By ‘Circuito de Jerez – Angel Nieto’, a 2.748 miles long permanent track, first opened forty years back in 1985. A traditional Grand Prix (Moto GP) round, it’s also a former World Superbike and F1 racing circuit.
Jerez hosted the first ever Spanish round in history of the World Superbike Championship, in 1990 (season opener that year).
There was TT stars on the start-line, three times TT race winners Rob McElnea, later in his career, four times WSB Champion Carl Fogarty MBE (with team-mate Jamie Whitham for this event in the Honda Britain Team), plus 1986 Senior TT winner Roger Burnett.
Last weekend (held on a new date to original, after circuit flooding at the end of March), Jerez hosted the 2025 ESBK (Campeonato de Espana de Superbike) season opener with Moto4, ESBK Talent, Supersport 300, Supersport NG and Yamaha R7 Cup competition.
The ESBK, Superbike races saw, alongside race leaders Borja Gomez and Steven Odendaal, roads scene experienced, Ville Valtonen (P4 in Race 1 and P6 in Race 2), Reto-Luc Wiederkehr (P12 in Race 1 and P13 in Race 2) in action.
Finnish ace Valtonen nicknamed ‘Valdo’, has impressed at Imatranajo (2022-2024), setting rapid times, keeping pace with European roads giants and was also a podium finishing IRRC wildcard rider last year at Schleiz.
Additionally, he is Finland’s fastest Schleizer Dreieck exponent during IRRC events (former IRRC races lap record holder there).
Team Sensetec’s Reto-Luc Wiederkehr is Swiss hill climbs experienced and last year like Valtonen, was a Superbike wildcard competitor of IRRC races at Schleizer Dreieck.
The second round of this year’s seven-part ESBK Championship, will be held at another Grand Prix circuit, ‘Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya (19th-22nd of June).
Co-in siding with ESBK Jerez activities, the Italian CIV (Campionato Italiano Velocita) at ´Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli´ also kicked into gear last weekend with participants including Bram Lambrechts (Hengelo-Varsselring sub 1.50 seconds lap-time exponent) in the CIV Superbike class.
Back to discussing racing in Spain, it is good to remember that the popular road race ´Gran Premio de Velocidad Ciudad de La Baneza´ will take place from the 9th-10th of August, it means the same weekend as Czech TT/IRRC event in Horice.
We end this article, by raising a glass to the great pure road racing career of Spain’s quickest TT racer, Martimotos team member, the late, great Raul Torras Martinez.
Photo credit: Michael Wincott
Words by Jan Vavra
