Kawasaki Racing Team’s Jonathan Rea (inset) in action during the Qatar round of the World Superbike Championship at the Losail International Circuit.

By Joe Koraith/Doha


The Bard had written, “Be not afraid of greatness: Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon them.” The 2015 World Superbike champion, Jonathan Rea, would subscribe to the second notion. The Brit rider had to spend seven years in WSBK chasing greatness before finally being able to achieve it this year.
The six years that he spent with Honda yielded 15 wins but no glory and then early this year, Rea switched to Kawasaki and the rest, as they say, is history. He notched up 14 wins, dominating the 2015 season to win his first-ever WSBK title in style.
Chaz Davies, who finished second in the standings, was 132 short of Rea’s tally and that is despite the champion not being able to complete the final race in Qatar due to bike issues.
The Kawasaki move has dramatically transformed Rea’s fortunes and the Brit rider attributes it to his new home. “Winning the title feels amazing. Kawasaki has proved to be a really nice home for me where I have found a great bunch of guys. To have 14 race wins, only to be off the podium three times is incredible. I really have had an enjoyable year and a very successful one,” Rea told Gulf Times at the Losail International Circuit.
The Brit finished the first race in second position and was in prime position to go past Colin Edwards’ record points of 552 but a bike malfunction meant he fell short by four agonising points.
But Rea doesn’t want to dwell too much on that. “A little bit disappointed that I couldn’t get the record, but in the end the target was to win the championship. In the middle of the season when I had such a big points advantage we wanted to motivate ourselves a little bit more and so in the last part of the year we decided, ‘okay let’s push for the points record.’ It’s frustrating but we can’t forget that we had an amazing season,” analysed Rea.

Team effort
Rea has looked extremely comfortable reeling off win after win this season with the Kawasaki Racing Team and he believes that it’s not just the Ninja ZX-10R but also the team that’s responsible for his success.
“The base of the bike is incredible. The level of the technicians here are great. It’s a factory effort and you can see that in the people involved. It’s the whole team that’s good, not just one factor,” he said.
“I expected to win because I competed with Kawasaki for many years, so I understood the level of their bike and I knew that I could do a good job with it. And from the first test I knew then that I could win the championship,” he added.  
In the 2014 season, Tom Sykes came very close to winning the title with KRT but couldn’t get the wins he needed during the final two races in Qatar. Sykes was expected to be the main challenger this season but Rea has trumped his teammate and compatriot.  
“I expected a closer battle to be honest. He (Sykes) had some misfortune but we won the championship with more than 100 points. It’s one of the things. I am just super happy with my effort,” said Rea.
This writer had a chance to interview Rea back in 2011 when he was still with Honda. But back then he had suffered a wrist injury which forced him to miss four rounds. But now all of that seems to be a thing of the distant past and Rea attributes it to having achieved a balance and feeling content.
“I feel good with myself. I have a family now. My life has completely changed from back then. With children and being married I find a really good balance between my sporting life and my private life. I am just really content now compared to the past,” said the Brit.
The 28-year-old will start next season with the No. 1 plate, and would be keen to get a second title under his belt.
With the kind of form that he has shown this season, more greatness surely beckons.