WORLD Superbike legend Jonathan Rea may not have won the championship in 2021, but that hasn’t dented his appeal back home as he scoops the Irish Motorcyclist of the Year award for a record ninth time.
The 2022 award sees Rea overtake the late great Joey Dunlop who took home the prize eight times between 1979 and 2000. Rea was runner up with the WorldSBK championship last season, chasing the title round at the Mandalika circuit in Thailand.
Despite coming second to Turkish rider Toprak Razgatlioglu, Rea remains upbeat, both about his pace last season, and his title hopes in 2022.
"I still feel I am right at the peak of my career now … The hype and background noise around Toprak and Yamaha right now suits us. We can use that as motivation and I'm sure we can put a good season together.
“A few of my bogey tracks have been dropped and it's a much more normal season, starting early in the year.
"Our bike will be at least as competitive as last year - we have some new parts to try, mainly on the chassis side, some electronics. I think our learnings from last year will help us.
"I have one more year left with Kawasaki and to win this season is my biggest goal, then look out for another fun opportunity that whets my appetite.
"I'm so motivated to keep riding and I don't think the story is over yet, whether that means staying where I am or going somewhere else.
"The fairytale would be to finish my career at Kawasaki because they have given me so much success but fairytales don't always work out.”
Speaking about receiving the Irish Motorcyclist of the Year award for the ninth time, Rea said:
“Very proud to receive the Irish Motorcyclist of the year. Excited to start my 2022 season now and I’d like to thank all the bike fans at home that always have my back. Let’s see what we can do this year!”
The 2022 World Superbike season gets underway at Aragon on April 8th.
