Alvaro Bautista’s dominance has led to a second reduction in engine revs for Ducati ahead of this weekend’s Imola World Superbike round.
Ahead of this weekend’s seventh round of the 2023 WorldSBK Championship at Imola, the FIM and Dorna have confirmed that Ducati and Kawasaki will be having their maximum rev limits changed.
Ducati’s Panigale V4 R will have its maximum rev limit reduced by 250 rpm as a result of the changes, while Kawasaki will be able to add 250 rpm after using some of its concession granted upgrades.
Ducati who are the undisputed leaders of the WorldSBK Championship were forced to reduce the revs on their powerful Panigale V4 R package for the second time this season.
Alvaro Bautista’s dominant run of 16 victories in 18 races so far this year which serves as the basis of the most recent adjustment, is part of the FIM and Dorna’s strategy to evaluate the balance of performance between the five rival manufacturers every three rounds.
However, the fact remains that the first rev reduction didn’t affect Bautista’s results much as the Spaniard went on to win two more races at Donington Park and earn doubles at both Barcelona and Misano. At the midway stage of the season Bautista has a dominant 93-point advantage over his closest rival Toprak Razgatlioglu.
The latest rev reduction limit means that after starting the year at 16,100 rpm the Ducati Panigale V4 R will be running at 15,600 rpm for the next three races, beginning with Imola this weekend.
Kawasaki on the other hand will experience an increase of 250 rpm as a result of its decision to take advantage of five of the concession points available to the manufacturer for in-season modifications to the ZX-10RR package.
The maximum rev limit for the factory Kawasaki Racing Team, consisting of Jonathan Rea and Alex Lowes, Puccetti Racing, Orelac Racing and TPR Vinales Racing, will be 15,100 rpm.
Kawasaki has had a difficult season so far, with the brand still winless after six races, its longest drought without a WorldSBK triumph since 2011.
Leading Kawasaki rider Jonathan Rea, who has yet to win this season is fourth in the standings behind Razgatlioglu and Yamaha teammate Andrea Locatelli while Bautista continues to dominate.
Razgatlioglu has won Superpole races at Mandalika and Donington, making him the only rider other than Bautista to win a race this year.
