The winningest racer in Canadian Superbike history will be back for another campaign. Today, Kawasaki Motors Canada confirmed that Jordan Szoke is coming back for 2023, with an even stronger team.
Szoke, who holds more CSBK titles than any other racer, had to sit out the 2022 season after a nasty pre-season accident at a motocross track. It was a big blow to Szoke, who was looking forward to reclaiming his crown from Alex Dumas, who’d taken the #1 plate from Szoke in the 2021 season. But now it seems Szoke’s serious leg injuries have healed, and he’s back to challenge again—and now he has a teammate.
For 2023, Trevor Dion will join Szoke’s Waznie Racing team, moving to a Kawasaki ZX-10R. Dion was the 2022 Pro Sport Bike champion on a Kawasaki ZX-6R, and although he’s raced in Pro Superbike before, we might see a bit of a passing of the torch as he’s Szoke’s teammate. Or maybe not—Szoke is a fierce competitor. But this is a massive chance for Dion, and even if he can’t pull off a Brett McCormick-style season (McCormick won four races against Szoke’s three, when they were teammates in 2009), Dion should learn a lot this year from the master. Nobody knows the trickery of Canada’s roadracing tracks as well as Szoke.
“I am really excited to try and get back on the track after my injuries last year,” Szoke said, in Kawasaki’s official announcement. “I’m also excited to expand our team and Kawasaki’s involvement. Trevor is a great young racer. And a great young man. We really look forward to helping him become a champion.”
Presumably, both riders will be down in the US for CSBK’s official test days at JenningsGP in northern Florida in March. Knowing Szoke, he’ll also almost certainly have his team doing some private testing here in Canada before the ’23 season opens—he’s got a summer of lost racing to make up for, after all.
