'I never give up' - Jonathan Rea vows to give everything 'until the very last lap of my last race' at final World Superbike weekend of his sparkling career at Jerez
Jonathan Rea will carry his trademark never-give-up mentality into the final lap of the last race of his glittering World Superbike career this weekend at Jerez in Spain, as he prepares to bid farewell to a championship that “made all my dreams come true”.
The Northern Ireland star has three races left before closing final chapter on a distinguished 17-years in the series, during which time Rea won a record six successive world crowns and 119 races to write his name into the history books.
The 38-year-old received a standing ovation as he took centre stage at a special press conference at Jerez held to mark his retirement, which was attended by many of his past and present rivals, including Chaz Davies, Alvaro Bautista and Toprak Razgatlioglu, and former team bosses, technicians and friends from Kawasaki Racing and Ten Kate.
Rea has endured a difficult two seasons after leaving Kawasaki to join Yamaha, with his best result on the R1 machine achieved last summer at Donington Park, where he finished third in the Superpole race.
He ended 2024 in 13th in the standings and is currently 16th after a year blighted by an early foot injury sustained in testing.
However, Rea will approach his final World Superbike races with the same desire and tenacity that was the foundation of his incredible six-year reign at the top from 2015 to 2020.
The Ulsterman was 11th fastest on Friday in free practice at Jerez, where many of his fans from Northern Ireland have made the trip to celebrate his extraordinary career.
“I never give up, and that's right until the very last lap of my last race,” Rea said.
“Two years ago, I said goodbye to the Kawasaki Racing family, and that was a very emotional weekend, and I didn't channel that emotion in the best way – I crashed out leading Race 2.
“So, I hope with Yamaha this year, I can channel those emotions in a better way and give them the result they deserve.
“Of course, the speed at the front of SBK now, especially Toprak (Razgatlioglu) and Nicolo (Bulega) is incredible. Those guys are on the next level and I just hope to be able to be a little bit closer.
“If I can do my best, and my team work their best, I'm sure we can just be proud of our result, whatever that may be.”
Addressing his former teams and old rivals, the Ballyclare man added: “You've made all my dreams come true, and just seeing the turnout here today makes me feel incredibly special, so thank you.”
The first race takes place on Saturday at 1pm UK time, with Sunday’s final two races of the weekend at 10am and 1pm.