SSP Assen World Championship: Additional Yamaha and Ducati / Supersport World Championship

Assen has a long tradition in the World Superbike Championship. This year, the series-based world championship will be held at the TT Circuit in the Drehnte Region for the 32nd time. There are also some wildcard drivers participating this year. Senna van den Hoven (Kawasaki) and Dylan Czarkowski (Yamaha) were already known in the Supersport 300 World Championship. The two Dutchmen are competing in the IDM SSP 300.

Twan Smits is also known from IDM and will compete in the Supersport category. The 20-year-old drives for the Apreco Racing team, which is technically supported by Ten Kate. Smits was denied the IDM Supersport 2023 win due to a controversial DMSB decision. The Yamaha rider made his World Championship debut last year in Portimão. “After taking part in the FIM Supersport World Championship for the first time in Portimão last year, I’m looking forward to the race in Assen. “It’s great to do this with my Apreco team and in front of the home crowd,” said Smits. “We finished the test successfully in Valencia, which gives us every reason to be optimistic.”

Along with Wiljan van Wikselaar there is another new starter in the central division. Despite his 28 years, the Ducati driver does not have much experience on the circuit, but he is the current champion of the Netherlands and participated in the Dakar Rally in 2022. “It is a dream come true, but it is a leap into the unknown. “I rode a racing motorcycle for the first time in 2019 and now I get the opportunity to run with the best in the world,” said the Dutchman in surprise. “But it’s an opportunity that I definitely grabbed with both hands! We’re going there with no expectations and the goal is to qualify for the race so I can learn as much as possible.”

There will be no foreign starters in the Cycling World Championships.