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With the 2021 MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship paddock enjoying some time off before round five of the season at the TT Circuit Assen kicks in, it’s time to remind ourselves of the stunning season so far. New rivalries have formed, a new Championship complexion has taken shape and stars with potential are living up to the hype. So, with four rounds gone, you can now find all of our round recaps in one place!

ROUND 1 – 2021 KICKS OFF, TYRE TALK DOMINATES: Aragon

2021 started at MotorLand Aragon for the Pirelli Aragon Round but it’d become a round all about tyres, with the SCX vs SC0 debate igniting, before a rainy Sunday left everyone pondering over full wets or intermediates. It was Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) and arch-rival Scott Redding (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) who started the 2021 in style, but challenges from Rea’s teammate Alex Lowes, Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pata Yamaha with BRIXX WorldSBK), BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team duo Tom Sykes and Michael van der Mark and America’s Garrett Gerloff (GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Team) – of whom Rea collided with in Race 2 – gave us a hint of 2021’s potential.

ROUND 2 – PATTERNS EMERGE: Estoril

Moving onwards to Round 2 and it was over the border to Portugal for the Gaerne Estoril Round from the Circuito Estoril and once again, it was Redding and Rea who went toe-to-toe, particularly in Race 2, when the pair of them scrapped it out. Besides this, there was also a dramatic start to Race 2 with jump-starts, and a big collision between Garrett Gerloff and Michael Ruben Rinaldi (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) on Lap 2. With all of the drama in the opening two rounds, patterns had emerged, but it wouldn’t be until the next event where WorldSBK got really crazy.

ROUND 3 – YOUNG STARS vs ESTABLISHED GUARD: Misano

The Pirelli Made In Italy Emilia Romagna Round at the Misano World Circuit “Marco Simoncelli” was a stunning event, with fans back in the grounds to cheer on local hero Michael Ruben Rinaldi, who was simply sublime in the opening race and the Tissot Superpole Race encounter. However, he wouldn’t be the only young gun on top form as Toprak Razgatlioglu powered through in Race 2 to take his first win of the season. The main story however was that both Razgatlioglu and Rinaldi had beaten Rea in all races, giving the defending Champion something to think about going forward. Rea did however make one of the saves of the year, as he tucked the front at Turn 1 in Race 1.

ROUND 4 – TABLES TURN: Donington Park

Then, the most recent round – the Prosecco DOC UK Round from Donington Park, the place where it all began back in 1988. Typical British weather played its part but that didn’t bother Toprak in Race 1, as he stormed through from 13^th on the grid in Race 1 to be leading a lap and a half later. From this moment onwards, there was no looking back and in Race 2, a battle with Rea resulted in the Champion cracking under pressure at Coppice, handing the Turkish rider not just another win, but the lead in the Championship. There was also a highly commendable performance from BMW, as they took podiums throughout the round.

Don’t forget that you can enjoy all of the 2021’s action as it happens with the WorldSBK VideoPass!