Adrian Huertas (Aruba.it Racing WorldSSP Team) has become the latest pride of Ducati following his 2024 FIM Supersport World Championship title success. The #99, who runs with a lion on his leathers, became a two-time World Champion with this year’s title following on from his 2021 WorldSSP300 win, becoming the first rider to take the Championship in both classes. After hunting down an early-season points deficit, Huertas roared into title contention with six victories on the bounce before wrapping it up at Jerez.

BUILDING UP TO THIS: Huertas’ previous success

Huertas first started making a name for himself in the Red Bull MotoGP™ Rookies Cup and the European Talent Cup but it was in 2020 he first shone on the world stage. A move to ProGP Racing for a first WorldSSP300 campaign left the Spaniard 17^th in the standings on 43 points before the switch to MTM Kawasaki proved to be a catalyst for his future success. In just his second season, he took the title and that earned him a step up to WorldSSP. The Madrid-born rider was an instant top-ten contender on the Kawasaki ZX-6R, as he remained with MTM Kawasaki. A front-row start at Magny-Cours was the highlight before a 2023 season where the podium was in sight but just out of reach. He scored multiple P4s as he closed in on the rostrum as he ended the season in 12^th place, the same as his rookie campaign, although four consecutive retirements towards the end of the campaign impacted this.

THE MOVE TO DUCATI: aiming to follow in Bulega’s footsteps

With Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing - Ducati) winning the title and earning a move to be Alvaro Bautista's teammate this season, the team turned to Huertas to fill the void and things got off to a mixed start. A retirement in Race 1 in Australia meant he was immediately 25 points down on title rival Yari Montella (Barni Spark Racing Team), and third in Race 2 – his first WorldSSP podium – meant he lost more ground to both Montella and Stefano Manzi (Pata Prometeon Ten Kate Racing), with both finishing ahead.

AN INCREDIBLE RUN: first win, nine podiums in a row

When the Championship moved to Europe, Huertas ticked off major milestones. He won in Race 1 in Barcelona to claim his first victory, although he was classified in 32^nd place in Race 2 and Montella’s lead was now 35 points over the #99. Assen was the start of an almost unbeatable run for Huertas as he claimed Race 1 victory by eight seconds, before finishing second in Race 2 but, crucially, ahead of Montella and Manzi. His first double rostrum of the season kickstarted an incredible run of nine consecutive podiums, seven of which were wins and six of those came in a row between Misano Race 1 and Most Race 2. After heading into the Dutch Round 35 points behind Montella, Huertas headed into Portimao 46 points clear.

PORTIMAO FLASH POINT: rivalries ignite on the Algarve coast

When WorldSSP hit Portugal, no one knew how fierce the fight would be. First, in Race 1, Huertas fought with Manzi over P2 including an incredible overtake at Turn 9 with 14 laps to go as Montella claimed victory and closed the gap to 41 points. Race 2 was all about Huertas vs Montella, with the pair nose-to-tail throughout until half-distance was reached, when the Spaniard crashed from P1 and handed the initiative to Montella. The #55 didn’t need asking twice as he went on to take a Portuguese double and close the gap further, with 20 points separating the two after Huertas recovered for P12.

SIX RACES, TWO WINS: a trickier spell for Huertas

After Portimao, it looked like momentum was with Montella who closed the gap even more in France; it was back down to just 16 points after the Barni Ducati rider’s Race 2 win and Huertas finishing fourth. It all changed again at Cremona though, as Huertas took P1 and P2 while Montella crashed in Race 2 from the lead; rather than potentially gaining five points, Montella lost 20 to Huertas and the gap was extended again, this time up to 43 points. It remained similar at Aragon, with Huertas and Montella taking a win apiece, as Huertas headed to Estoril with match point and a 41-point lead over his rival, with Manzi a further five behind. While it looked like he would be crowned at Estoril, especially when Montella crashed from P1 in Race 2, Manzi winning the race just kept the title alive heading to Jerez.

THE CROWNING MOMENT: Jerez will live long in Huertas’ memory

Huertas just couldn’t wait to be king as he wrapped up the title in the final round, making sure he was out of reach of rivals Montella and Manzi. It meant Huertas became the youngest WorldSSP Champion in history, beating Chris Vermeulen by a few months while he also became the first rider to win both the WorldSSP300 and WorldSSP crowns, having won the former in 2021.

Congratulate Huertas on his title using the #LionKingHuertas hashtag on social media and re-watch his best moments from 2024 using the WorldSBK VideoPass – now only €9.99!