The fresh announcement that the season-opening World Superbike race will feature a mandatory pit stop has caused a🔯 variety of reaction from the riders.

The season beg𝓀ins at Phillip Island, Australia, this weekend.

On Thursday it𓄧 was confirmed that the race will be held under flag-to-flag rules with a compulsory pit stop to change ෴tyres.

Race 1 and Race 2 have also been reduced to 2🧸🧸0 laps.

Earlier this week, WSBK riders were busily working at a one-day test 🀅o🎐n different strategies before this change was announced.

“It’s the same for everybody,” Jonathan Rea reacted.

“Unfortu🃏nately it puts the test on Tuesday to scrap.

“The way we worked at Yamaha was on lon൩g distance.

“Everybod🌜y knows at Phillip Island that tyre consumption is the big key.

“It’s now two sprint races which requires a different set-up for the b🐻ike.”

Alvaro Bautista added: “If we race 20 la⛎ps, I work to do 20 laps as fast as possibl༒e.

“It’s not the same to do five laps. You can go fast, ﷽you don’t care about💃 tyres.

“My team work to keep tyre durability, with 🐟electronics, with powe🐽r for 20 laps.

“If you can’t do 20 laps, jus♏t slow down. Everybody can do 20 laps, it depends on pace.

“If you want to do 20 laps at time attack pace, you🌼 cannot. You must work.

“This decision was taken for safety reasons. I can’t do anything, I must ওadapt.

“All the work we did to do𒈔 20 laps? Now we must do only 10.

“The tyre quantity? The💟 problem is in practice. If you can’t do more than 10 laps in the race, then you do 10 laps in practice. We need more ꦕtyres. Or we’ll stop in the box and stay there.

“They have to pཧrovide more quantity of tyres. We don’t have enough.”

Toprak Razgatlioglu said: “This is not just for me. It’s ᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚ⁤⁤⁤⁤ᩚ⁤⁤⁤⁤ᩚ⁤⁤⁤⁤ᩚ𒀱ᩚᩚᩚfor all riders. The same problem is that rear tyres are destroyed.

“We need to make a pla♑n. 10 or 11 laps? If you push at the beginning, the same problem, the 🍰rear tyre is immediately destroyed.

“Everyone is thinking to make a plan.

“We’ll see in the race. It looks like fun! I hope we don’t make a mistake in the box o﷽r the pitlane.”

Andrea Iannone added: “A 𝐆bike race is without stops. 1꧂8 laps is better, always. I prefer it, for sure.

ꦏ“It’s important that sa💎fety is safety. From my side, we don’t have a problem.

“I understand🍷 that other manufacturers and riders have a problem with their tyres.”

Nicolo Bulega ꧋𒊎said: “We have to change a little bit. I don’t know…

“I was good with us🐽ed tyres in the test. So, for me, maybe this choice wasn’t the best one.

“But it’s the same for everyone so I❀ have to be ready for this.”

Alex Lowes: “It’s all about the last 5, 6, 7 laps.

“The guys that look after the tyres the best get the best results. We spent 90% of the test focusing on used tyres and trying to make the tyresꦅ last on the new surface.”

Why have WSBK made these changes?

WorldSBK Executive Director༒ Gregorio Lavilla explained: "The circuit ha𓃲s performed admirably with the new asphalt.

“While rubber is gradually laid down track conditions evolve, which present some challenges. Since the tyres were ♍shipped out in late November to arrive for this opening ⭕round, there wasn't enough time to develop specific tyres tailored to the current asphalt conditions.

“We have carefully asses💟sed the situation, considering the early track activiജty following the asphalt's being laid out and the two days of testing we conducted earlier this week.

“While conditions have certainly improved, they𒁃 may not have improved enough, especially considering the challe✱nging, fast-paced nature of this circuit layout.

“In such circumstances, we, in collaboration with Race Direction, the FIM and the Phillip Island GP Cꦍircuit, must opt for the safest option, which is of paramount importance."

Pirelli's Giorgio Barbier explained that the company had been caught 𒁃out due to tyres f🐈or the event being shipped before the resurfacing was undertaken.

"I remind ever🌠yone that the tyres for this race were shipped from Europe at the end of November while the resurfacing of the circuit was completed only a few weeks ago," he said.

"Therefore, in the absence of data on which to baꩲse ourselves, we thought it appropriate to rely on the racing solutions used successfully in the last two seasons.

"We have seen in ജthe tests that the asphalt offers a lot of grip, to the advantage of the flying lap time, but on the other hand it is very aggressive with the tyres, especially at high temperatures, causing unusual peaks in tread compound temperature on the left side with consequent tyre degradation: we detected up to 160 degrees Celsius in pit lane which we esꦦtimate could reach operative peaks of more than 200 degrees.

"Considering this evid𓃲ence, in agre𝓰ement with Dorna, FIM and Race Direction, we have decided that for the races of both classes it will be mandatory to make a pit stop to change tyres.

"It was a difficult decision to take, also because, as always happens in these cases, some teams would have wanted to try racing over the full distance. However, Pirelli believes that the safety of the riders must be the abso💜lute priority in such circumstances.”