The final round of the 2024 FIM Superbike World Championship

Stepping up to the WorldSSP300 Championship from the R3 bLU cRU World Cup, Aldi Satya Mahendra took glory for Yamaha in the FIM Supersport 300 World Championship, becoming the first ever Indonesian rider to win the title.

Stefano Manzi did all he could to keep the WorldSSP title alive with a stunning double victory, but it wasn’t quite enough for the Italian who took his second successive runner-up spot in the series on the weekend where it was announced he’d ride the new R9 in 2025.

In WorldSBK, Pata Prometeon Yamaha’s Andrea Locatelli returned to the podium for the first time since Most after an impressive display in race one. Here’s the verdict on the weekend from Yamaha Motor Europe’s Road Racing and Research and Development Manager Andrea Dosoli.

“It’s been a very busy few weeks for the WorldSBK guys as we’ve had four races in five weeks to end the season, so it has been a tough period! The final round in Jerez was a special event for many reasons, including the fact all four titles were to be decided.

“This led to a strong crowd of over 41,000, which is encouraging for a production based championship in Spain, which is a country with far more focus usually on the prototype series. The atmosphere in the paddock and interaction with the fans was nice to see, especially with the championship celebrations.

“It was also a special event for Yamaha as we unveiled the new R9 in public for the first time, both as a street legal bike and our new WorldSSP contender. I am happy to see that this got such a good reception, suggesting it is the right way to go in terms of the market and racing. Of course, in welcoming a new bike it means we see the R6’s time in WorldSSP come to an end after 25 years. In this time, the R6 has been undoubtably one of the best bikes in the Supersport class, winning ten rider world championships, ten manufacturer championships and 147 race victories. It was a nice end to the chapter with Stefano Manzi taking the R6 to two race wins in its last races before we move to the R9 next year.”

“The sporting pinnacle for us during the weekend was the World Championship victory of Aldi Satya Mahendra and the BR Corse team in the Supersport World Championship. The R3 has proven to be a competitive package and Aldi and the team worked very hard this year to achieve their dream. It is an important achievement for Yamaha too, because it shows a clear example of success from our bLU cRU programme. Last year, Aldi was a leading contender in the R3 Cup, only narrowly missing out on the championship, so to step up to WorldSSP300 with the support of Yamaha Indonesia, and win in his first year is a great achievement. He is the first Indonesian rider to become a World Champion, so he has put himself in the history books. I hope that this win will be an inspiration to kids in Indonesia as it shows exactly what can be possible. Congratulations to Aldi, the team and Yamaha Indonesia.

“We also must mention the victory of David Salvador and the MS Racing team, who have been a key part in Yamaha’s WorldSSP300 programme for many years – it was nice to see them back on the top step of the podium and congratulations to David for his maiden victory.

“As already mentioned, in World Supersport it was the perfect way to celebrate the end of the R6’s 25-year race history with a double victory for Stefano Manzi. Stefano rode incredibly in both races, in the first he was so strong nobody could challenge him, and in the second he showed resilience as Valentin Debise pushed him hard throughout the race. The end to the year has been impressive for Manzi, in the final 14 races of the year he was only off the podium once when he crashed in the wet in Magny Cours. Congratulations must also go to the Ten Kate team who won the teams championship for the fourth year in a row.

“Credit also has to go to Valentin Debise for second in the final race, meaning that the R6 ended its story in World Supersport with a 1-2. He pushed Manzi all the way in a very impressive ride for the Evans Bros team.”

“In WorldSBK, congratulations must go to Andrea Locatelli for his podium in Race 1. It was a strong ride, as he had pressure from behind from Alex Lowes all race. To keep his concentration and focus for all that time is impressive, especially when last weekend in Estoril he made two mistakes in similar positions so this must have also been on his mind. Not only did he show speed, but also the mental strength to achieve this result. He managed the gap and the race well, and it was nice to see him back on the podium as this is a clear display of the progress we’ve made in the last two rounds and this is a good sign for the future. In both races Locatelli clearly expressed the potential of the R1, so thanks to him and his crew.

“On the other side of the garage, after Estoril the expectation was high. Both the rider and the team expected more this weekend so were disappointed with the result achieved in Jerez. Again, a bad qualifying did not help the weekend as starting from so far back made things very difficult for Jonathan. There was improvement throughout the weekend though, especially in race two, but clearly, as usual, there is a lot of work to be done in the winter to improve the performance.

“I was very pleased to see the races of Dominique Aegerter this weekend, as he is still not 100% fit after his injuries. The way he rode in all three races confirmed not only his speed but also motivation! He was like a warrior given the level of performance and particularly fighting despite his fitness. He has good memories from Jerez, he was on the podium there last year, but we cannot ignore that he is far from being 100% fit so the results he achieved in the races are even more impressive, so congratulations to him and his crew.”

“It was also the last round of the WorldWCR, a programme which we have supported since it was announced by the FIM and Dorna. We are happy to see the way the championship developed, it offered tight races at the front with the races often decided on the last lap, and indeed the championship! It has been nice to see the progression of the riders, with quite a few riders cutting the gap to the leaders race by race resulting in some very exciting races in Jerez. This proves that the programme is also working to develop the riders. Congratulations to Ana Carrasco for the title, and also to Maria and Sara for a great season. I hope this championship has been an inspiration for women around the world, there has definitely been growing interest and we look forward to seeing the entry list next year.

“Jerez was also the last WorldSBK race for Paolo Pavesio before he moves to manage Yamaha’s MotoGP project next year. Paolo has been the key figure in all of Yamaha Motor Europe’s motorsport activities, not only because he has shaped the racing strategy and encouraged us all to continue improving but also he has endorsed strongly inside of Yamaha and exploited the potential of motorsport to show its value, generating the interest and resources that allow us to run the racing programme. Personally, on behalf of all the riders and our teams, I would like to thank him and wish him all the best in the new chapter of his career.

“So the 2024 season is now over, and it has been an intense one for Yamaha with not only our racing activities in WorldSBK, WorldSSP and WorldWCR but also the R3 bLU cRU World Cup and WorldWCR. I’d like to thank our riders and teams for all their hard work, and a special thanks must also go to Gianluca Montiron and his JiR team for all of their work running the operational side of the R3 World Cup and WorldWCR. Now, there will be a short period of rest but not for long, as we begin preparations for the new season with our winter testing programme beginning shortly.”