This Chinese manufacturer just won in WorldSBK race
There’s long been a stigma here in the Philippines that motorcycles (and even cars), made in China are second-rate, with owners often taking flak for it.
But that narrative is starting to crack. On the world stage, a Chinese manufacturer has finally delivered a statement result, with ZXMOTO taking victory in the World Supersport (WorldSSP) class of the Superbike World Championship (WorldSBK).
For those unfamiliar, ZXMOTO is a very young brand, which was founded just two years ago by Zhang Xue, the same guy who founded KOVE in 2017. That makes this result even more remarkable. The win not only crowns ZXMOTO as the first Chinese manufacturer to take a victory in the prestigious race, but also one of the fastest to do so, second only to Ducati, which won on debut. This feat by Ducati was later matched by Triumph Motorcycles in 2019.
Speaking after the historic result, Valentin Debise of the ZXMOTO Factory Evan Bros Racing team said he was so far ahead that it felt like he had the entire track to himself.
“Later, I stopped seeing the other bikes, seeing my gap going up and up on my board. I felt like I had rented the track with riding alone like that,” said Debise, who won Race 1 by almost 4 seconds to the next ride, then Race 2 by half a second. He also thanked his team for working so hard to make this achievement, and even going beyond by not taking any rest days since last year.
“I think the team deserve more of the credit than me, they’ve been working like crazy, they haven’t taken a day off since November,” he added.
The race-winning machine in this WorldSSP round was the 820RR-RS, powered by an 819cc inline-three that produces a claimed 151 PS of power. What really turns heads, though, is the price as its production version sells in China for around USD 8,400 already loaded with premium hardware like Brembo brakes, Öhlins suspension, an AkrapoviÄ titanium exhaust, and carbon fiber components.
Racing has always been the ultimate proving ground for motorcycle brands. It’s where the established Japanese and European names built their reputations. Now, it’s the Chinese stepping into that same arena, showing just how far they’ve come in such a short time.
