bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team riders Axel Bassani and Alex Lowes will once again race the bimota KB998 Rimini next season as each rider has reached an agreement to compete again for their existing team in the 2027 FIM Superbike World Championship.
The Misano World Circuit ‘Marco Simoncelli’ is home round for bimota as a manufacturer, which makes the timing of the double rider announcement particularly special for all involved in the WorldSBK KB998 Rimini project.
After a strong start for the first year of the KB998 Rimini’s racing life, in 2025, this season delivered podium results for both riders at the very first round.
Retaining the services of two of the WorldSBK Championship’s most potent riders should ensure that not only can the team aim for strong race results, but the whole project can continue in a linear and progressive fashion because of Alex and Axel’s shared experience with the KB998.
As it stands, on the eve of the first races at Misano, 35-year-old Alex has scored five of his 51 career WorldSBK podiums on the KB998. Alex has taken four WorldSBK race wins (three for Kawasaki) and is third on the list of the riders with the most race starts in this category. He entered WorldSBK as the reigning BSB champion back in 2014, and pre-Misano had started 372 individual WorldSBK races.
Axel has a long experience of several race classes in his younger years, and has been a regular in WorldSBK since 2021. Axel won the Independent Rider’s Championship in WorldSBK before he joined the Kawasaki Racing Team as an official rider in 2024. Like Alex, Axel became a BbKRT rider in the first year of the new project, 2025. The 26-year-old Italian has recorded eight podium positions in WorldSBK, with the most recent two taken in bimota colours, at PI earlier this year. Alex is due to start his 200th WorldSBK race in the first 21-lap contest at his home round of Misano.
Before the start of the third season for Axel and Alex in WorldSBK with BbKRT in 2027, there is the small matter of competing hard in the six remaining rounds of the current championship, starting this weekend in Misano and then moving on to Donington Park, Magny-Cours, Cremona, Estoril and finally Jerez.
Axel Bassani, stated: “I am really happy to continue this project. Especially in the last year we have started to grow up a lot. Also, the changes we did inside the team helped keep a lot to continue our project in a good way and I think we are working well. I think it was the best decision to continue for one more year in our work. I think we have a lot of margin to grow up once again and we shall see this year and next year. Thank you to the team, bimota and Kawasaki for this opportunity.”
Alex Lowes, stated: “Continuing with the team for the next two years feels really special to me. There’s a real family feeling within the team and crew, and that makes this project even more motivating to be part of. I’m fully dedicated to helping develop the bike on track and supporting the growth of the bimota brand in racing and also for the road bike range. The encouragement of the fans is something that motivates me to try harder at every race, plus the positive input from the bimota factory and Kawasaki in Japan. It really is an impressive, global enterprise. I passionately believe in this project, it means so much to me and I’m excited to keep pushing together for success in the WorldSBK championship.”
Chairman of the board bimota S.p.A and Managing Director of Kawasaki Motors Europe, Shigemi Tanaka, stated: “The BbKRT racing project is defined by strength, stability, and success. We look forward with optimism, knowing that Alex and Axel will continue their successful relationship with the KB998 Rimini and enjoy the positive strength that comes from working together as a team. Of course, our goal is to both win on track and also widen the retail appeal of the bimota brand; that is ultimately how we will judge our success.”
Guim Roda, bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team Manager, stated: “It is a source of great pride for us to renew with both Alex and Axel at the same time. This allows us to reinforce our image as a true team, which is essential for continuing to move forward and further develop the KB998R in the future. The performance and commitment that both riders bring to the project are key factors in enabling us to progress with solid and consistent steps. They have both understood the complexity of a championship that starts from a production-based motorcycle, as well as the challenges manufacturers face in adapting different road-bike philosophies to perform at the highest level in competition. We are all working together to extract the maximum potential from the production motorcycle while simultaneously contributing new solutions that can be transferred back to the road bike. Continuing with Alex and Axel allows us to eliminate variables and focus on the areas where we can make meaningful improvements, knowing that we have two of the finest riders on the grid. Our task now is to refine our package for 2026 and prepare for a highly competitive 2027 season, where the performance level across the field will be closer than ever. This will enable us to deliver great racing and an outstanding show for all the fans.”
Pierluigi Marconi, Chief Operating Officer of bimota, stated: “bimota is a racing brand. To achieve your ambitions on track, you need a winning combination of machine, rider, and team, which we believe we have. Our goal is to continue our growth curve in terms of releasing yet more potential from the KB998 Rimini. With Alex and Axel as part of the project for 2027, we believe we have our “dream team” and can look forward with optimism and be even more competitive on the racetrack and in the showroom.”
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