In 2024, Andrea Iannone returns to the track after a four-year suspension for a positive anti-doping test. The pilot competes in the Superbike World Championship with Team GoEleven, on a Ducati Panigale V4 R. In his past career in MotoGP, he represented the factory team of the manufacturer Borgo Panigale.
Other WSBK riders have had the opportunity to experience the premier class bikes in one way or another: Álvaro Bautista had a wildcard entry at the Malaysian GP last year, and also in 2023, Toprak Razgatlioglu has tested the Yamaha YZR-M1, while Iker Lecuona was a replacement rider for Honda on some occasions.
In an interview with La Gazzetta dello Sport, Iannone did not rule out testing a premier class bike: “For now, I don’t think about it, but as a rider, what could be better than riding the most technological and fastest bike that exists? We do not rule out doing a test in the future‘.
Regarding the current state of the first class, The Maniac is impressed with the performance of the bikes, but believes that the races have lost the element of duel: “It’s fascinating how fast they are. But it seems to me that you win the race on the first lap, if you start from the front, it’s fine, if you’re behind, you fight. The duel is lost. MotoGP continues, but…‘.
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