Late April start for 2021 WorldSBK season as Indonesia returns to schedule

The 2021 WorldSBK Championship will be back to a full strength of 13 events next season after Dorna and the FIM revealed a fresh schedule that includes a planned return to Indonesia and a much later start date than in previous years.

Only eight rounds of the 2020 WorldSBK Championship were able to take place this year after COVID-19 accelerated into a global crisis in the immediate weeks following February’s traditional season opener at Phillip Island in Australia, with round two unable to take place until five months later in August.

As such, having previously confirmed earlier this month that it has postponed its round indefinitely due to strict regulations concerning entry, round one will instead defer to Assen in the Netherlands on April 23-25 - some two months later than previous curtain raisers.

Europe will form the basis for the opening nine events and comprises a mix of events used on the abbreviated 2020 calendar and others that was cancelled from the original schedule.

After Assen, the series heads back to Portugal in Estoril, which has been retained for 2021 having been a late addition to the revised 2020 schedule as the season finale. From here the series heads to Aragon, then Misano and Donington Park, the British round being reinstated for 2021 on July 2-4.

With the summer break swelling to more than two months, round six kicks off a run of Autumn events at Magny-Cours, the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, Jerez and Portimao, meaning six of the 13 events will take place on the Iberian peninsula.

Round 10 will see the series venture overseas for the first time since February 2020 with a return to Argentina’s San Juan Villicum and then over to Asia at the brand-new purpose built Mandalika Circuit facility in Indonesia, which is located on an island close to the tourist hotspots of Lombok and Bali.

Provided the venue passes homologation in time for 12-14 November,  it would be the first international motorcycle racing event to occur in one of the industry’s most crucial and passionate markets since Sentul back in 1997.

Finally, Australia is listed on the calendar at the back end of the schedule but hasn’t been assigned a date as yet.

There is also a 13th round to be announced, which could be one of the three circuits that were originally named on the 2020 WorldSBK schedule only to be cancelled due to COVID-19. These are Qatar, Imola and, interestingly, Oschersleben, which was set to herald a return to German soil this year.

2021 WorldSBK Championship Calendar