That is continuity at its finest, because Mattia Rato and Twan Smits are locked in to stay with the Motoxracing WorldSBK Team for the 2027 MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship campaign. Having finished the 2026 season together across the final three rounds, both riders have inked a contract extension with Sandro Carusi’s squad.
Now, Rato started his 2026 journey with the team after a stellar run in the Italian Supersport championship last year, where the Monza-born rider took third place with three wins and seven podiums. Things were tough in the world championship, mind you, as he scored points on just two occasions all year: a 14th place finish in Race 2 at Balaton Park and a 15th place points-finish on home soil in Race 2 at Cremona.
Then there is Smits, who came into the fold for the final three rounds of 2026 to replace Bahattin Sofuoglu. The Dutchman spent the bulk of his year fighting in the German Superbike championship, grabbing fourth overall with four wins and six podiums before jumping over to WorldSBK for the final stretch at Cremona, Estoril, and Jerez. Of course, his actual WorldSBK debut happened earlier in the year as a wildcard at Assen for Team Apreco, riding Yamaha machinery.
The exciting part for next year is that the machines are getting a serious upgrade. Yamaha is stepping up to provide the latest spec R1 machines to the team, which should give Rato and Smits a proper fighting chance to break into the points-paying positions on a much more regular basis.
Reflecting on his renewal, Rato said: “I’m very happy to have renewed my contract with Motoxracing and to be able to continue my journey in both WorldSBK and with the team. This is exactly what I was hoping for, as I want to build on the work we started this year and continue developing as a rider. Overall, the season we’ve just completed has been positive. I struggled a little more in some races, while in others I was able to perform well. All in all, I’m quite satisfied with what we’ve achieved, but I’m convinced we can do even better next year. Our goal will be to improve on this season’s results and get closer to the riders ahead of us. I’m highly motivated to keep working hard, continue improving and take another step forward.”
Smits added: “I’m extremely happy and grateful to continue this journey with Yamaha Motoxracing. A huge thank you goes to everyone involved and especially Yamaha who made this opportunity possible. I’m looking forward to continue working together and hopefully make great progress throughout 2027.”
Team Manager Carusi stated: “For 2027, we have chosen to continue building on the work we have developed with Mattia and Twan. Mattia made significant progress in his first WorldSBK season and has built a strong bond with the team. We want to build on this understanding to take another step forward. Twan joined us only for the final three rounds, but his approach and qualities convinced us to put our trust in him for a full season. The updates provided by Yamaha represent a sign of confidence in our project and give us additional motivation. Our job will be to make the most of them and give both riders the best possible conditions to perform and improve our results. Special thanks to Yamaha for their support and for strongly backing Twan’s arrival in our team, sharing this project with us. I would also like to thank all our sponsors and partners who make this commitment possible and continue to believe in our work.”
