“Consider all the teams I could change to” drama in WorldSBK rider market

There could be some unexpected drama in the World Superbike Championship rider market featuring a new race winner.

Andrea Locatelli won a race at Assen last time out, notably on a Yamaha. He was the first non-BMW or Ducati rider to win since Kawasaki’s Alex Lowes last year.

Locatelli’s triumph also came in the absence of his injured teammate Jonathan Rea.

It has brought attention to the Italian’s stay at Yamaha - and whether a rival manufacturer might tempt him across.

“It’s early but, like always, it’s never early! We start talking about the future shortly after Phillip Island,” Locatelli said before this weekend’s Cremona round.

“Yamaha are happy to keep me in the team because I’m building my career around Yamaha.

“Everything is positive with Yamaha and I’m more than happy to work with them.

“At the same time, we need to consider all the teams that I could change to or not, and we need to look for other options.

“I need to understand the best solution for me, my target and my future in general. At the moment, I’m quite happy with Yamaha.”

Locatelli returns to his homeland, Italy, for the Cremona round as a winning rider after his Assen glory.

“I’m quite happy to be back at home for this round,” he said.

“I live close to Cremona, so it’ll be great as many people come to cheer for us.

“I want to continue this trend, score as many podiums as possible. Let’s try to do like Assen, always pushing hard, and try to win again; why not?

“You have a million emotions at that winning moment, and you enjoy it, but at the same time, when I came home, I enjoyed a couple of days then started working again.

“It’s true it's my first victory but, for me, it’s not enough; I’m dreaming, I’m working hard and trust myself. I want more. It’s important that Jonathan can come back on the bike and try to ride again.

“It’s necessary for the team to have a good reference inside the box and I’m quite happy to have a strong rider alongside me.”