“Welcome to the family, Miguel,” was the line that made Miguel Oliveira’s move to the ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK team official. The Portuguese rider will line up alongside Italy’s Danilo Petrucci - who has also raced in MotoGP - and will carry over his #88 onto his new BMW M 1000 RR.
From MotoGP to WorldSBK: a change of championship and approach
After seven seasons in the MotoGP World Championship, Miguel Oliveira is now switching to the WorldSBK paddock. In practice, that means leaving a series built around true prototypes - the Formula 1 of two wheels - for a championship contested on production-based motorcycles. In other words, bikes that remain very close to what you can buy from a dealership.
BMW M 1000 RR: not just a boosted S 1000 RR
Even so, the Portuguese rider’s new M 1000 RR is not “just” an S 1000 RR on steroids. This BMW is a homologation model that, even in road trim, posts figures that demand respect: 218 hp at 14,500 rpm, a 314 km/h top speed, and carbon-fibre wings capable of generating 30 kg of downforce.
As you would expect, in race specification - despite the restrictions imposed by the FIM on Superbikes - the numbers are even more formidable than on the “road” version.
Overall weight drops to 168 kg and power rises to 240 hp (estimated figure). The biggest changes show up in the braking system and the aerodynamic work. In MotoGP, the prototypes run carbon-ceramic discs.
In truth, the gap to MotoGP race machinery is not measured in light-years. It is measured in seconds per lap. Depending on the circuit, the difference can be under two seconds.
For an easier comparison, we put together the following table:
Miguel Oliveira’s MotoGP record and why it stands out
The rider from Almada leaves the MotoGP paddock, after seven years in the premier class, with an impressive set of results: two runner-up titles (Moto3 and Moto2) and five MotoGP victories.
Those five wins carry particular weight: they never came on board the prototypes or within dominant teams. The first win in KTM Tech 3’s history was delivered by Miguel Oliveira, and the last victory for KTM’s factory team also came with the Portuguese rider.
Maverick Vinales, Brad Binder, Enea Bastianini and Pedro Acosta are among the most highly rated names on the grid and still have not managed to beat the Portuguese Falcon’s results aboard the Austrian machine. It has been three seasons already…
The move from MotoGP to WorldSBK is more than simply changing championships. It is a shift in philosophy. On one side are prototypes built solely for racing; on the other are machines born for the road and then turned into competition bikes. As for the Portuguese rider’s mindset, that will not change: winning.
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