Superbike World Championship after competing in the opening free practice sessions at the 4.445km long Phillip Island circuit in Australia.

On Friday 21 February the green light for the Kawasaki WorldSBK Team and all its rivals was switched on for the first time, both literally and figuratively. Two free practice sessions were completed in dry conditions, with the second one providing track temperatures almost ten degrees hotter than the morning’s first 45-minute long session.

After two days of official testing earlier in the week, and a heavy fall at one point, Garrett had to ride the first day of race weekend on a largely rebuilt machine. His first day of free practice was therefore part evaluation and part preparation for the rest of race weekend.

At the end of Friday Gerloff ended up 15th overall, 1.4 seconds from the fastest rider.

On Saturday 22 February, Garret will compete in a third free practice session, Superpole qualifying and at 16.00 local time the first WorldSBK race of the season, which is scheduled for 20 laps.

This year the ‘long’ WorldSBK races will be held in two equal parts, with a tyre change stop for all the riders. There will also be the now traditional ten lap ‘sprint’ race, which awards half points for the top nine riders.

Garrett Gerloff: “A lot of what we did today was just trying to find a good feeling after the end of our pre-season tests did not finish so well. The guys did an amazing job of rebuilding the bike so the feeling was good today. We are just trying to find more performance with the whole package and I am confident that with the team we can find it. Everybody is going really fast and the lap times are close, so I think a small improvement can make a big difference in the results. We will rest well tonight and try to do well tomorrow.”

Top ten for Alcoba in Race 1 at Phillip Island!

The first race of the 2025 Supersport World Championship was staged today at the Phillip Island Circuit in Australia. In morning warm-up, the Kawasaki WorldSSP Team rider Jeremy Alcoba worked with his squad to improve the set-up of his Ninja ZX-6R ahead of race 1, which ran in the afternoon over a distance of 18 laps, with a mandatory tyre change to be carried out between the ninth and tenth lap.

Thanks to his Superpole result, Jeremy lined up in fifteenth place on the grid, on the fifth row. The Kawasaki WorldSSP Team rider started well and soon made up some positions. Demonstrating consistently fast pace, the Spaniard worked his way up the field and was one of the last to make the tyre change, at the end of lap ten. Back on track in tenth place, he was able to hold this position to the line, scoring a top ten finish in what was his first ever race Supersport race, as well as the first for the new Ninja ZX-6R.

Phillip Island – Australia
Supersport World Championship
Race 1: 1) Manzi (Yamaha) – 2) Booth-Amos (Triumph) – 3) Schroetter (Ducati) – 4) Bendsneyder (MV Agusta) – 5) Oncu (Yamaha) – 6) Masia (Ducati) ……. 10) Alcoba (Kawasaki)

Jeremy Alcoba: “My first race, and I was able to reach the top ten from fifteenth on the grid. I tried to do my best and follow the guys in front. Right from the start, I was struggling with grip and couldn’t turn like they could. I was losing some tenths over each lap and at the end I was riding on my own, so I tried to set my own pace and take some points, bring the bike back to the garage, and gather some info for Race 2 and the future. We are not fully ready, so we need to make more laps, but I don’t think we’re far off. We’ll continue to work; we just need to understand the bike a bit better. It has good potential but we’re there yet, so we need to find a way.”

Kawasaki WorldSBK Team Finds Race One Misfortune in Phillip Island

Garrett Gerloff’s first race on his Ninja ZX-10RR was prematurely ended when a technical issue intervened during the first 20-lap race of the 2025 FIM Superbike World Championship season at Phillip Island in Australia.

Much hotter conditions appeared on Saturday than during free practice on the previous day – or the official two day test which was also held at Phillip Island, on Monday and Tuesday.

Gerloff had qualified 17th in Superpole on Saturday 22 February and he was hoping to make up ground and track position early in the 20-lap race.

Gerloff found a technical issue early on the race and he ran wide onto the asphalt area of Turn Four. He restarted, but would eventually pull off the track at Turn Two to retire.

Now Garrett and his team will work on a machine set-up for what is expected to be a much cooler Sunday in readiness for the ten lap Superpole Race and a second 20-lap Race Two. The Sunday race will also feature a mandatory tyre change for all competitors at half race distance, as the opening race did on Saturday.

Garrett Gerloff: “Not the best way to start the championship, unfortunately, and I am sure we were all expecting more. I had a technical issue in the race so the bike stopped and I was not able to finish the race. We will try again tomorrow.”

A great race for Alcoba, fifth in Race 2 at Phillip Island!

The Phillip Island Circuit in Australia today staged the second and final race of the first Supersport World Championship round. After qualifying fifteenth in Friday’s Superpole, Kawasaki WorldSSP Team rider Jeremy Alcoba powered his new Ninja ZX-6R to tenth in Saturday’s race, scoring his first world championship points in the process.

On Sunday afternoon, in hot and sunny conditions and on a dry track, the Spaniard tackled Race 2, which ran over a distance of 18 laps with a mandatory tyre change to be executed mid-race.

Alcoba made a very fast start that allowed him to climb to seventh. After pitting to make the tyre change, Jeremy returned to the track, moving into the leading group and battling for the podium. The Kawasaki WorldSSP Team rider ultimately crossed the line in fourth place, but was penalised for not having respected the minimum tyre change time, which meant he placed fifth.

The next WorldSSP round will take place at the Autodromo do Algarve in Portimao, Portugal on 28-30 March.

Phillip Island – Australia
Supersport World Championship
Race 2: 1) Booth-Amos (Triumph) – 2) Manzi (Yamaha) – 3) Bendsneyder (MV Agusta) – 4) Rinaldi (Yamaha) – 5) Alcoba (Kawasaki)

Jeremy Alcoba: “I am very happy because yesterday the target was top ten. Today I knew that the pace would be fast, but not as fast as it was. The slipstreaming was better with the wind, so the idea was to follow the others and stay part of the leading group, at the back – like in cycle racing – where the riding is easier for the last one in the group. The bike today was really good. I tried some new things through the corners that helped me a lot. The bike was good, but on the limit, let’s say, so I wasn’t able to turn like some of the other riders. I gave it more than 100% to be there and enjoy it with the team because we’ve struggled a lot during the race weekend and in the tests. So, to give them this good race result is nice. Yesterday the team left the garage at around 10pm, they were the last ones to leave, so I am really happy to secure this result for them. I don’t feel tired because I enjoyed the race and felt comfortable riding. I am really happy because if we were able to do this at this track, where we’ve struggled a lot, then it should all be easier at other tracks. Thanks to my team and Kawasaki – my Ninja ZX-6R 636 is starting to be fast.”

Kawasaki WorldSBK Team Scores First Points in Phillip Island Race 2

Garrett Gerloff secured his first points of the new WorldSBK season thanks to a 13th place finish in Race Two at Phillip Island, after what was a sometimes challenging final day of race action at the 4.445km long circuit in Australia.

Gerloff was in the midfield mix at the start of the ten lap Superpole race but soon after he started he was taken out by another rider at the slow T4 corner. Garrett remounted to try and finish the race but a technical issue saw him forced to pull off the circuit to retire.

After the Kawasaki WorldSBK Team’s Ninja ZX-10RR had been prepared for a 20-lap Race Two Gerloff ended lap one in 15th place. He would end up 13th at the chequered flag, winning a tight battle out of the final corner and down the main straight against Michael van der Mark to secure three championship points.

The second and final Sunday race featured a mid-race mandatory tyre change pitstop, which Garrett and his team negotiated without drama or penalty.

Gerloff leaves Australia in 15th place in the championship standings after the opening round of the 12-round 2025 FIM Superbike World Championship. The next race weekend takes place at the Autodromo Internacional do Algarve in Portugal, between 28-30 March.

Garrett Gerloff: “Honestly it was a kind of horrible weekend and I feel really bad for the team and everyone. We are all giving our best but sometimes if you just don’t have luck on your side, let’s say, it doesn’t matter how hard you work. It was unfortunate that I had Nagashima crash into me in the Superpole Race and I couldn’t finish. Then, I just had no speed in Race Two. We finished in the points, but far from the win. I am giving everything. Thanks to the team for all their hard work and we will try again next time.”