The rules of the minimum weight for the bike + rider imposed in the World Superbike Championship for 2024 continue to divide opinions. Heavier riders believe that it should have gone even further, while lighter riders may have some difficulties adapting. This is the case of the champion of the last two seasons, Álvaro Bautista.
The Spanish rider from Aruba.it Ducati told the website GPOne.com that he had to work to gain muscle mass due to the weight issue: ‘Last year I weighed 67kg with the suit and having to reach the minimum of 80kg imposed by the regulations, you have to add 6.5kg of weight to the bike. During the winter, I tried to work a lot on the physical level, despite suffering from my neck due to the accident in Jerez. However, I managed to increase my muscle mass, but not that much. In the end, I can’t add another 13kg of weight, otherwise I wouldn’t be a rider‘.
Bautista admitted that he has been experiencing considerable difficulties with this year’s bike: ‘For Ducati, the new regulations have some positive aspects, but for me, they have negative aspects. In fact, the bike becomes much more difficult to ride and the initial sensations were not positive. In fact, there is more inertia, I can’t close the fast corners. Then we tried various solutions to understand how to overcome the problem. I hope that in Jerez, the feedback from the work done by Ducati is positive because an additional 7kg at 200km/h becomes a lot‘.
