Alvaro Bautista crowned 2022 WorldSBK Champion

The 37-year-old rider secured the 2022 WorldSBK World Championship title at the Mandalika circuit in Indonesia. Oliver König scored his first WorldSBK point.

Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.It Racing - Ducati) fought tirelessly in the 2022 season, holding off pressure from last year's WorldSBK champion Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pata Yamaha Brixx WorldSBK) and six-time World Champion Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK). Bautista became the nineteenth WorldSBK champion and the second Spanish rider to win the WorldSBK title after Carlos Checa (2011); Checa was also the last Ducati WorldSBK champion.

Bautista returned to Ducati after two seasons and did so in perfect fashion, taking his first victory in the Tissot Superpole Race at the season opener in Aragon. Rea fought back in Assen, but Bautista extended his lead again in the second race, and the newly crowned champion led the series from the second race onwards. A crash in the first race at Donington Park reduced Bautista's lead, but he bounced back in style, taking 15 podiums in the next 18 races, including a hat-trick at the Barcelona-Catalunya circuit. He also won the first race in midsummer at the Autodrom in Most. A key part of Bautista's winning campaign was his battles with both Razgatlioglu and Rea.

"It's incredible, I'm so happy. It's a dream come true, especially after the last two years and all the difficulties. I want to thank everyone who believed in me and gave me this chance. We won the title on the first attempt. Today was the first time I felt a bit of nervousness or stress. It was in the second race on the grid. I was trying to control my emotions and even though I was first I made a lot of mistakes because I had too many thoughts in my head! I just preferred to stay second behind Toprak. He was very fast, so I could just follow him. I was lucky throughout the season because I had a lot of experience from the past. I tried to be the best rider I could and not make mistakes. I think our performance was really, really high." Alvaro Bautista, Aruba.It Racing – Ducati.

Bautista began his career in the Spanish Championship from 1995 to 2002. In 2002, he fought for the title until the last race. That same year, he made his first appearance in the FIM 125cc World Championship as a wildcard rider. In 2006, he won the 125cc Spanish Grand Prix. His eighth victory that season secured his first world title. The Spaniard then moved up to the 250cc class, where he achieved 28 podium finishes, including eight wins. In 2010, Bautista moved up to the FIM MotoGP™ World Championship. During his eight seasons in MotoGP™, he achieved three podium finishes and one pole position, with his best finish in the championship standings being fifth in 2012. In 2019, Bautista made his debut for the Ducati team in WorldSBK and finished his rookie season with 16 wins, 24 podiums, 4 pole positions and 15 fastest laps, securing second place in the championship standings.

In 2020, he moved to Honda, racing for Team HRC. He took three podium finishes for the Japanese manufacturer in 2020 and 2021, before returning to Ducati and the Aruba.it Racing - Ducati team in 2022. With 14 wins and 29 podium finishes, Alvaro Bautista became the 2022 WorldSBK World Champion at the Mandalika Circuit. Bautista became the ninth rider to win the title for Ducati, securing the Italian manufacturer's fifteenth overall riders' title.

The newly crowned WorldSBK champion will remain with Ducati in 2023 and together they will strive for more titles.