Excellent first time out for the BMW M in Jerez. On track next week for the direct comparison with Superbike opponents in Barcelona
Will the new BMW M1000RR become a threat to the current Superbike queen Kawasaki? Tom Sykes, Michael van der Mark and Jonas Folger concluded the three-day test in Jerez. It was the first-ever time out for the new German brand. With a qualifying tire, the British lapped in 1’38 “, a slap-up performance. The weather conditions in Andalusia were perfect and Tom Sykes is superlative when there is an all or nothing to shoot. Just to offer a recent comparison, last week Alex Lowes in Jerez with Kawasaki did 1’38 ″ 9. Next week, all the teams will meet in Barcelona (March 31-April 1) and it will be the first concrete verification of the values on the pitch.
With the new M series, the German engineers are convinced that they have filled in the gaps complained of by the previous S. The engine is more powerful and the new aerodynamics have been designed to improve top speed and stability. This means less stress on the tires, which in the previous two seasons were Tom Sykes’ weakness. The Briton was very fast on the flying lap, hitting the Superpole at Donington 2019 and Phillip Island 2020. But in the race, he only shone when he found tracks and weather conditions that were not very good for the tires. Sykes has four podium finishes, all in 2019, with the best final placement being eighth, two years ago. Just a little bit, for the same rider who raced against Jonathan Rea with Kawasaki.
“There is potential to exploit”
Tom Sykes had not been driving since the Monday following the last round of 2019 in Estoril, last October. In that circumstance, he had the opportunity to become familiar with the old BMW series, updated with some parts of the M. “We did well to skip the previous releases, the boys stayed at home setting up the new bikes that are already well prepared. It was a very productive first outing, everything worked as I expected. This project has a lot of potential, and I can’t wait to compare myself with the other top Superbike riders,”