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Five rounds have been completed in the 2023 MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship campaign with Ducati leading the way so far. During the Pirelli Emilia-Romagna Round, Ducati Corse General Manager, Gigi Dall’Igna, gave his thoughts on Ducati’s season so far and looked ahead to 2024 including the future of the Panigale V4 R and who could be Alvaro Bautista’s (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) teammate next season.

SEASON SO FAR: 14 wins, 20 podiums for Ducati

Bautista’s title defence after five rounds has gone almost perfectly for the Spanish rider with 14 wins in 15 races in 2023, and he has won every race he’s finished this year; dropping only 12 points. The remaining six podiums come from a combination of Bautista’s teammate, Michael Ruben Rinaldi, and Independent rider Axel Bassani (Motocorsa Racing). The results mean Ducati lead the Riders’, Teams’ and Manufacturers’ Championships. Bassani’s strong form in 2023 means he is in control of the Independent Riders’ standings with a 38-point lead over Dominique Aegerter (GYTR GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Team).

Reviewing the 2023 season so far, Dall’Igna said: “I’m really happy with Bautista’s renewal. It’s important for us to have him in our team. I have a good relationship with him, I’ve known him since 2006 when he was the 125cc World Champion. His performance is absolutely at the top, he’s in good shape and he would like to ride and enjoy our bike.I’m really happy with the performance of our bike and, above all, our riders. We are leading the Championship at the moment. For sure, our competitors are really, really fast and we have to do our best to try to win the Championship at the end of the year.”

THE FUTURE: evolution, not revolution, coming in 2024

Bautista’s status as a factory Ducati rider for next season was confirmed ahead of the Catalunya Round but the name of his teammate is currently unknown. Bautista has said he has “no preference” about who rides alongside him in 2024 but several riders have expressed an interest in taking the seat occupied by Rinaldi. Dall’Igna also spoke about how changes for the 2024 Panigale V4 R machine, ruling out big changes but evolving the bike.

He said: “I think it’s not the time to speak about the second seat of our team. For sure, with Alvaro with us, we can have time to take the proper decision and wait a little bit to understand which is the best opportunity for us. I’m really happy with all the Ducati riders at the moment. We have to wait. I think it’s the best, not only for us but for the riders who would like to jump on our bike. I don’t have a deadline for WorldSBK at the moment. I think for next year we will evolve our bike but not have big changes.”

PROMOTION FOR BULEGA? “He was quite fast when he rode that bike…”

One name who is being linked with a move to WorldSBK is Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing WorldSSP Team). The Italian leads the WorldSSP standings by 36 points ahead of Stefano Manzi (Ten Kate Racing Yamaha) and he has six wins to his name this season. The 23-year-old has tested the Panigale V4 R on a couple of occasions, most recently at Mugello, while Dall’Igna revealed Bulega was the test rider for the WorldSBK team.

Discussing Bulega’s chances of a WorldSBK seat, Dall’Igna said: “He’s doing a fantastic job right now in World Supersport. He’s leading the Championship. He is our test rider in WorldSBK and, honestly speaking, he was quite fast when he rode that bike. We will see.”

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