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About World Superbike
As the world's premier production-based motorcycle racing series, the World Superbike Championship is never short of action. Find out more about how World Superbikes shape the future of road-going motorbikes.
A Short History of World Superbike
Noriyuki Haga, pre-season testing January 2009
The World Superbike Championship was founded in 1988 and is one of the most popular motorsport series in the world today. Each World Superbike event sees riders compete against each other in two races. The results of each race are combined and eventually determine the winners of the rider and manufacturer Championship titles each season. During 2009, 14 World Superbike rounds will take place at race circuits in 12 countries all across the globe. Attracting thousands of spectators wherever the races take place, fans can watch their favourite stars competing for honours on bikes which are very similar to their own.
Unlike MotoGP where all of the bikes used are prototypes, the World Superbike Championship teams use production-based motorcycles to generate a spectacle of racing action around the world. FIM (Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme) rules dictate that the motorcycles used in World Superbike are based on recent or current production motorcycles which are available to the public through the usual commercial channels of each constructor. For 2009, a range of world leading motorcycle manufacturers will enter the Championship. Ducati, Aprilia, BMW, Honda, Kawasaki, Suzuki and Yamaha, will all compete for the top spot, with their production bikes competitively engineered within FIM regulations to boost performance.
FIM regulations and the use of production-based bikes mean that the World Superbike Championship is always very exciting for fans. Superbikes are highly-developed road-bikes with up-rated parts and improved performance. Boasting around 200bhp, they are able to reach incredible top speeds often in excess of 300 km/h and achieve comparable lap times to MotoGP bikes. Cornering is also executed with impressive traction and stability. Many road-going equivalents of the Superbikes are very high performance, and much of their capability is derived from manufacturer's developments on the track.
Shell uses precisely this principle of development for its products. Innovations at the track, through a long-standing close technical partnership with Ducati, are transferred to Shell V-Power road fuel and Shell Advance motorcycle oil, for the benefit of bikers worldwide.
