P1racenews AI automatic summary:
Axel Bassani has begun working with Jonathan Rea’s former WorldSBK crew chief, Oriol Pallares.
The Jerez WorldSBK test held this week was significant for many teams and riders, including Axel Bassani, who began working with Oriol Pallares, Jonathan Rea’s former crew chief.
Pallares previously worked as Rea’s chief mechanic at Kawasaki before moving to Yamaha in 2024. He later became Rea’s crew chief in 2025 after a change from Andrew Pitt, who will now join Miguel Oliveira at BMW in 2026.
Bassani and Alex Lowes joined Xavi Fores for Bimota’s test, with Bassani riding despite feeling unwell and starting his collaboration with Pallares.
Bassani acknowledged the challenges due to his illness but expressed satisfaction with the work done during the test, emphasizing the need to adapt to working with Pallares.
The Italian rider appreciated Pallares’ professionalism and the progress made, while also keeping expectations realistic given the upcoming hot conditions and the need to analyze new components before continuing testing in January.
