BbKRT Heading For A Single Day...

Axel Bassani and Alex Lowes will soon take part in a one-day test session at the former WorldSBK race venue of Navarra, on Thursday 27 August, to get back into track mode after a long summer break in the 2026 WorldSBK campaign.

The Navarra test will take place over six weeks after the last competitive WorldSBK race weekend, which was held at Donington Park in early July.

The bimota KB998 Rimini riders will once more be joined by the team’s regular test rider, Xavi Fores, who will evaluate some of the next stages of technical development.

The 3.933km-long Navarra circuit has hosted one previous weekend of WorldSBK racing, in 2021. This particular venue was chosen by BbKRT to allow the team to concentrate on getting back into a normal working rhythm without the potential distraction of setting up the machine for any particular race track.

The next round in the 2026 WorldSBK Championship - Round Nine - will take place between 4 - 6 September, at the regular WorldSBK venue of the Circuit de Nevers Magny-Cours, located in central France.

Alex Lowes stated: “I am looking forward to getting back out on the bimota KB998 Rimini. This is not really going to be a test; it’s more about getting back up to speed before we start racing again in Magny-Cours. So, I am really looking forward to getting back with the guys to enjoy riding the bike, and then start to really focus on Magny-Cours next week. I have missed it.”

Axel Bassani stated: “It has been a nice summer break, but it has been quite a long break. It has been like a winter break between two seasons! Next week we will go back to race, finally, but before that we will have a little test at Navarra this week. We will get on the bike again to find the good feeling that we have had this season. We will do some laps of training and prepare the body for the next race weekend in France. We will enjoy some time with the team, then go again to focus for the next race.”

Guim Roda, Team Manager of the Bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team, stated: “After such a long summer break, with no action on track, we decided to organise this one-day test at Navarra to warm up the riders a little bit before Magny-Cours. Alex and Axel have been training at home, doing some MX, Supermotard, and using some Supersport bikes to keep fit. But we were willing to give them a bit of track time with their real WorldSBK machines to get the feeling back before we race in France. We decided to use Navarra to avoid the temptation of working only on a specific bike set-up. The idea is to use test engines and give the riders the necessary laps to enjoy the experience, and push the limits with not too much complexity. Xavi Fores will make some laps too, to give him track time and stay ‘in tune’ for subsequent tests that will prepare us for the 2027 season. The weather in the Navarra area looks good, so we will make good use of the test day, and prepare everything for the forthcoming Magny-Cours race.”