Pata Maxus Yamaha Pursue Positive Momentum to Fight for the Podium in Most

Andrea Locatelli, Jonathan Rea and team Pata Maxus Yamaha return to the fray for the Czech Round of the 2025 FIM Superbike World Championship, this weekend in Most from 16-18 May.

After an outstanding start to the season, which saw his maiden WorldSBK category victory in Assen last month, Locatelli aims to bring a winning mindset and methodical work ethic to build a strong performance. Most podiums in 2021 and 2024 and a raft of top-six finishes bode well for the 28-year-old.

Teammate Rea has been working to get back to full fighting strength following his injury at Phillip Island. The six-time World Champion has tasted success in the Czech Republic in the past with podiums and a win, and hopes the circuit layout will assist in helping him start to display the speed and confidence he had in winter pre-season testing.

“Most is quite a nice track to ride, there’s a lot to it and I raced there in my final season in WorldSBK,” Yamaha’s Rider Coach Eugene Laverty explains. “The first thing to note is the rear tyre that Pirelli have to bring – even though the circuit is clockwise, there are three fast left-hand corners where the shoulder of the tyre gets worked incredibly hard. It’s an area where a rider can make a lot of lap time – and only a few really have the skill to spin on top of the tyre to turn the bike in those fourth/fifth-gear corners. In the first two sectors, a rider that is precise can also gain time with a few inside and outside curbs that add extra metres of track to their cornering arc. Finally, Sector 3 is incredibly well-suited to the R1 WorldSBK – in the slow right-left-right sequence of corners the Yamaha riders were phenomenal last year and it really displayed the strength of the bike.”

Free Practice 1 kicks off at 10:35 CEST on Friday morning, the first of two 45-minute sessions to get up to speed at the start of the race weekend.

Andrea Locatelli:

“We’re ready to hit the track this weekend at Most, a place that has always given us good sensations and solid results. It’s a track that suits our characteristics well, and in the past, we’ve been able to show our full potential right from the first sessions. The goal is clear: keep the positive momentum going by approaching the weekend with the right mindset and working methodically to build a strong performance. Focusing on race pace and making the most out of every session will be key to preparing for both qualifying and the race. The feeling is good, my motivation is high, and we know we have what it takes to be up there again. I’m keeping my head down, steady work, and full focus to bring home another strong result.”

Jonathan Rea:

“It’s going to be nice to be back on my R1 so quickly after a difficult return weekend in Cremona – even coming back from injury, the results were well below my expectations but I had to start somewhere. Most is a more familiar track, despite still being relatively new on the WorldSBK calendar, where I’ve had some good races, podiums and a win. Last year, I had a crash in qualifying and had to start further back but my pace all weekend was pretty fast and at the end of Race 2, I was one of the fastest riders on track. The circuit layout should be more favourable for me as a clockwise circuit, reducing the demand on my left foot. Since Cremona, even with some pain still getting into a motocross boot, I’ve been riding a lot of MX to work on building up my bike strength. We’re ready to go again – it’s a step-by-step process to get back to the pace we showed in pre-season but I am looking forward to it and we know more what to expect this weekend in the Czech Republic.”