BMW rider Loris Baz compares the M1000RR from the 2022 WSBK season with the S1000RR from 2018 and recognises clear differences in the bike and the teams
As tenth in the World Championship, Loris Baz is currently the best-placed BMW rider in the World Superbike Championship rider standings. In the six races at Aragon and Assen, Baz collected 28 points and is ahead of factory riders Scott Redding and Michael van der Mark, as well as Bonovo teammate Eugene Laverty.
Baz is already familiar with the BMW Superbike from the 2018 season, when the Frenchman returned to World Superbike after three years in MotoGP, riding a BMW S1000RR for Althea. According to Baz, the current factory bike has very little in common with the customer BMW from back then.
“You can’t compare the bikes with each other”, “Sure, both have an in-line four-cylinder engine. After my time at BMW, I rode the Yamaha R1, which also has an in-line four-cylinder engine and behaves completely differently. After that I rode the Ducati with its V4 engine. “
“The only memory I have of the 2018 BMW is the feel of the front wheel. With the in-line four-cylinder engine, the bike offers a very good feel for the front. I already liked that on the old bike. It’s the same with the new bike. The rest of the bike and the electronics are completely different,” compares the WSBK race winner.
Much better development at Bonovo than at Althea
The Bonovo team has the status of being a BMW satellite team and can therefore source factory material. But Baz says the way they work is also completely different to Althea’s in the 2018 season. “We worked very differently then. We couldn’t get a grip on our problems,” he recalls.
“From the first race to the last, nothing changed then. It’s different now. We are now part of a factory project. All four riders provide the same comments and want the same changes to improve the M1000RR. In the 2018 season I was alone,” Baz notes.
How far is the BMW from the Ducati?
Last year Baz attracted attention during his stints as a replacement for GoEleven Ducati rider Chaz Davies and recommended himself for the job at Bonovo-BMW. After podium finishes at Portimao 2021, Baz described the Ducati Panigale V4R in WSBK trim as the best bike he has ever ridden. Where does the BMW M1000RR stand in direct comparison?
“I can’t really judge the potential of the BMW yet,” notes Baz. “We are improving with every stint. I hope we will be as good as the best in the World Superbike Championship. But the BMW will never be a Ducati. The engine is different,” said the experienced Frenchman.
“Every bike has its own strengths and weaknesses. The goal is to follow the Kawasaki,” he explains. “The Kawasaki is a good reference. The engine character is similar. We are not yet at the level of the bike I rode at the end of last season. But we are improving. That is important. “
