Introduced in 1988 to showcase the new generation of high-performance street sports bikes, the World Superbike Championship (WSB) quickly gained importance in the world of bike racing and now includes 15 rounds covering four continents and over ten countries. In some ways MotoGP can be seen as the F1 class of racing when compared to cars and WSB as the Touring Car class.

History
After a few early turbulent years, the championship flourished when the Italian Flammini Group (FGSport) took over running the series in the early Nineties. The new promoters took the championship to new and better venues and produced a consistent show which, by the mid-Nineties, challenged the GP series for popularity.

Part of the appeal of WSB was the relevance to the paying public. With all the major manufacturers participating, people could see the bikes they owned being raced while the riders themselves were more accessible and relaxed than their GP counterparts.

The evolution of MotoGP from the GP series saw manufacturers switch their attention back to that class, forcing WSB to once again reinvent itself in a bid to stay in contention for popularity. The result was a return to the values that made the championship great in the first place and continues to keep WSB in the heart of many race fans the world over.

The bikes used these days in the championship are all 1000cc and up sports bikes, like Yamaha’s YZF-R1, with limited engine tuning - a change from the highly-tuned 750cc four cylinder machines used in the early days of the championship. The organisers have also introduced a control slick race tyre, produced by Pirelli, giving all teams access to the same specification rubber to create closer and more exciting racing than ever before.

For 2009, the WSB Superpole rules were revised, on the Saturday afternoon, where previously riders would go out for one hot lap to secure their place on the starting grid, a new format was installed. In Superpole there are now 20 riders from the first qualifying group, which then drops to 16, then eight in the final 12-minute session, which determines the pole setter.

At the close of 2008, the Flammini Group merged with the Infront Motorsports Organisation and rebranded as Infront Sports & Media. The 2009 season saw a record seven top manufacturers and 32 riders lining up for the season, making it one the most hotly contested global championships.

Regulations
A Superbike machine must remain in many aspects the same as the bike that can be bought in any dealership, including the body design. To be allowed to enter the WSB Championship every manufacturer must produce a minimum quantity of a bike that must also be commercially available to the general public.

Changes to the regulations in 2008 meant that two-cylinder machines up to 1200cc were allowed. The minimum weight limit for Superbikes remains 162kg for four-cylinder machines and 168kg for two-cylinder 1200cc machines, although these bikes have greater restrictions placed on them in other areas. This rule change was made to allow all manufacturers to continue competing in the championship whilst maintaining a fair but competitive challenge.