The first on-track test of the 2026 calendar year, to be held on 21-22 January, will see BbKRT take to the always-popular 4.423km Jerez circuit in Andalusia to continue the development of the potent bimota KB998 Rimini WorldSBK-spec machine.

With a winter of data analysis regarding the KB998 Rimini’s debut season in WorldSBK in 2025 behind them, and more development steps having been taken, all within the BbKRT squad are ready to make the most of every pre-season testing opportunity to evaluate technical progress. And, of course, to make final preparations for a season which starts in just about a month’s time.

Weather conditions are forecast to be mixed in the Jerez area during the period of the forthcoming test, an uncontrollable factor which may require some flexibility in the overall plan, simply to maximise the best track conditions in the most efficient way.

After the test days at Jerez the BbKRT squad will soon reconvene in Portugal for the final pre-season European test, at the uniquely undulating Autodromo Internacional do Algarve, for another two days of testing action. Those sessions will be held between 28-29 January.

The opening round of the 12-event WorldSBK season will take place at Phillip Island in Australia, between 20-22 February. The traditional official pre-season tests, which involve WorldSBK and WorldSSP categories, will take place at the same Australian venue between 16-17 February.

Alex Lowes stated: “I am looking forward to getting started again on the KB998 Rimini. The weather can always play its part in these initial January tests. The forecast does not look great, but whatever track time we can use, our target is to firstly confirm a few things that we tried in the November test. We have a few new ideas, especially with the setting of the bike. Pere, my crew chief, has been analysing all the data from 2025, trying to see if we can use a bit more of the acceleration of the bike. We have some new parts to try from Showa and also some new electronics - which is a constant evolution. The first thing is to have a shakedown after the winter break to get back into it. I am looking forward to being back together with the guys and starting off our 2026 season.”

Axel Bassani stated: “We are heading to the first test of the new year and I am hoping we will go in a good way there, and that we can work well. It feels like quite a short winter, but in the end, I am really happy to start again, work with the team, and jump on my KB998 Rimini on the track. It is only the first test of 2026, so it is important to get the correct feeling on the bike again. Then we will work on what we need and try to improve as much as we can before the first round in Australia. That will be in one month from now, so there is not a lot of time.”

Guim Roda, BbKRT Team Manager, stated: “These January tests, first in Jerez and then in Portimao, are quite important because this is the time that we basically receive many of the parts that we will have for the beginning of the season in Australia. Wintertime is used to produce a lot of the ideas that we have been testing or requesting during the previous season. At the end of the previous year, in October or November, we test on track in a kind of prototype mode. Now we produce a quantity of things and the idea in the next days is to use them to basically start to work 100% on set-up. That means, how to extract the maximum from all those solutions and parts we asked for, to be as ready as possible for the first round. So, these next days are important. It is also a time for the riders to get used to racetrack activity once more, because in WorldSBK the riders do not have so many opportunities to ride on track.”