The Superbike market has entered the heat and on the eve of the Portimao round here comes some significant news. As we anticipated on the occasion of the Most round, Manuel Puccetti will continue next year with Kawasaki, which has become a fully-fledged official team.
As if that were not enough, it will field a new rider, namely Garrett Gerloff. After the conclusion of the adventure with BMW in Bonovo, the American has decided to accept a new challenge, namely the one in green with the Kawasaki colors.
Below is the press release issued by the team.
Ninja presence continues in the WorldSBK paddock and on the grid. As part of its ongoing global Ninja marketing and awareness strategy, Kawasaki has announced that Kawasaki Puccetti Racing will be responsible for the continuation of Ninja Kawasaki’s presence in WorldSBK next season, with the race- and championship-winning Ninja ZX-10RR package.
With this strategic move, Kawasaki will therefore be more involved than ever in WorldSBK with both the “Bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team” and “Ninja ZX-10RR” brands, continuing to entertain racing fans around the world.
Fielding the Ninja ZX-10RR currently competing with the Kawasaki Racing Team in WorldSBK in 2025 represents a new milestone in the history of Kawasaki Puccetti Racing. The Italian squad will be the official team that will maintain the Ninja presence on the grid of a world-renowned championship, with a huge following and a large audience.
In 2024 the Reggio Emilia-based team celebrated twenty years of racing with the Kawasaki brand. They currently compete in WorldSBK with rider Tito Rabat and are widely recognised as a driving force in WorldSSP. They have achieved significant European successes in Stock 600 and Stock 1000, as well as two WorldSSP world titles. Furthermore, the team has achieved twenty-three race wins in the WorldSSP class plus two race wins and sixteen podiums to date in WorldSBK. Speaking ahead of the season, an understandably happy Manuel Puccetti reflected on his namesake team’s racing journey: “On behalf of myself and my team, as well as my sponsors and family, I would like to express how much of an honor and a privilege this is for us. Since my early days in racing I have always appreciated the elements that make a rider or a team successful. I started racing on a 125cc production bike in an Italian Cup race in the late 1990s and in 2002 I took the difficult step of becoming a team owner. I started with just a truck, a few motorcycles and a loyal group of sponsors. From that start we have worked and worked to become what we are now; a team that can boast World, European and National Championships under our belt and a record of success that includes over 120 podiums. In 2025, we will be fielding the current KRT Ninja ZX-10RR bikes and I can only say that for me this is a dream come true. Rest assured that we will do our best to satisfy the ambitions of Ninja fans around the world in the next season. We are truly honored.”
Experienced American rider Garrett Gerloff will join the Kawasaki Puccetti Racing team on the Ninja ZX-10RR for 2025, bringing with him proven podium-finishing ability and an unwavering desire to achieve even greater results.
For Kawasaki, Shigemi Tanaka, General Manager, Marketing and Sales Division, Kawasaki Motors, Ltd. explained the philosophy behind the latest WorldSBK strategy: “Manuel has a unique combination of experience, results and enthusiasm and his record of success is tangible proof of his tenacity and professionalism. The Kawasaki Puccetti Racing team is already working closely with KRT in the current WorldSBK championship and therefore the communication channels on WorldSBK issues are firmly established and productive. For Kawasaki, it is important to maintain a presence in WorldSBK with our Ninja brand. With our support for Kawasaki Puccetti Racing and through the loan of our resources and Factory Ninja ZX-10RRs, we can publicly show our appreciation for Kawasaki Puccetti Racing and be confident that the Ninja brand will continue to play a significant role in the WorldSBK paddock.”
