After officially launching its second season in the FIM World Superbike Championship last week, Team BMW Motorrad Motorsport has set some major goals to put the BMW name on top in the 2010 championship.
“Our goal is to close the gap to the leading teams,” Director BMW Motorrad Motorsport Berthold Hauser said. “We are aiming to finish in the top five as regularly as possible and pick up our first podium. That’s the ambitious aim we have set ourselves for our second year in what is an extremely challenging World Championship.
“However, we are well aware that our competitors have not been standing still either. The Superbike World Championship brings us up against six motorcycle manufacturers who have established themselves on the race track. You can set yourself aims in sport and make plans to achieve them, but you cannot dictate results - those have to be earned out on the track. Team BMW Motorrad Motorsport is working flat out to make this possible.”
And the same riders that rode for team last year will be competing for the 2010 championship on the BMW S1000RR: two-time champion Troy Corser and Ruben Xaus. Combined, the pair has 507 starts and 44 wins in the WSBK series.
“I definitely want to win another World Championship before the end of my career,” the Australian said. “The next step along the road to achieving that goal is to collect as many top-five finishes as possible this season. You can sense the determination of BMW Motorrad to climb the ladder.”
Xaus didn’t have much luck during his first season racing superbikes on the BMW; the Barcelonan crashed at Brno, having to get three screws in his femur. But last season will not deter him from his goals this year.
“I'm very happy to be competing as part of such a strong works team and to be playing my part in this project from the ground up, Xaus said. “We are looking to take the next step in 2010 to ensure that our goals become reality in the not too distant future.”
The general director of BMW Motorrad, Hendrik von Kuenheim, says when building the BMW S 1000 RR, the Bavarian company was clear in it’s goals: “build a supersport bike for the road with genes from the racetrack.”
“Our aim was to be battling for pole position in the supersport segment straightaway - and we did that in impressive fashion,” Kuenheim said. “Never before has one of our new motorcycles enjoyed such positive press reviews. Showcasing the potential of this bike on the track as well as on the road is a logical move for BMW Motorrad. The Superbike World Championship pits us against our direct competitors, and we are looking to show that we can match or even get the better of them.”
Following the tests in Portimão and Valencia, Team BMW Motorrad Motorsport is now preparing for Phillip Island in Australia Feb. 26.28, the first of 13 circuits on the World Superbike calendar. The team will be on the Phillip Island Circuit for pre-race testing Feb. 20-22.
