Miguel Oliveira says WorldSBK’s race weekend format is harder to adapt to after his move from MotoGP.
Oliveira joined the BMW squad after spending his entire career in the GP paddock, where the race format changed with the introduction of Sprint races in 2023.
MotoGP features three practice sessions, qualifying, a Sprint and a main race, while WorldSBK runs three practice sessions, Superpole, two full-length races and a half-distance race.
Compared to MotoGP, Superbike has a more intense Sunday, featuring a short warm-up session followed by two races, something the Portuguese star admits he’s still adjusting to.
“The weekend itself is not relaxed at all, because especially I found it that after 3 weekends, Sunday is a bit tough,” Oliveira told the media at Assen, including Motorsport Week.
“Because on your third day, you have to do in a short time, a warm up, and then you have to do a short race, and then you have to do a long race afterwards. And it’s not easy.
“It’s not easy because the pace is fast. On both races, but the amount of concentration and energy that you need on your 3rd day on the bike is quite high.
“So, in that regard, I find it a little bit more difficult than to MotoGP; the Sunday itself is a little bit more hectic, more chaotic.
“But in terms of the pace, I can adapt. I can have 5 weekends in a row, no problem. I can do it. It’s fine.”
Miguel Oliveira: Despite a busier Sunday, WorldSBK race preparation is ‘more relaxed’
Although Sunday has a higher intensity, the 31-year-old expressed that the difference in qualifying criteria allows him to gain extra time to find marginal gains.
MotoGP’s starting grid is shaped by its qualifying system, with the top 10 from Friday afternoon practice progressing directly to Q2 while the rest go through Q1.
Oliveira believes this format offers fewer opportunities to find the bike’s limits than in WorldSBK.
“It’s more relaxed, the fact that you know whatever you do, you would not pre-qualify to anything, and you can actually really work for race,” he said.
“It helps, it helps to be honest, to set up the bike and just have that free space on your mind, just to try something different, make some mistakes, because at the end, you know, you don’t need to put a new tyre and fight to be in that top 10 position.
“But yeah, it’s different on that way. And it’s 15 minutes less of the afternoon practice. So that also makes a little bit of an impact.”
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