Source: Supplied.

The Aruba.it Racing – Ducati Team unveiled its 2016 Panigale R World Superbike contenders overnight at the Aruba Data Center in Arezzo, where the adventure began 12 months ago.

Chaz Davies and Davide Giugliano took the wraps off the factory Panigale R bikes and the team laid down an even more ambitious challenge for this year’s WorldSBK series.

“I’d first like to thank Stefano Cecconi, our partner in this operation which has given us extraordinary satisfaction,” said Claudio Domenicali, CEO Ducati Motor Holding. “We have seen important results for the team, important economic results for Aruba and it was also the best-ever year in the history of Ducati.

“In 2015 we sold more than 54,000 bikes, a record, with an increase of 22% over the previous year. It’s a result that has come about thanks to the numerous new models we launched, a new range of Scramblers, but also due to the results on the track, which for all Ducatisti is an important element.

“I would like to underline a fact that is often neglected: the importance of Superbike for a manufacturer like Ducati. Racing with a production-based bike allows us to develop products that are quite simply extraordinary. The Panigale R has no rivals in the sportsbike sector. Superbike is a championship that is in the hearts of Ducati and all Ducatisti.”

Luigi Dall’Igna (Ducati Corse general manager): “In my first two years in Ducati we have tried to improve the flow of information between MotoGP and SBK, something that allowed us to improve on both fronts. For 2016, the SBK team has a few changes.

“We have brought Marco Zambenedetti, an engineer who comes from MotoGP, into the team and on Giugliano’s side of the garage two very experienced technicians, Aligi Deganello and Paolo Biasio. The Panigale R has undergone further developments in its suspension, electronics and engine. We were protagonists in the winter tests, something that allows us to start 2016 with one aim – to win the title.”

The Aruba.it Racing – Ducati Team will now be leaving for Australia, where the usual round of pre-season tests at Phillip Island will be held, just a few days before the start of the 2016 championship on 26-28 February at the same circuit.