Kawasaki Racing Team has confirmed its entry into the 2022 Suzuki 8 Hours, the outfit to be spearheaded by multi-time World Superbike champion Jonathan Rea, joined by teammates Alex Lowes and Leon Haslam.

The trio have all tasted victory at the prestigious event, with Rea and Haslam securing the top step in the most recent 2019 Suzuka 8 Hours. Lowes has won the event three times previously.

“I am so excited to go back to Japan,” Rea explained. “Understandably Kawasaki has always had such great support out there. We won the race three years ago. Kawasaki was understandably keen to defend the title and especially to continue the positive exposure WorldSBK is delivering to Kawasaki currently while extending that positivity to the eight hour and Japan.

“Due to Covid, we weren’t able to return until now. I always feel really appreciated by the Japanese fans, the atmosphere is incredible and I am really looking forward to going back, I think the target heading back to Suzuka is to win.

“We won there before and this season I feel, with Alex and Leon inside the team, we have a lot of experience together with the Ninja ZX-10RR. I am really excited to go back and see what we can do. We are going with a huge effort, lots of testing, and taking the event seriously with a strong rider lineup and a team with a lot more experience.

“I feel the minimum we can do is compete for the podium, but of course in Endurance racing everything can go right, everything can go wrong. We have to be very calm, mature, and do our best, lap-by-lap.”

The 43rd edition of the prestigious event takes place on 5-7 August 2022 and also marks the third round of the 2022 FIM Endurance World Championship (EWC).