Bimota re-sign Lowes, Bassani for 2026 WorldSBK

After transforming from the Kawasaki Racing Team to the bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team (BbKRT) ahead of this year’s Motul FIM Superbike Word Championship (WorldSBK), the bimota team have announced they will retain their current rider lineup of Alex Lowes and Axel Bassani for the 2026 season.

Bimota’s return to WorldSBK this year (after more than a decade away from the championship) has yet to deliver consistently strong results. At time of writing, neither Lowes nor Bassani have tasted victory or even visited the podium on the bimota-framed, Kawasaki-engined KB998 Rimini. Lowes’s best finish has been a fourth in Race 1 at Most, while Bassani’s best was a fifth in Race 2 at Assen.

However, BbKRT believe that continuity will be important in delivering results for this project. Re-signing the current lineup this early is seen as important to this continuity.

“Alex and Axel have been doing an outstanding job this season and the progress they’ve made with the KB998 Rimini is undeniable,” said BbKRT Manager, Guim Roda. “Their true level of performance goes beyond what the current results might suggest, but this is something that must be understood within the context of this project's development phase. We are in the middle of an evolving process, using race activities as a key part of development. Our plan is to continue this work through the 2025 and 2026 WorldSBK seasons.”

Lowes, who has been in WorldSBK full-time since 2014, echoed Roda’s assessment of the bimota project.

“We have a lot of work to do, but our target is to bring the KB998 Rimini consistently to the front in WorldSBK,” the Brit said. “It’s still in the early stages of development, but everyone is working hard – both on and off the track – and I am proud to be part of the story. Every race is a test, a chance to keep moving forward. I’m very motivated for us to achieve some great success together.”

Bassani, who stepped up to WorldSBK in 2021, added: “I am really very happy to continue this project in 2026, sure in the knowledge that both the team and I can still grow a lot and meet some important goals together. Now we will stay focussed to finish this 2025 season in the best possible way and start charging again for 2026.”