2003 Superbike World Championship

The 2003 Superbike World Championship was the sixteenth FIM Superbike World Championship season. The season started on 2 March at Valencia and finished on 19 October at Magny-Cours after 12 rounds.

Rule changes for 2003 allowed 1000cc machines (either twins, triples or four-cylinder) to race. The rule changes in MotoGP which allowed 4-stroke engines starting from 2002 meant that the Japanese manufacturers had focused their resources there; as a result the Superbike World Championship was left with limited factory involvement, with Ducati, Suzuki and the new-for-2003 Carl Fogarty's Foggy Petronas as the only factory teams. As a result of most of the field being formed of Ducati motorcycles, the championship was given the derogatory label of the "Ducati Cup" in some quarters.

The factory Ducati Team entered the only two Ducati 999s in the field, taking 20 wins from 24 races in a season where all races were won by Ducati. Neil Hodgson won the riders' championship and Ducati won the manufacturers' championship.

Entry list 2003 Entry List TeamConstructorMotorcycleTyreRiderRounds RTZ powered by ROTAX Aprilia Aprilia RSV 1000 70 Christian Zaiser 7 Caracchi NCR Nortel Net. Ducati Ducati 996RS 50 Marco Masetti 4 Firepower Ducati 89 Dean Ellison 9 Gi.Bi. Team 82 Lorenzo Mauri 4 Lucido Corse 113 Paolo Blora 4, 7 Team Foundation 79 Noriyasu Numata 3 HM Plant Ducati Ducati 998F02 9 Chris Walker All 52 James Toseland All Monstermob Ducati 67 Shane Byrne 9 Renegade Ducati 60 Michael Rutter 6, 9 62 Sean Emmett 6 Caracchi NCR Nortel Net. Ducati 998RS 38 Giancarlo De Matteis 9 48 David García 1–3, 5–8, 10–12 55 Régis Laconi All D.F.X. Racing Team 20 Marco Borciani All 33 Juan Borja All 99 Steve Martin All Ducati Austin 15 Giovanni Bussei 8 ETI Racing 62 Sean Emmett 9 JM SBK Team 23 Jiří Mrkývka 4–5, 7–12 Renegade Ducati 40 Nick Medd 9 90 Leon Haslam 9–10, 12 Team Pedercini 19 Lucio Pedercini All 26 Luca Pedersoli 8–11 28 Serafino Foti 1, 4–7 35 Nello Russo 1–2, 5–7 82 Lorenzo Mauri 11 Team Pro.Con. 29 Giuseppe Zannini 7, 11 Team PSG-1 7 Pierfrancesco Chili All Ducati Fila Ducati 999F03 11 Rubén Xaus All 100 Neil Hodgson All Michelin Honda Honda Honda CBR954RR 75 Alistair Maxwell 2 Blue Helmet MSC Honda VTR 1000SP2 74 Kenichiro Nakamura 3 White Endurance 68 Bertrand Stey 12 91 Walter Tortoroglio 1–11 Team HRC Honda VTR 1000SPW 77 Hitoyasu Izutsu 3 Greven Mc Delar Kawasaki Kawasaki ZX-7RR 45 Jan Greven 10 Kawasaki Bertocchi 5 Ivan Clementi All 6 Mauro Sanchini All Kawasaki Road Racing 32 Eric Bostrom 8 Alstare Suzuki Suzuki Suzuki GSX-R1000 10 Gregorio Lavilla All 31 Vittorio Iannuzzo 4–7, 10 Bertus Folkertsma Racing 43 Bertus Folkertsma 10 Boselli Racing 96 Luca Pini 7, 11 Elf Yoshimura Schäfer Motorsport 44 Stefan Nebel 10 Kruisinga Motoren Racing 42 Paul Mooijman 10 MIR Racing 16 Sergio Fuertes 1, 4–7, 9–12 Motorcycle Weaponry 73 Steven Cutting 2 Racing Team R.Menzen 41 Robert Menzen 10 Racing Team Zaiser 70 Christian Zaiser 12 Rizla Suzuki 61 John Reynolds 6, 9–10 64 Yukio Kagayama 6, 9 Scuderia HF 57 Simone Conti 11 SERT 93 Sébastien Gimbert 12 Suzuki Yoshimura 66 Mat Mladin 8 120 Aaron Yates 8 Team Suzuki 76 Atsushi Watanabe 3 Warren & Brown Lightpaths 78 Jay Normoyle 2 Foggy PETRONAS Racing Petronas Petronas FP1 4 Troy Corser All 8 James Haydon 1–5, 8–12 82 Lorenzo Mauri 7 Acumoto Racing Team Yamaha Yamaha YZF-R1 71 Martin Benito Isaac 1 Komatsu Sundby Racing 36 Sundby Dag Steinar 5 Nuvolari 391 39 Alessandro Gramigni 4, 7, 9–12 Remus Racing Austria 22 Horst Saiger 10–12 69 Karl Truchsess 10 Team X-Racing 95 Redamo Assirelli 7 UnionBike GIMotorsport 15 Giovanni Bussei 1–7 39 Alessandro Gramigni 1 51 Davide Messori 2 95 Redamo Assirelli 9 92 Frédéric Protat 12 98 Gianmaria Liverani 10–11Key Regular rider Wildcard rider Replacement riderD DunlopM MichelinP Pirelli

Race calendar and results 2003 Superbike World Championship Calendar Round Circuit Date Superpole Fastest lap Winning rider Winning team Report 1 R1 Valencia 2 March Neil Hodgson Neil Hodgson Neil Hodgson Fila Ducati Report R2 Neil Hodgson Neil Hodgson Fila Ducati 2 R1 Phillip Island 30 March Neil Hodgson Neil Hodgson Neil Hodgson Fila Ducati Report R2 Rubén Xaus Neil Hodgson Fila Ducati 3 R1 Sugo 27 April Régis Laconi Neil Hodgson Neil Hodgson Fila Ducati Report R2 Pierfrancesco Chili Neil Hodgson Fila Ducati 4 R1 Monza 18 May Neil Hodgson Neil Hodgson Neil Hodgson Fila Ducati Report R2 Régis Laconi Neil Hodgson Fila Ducati 5 R1 Oschersleben 1 June Neil Hodgson Pierfrancesco Chili Neil Hodgson Fila Ducati Report R2 Neil Hodgson James Toseland HM Plant Ducati 6 R1 Silverstone 15 June Neil Hodgson Gregorio Lavilla Neil Hodgson Fila Ducati Report R2 Gregorio Lavilla Neil Hodgson Fila Ducati 7 R1 Misano 22 June Neil Hodgson Rubén Xaus Rubén Xaus Fila Ducati Report R2 Rubén Xaus Rubén Xaus Fila Ducati 8 R1 Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca 13 July Mat Mladin Régis Laconi Pierfrancesco Chili Team PSG-1 Report R2 Rubén Xaus Rubén Xaus Fila Ducati 9 R1 Brands Hatch 27 July John Reynolds Shane Byrne Shane Byrne Monstermob Ducati Report R2 John Reynolds Shane Byrne Monstermob Ducati 10 R1 Assen 7 September Pierfrancesco Chili Gregorio Lavilla Rubén Xaus Fila Ducati Report R2 Neil Hodgson Neil Hodgson Fila Ducati 11 R1 Imola 28 September Rubén Xaus Neil Hodgson Rubén Xaus Fila Ducati Report R2 Rubén Xaus Rubén Xaus Fila Ducati 12 R1 Magny-Cours 19 October James Toseland Neil Hodgson Neil Hodgson Fila Ducati Report R2 Neil Hodgson Rubén Xaus Fila Ducati

Championship standings

Riders' standings 2003 final riders' standings Pos. Rider Bike ESP AUS JPN ITA GER GBR SMR USA EUR NED ITA FRA Pts R1 R2 R1 R2 R1 R2 R1 R2 R1 R2 R1 R2 R1 R2 R1 R2 R1 R2 R1 R2 R1 R2 R1 R2 1 Neil Hodgson Ducati 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 1 1 Ret 2 2 2 2 5 2 1 2 4 1 Ret 489 2 Rubén Xaus Ducati 2 2 2 2 4 4 7 Ret Ret 5 3 3 1 1 Ret 1 Ret 4 1 2 1 1 2 1 386 3 James Toseland Ducati 4 3 DSQ 5 3 5 4 5 3 1 2 4 2 Ret 3 Ret 6 3 4 Ret Ret Ret 5 2 271 4 Régis Laconi Ducati 5 Ret 6 4 2 7 2 4 4 4 4 6 3 4 Ret 4 4 8 Ret 4 3 2 6 16 267 5 Gregorio Lavilla Suzuki 7 6 3 7 5 2 3 2 Ret Ret Ret 2 4 5 Ret 5 7 6 Ret 3 4 3 4 4 256 6 Chris Walker Ducati 3 4 7 6 Ret Ret 6 6 5 3 9 8 5 8 5 3 3 Ret 5 8 Ret 5 3 3 234 7 Pierfrancesco Chili Ducati Ret Ret Ret 3 Ret 3 5 3 2 11 7 7 Ret 3 1 Ret 9 7 3 5 5 Ret Ret Ret 197 8 Steve Martin Ducati 6 5 4 9 15 Ret 9 7 6 6 Ret Ret 6 9 Ret Ret 14 Ret 9 11 6 Ret 7 5 139 9 Lucio Pedercini Ducati 8 9 10 14 7 Ret 10 10 9 10 11 11 8 6 Ret 10 Ret 16 12 14 Ret 6 Ret 11 112 10 Marco Borciani Ducati 9 10 9 10 13 13 8 8 7 9 10 13 11 14 10 9 Ret 14 Ret 13 10 11 Ret 14 111 11 Mauro Sanchini Kawasaki Ret 13 13 12 11 10 14 12 11 12 13 14 9 11 9 8 15 15 10 12 8 8 10 10 108 12 Troy Corser Petronas Ret 7 5 8 Ret 12 13 Ret 12 14 16 Ret 7 10 8 Ret Ret Ret 6 9 7 7 8 Ret 107 13 Juan Borja Ducati 14 8 12 15 10 9 DNS DNS Ret 7 Ret Ret Ret 12 11 7 12 Ret Ret 16 11 9 9 7 87 14 Ivan Clementi Kawasaki 11 14 11 11 Ret 8 Ret Ret Ret 13 14 16 10 13 Ret Ret 13 13 8 7 9 Ret Ret 9 76 15 Giovanni Bussei Yamaha Ret 11 14 Ret 12 11 Ret 13 10 Ret 12 12 16 16 52 Ducati 7 6 16 Shane Byrne Ducati 1 1 50 17 John Reynolds Suzuki 6 10 Ret 2 Ret 10 42 18 Vittorio Iannuzzo Suzuki 12 9 8 8 Ret 15 Ret 7 DNS DNS 37 19 Alessandro Gramigni Yamaha Ret DNS 11 11 12 15 16 11 11 15 13 12 Ret 12 37 20 Suzuki 5 5 10 9 35 21 Leon Haslam Ducati Ret 10 7 6 Ret 6 35 22 David García Ducati 10 12 8 Ret DNS DNS DNS DNS DNS DNS Ret Ret DNS DNS 12 10 Ret Ret 28 23 Michael Rutter Ducati 8 9 8 Ret 23 24 Hitoyasu Izutsu Honda 6 6 20 25 Mat Mladin Suzuki 4 DNS 13 26 James Haydon Petronas 12 Ret 15 16 9 Ret Ret Ret Ret DNS Ret Ret 17 Ret DNS DNS Ret Ret Ret Ret 12 27 Sergio Fuertes Suzuki 15 Ret 16 Ret 17 17 15 16 Ret 17 Ret Ret 14 13 11 Ret 12 28 Sean Emmett Ducati 5 Ret 11 29 Nello Russo Ducati 13 15 16 13 13 Ret 15 18 Ret Ret 11 30 Aaron Yates Suzuki 6 Ret 10 31 Dean Ellison Ducati 11 12 9 32 Sébastien Gimbert Suzuki Ret 8 8 33 Atsushi Watanabe Suzuki 8 Ret 8 34 Serafino Foti Ducati Ret Ret 15 14 14 15 Ret Ret 14 Ret 8 35 Walter Tortoroglio Honda Ret 16 Ret 17 Ret 15 Ret 15 Ret 18 Ret Ret Ret Ret 12 Ret Ret Ret Ret DNS 18 16 6 36 Bertrand Stey Honda 13 13 6 37 Horst Saiger Yamaha 13 Ret 17 14 15 17 6 38 Christian Zaiser Aprilia Ret DNS 4 Suzuki 12 Ret 39 Kenichiro Nakamura Honda 14 14 4 40 Luca Pedersoli Ducati 13 Ret Ret Ret Ret Ret 19 Ret 3 41 Paolo Blora Ducati 13 17 3 42 Frédéric Protat Yamaha 14 15 3 43 Gianmaria Liverani Yamaha 14 19 20 Ret 2 44 Luca Pini Suzuki 17 19 15 15 2 45 Jiří Mrkývka Ducati DNQ DNQ 15 17 Ret Ret Ret Ret Ret Ret 15 Ret Ret Ret DNQ DNQ 2 Pos. Rider Bike ESP AUS JPN ITA GER GBR SMR USA EUR NED ITA FRA PtsBold – Pole positionItalics – Fastest lap

Manufacturers' standings 2003 final manufacturers' standings Pos. Manufacturer ESP AUS JPN ITA GER GBR SMR USA EUR NED ITA FRA Pts R1 R2 R1 R2 R1 R2 R1 R2 R1 R2 R1 R2 R1 R2 R1 R2 R1 R2 R1 R2 R1 R2 R1 R2 1 Ducati 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 600 2 Suzuki 7 6 3 7 5 2 3 2 8 8 5 2 4 5 4 5 7 2 16 3 4 3 4 4 306 3 Kawasaki 11 13 11 11 11 8 14 12 11 12 13 14 9 11 9 8 13 13 8 7 8 8 10 9 130 4 Petronas 12 7 5 8 9 12 13 Ret 12 14 16 Ret 7 10 8 Ret 17 Ret 6 9 7 7 8 Ret 118 5 Yamaha 16 11 14 Ret 12 11 11 11 10 19 12 12 12 15 16 11 11 15 13 12 14 12 69 6 Honda Ret 16 19 20 6 6 Ret 15 Ret 18 Ret Ret Ret Ret 12 Ret Ret Ret Ret DNS 18 16 13 13 31 Aprilia Ret DNS 0 Pos. Manufacturer ESP AUS JPN ITA GER GBR SMR USA EUR NED ITA FRA Pts

References