Racing News

    Following his first World Superbike win at Nurburgring last week on the ParkinGO MTC Racing Aprilia RSV4, Chaz Davies has signed with BMW Motorrad for the 2013 World SBK season.

    Davies, the 2011 World Supersport Champion (Yamaha ParkinGO Team), will pilot a factory BMW S1000RR alongside the Italian Marco Melandri, who gave BMW its first World SBK win at Miller Motorsports Park this season. The 25-year-old Welshman is a rookie World SBK rider this season, and besides his win, he also took three other podiums aboard the Aprilia RSV3.

    Andrea Buzzoni, General Manager of, BMW Motorrad Italia, which will run the BMW Motorrad team in 2013, said: "We are happy that we can welcome Chaz to the BMW Motorrad family. On his way through the ranks, Chaz showed how talented and fast he is. His title win in the Supersport World Championship in 2011 was impressive proof of that.

    "In his current debut season in the Superbike World Championship, it did not take him long to win his first race. We are convinced that Marco and Chaz will form a premium rider line-up, and that in combination with the BMW S 1000 RR, we will have one of the strongest packages in the World Championship."

    The announcement would seem to leave BMW's Motorrad's other rider, Leon Haslam, out in the cold. After a strong start, he hasbeen plagued by injuries and plain bad luck.––Paul Duchene