Jonathan Rea receives heartfelt message from Kawasaki bosses and Pere Riba

Kawasaki has released a statement on Jonathan Rea after the six-time WorldSBK Champion announced his retirement from racing.

Jonathan Rea won all six of his World Superbike Championships with Kawasaki between 2015 and 2020 having joined the Akashi brand after the 2014 season following six years in the championship with Honda and Ten Kate.

Wearing the green of Kawasaki, Rea won 105 races, bringing his total to 119 by 2023. During his title years, the Northern Irish rider finished on the podium in all but 14 of the races he started aboard the ZX-10RR.

As a result, even though he has been a Yamaha rider since the beginning of 2024, Rea’s retirement is also a seismic occasion for Kawasaki, whose official team now runs Kawasaki-powered Bimota machinery.

“On behalf of Kawasaki Motors Europe, I would like to congratulate Jonathan Rea on what has been a remarkable and record-breaking career,” said Shigemi Tanaka, Managing Director of Kawasaki Motors Europe.

“Riding our Ninja machinery, he won six consecutive WorldSBK Championships and was also a core component of KRT accumulating six Manufacturer titles.

“Jonathan is the stuff of legend within the Kawasaki family and it's with great pride we were associated with such a consummate athlete.

“Like many within Kawasaki and his global fan base, we regard the relationship between Jonathan and Kawasaki as iconic.

“We wish him and his family every success and happiness in the next phase of their life together and to put on record our deep respect for this great rider.”

Pere Riba: A “privilege” to work with Rea

Since Rea joined Kawasaki in 2015 until the end of his time in green at the end of 2023, Rea worked with Pere Riba as his crew chief.

The Spaniard, an ex-rider in his own right, says Rea’s impact will stay with him “forever”.

“It’s been an absolute privilege to share part of the extraordinary path of JR’s career, together with JR and the Kawasaki Racing Team,” said Riba, who has been crew chief to Alex Lowes since the beginning of 2024.

“We have shared extraordinary moments, winning races and championships.

“This is now over, but his friendship and his attitude to work hard and to push the limits will remain within the KRT family and me personally forever.”

Roda: “Everything in our conversations was aimed at performance”

Guim Roda was Team Manager at the Kawasaki Racing Team for the duration of Rea’s time there, and remains in charge of the Bimota squad now.

“After working for more than eight years with Johnny [Jonathan Rea] and achieving six world championships, I can say that I have had a very honest and sincere relationship with him, built on the deepest mutual respect and the constant search for perfection,” said Roda.

“He has been one of those people with whom everything in our conversations was aimed at performance. And when that wasn’t the reason, many times we just sat together without saying much, simply with the comfort of knowing that if at any moment we had to pursue a difficult goal, he would be each others best companion.

“It is honest on his part to say that this is a ‘slow down’ rather than a complete farewell, because fire still runs through his veins.

“I hope that every time he gets on a bike in the future – and he will – he enjoys it to the fullest.

“I also want to take this opportunity to thank his wife Tatia for her quiet support in the background. Now Johnny will have to better balance his attention as a father and watch from the sidelines as his children bring out the best of the ‘Reas’ in football!”