Raceline Photography

2005 was the year when the Superbike World Championship re-established itself as something other than a virtual one-make series. For so long the various models of Ducati, with their 1000cc V-twin motors, had held the upper hand, even if an excess of privately entered examples had made the racing itself compelling enough. By the beginning of the current decade, even mighty Honda had felt the need to embark on the twin route, splitting from the ranks of the other Japanese manufacturers with their preferred 750cc four-cylinder engine units. But changes in the Superbike formula were afoot.

With most of the other factories having departed the series by 2002, WSBK followed the British model in allowing the fours up to 1000cc for 2003 - albeit with air restrictors fitted. A lone Suzuki raced to that formula in the first year, with some promise, but every race fell to a Ducati mounted rider. The one-make tyre rules of 2004 dissuaded the Japanese from returning, and only a kit version of the new Honda CBR 1000RR FireBlade appeared as a real challenger. But that machine, ridden by Ten Kate’s Chris Vermeulen - an all-rookie package - helped restore the championship’s credibility. Four wins by the Australian made him into a title contender.

For this year’s series, then, the flood gates were opened as the Japanese marques returned in force. Thirteen full-time Ducati riders last year became seven in 2005, and Yamahas were up from just one to ten, with the YZF-R1 now the most prominent machine on the grid. Numbers were up all round, and an influx of highly promising new riders, along with the top seven from last year - 12 of the top 13 - made for a more than healthy looking series from the off.

Ducati’s works team ran the 999 machine in its F05 version, with private teams - fellow Italian outfits Caracchi and Pedercini - having the RS model. Ten Kate Honda expanded to a two-man assault, and were joined in the FireBlade fold by Renegade and the new Klaffi team. Bertocchi continued with the Kawasaki ZX-10R, while PSG-1 also went to two riders and switched to the ZX. As mentioned, Yamaha’s R1 was run by five teams of two riders, with the Motor Italia and Motor France squads most highly fancied. And two GSX-R1000 Suzukis appeared, run by the returning and well regarded Alstare Corona team. The 900cc three-cylinder Petronas team continued in opposition to all these one-litre machines.

By rights it should have been wide open. The Japanese bikes had enjoyed a good degree of development work in various national championships, even if Ducati Corse had stuck with the World Championship throughout this period of turbulence. But the early races showed that Alstare Suzuki were going to be the team to beat, with 1996 champion Troy Corser making hay after three years away from the limelight. Rookie team-mate Yukio Kagayama had two years and several race wins in Britain on the GSX-R, and was another man to be reckoned with. Régis Laconi was also on the pace at the outset, his Ducati Xerox team-mate James Toseland initially out of sorts through injury concerns.

Corser and Kagayama led the way in the early stages, tracked by the ever-consistent Vermeulen. Indeed, Troy won six races from seven, to set himself on course, with Yukio taking the other win and four seconds in the same period. Corser was always able to pace himself after such a strong start. The Ducati pair became properly involved in the chase from round four, sharing all wins in the next two meetings, as Kagayama slumped to a run of disappointing results. Meanwhile, Vermeulen had won race two at Monza, and was regularly in the top four elsewhere.

By mid-season, Noriyuki Haga’s Italian Yamaha had come on song, and there followed a period in which the popular Japanese rider regularly engaged Vermeulen and Corser for victory. At the same time, Laconi’s challenge faltered when he was injured in practice at Assen. The French rider, from challenging Vermeulen for second overall, dropped down the rankings with only one start in the final seven outings. But his misfortune proved the making of promising Caracchi rider Lorenzo Lanzi, an impressive works substitute in Germany, taking the first of two wins on the best Ducati machinery.

Vermeulen’s late season run of five wins and a second closed the gap to Corser, especially when the Suzuki man broke his top four run with a crash in Germany. But, in truth, the gap between the two Australians never narrowed sufficiently for Troy to worry, and he ultimately triumphed with a margin of 54. Nine podiums from the last ten starts helped Haga to emerge third ahead of Toseland, Kagayama and Laconi, these including a pair of wins to cement Yamaha’s return.

Seven riders had taken victory, with eight for Corser and six for Vermeulen suggesting that the right two riders had come out on top. More importantly for the series, four different makes of motorcycle had been winners, for the first time since 2001. These four - Suzuki, Honda, Ducati and Yamaha - should make another good fight of it in 2006, judging by their relative performances in the latter meetings this year. For Suzuki, the 2005 season marked their best ever in World Superbikes, more than doubling their win total from their first in 1988 to their last in 2001. Additionally, their first ever SBK rider title was surely Suzuki’s most significant achievement since Kevin Schwantz’s 1993 500cc GP crown.

Troy Corser in 2005 - photo © Raceline Photography

Motorcycle Racing Online’s 2005 World Superbike top ten

1 Troy Corser - Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra
The most experienced current WSBK competitor, and already 1996 champion, Troy Corser almost certainly has to go down as the fastest of all, with 35 pole starts in nine full seasons of competition. As often happens, Troy’s second title was won in the early races of the series. Six of his eight wins came from his confident form in the first four meetings and, in fact, the 33-year-old was on the podium in his first sixteen races - dropping only to fourth in the next two. Race twenty was his one blip, with a crash when leading the second Lausitzring race - he remounted to salvage three points. That vital blend of outright speed and canny tactical thinking, plus the impressive GSX-R Suzuki, consistent in the Australian’s hands, combined for a well-deserved second crown. He should be a favourite going into 2006.

2 Chris Vermeulen - Winston Ten Kate Honda
After his impressive début year, Chris Vermeulen was seen by many as a potential champion in 2005. Indeed, in the final seven rounds he was the highest scoring rider, and surely the fastest - with ten podium results from thirteen starts - and he was leading the very last race when the bike let him down, as it already had at Monza. Honda’s initial performance deficit to Suzuki was the costly factor, and Vermeulen had not beaten Corser before race eight, despite a good pair of seconds in Spain. His late streak, which included three poles, put a bit of pressure on Troy, and earned Chris his first outings in MotoGP, but the damage to his title hopes had already been done. The 23-year-old took his WSBK win tally to ten in an assured manner, and his future is to be watched with interest: he now joins Suzuki in Grands Prix.

3 Noriyuki Haga - Yamaha Motor Italia WSB
Following three years on Italian bikes, Noriyuki Haga returned to his spiritual home at Yamaha in 2005. ‘Nitro Nori’ had been their last works rider in SBK, five years earlier - and their only winner since 1993, with eleven - but had only returned to the winners’ circle with his 2004 Ducati. The R1 was the least developed machine on the world stage going into the season, and it wasn’t until round seven at Brno that Noriyuki emerged as a full-on threat - his race two win there particularly impressive. From then on he was always a podium-standard performer, winning twice - something that no other Yamaha rider came close to doing. The flamboyant style was there as ever, and his run to pass Toseland, Kagayama and Laconi for third overall was popularly acclaimed. Perhaps an overdue title will be next?

4 Lorenzo Lanzi - Ducati SC Caracchi • Ducati Xerox
Lorenzo Lanzi had finished fifth in World Supersport during 2004, scoring consistently with a Ducati. He moved up to Superbike with a customer 999 RS, catching the eye from his first home meeting at Misano, where he came through for fifth in race one. The next seven outings saw consistent finishes of between sixth and ninth, making him easily the best of the Ducati privateers - and he beat both works bikes at Brno race two. In Germany he was therefore drafted to take over Laconi’s works machine, which he promptly placed on pole. Inexperience told in race one, but he converted to an impressive win in race two. Thereafter he was allocated factory machinery for his return to the Caracchi squad, converting another front row start to his second win in France. He earns full-time promotion for 2006.

5 Régis Laconi - Ducati Xerox
In a somewhat troubled year for Ducati, and team-mate Toseland, Régis Laconi was consistently fast on the 999 F05 - when he was around to take to the track. The French rider took pole at the season opener, and was on the podium twice, but he couldn’t start at Valencia, and so it was at Monza where he started a run that gave him six rostrum results in a good burst of form. These included a double win at Misano to take him third overall, close behind Vermeulen. His Assen practice crash undid all that and, although he qualified second in his Imola comeback, the single race there was his only start in the last four meetings. A potential champion at the outset, Laconi wound up a lowly sixth overall thanks to his injuries, and his time with the works bike was ended as a result. Will he have as good a chance again?

6 Yukio Kagayama - Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra
The spectacular and popular Yukio Kagayama had won seven races in two years of racing the GSX-R in Britain, even with having to fight back from serious injury. In addition, he had run well as a WSBK wildcard in 2003, and his reward of a spot with the Alstare team made him a potential threat, especially given the bike’s initial performance. Three poles in five outings were supplemented by a strong racing start, challenging for wins and taking one in Qatar, plus four seconds and a third, keeping him second to team-mate Corser in the early running. As other riders came on in mid-season, Yukio’s performance went off the boil somewhat, and he would fade in races. He was outside the top six for rounds five to eight, then got back there three times in the next four, but without quite threatening the podium. However, the old form was back for two seconds in France, making a renewed claim for him to stay on next year.

7 Chris Walker - PSG-1 Kawasaki Corse
Chris Walker’s great popularity came out of his years on Japanese four-cylinder Superbikes, and this season saw him back in the fold with the Kawasaki ZX-10R. Luck was not with him to begin with, but the old sparkle was evident, and never more so than at Phillip Island. There, he made the most of his usual fast start to get up front in the restarted wet race two, only to fall after taking the lead on the road. His late season was upset by a broken right elbow sustained at Assen, but by then he had scored Kawasaki’s best results with fourth and a fighting third in Spain, and other similarly encouraging results before the injury - notably in front of his fans at Brands Hatch. That said, a sixth, a seventh and a strong fifth after his return also showed him in a good light, as did his pace in the damp early going at Imola.

8 James Toseland - Ducati Xerox
James Toseland’s title defence didn’t start on the right note, as he picked up an injury from a testing crash only days before the first race meeting. From the fourth row, he salvaged a pair of sixths at Qatar’s season opener, but it wasn’t until the fourth round at Monza that James really came into form. Third in race one there was a minor victory, but the following meeting saw a popular home win at Silverstone after third in race one. He was more consistently competitive from this point, but a second crown had become a long shot by now. Regular top four results brought him back ahead of Kagayama and Laconi, and included a couple of second places - defeating Régis at Brno. A fairly disappointing Brands was followed by strong rides at Assen and a final podium in France, and he will be a threat with a 2006 Honda.

9 Andrew Pitt - Yamaha Motor Italia WSB
Andrew Pitt’s first year in WSBK gave him the chance to build on a so-far patchy career in top line racing - which had seen him a success in World Supersport, but an also-ran in MotoGP. The Yamaha R1 wasn’t necessarily the best platform to kick off into instant stardom, but the Australian had a fairly steady year in which he was actually the fastest qualifier for the marque, most often on the second row. He started off among the leaders in Qatar, and was fourth in race one, but from there his pace often seemed to fade when holding strong positions - or he would sometimes crash. Fifth would be his best result from then on, but he managed it four times, and by the last five rounds he was constantly in or close to the top six, even if he also managed to contribute to team-mate Haga’s exit in France.

10 Karl Muggeridge - Winston Ten Kate Honda
Following in the footsteps of team-mate Vermeulen, Karl Muggeridge was the dominant Supersport World Champion in 2004. He still had a lot to do to match his compatriot in his first WSBK season but, his bike obviously up to the job, Karl was a strong qualifier throughout the year, and started ahead of the team leader three times. A few too many incidents in the early races did him no favours, some of them not his fault, but from Monza he was a regular finisher, and in that meeting he raced in the lead group to take fourth in the second outing. He wasn’t always able to sustain the pace of Vermeulen, hence only three more top six results after Monza - showing good form in Germany and France - but had certainly made enough of a mark to finish close behind Frankie Chili in the points table.

The best of the rest
The sheer depth of field saw to it that some very experienced and potentially competitive riders ended up lucky to break into the lower reaches of the top six at times, or proved disappointing, depending on your point of view. And stalwarts of the WSBK midfield were often worse off than that, with less crumbs than usual falling their way, thanks to some of the newcomers. The best of the ‘other’ riders, and some who had the potential to join them, were as follows:

Frankie Chili’s choice for the season was the Honda FireBlade, which meant a change of teams for the experienced Italian, who would pass the landmark of 250 races in the class. The Klaffi outfit was new at this level, but Chili had enough knowledge and skill to break into the top six at times - taking fifths on six occasions. But this was less than was expected of him, and it would be fair to say that, generally, he had too much to do after qualifying. As ever, luck was not consistently on his side, and this was clear from the outset, with machine failure just moments into the first race, and injury ruling him out at round two. He came through the field for two fifths at Brno in a better mid-season run, but this was short lived, and his ill luck came back to spoil a good run in Germany’s first race. He will hope for a revival of form if he continues into 2006.

Max Neukirchner looked a bright prospect, having been another rider to score regularly in Supersport during 2004. He might have done better if not for some early season crashes - particularly in Valencia - but he still emerged as the revelation of the Phillip Island weekend, racing Vermeulen to take fourth and then third in mixed conditions. He went on to another pair of front row starts, overshadowing team-mate Chili’s qualifying efforts, but didn’t manage to better seventh place finishes in a consistent if less spectacular second part of the year. More should follow next year.

Norick Abe’s tenure in Grands Prix with Yamaha had finally come to an end but, in truth, it looked as though he had never quite come to terms with the switch from two-stroke machinery at the end of 2002. A good start saw him up front in Qatar’s first race, on a circuit that most of the other riders had not seen, but a potential fourth place was lost when his bike would not restart for the second part. A second row qualifier in Spain, he managed to crash out of the first race when pushing Vermeulen for second, and this left him with a best finish of fourth at Brno, after a strong ride there.

Seven-time Superbike winner Ben Bostrom was back after two years away, but the former Ducati star and his Reneagde team seemed unable to fully unlock the potential of their Honda FireBlade. The main exception was at Imola, where the 31-year-old American was second fastest Honda man in qualifying eighth. However, the pace was not there in the race, and a sixth at Valencia was his best result of the year.

Former GP rider Sébastien Gimbert had gone well as a Superbike wildcard at home in 2004, taking Yamaha’s best results. This year started with him on the front row, and quickest in the second race, but thereafter he was rarely on the pace, and he ended up with a solitary sixth as his best finish.

Top 250cc GP rider Fonsi Nieto missed out on a MotoGP berth, and was quite disappointing compared with Caracchi WSBK team-mate Lanzi. The Spaniard took fifth in the tricky conditions at Phillip Island, but was later replaced and finished the year with PSG-1 Kawasaki.

Steve Martin and Garry McCoy both moved over from potential race winning Ducatis to the Foggy Petronas team, whose bikes were rarely a match for the leading 1000cc mounts this year. The Australian pair’s home race promised much, with both qualifying in the top seven, but luck was not with them in the races. In the end, the one high point was a charging fifth by Martin at Imola, by which time McCoy was about to go onto the transfer list.

José Luís Cardoso surprised with a second row start at the first event, repeating this twice, but only scored points three times and never featured well in the races.

Join us here for coverage of the 2006 season.

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To buy the photographs shown above, visit Raceline Photography

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