WorldSBK Team Launch: Ducati Unveil their 2024 Panigale V4 R Livery with Bautista and Bulega
Madonna di Campiglio set the scene for the second year in a row for the official team lauch of the Aruba.it Racing – Ducati Team ahead of this year’s MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship.
With the Grand Ridge Brewery Australian Round at Phillip Island Circuit taking place on 23rd to 25th February, team launches offer an exciting first look at what the 2024 World Superbike grid will look like.
The Aruba.it Racing – Ducati squad are the latest to take the covers off their 2024 livery, showcasing the magnificent Panigale V4 R machine that Reigning World Champion Alvaro Bautista will be mounted on, along with his new teammate and 2023 World Supersport Champion, Nicolo Bulega.
The team launch was joined by many key figures from both Ducati Corse and the Aruba.it Racing – Ducati team, who all spoke on a number of key topics ahead of this years season.
First up to speak was Ducati Corse CEO Claudio Domenicali, who previewed the upcoming WorldSBK campaign and outlined his goals for the year after Ducati’s year of success in 2023 when the Italian brand won both the MotoGP™ and WorldSBK Riders’ Championships. He said: “Ducati has a great history towards beauty and design; design’s always been a very important element but it’s even more important today. Beauty fills our hearts. We were Champions last year in MotoGP™ and WorldSBK. This is something unprecedented as no company has won MotoGP™ and WorldSBK two years in a row, so I think this is a goal that needs to be consolidated. The question might be ‘how can you do even better this season?’.”
With a near dominant performance from Alvaro Bautista throughout the past two seasons, securing back-to-back World Championships and heading into the 2024 season with the prestigious number 1 plate, Bautista is looking down the barrel of becoming only the second rider to win three consecutive Championships should he take this year’s WorldSBK crown.
This season will be a great challenge with so many changes compared to last year; last year we only changed the number! I switched from #19 to #1 but this year will be full of serious changes. My teammate this year is very young and strong, and he pushes a lot. When you have a young teammate, you know that person is hungry for victories. He wants to do his best. I’m extremely happy because he’s here with me. The regulations have changed compared to last year. Some changes are good for us, they will help us, but some other details are not so good for me. Some are about minimum weight, but we are trying to reach the same levels as last year. Every year is different from the previous one, and we will try to be as competitive as possible. When changes arrive, you have two ways to face them. You can feel defeated or disadvantaged or you can accept the challenge, take it on and do your best. I have picked the second option. I want to do my best. I’m happy about Nicolo’s arrival and this makes me feel more motivated. I will try to do my best and I’ll try to be even better than last season.”
While Bautista’s teammate is coming into the 2024 World Superbike grid as a rookie, there is no denying his capabilities this season onboard the Panigale V4 R. Taking Michael Ruben Rinaldi’s spot in the Aruba.it Racing – Ducati garage, he is no stranger to dominating on the world stage, taking out the 2023 WorldSSP title and proving his spot as a factory rider from his first outing with the team.
The #11 spoke about having the reigning Champion as a teammate, experiencing the launch from inside the event and more. The Italian said: “Being here with these beautiful bikes is just amazing. Being here with incredible teammates is wonderful. This is a beautiful experience, seeing it from inside and outside. Last year, when I was called to join this presentation, I was extremely happy. I’m enjoying it and I’ll do my best. Having Alvaro with me in the team will be tough because he’s such a good racer. I’ll be suffering because Alvaro will be fast all the time, throughout the season. It’ll be my first year as an official rider, so I will have to learn so many things. Having Alvaro as a teammate will be paramount, will be crucial, for me. I’ll try to copy and paste, steal some secrets from him, to be faster. It’s an amazing motorcycle. In my opinion, this new livery is amazing. Last year, it was already beautiful, but this is even better.”
