WORLD SUPERBIKES RELEASES PROVISIONAL 2021 CALENDAR

The Motul FIM Superbike World Championship has released their first provisional calendar for 2021. Responding to - and anticipating developments in - the COVID-19 situation, the 13-round calendar includes some major changes over the typical WSBK schedule of recent years.

Chief amongst these is Australia losing its traditional season-opening slot, with the Phillip Island round moved to a yet-to-be-confirmed ‘Round 12’ date, most likely in late November.

In response to international travel restrictions under COVID that are likely to extend into next year, all the flyaway rounds, including Australia, Argentina and an all-new venue – Mandalika – in Indonesia have been positioned at the tail end of the 2021 season as WSBK confirms their earlier intention to run a “Europe-first” schedule.

The 13-round calendar concludes with a final TBC round, which given its position after the other flyaways, could mean a round at Sepang or Buriram, although Qatar is more likely, especially given earlier statements by Dorna that a “Middle East” circuit is being considered. Given that all the flyaways are currently listed as World Superbike and World Supersport only, it rules out European circuits that host World Supersport 300.

The European section of the 2021 WSBK calendar includes multiple rounds in Spain and Portugal, but the season gets underway at Assen in late April, almost two months after the usual start. From Assen, WSBK goes to Estoril, Aragon and Misano, with the last round before a summer break of almost two months being at Donington. Curiously, this round will be WSBK only and not WSS or WSS300.

After the summer break, the schedule gets more hectic, with four rounds packed into less than a month, including racing on three successive weekends at Catalunya, Jerez and Portimao.

WSBK organisers have previously stated their intention to clarify the flyaway rounds before the summer break, so there should be a decision on when the Phillip Island round will be held by July, or no later than August.

If 2020 is any guide, the 2021 calendar will almost certainly change before the provisional start date on 23-25 April at Assen, with several factors to impact the schedule, the least of which are contract issues for Estoril and Phillip Island, plus homologation approval for the new Indonesian circuit.

Overriding everything is how the COVID-19 pandemic develops, which in a worst-case scenario, could see the flyaways abandoned entirely and another Europe-only calendar held.