PATA YAMAHA PROMETEON WORLDSBK WELCOMES JONATHAN REA

Just 24 hours after the end of the 2023 season, six-time FIM Superbike World Champion Jonathan Rea stepped into the Pata Yamaha Prometeon WorldSBK pit box for the first time to meet his #65 Yamaha R1 WorldSBK – featuring a special grey, white and carbon fibre winter test livery which hints at some of Yamaha’s historical colour schemes. 

Welcomed by his new crew and Yamaha’s engineers, Rea enjoyed a detailed riding position fitting in advance of one of the most highly-anticipated manufacturer changes in WorldSBK history. Tomorrow will be the first chance to see Rea and the #65 R1 WorldSBK on track, as two days of testing commence at Circuito de Jerez – Ángel Nieto.  

Jonathan Rea:  

“It’s been an incredible first day and it was so surreal putting on my Pata Yamaha Prometeon WorldSBK polo – the feeling in blue is really nice – and when I walked into the box, everyone was so enthusiastic. I felt a lot of love and support straight away – the attention to detail on the team is amazing. From even my rider office having personalised logos in there already, to getting perfectly fitted on the bike – the attention to detail on that process was incredible. I just can’t wait now to spin my first laps on the R1. It’s a bike that I’ve seen up close on track but never had an opportunity to ride, so for tomorrow the main idea is to get comfortable on the bike – to understand my crew, for them to understand me and of course, to learn and have a positive outcome. Between now and Phillip Island we have a lot of time, but first impressions are always important and today was a really good one. I’m really excited to start and I want to thank everyone from Crescent Racing, Yamaha Motor Europe and all the sponsors for this opportunity because I think it’s going to be a great partnership and I’m looking forward to it.”

Paul Denning – Team Principal, Pata Yamaha Prometeon WorldSBK:

“We witnessed one of the most exciting race performances ever in WorldSBK yesterday afternoon, and here we are only 24 hours later looking forward to a surreal moment. Back in the day, I honestly never dreamed we would get a rider of Jonathan Rea’s stature to join our team and to see him climbing on the R1 today with a huge smile on his face has created an incredibly enthusiastic atmosphere and a lot of hope for the 2024 season. The next two days will be extremely interesting, but we want to start in a very step-by-step way without any pressure. The plan is to allow Jonathan to learn the R1 after so many years on a different bike and to treat this as the “first touch”, the first experience together and build from here. “JR” is a rider that history has shown will always deliver the goods, and we can’t wait to start this journey together.”