Getting ready for the 2019 season Markus Reiterberger and Tom Sykes took to the track on Monday and Tuesday around Almeria in Spain for a two-day private test aboard the BMW S1000 RR machines of Shaun Muir Racing.

The team, that is welcoming back the German manufacturer for 2019 after having switched to Aprilia for 2017 and 2018, was blessed with good weather and was able to start the familiarization process with the two new riders and their new SBK® BMW machines.

Returning to WorldSBK for 2019 as reigning STK1000 European Champion after winning the 2018 title aboard the STK1000 version of the BWM beast, 24-year-old Markus Reiterberger spent the two days getting acquainted with the Superbike as well as working on the new 2019 updates and gathering valuable data for his crew.

“The focus of this test was on completing a roll-out with the bike and for me to get used to the team. It is all new for me: the crew, the working methods and the Superbike version of the bike too” explained Reiterberger. “The first outing went well. Our test program includes a lot of work on the chassis, the electronics, geometry and different setting options. This was just a functional test to gather as much information as possible for the work that still has to come”.

Coming from nearly 10 seasons contesting the FIM Superbike World Championship with the Kawasaki Racing Team, for Tom Sykes it was an entirely new feeling to experience the power of the engine of the German manufacturer’s SBK®.

“I am very happy with the test” said Sykes at end of the two days. “The general feedback was good, and I had positive feelings with my BMW S1000 RR. We certainly had two very productive days. We changed some parameters on the bike and understood some key areas to work with. I am quite impressed with the result and it seems that we are progressing very fast”.

Catch up on all the updates and highlights from the winter testing with the WorldSBK VideoPass.