News 23 Jan 2025

Pit-stop mandatory for Phillip Island WorldSBK opener

Second year in a row for flag-to-flag race format.

Image: Supplied.

Next month’s opening round of the 2025 Motul Superbike World Championship (WorldSBK) at Phillip Island will adopt a flag-to-flag format, mandating a compulsory pit-stop for tyre changes during the WorldSBK and WorldSSP races once again.

A similar strategy was successfully implemented during the 2024 season following the track’s resurfacing, and with unpredictable weather and varying track temperatures anticipated at the Victorian venue from February 21-23, the decision has been made in advance this season.

“Phillip Island is renowned for its thrilling, high-speed layout, but it also presents unique challenges due to its surface and rapidly changing weather,” explained Gregorio Lavilla, WorldSBK director.

“Despite improvements to the track conditions over time, it remains extremely demanding, especially if you bear in mind it will be the first round of the season where teams are still fine-tuning their basic set-up.

“Based on our experience at Phillip Island, we concluded that enforcing a mandatory pit stop is the best approach to uphold the quality of the racing. By adopting this format, we’re ensuring that all participants can compete under fair and secure conditions at what promises to be an exciting start to the season.”

Organisers have mandated that rear tyres must not exceed 11 laps in the WorldSBK class and 10 laps in WorldSSP. Consequently, the race distances for WorldSBK race one and race two will be set at 20 laps, with riders receiving two additional sets of tyres for the weekend.

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