Superbike: Stefan Bradl is confident about his new adventure

Among the new faces that are emerging on the starting grid of next year's Motul FIM Superbike World Championship, one of the most anticipated will certainly be Stefan Bradl, a 26-year-old German rider who has recently signed to move from MotoGP to Worldsbk in Team Honda.

In the Ten Kate team he will find another former colleague transplanted from the top category of the world championship, Nicky Hayden, who has already achieved a victory and a couple of podiums this year.
2017 is also the year of the long-awaited new CBR Honda and the conditions, therefore, seem to be all there to do well, it is no coincidence that Bradl immediately said he has great confidence in Honda and in the new Team.

The German rider arrives among the production derivatives after debuting in the MotoGP world championship in 2005, winning seven Grands Prix and obtaining 8 pole positions: the icing on the cake was the Moto2 World Championship title in 2011.

We report the interview that Stefan Bradl gave to WorldSBK.com to welcome him to Worldsbk.

Stefan, welcome to the WorldSBK paddock in advance! How did you get here?

Thank you! I basically started thinking about World Superbike around the Barcelona Grand Prix. The situation with Aprilia was not clear, so I thought about other opportunities. I have always followed World Superbike, it is close to MotoGP and I know it. So during the short break between the Barcelona and Assen GPs I thought about it and in Holland I met Ronald Ten Kate, the owner of the Honda team, and the guys from Honda Europe. That was our first meeting and the idea was very good. I felt really welcome and everything went well. I felt at ease straight away and we reached an agreement.

Was there a key moment when you felt change was necessary?

In MotoGP, this season, the market started early. My initial priority was to stay with Aprilia because I feel good in this team and I wanted to continue there. They had already signed one driver (Sam Lowes), so there was only one seat open. There was another opportunity to stay in MotoGP with another team, but when I got in touch with Honda I immediately had very good feelings to go and see what is happening in World Superbike.

In 2017 you'll be teaming up with Nicky Hayden, are you excited?

I'm looking forward to having Nicky as a teammate. We know each other very well and we get along well. We had some good battles together in MotoGP, he is a great rider and is doing really well in World Superbike. I think we can work very well together, trying to beat each other and we will stimulate each other! Honda is a really good team for next year.

Some of the WorldSBK circuits will be new to you…

I know the Lausitzring, but the last time I raced there was ten years ago. I don't think new circuits are that much different, learning a new track is usually not a big problem for me. The biggest challenge will be to adapt to the bike, which will probably be the biggest difference compared to MotoGP, because in WorldSBK the bike moves more and you have to use your body even more to compensate for some things. And then I have to see what the Pirelli tires will be like.

The Honda bike has been described as a "radical Fireblade", but we still don't know why. Do you know anything more?

I'm confident (laughs)! Honda is a really great manufacturer and a good factory that I have had good experiences with in the past. I trust Honda. I can't answer this question because I only know what is known! I know there will be an update, but whether the bike will be completely new or whether it will only change some parts I don't know yet. We'll see when the bike is ready. I don't know when it will be and when I can get on it, but I trust the company and the team. For me this is not the biggest challenge or the biggest problem.

The format of the two races will be new for you...

Yes, this will be different. I can't wait to run two races in the same weekend because if one goes bad, it can go better the next day! It will be a new strategy and it will be different! I don't think it's a big deal; I can learn from the other riders regarding the set up of the bike to be a little faster on Friday. The team has a lot of experience on this, I'm sure we can develop a good strategy for the weekend. I'm really looking forward to having something new and adjusting. I hope I can do it as quickly as possible!

How many chances will you have to fight for the top positions?
There are really good races in World Superbike. There's always a lot of struggle. Obviously I'm looking forward to racing because I think I have a good chance of being close to the podium and fighting for good results – something that is much more difficult in MotoGP lately for me. It won't be easy because the level in World Superbike is very high; I know all the drivers and I know they are very talented. I'm not going into World Superbike thinking that everything will be easy for me. I know well. I have to fight to be able to do my job correctly, but I think my chances of fighting for the podium are higher than they are now in MotoGP. Clearly Kawasaki will be strong and will probably be the favorites next season too, but I think I will have a good chance of fighting for the podium. I will try to win races, but it will take some time to adapt.

Do you feel like this is the beginning of a special era?

World Superbike is becoming more popular and more interesting for everyone. If you look at the names of Nicky Hayden, Jonathan Rea, Tom Sykes and all the other riders, they have good experience and know a lot about MotoGP. We know each other very well. I'm looking forward to racing with them and I'm sure the popularity of World Superbike will grow. Maybe my name could make it even more interesting! I will do my best to make this happen.

Before you join us next year, the 2016 championship must be concluded. Who would you bet on as the winner?

If I have to choose a driver, I think I'll go with Jonathan Rea. He won the title last year and has a nice lead now. We know there are still eight races to go and anything can still happen, but I'm aiming for him for the Championship title.

Before making his debut in WorldSBK next year, Stefan Bradl will still be 100% committed to MotoGP, which will resume on the weekend of 12-14 August in Austria.