The Aruba.it Racing – Ducati Team is pleased to announce the contract extension for Alvaro Bautista who will ride the official Ducati Panigale V4R machine again in the 2023 WorldSBK season.
After becoming World Champion in the 125cc class in 2006 with 8 wins and a total of 14 podiums, Alvaro Bautista took part in the 250cc World Championship in the following three seasons, scoring 8 wins and a total of 24 podiums.
The Spanish rider – born in Talavera de la Reina (Toledo, Spain) on November 21, 1984 – landed in MotoGP in 2010 (scoring three podiums between 2012 and 2014) before climbing aboard the Ducati Desmosedici GP in the 2017 and 2018 seasons.
In his debut season in WordSBK (2019) with the Panigale V4R of the Aruba.it Racing – Ducati Team, he obtained 16 victories (24 podiums in total), finishing second in the championship standings.
After two years with another manufacturer, Bautista returns to the Aruba.it Racing – Ducati team at the start of the 2022 season. With four rounds out of twelve already held, the Spanish rider is currently leading the Superbike World Championship standings with 220 points.
Stefano Cecconi (Team Principal Aruba.it Racing – Ducati).
“I have always believed in Alvaro from a sporting point of view and we have always had a very good personal relationship even when our paths temporarily parted. When we decided to bet on him again last summer, some people called this move a very risky gamble, but there was a conviction on both sides that we were making the right choice: results so far confirm our decision and make us happy. This is also the reason why we are glad to continue our relationship with Alvaro for at least another year. Today we want to make a small exception to the rule and we toast his renewal; already from tomorrow, we are going back to work to prepare ourselves in the best possible way for the next races. The season is still long and we know very well that we cannot afford to let our guard down.”
Luigi Dall’Igna (Ducati Corse General Manager)
“We are very happy to be able to continue together with Bautista in 2023. As in the 2019 WorldSBK season, this year, Alvaro has been immediately competitive with our bike, starting from the winter tests; he is now leading, not surprisingly, a wonderful season, fighting intelligently for the world title. He is a precise rider, easy to work with: his fantastic riding style is not only enjoyable to watch on TV, but above all, it is his key to fully exploiting the potential of our Panigale V4 R. We are convinced that together we can achieve many important goals.”
Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati #19)
“I am very happy to be able to continue at least one more year with the Aruba.it Racing – Ducati Team, which represents a family to me. I have always felt good with this team and since I have returned, the feelings have been even more positive than in the 2019 season. When something works so well, we can only keep working, looking ahead. I feel I am still at the top, I feel I can still give a lot. Physically and mentally I think this is the best time of my career. I am also delighted to continue working with Ducati, a very important factory, tech-oriented, always looking for development: to be part of this project, of this team is something incredible on a personal level.”
