2008 Superbike World Championship Explained

The 2008 Superbike World Championship was the twenty-first season of the Superbike World Championship. Corona Extra ceased to be the championship's title sponsor, as it had been since 1998.^[1] The electronics manufacturer HANNspree took over as the title sponsor in 2008 and this arrangement remained in place until 2010, with the championship officially known as the "HANNspree SBK Superbike World Championship".^[2]

The Superbike World Championship returned to the United States on 1 June 2008, for the 6th round of the Superbike World Championship. The round took place at the Miller Motorsports Park near Salt Lake City, Utah.^[3] This was the first time SBK had raced in the United States since the 2004 round at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca. The Superbike World Championship shared the weekend with the AMA Superbike Championship and its support classes. However to avoid direct comparisons between World Superbike and AMA Superbike, and because of sponsorship issues the two championships raced on different configurations of the circuit. World Superbikes used the Outer Track, while AMA Superbike and its support classes used the Main Track.^[4]

The provisional championship calendar was made up of 15 rounds but the Indonesian round in Sentul International Circuit was removed from the final calendar.^[5]

Australian rider Troy Bayliss won his third Superbike World Championship riding the factory supported Ducati 1098. He secured the title with his 50th race win at the second race at Magny-Cours.

Race calendar and results

Round		Country	Circuit	Date	Superpole	Fastest lap	Winning rider	Winning team	Report
1	R1	Qatar	Losail	23 February	Troy Corser	Noriyuki Haga	Troy Bayliss	Ducati Xerox Team	Report
1	R2	Qatar	Losail	23 February	Troy Corser	Fonsi Nieto	Fonsi Nieto	Team Alstare Suzuki	Report
2	R1	Australia	Phillip Island	2 March	Troy Bayliss	Troy Bayliss	Troy Bayliss	Ducati Xerox Team	Report
2	R2	Australia	Phillip Island	2 March	Troy Bayliss	Max Biaggi	Troy Bayliss	Ducati Xerox Team	Report
3	R1	Spain	Valencia	6 April	Max Neukirchner	Noriyuki Haga	Lorenzo Lanzi	R.G. Team	Report
3	R2	Spain	Valencia	6 April	Max Neukirchner	Carlos Checa	Noriyuki Haga	Yamaha Motor Italia WSB	Report
4	R1	Netherlands	Assen	27 April	Troy Bayliss	Max Neukirchner	Troy Bayliss	Ducati Xerox Team	Report
4	R2	Netherlands	Assen	27 April	Troy Bayliss	Troy Bayliss	Troy Bayliss	Ducati Xerox Team	Report
5	R1	Italy	Monza	11 May	Troy Bayliss	Noriyuki Haga	Max Neukirchner	Team Alstare Suzuki	Report
5	R2	Italy	Monza	11 May	Troy Bayliss	Noriyuki Haga	Noriyuki Haga	Yamaha Motor Italia WSB	Report
6	R1	United States	Miller Motorsports Park	1 June	Carlos Checa	Carlos Checa	Carlos Checa	Hannspree Ten Kate Honda	Report
6	R2	United States	Miller Motorsports Park	1 June	Carlos Checa	Carlos Checa	Carlos Checa	Hannspree Ten Kate Honda	Report
7	R1	Germany	Nürburgring	15 June	Max Neukirchner	Troy Bayliss	Noriyuki Haga	Yamaha Motor Italia WSB	Report
7	R2	Germany	Nürburgring	15 June	Max Neukirchner	Noriyuki Haga	Noriyuki Haga	Yamaha Motor Italia WSB	Report
8	R1	San Marino	Misano Adriatico	29 June	Troy Corser	Jakub Smrž	Max Neukirchner	Team Alstare Suzuki	Report
8	R2	San Marino	Misano Adriatico	29 June	Troy Corser	Troy Corser	Rubén Xaus	Sterilgarda Go Eleven	Report
9	R1	Czech Republic	Brno	20 July	Troy Bayliss	Troy Bayliss	Troy Bayliss	Ducati Xerox Team	Report
9	R2	Czech Republic	Brno	20 July	Troy Bayliss	Michel Fabrizio	Troy Bayliss	Ducati Xerox Team	Report
10	R1	Great Britain	Brands Hatch	3 August	Troy Bayliss	Ryuichi Kiyonari	Ryuichi Kiyonari	Hannspree Ten Kate Honda	Report
10	R2	Great Britain	Brands Hatch	3 August	Troy Bayliss	Michel Fabrizio	Ryuichi Kiyonari	Hannspree Ten Kate Honda	Report
11	R1	Europe	Donington Park	7 September	Troy Bayliss	Troy Bayliss	Troy Bayliss	Ducati Xerox Team	Report
11	R2	Europe	Donington Park	7 September	Troy Bayliss	James Ellison	Ryuichi Kiyonari	Hannspree Ten Kate Honda	Report
12	R1	Italy	Vallelunga	21 September	Troy Bayliss	Carlos Checa	Noriyuki Haga	Yamaha Motor Italia WSB	Report
12	R2	Italy	Vallelunga	21 September	Troy Bayliss	Troy Corser	Noriyuki Haga	Yamaha Motor Italia WSB	Report
13	R1	France	Magny-Cours	5 October	Noriyuki Haga	Carlos Checa	Noriyuki Haga	Yamaha Motor Italia WSB	Report
13	R2	France	Magny-Cours	5 October	Noriyuki Haga	Troy Bayliss	Troy Bayliss	Ducati Xerox Team	Report
14	R1	Portugal	Portimão	2 November	Troy Bayliss	Troy Bayliss	Troy Bayliss	Ducati Xerox Team	Report
14	R2	Portugal	Portimão	2 November	Troy Bayliss	Troy Bayliss	Troy Bayliss	Ducati Xerox Team	Report

Championship standings

Riders' standings

2008 final riders' standings^[6]
Pos.	Rider	Bike	QAT		AUS		ESP		NED		ITA		USA		GER		SMR		CZE		GBR		EUR		ITA		FRA		POR		Pts
R1	R2	R1	R2	R1	R2	R1	R2	R1	R2	R1	R2	R1	R2	R1	R2	R1	R2	R1	R2	R1	R2	R1	R2	R1	R2	R1	R2
1	Bayliss	Ducati	1	4	1	1	2	2	1	1	3	Ret	Ret	22	2	4	3	3	1	1	2	11	1	Ret	6	16	3	1	1	1	460
2	Corser	Yamaha	3	7	2	Ret	3	5	5	10	12	8	2	Ret	4	2	2	5	2	4	8	3	Ret	3	3	3	6	3	3	6	342
3	Haga	Yamaha	14	13	8	7	Ret	1	Ret	2	2	1	Ret	6	1	1	10	4	6	7	19	2	Ret	DSQ	1	1	1	2	Ret	14	327
4	C. Checa	Honda	6	11	6	2	5	3	2	3	8	Ret	1	1	5	5	5	8	8	Ret	6	8	Ret	9	5	5	7	4	2	7	313
5		Suzuki	5	8	7	5	Ret	DNS	3	5	1	2	4	2	3	3	1	7	7	5	7	4	Ret	14	4	4	5	9	Ret	4	311
6	Nieto	Suzuki	7	1	5	3	4	10	Ret	11	7	4	5	8	8	9	12	10	14	8	5	5	7	Ret	12	6	2	8	5	5	256
7	Biaggi	Ducati	2	3	Ret	Ret	16	8	10	12	5	Ret	9	4	13	7	Ret	2	4	3	3	12	3	6	2	Ret	4	6	Ret	13	238
8	Fabrizio	Ducati	9	5	3	19	Ret	13	Ret	Ret	9	5	3	3	7	6	Ret	11	3	2	12	6	Ret	5	7	2	Ret	14	Ret	2	223
9	Kiyonari	Honda	22	19	9	6	Ret	4	7	Ret	6	3	10	7	12	11	14	13	5	6	1	1	Ret	1	Ret	13			8	11	206
10	Xaus	Ducati	4	2	4	4	Ret	7	16	4	Ret	7	14	Ret	6	8	4	1	Ret	Ret	DNS	DNS	Ret	8	Ret	12	Ret	5	9	Ret	178
11	Kagayama	Suzuki	8	Ret			Ret	6	4	6	4	Ret	8	5	DNS	DNS	11	12	9	9	4	25	5	19	9	7	8	7	15	23	154
12	Lavilla	Honda	13	14	11	8	7	11	9	7	11	10	13	15	Ret	14	8	14	15	14	14	13	4	7	14	Ret	10	12	6	8	135
13	Smrž	Ducati	10	9	Ret	18	14	14	6	8	10	Ret	6	DSQ	11	Ret	7	9	Ret	11	9	9	6	12	13	11	Ret	13	Ret	12	120
14	Lanzi	Ducati	16	6	13	20	1	12	DNS	DNS	14	11	11	10	Ret	20	6	6	Ret	13	11	10	Ret	11	11	18	Ret	11			109
15	Muggeridge	Honda	17	20	12	10	6	20	14	13	Ret	6	7	11	10	12	Ret	Ret	11	Ret	16	Ret	9	Ret	Ret	Ret	12	Ret	14	21	77
16	Laconi	Kawasaki	15	16	Ret	17	8	9	11	16	Ret	Ret	Ret	9	14	10	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	16	Ret	15	16	9	11	20	10	10	61
17	Rolfo	Honda	11	15	10	16	10	17	22	14			20	16	16	17	17	18	Ret	12	10	14	Ret	13	8	10	Ret	10	12	18	59
18	Sofuoğlu	Honda	12	10	14	11	12	15	12	19	DNS	DNS	12	14	Ret	21	18	Ret	10	10	13	17	Ret	DNS	Ret	Ret	9	19			54
19	Nakatomi	Yamaha	21	Ret	15	15	11	16	15	15	13	12	16	Ret	18	18	9	15	12	15	DNS	DNS	13	18	10	8	14	16	13	17	51
20	Tamada	Kawasaki	Ret	12	Ret	14	9	Ret	8	9	Ret	Ret	19	13	9	13	Ret	Ret	16	17	18	18	Ret	16	20	19	18	18	19	24	41
21	Sykes	Suzuki																			Ret	7	2	10							35
22	Haslam	Honda																					8	Ret					7	3	33
23	Crutchlow	Honda																					Ret	2					Ret	9	27
24	Badovini	Kawasaki	18	17	Ret	21	17	21	13	18	Ret	9	17	12	17	Ret	Ret	17	17	Ret	Ret	21	12	Ret	15	Ret	16	17	11	16	24
25	Ellison	Honda																					10	4							19
26	Rea	Honda																											4	15	14
27	Holland	Honda	24	21	17	9	13	19	18	20	16	13	15	Ret	19	19															14
28	D. Checa	Yamaha	23	Ret	Ret	12	15	18	Ret	DNS			Ret	DNS	Ret	15	15	16	Ret	16	17	20	11	Ret	17	20	Ret	Ret	20	22	12
29	Gimbert	Yamaha	20	18	16	13	Ret	DNS	17	17	15	14	18	17	15	16	16	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	19	Ret	Ret	Ret	14	13	Ret	16	20	12
30	Aoyama	Honda	25	22	18	Ret	Ret	24	19	21	18	16	Ret	Ret	Ret	24	13	19	18	18	Ret	22	14	17	19	17	19	22	18	26	5
31	Walker	Honda																			15	15	Ret	Ret	18	15	15	15	17	19	5
32	Canepa	Ducati																	13	Ret											3
33	Beck	Yamaha									19	15																			1
	Morelli	Honda	Ret	Ret	DNS	DNS	18	23	Ret	Ret	17	Ret					WD	WD			21	24	Ret	Ret							0
	Bauer	Honda																									17	Ret			0
	Pridmore	Honda											21	18	Ret	23	Ret	Ret	19	19	22	23									0
	Iannuzzo	Kawasaki	19	Ret	DNS	DNS			DNS	DNS	Ret	Ret	22	19	20	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	20	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	23	Ret	Ret	0
		Honda					19	22																							0
	Napoleone	Yamaha	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	20	Ret	21	22	Ret	Ret	24	21	Ret	22															0
	Zaiser	Yamaha																	21	20	23	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	29	0
	Silva	Honda																									20	21			0
	Jensen	Suzuki											20	23																	0
	Vos	Ducati							20	23																					0
	Dražďák	Honda																	20	Ret											0
	M. Smrž	Honda																							21	21					0
	Carreira	Suzuki																											21	28	0
	Čihák	Suzuki																	Ret	21											0
	Lynn	Honda																					Ret	Ret	22	22					0
	Bridewell	Suzuki																											Ret	25	0
	Morales	Yamaha					Ret	25																							0
	Scassa	Honda																											Ret	27	0
	Palmer	Yamaha																			Ret	Ret									0
	Mauri	Ducati									Ret	DNS																			0
	Fuertes	Suzuki					Ret	DNS																							0
	Brignola	Yamaha															DNS	DNS													0
	Bussei	Honda									DNS	DNS																			0
	Andrews	Yamaha																			WD	WD									0
Pos.	Rider	Bike	QAT		AUS		ESP		NED		ITA		USA		GER		SMR		CZE		GBR		EUR		ITA		FRA		POR		Pts

Bold – Pole position
Italics – Fastest lap

Manufacturers' standings

2008 final manufacturers' standings^[7]
Pos.	Manufacturer	QAT		AUS		ESP		NED		ITA		USA		GER		SMR		CZE		GBR		EUR		ITA		FRA		POR		Pts
R1	R2	R1	R2	R1	R2	R1	R2	R1	R2	R1	R2	R1	R2	R1	R2	R1	R2	R1	R2	R1	R2	R1	R2	R1	R2	R1	R2
1	Ducati	1	2	1	1	1	2	1	1	3	5	3	3	2	4	3	1	1	1	2	6	1	5	2	2	3	1	1	1	570
2	Yamaha	3	7	2	7	3	1	5	2	2	1	2	6	1	1	2	4	2	4	8	2	11	3	1	1	1	2	3	6	487
3	Honda	6	10	6	2	5	3	2	3	6	3	1	1	5	5	5	8	5	6	1	1	4	1	5	5	7	4	2	3	415
4	Suzuki	5	1	5	3	4	6	3	5	1	2	4	2	3	3	1	7	7	5	4	4	2	10	4	4	2	7	5	4	408
5	Kawasaki	15	12	Ret	14	8	9	8	9	Ret	9	17	9	9	10	Ret	17	16	17	18	16	12	15	15	9	11	17	10	10	94
Pos.	Manufacturer	QAT		AUS		ESP		NED		ITA		USA		GER		SMR		CZE		GBR		EUR		ITA		FRA		POR		Pts

Entry list

2008 entry list^[8]
Team	Constructor	Motorcycle	No.	Rider	Rounds
Sterilgarda Go Eleven	Ducati	Ducati 1098 RS 08	3	Max Biaggi	All
Sterilgarda Go Eleven	Ducati	Ducati 1098 RS 08	111	Rubén Xaus	All
Hannspree Ten Kate Honda Hannspree Ten Kate Honda Jr.	Honda	Honda CBR1000RR	7	Carlos Checa	All
			23	Ryuichi Kiyonari	1–12, 14
			32	Martin Bauer	13
			54	Kenan Sofuoğlu	1–13
			65	Jonathan Rea	14
Ventaxia VK Honda	Honda	Honda CBR1000RR	9	Chris Walker	10–14
Ventaxia VK Honda	Honda	Honda CBR1000RR	36	Gregorio Lavilla	All
Team Alstare Suzuki	Suzuki	Suzuki GSX-R1000 K9	10	Fonsi Nieto	All
			34	Yukio Kagayama	1, 3–14
			76	Max Neukirchner	All
Yamaha Motor Italia WSB	Yamaha	Yamaha YZF-R1	11	Troy Corser	All
Yamaha Motor Italia WSB	Yamaha	Yamaha YZF-R1	41	Noriyuki Haga	All
Team Pedercini	Kawasaki	Kawasaki ZX-10R	13	Vittorio Iannuzzo	1–2, 4–14
Team Pedercini	Kawasaki	Kawasaki ZX-10R	86	Ayrton Badovini	All
Benimoto Suzuki Cetelem	Suzuki	Suzuki GSX-R1000 K8	14	Luís Carreira	14
ProRace	Suzuki	Suzuki GSX-R1000 K8	15	Miloš Čihák	9
Team Suzuki Motorrad	Suzuki	Suzuki GSX-R1000	16	Sergio Fuertes	3
Lloyds British	Yamaha	Yamaha YZF-R1	17	Simon Andrews
Lloyds British	Yamaha	Yamaha YZF-R1	17	Tristan Palmer	10
Team NB	Suzuki	Suzuki GSX-R1000 K8	18	Tommy Bridewell	14
Ducati Xerox Team	Ducati	Ducati 1098 F08	21	Troy Bayliss	All
			59	Niccolò Canepa	9
			84	Michel Fabrizio	All
Alto Evolution Honda Superbike	Honda	Honda CBR1000RR	22	Luca Morelli	1–5
			43	Jason Pridmore	6–10
			50	Matt Lynn	11–12
			88	Shuhei Aoyama	All
D.F. Racing	Honda	Honda CBR1000RR	22	Luca Morelli	8, 10–11
			31	Karl Muggeridge	All
			69	Iván Silva	13
			83	Russell Holland	1–7
			99	Luca Scassa	14
			113	Jiří Dražďák	9
			122	Matěj Smrž	12
Fabricom – MCT Racing	Ducati	Ducati 1098 RS 08	28	Arie Vos	4
HM Plant Honda	Honda	Honda CBR1000RR	35	Cal Crutchlow	11, 14
HM Plant Honda	Honda	Honda CBR1000RR	91	Leon Haslam	11, 14
Honda Joe Darcey	Honda	Honda CBR1000RR	37	Diego Lozano Ortiz	3
YZF Yamaha	Yamaha	Yamaha YZF-R1	38	Shinichi Nakatomi	All
HANNspree Honda Althea	Honda	Honda CBR1000RR	44	Roberto Rolfo	1–4, 6–14
HANNspree Honda Althea	Honda	Honda CBR1000RR	200	Giovanni Bussei	5
Yamaha France GMT 94 IPONE	Yamaha	Yamaha YZF-R1	49	Michael Beck	5
			94	David Checa	1–4, 6–14
			194	Sébastien Gimbert	All
PSG-1 Corse	Kawasaki	Kawasaki ZX-10R	55	Régis Laconi	All
PSG-1 Corse	Kawasaki	Kawasaki ZX-10R	100	Makoto Tamada	All
R.G. Team	Ducati	Ducati 1098 RS 08	57	Lorenzo Lanzi	1–13
On The Throttle.TV	Suzuki	Suzuki GSX-R1000 K8	61	Scott Jensen	6
Grillini PBR Team	Yamaha	Yamaha YZF-R1	64	Norino Brignola	8
			73	Christian Zaiser	9–14
			77	Loïc Napoleone	1–7
Rizla Suzuki	Suzuki	Suzuki GSX-R1000	66	Tom Sykes	10–11
Hydrex Bike Animal Honda	Honda	Honda CBR1000RR	80	James Ellison	11
Guandalini Racing by Grifo's	Ducati	Ducati 1098 RS 08	96	Jakub Smrž	All
Spring Ducati ASD	Ducati	Ducati 999 RS	110	Lorenzo Mauri	5
L'Oreal Men Expert Laglisse	Yamaha	Yamaha YZF-R1	131	Carmelo Morales	3

Key
Regular rider
Wildcard rider
Replacement rider

Notes and References

Web site: Corona end Suzuki and WSB sponsorship. motorcyclenews.com. 2007-09-14.
Web site: HANNspree Will Sponsor Superbike World Championship Through 2010, And Will Sponsor American Round At Miller In 2008. 19 February 2005. roadracingworld.com. 2007-10-23. https://web.archive.org/web/20071205041501/http://www.roadracingworld.com/news/article/?article=30462. 5 December 2007 . live.
Web site: World Superbike to Miller for 2008!. motorcycle-usa.com. 2007-09-14. https://web.archive.org/web/20080229053438/http://www.motorcycle-usa.com/Article_Page.aspx?ArticleID=5180&Page=1. 2008-02-29. dead.
Web site: World Superbike And AMA To Run Different Courses During 2008 Event At Miller. 19 February 2005. roadracingworld.com. 2007-09-14.
Web site: Superbike & Supersport World Championships, Superstock 1000cc FIM Cup 2008 final calendar. fim.ch. 2008-03-04. https://web.archive.org/web/20080911112842/http://www.fim.ch/sec/documents/f_5339.pdf. 2008-09-11. dead.
Web site: WORLDSBK.COM STANDINGS . 2009-10-26 . https://web.archive.org/web/20120224022406/http://www.worldsbk.com/season/standings?p_S_Campionato=SBK&p_Anno=2008&p_PilotiCostruttori=P . 2012-02-24 . dead .
Web site: Portimao, 31 October 1–2 November 2008 – Superbike – Manufacturers Standings. resources.worldsbk.com. Dorna WSBK. 2 November 2008. 3 June 2016.
Web site: World Superbike entry list confirmed.