Garrett Gerloff and his Kawasaki WorldSBK Team took part in a two-day test alongside many of their 2026 rivals, between 21-22 January, at the classic Circuito de Jerez – Angel Nieto in Spain.
Riding the 2026 WorldSBK version of the Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10RR, with some new aerodynamic and other developments for the forthcoming season, Gerloff found that the weather conditions were often not ideal as he got back into track mode after two months off the bike during the winter break.
A small period in the final afternoon delivered almost dry track conditions, although some damp patches persisted, preventing a full evaluation of any new parts or set-up changes.
Gerloff made the most of the drier period to go 11th fastest, setting a 1’40.445 best lap.
Now the Kawasaki WorldSBK Team is hoping for better weather for the next pre-season tests, which are scheduled to take place at the Autodromo Internacional do Algarve in Portugal, between 28 and 29 January.
The 2025 FIM Superbike World Championship season begins at Phillip Island in Australia, between 20-22 February, after the now traditional official tests between 16-17 February.
Kawasaki WorldSSP Team riders Jeremy Alcoba and Dominique Aegerter got their preparations for the 2026 season restarted after the traditional winter break at the Circuito de Jerez – Ángel Nieto during a two-day test session, which was between 21-22 January.
Alcoba proved both his and the Ninja ZX-6R 636’s podium prowess in his rookie WorldSSP season last year, and this time around, double champion in this category, Aegerter adds his considerable talents to the overall 2026 Kawasaki effort.
Often poor weather accompanied the two days of recent Jerez testing, but team staff and riders alike made the best of their opportunities before another test takes place at Portimao next week.
Despite the damp track sections that were still evident during the driest spells of the final day at Jerez, each Kawasaki rider set over 50 laps of the 4.423km-long circuit.
Alcoba was the second quickest WorldSSP rider, with a 1’43.500 best lap. Aegerter set a 1’44.501, with all riders who rode on each day setting their fastest laps on the second and final day.
Manuel Puccetti
“There’s not a lot to say in that we spent a day and a half testing on a wet track and only had two hours this afternoon in the dry, so there wasn’t sufficient time to complete the work we had planned. Hopefully the next tests in Portimao can be more productive and we’ll be able to make up for some of the time lost here in Spain, also because we’ll have two dedicated Supersport days (26-27) followed by two Superbike days (28-29). Winter testing in Europe makes little sense, in that we’ve almost always experienced bad weather in recent years. It would be better to test outside of Europe, in hotter climes, as although this would clearly cost more, it would allow us to test in a more complete and constructive way.”
Garrett Gerloff
“I have been waiting for two months to get out here and ride the bike, but the weather has been horrible at times. It is frustrating for the team and myself. In the end, we got 20 laps in the dry-ish conditions. It was like half wet and half dry out there. It was a little sketchy, and a lot of guys crashed on the water at T5, so luckily we stayed up on two wheels. I got to feel a bit of a difference in the aero package from last year, but in the end, it wasn’t enough laps to really get a full feeling for everything, so we still need more time. I felt I was able to turn better in the faster corners, and that I had the front a bit more planted on the ground. I did not get a whole lot of time to do back-to-back with anything.”
Jeremy Alcoba
“We have waited for these two testing days for a long time, but the weather was not good, so we couldn’t test many things. On Wednesday, in the rain, I felt super good, but it was really just to test that everything was OK. On the final day, we had to wait for some time for better conditions to arrive on the track, and when the track was drier, we went out. We did 19 laps, not too much, but it was good to have a test on the Ninja ZX-6R 636 after a long time. I am happy to have been back on the bike, but we could not take a lot of information. Let’s see if the weather is better in Portimao and if it is, we can try other things.”
Dominique Aegerter
“This was our first test in 2026, and the first day was wet. We did some laps in the wet conditions to check that everything was working, and for me, this was the first time riding the Ninja ZX-6R 636 in the rain. It was all OK, but today we were hoping for better weather. It was difficult because we could only use about two hours of the day, and there were still some damp patches, but the team made a great job. We had the things I wanted to change after the previous test in November. We are still a little bit far away, but we made laps to be sure of what we need for the next test in Portimao and then the first race of the season in Australia. We are still working, and I feel great on the bike, on the physical side. Thanks to the team because they have done a lot of work in the short winter. I hope we will have better weather in Portimao for the next test.”
