ZAQHWAN ZAIDI
ALVARO BAUTISTA
The PETRONAS MIE Honda Racing Team line up sees a new face in its WorldSBK wing, as Malaysian rider Zaqhwan Zaidi moves up from the MFJ All-Japan Road Racing Championship (JSB) and the Asian Superbike Championship. He was the overall winner in the Asian series in 2022, and runner-up in 2023. He has also raced in the WorldSSP class, way back in 2014, when he scored seven points for a ninth place finish at his home round in Malaysia. His great experience of racing the CBR1000RR-R model - even in the 2023 Suzuka 8 Hours EWC round - should help his transition into WorldSBK racing.
A 125cc GP World Champion even before he got to WorldSBK from the MotoGP™ category in 2019, Bautista was almost WorldSBK Champion in his ‘rookie’ year. After that deep disappointment and two tough seasons on an official Honda HRC machine, Bautista proved to be a convincing double champ when he made a prodigal return to the official Ducati squad in 2022 and 2023. A relatively difficult 2024 campaign, despite winning four races, saw him finish in overall third place - behind his rookie WorldSBK team-mate Bulega. He starts 2025 second in the all-time WorldSBK race winners’ ranking.
Date of birth 20/07/1995
Motorcycle Honda CBR1000 RR-R
Date of birth 21/11/1984
Motorcycle Ducati Panigale V4R
Nationality Malaysia
Team PETRONAS MIE Honda Racing Team
Nationality Spain
Team Aruba.It Racing - Ducati
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12 OFFICIAL PROGRAMME