Canadian Superbike all-time championships leader Jordan Szoke appears ready to challenge for the title again. At the Bridgestone Winter Test this week at the Jennings GP facility in Florida, Szoke finished atop both days, promising an exciting season ahead.
Szoke was badly injured in a pre-season test last year, suffering a fractured jaw, punctured neck, broken and plated right leg and shattered left ankle in a crash at Walton Raceway’s motocross track. That ruled him completely out of the 2022 race season. The title went to Ben Young (aboard his BMW again).
Now, judging by Jennings’ result, Szoke is back—he’s very, very much back, and 2022 champ Young is close behind. See the combined results below:
Alex Dumas, the 2021 champion and 2022 runner-up, is not far behind, either. And check out rookie Pierre Simard, who came out of nowhere to best the times of some very respectable competition! Will he shake up the CSBK ranks this summer? Stay tuned!
More than a practice session
And here is a 360-degree around Jennings aboard Sam Guerin’s bike, if you’re curious what the circuit looks like …
The Jennings GP wasn’t your standard pre-season practice session. It was also a shakedown test for the new spec Bridgestone tires, as CSBK switches over from Dunlop. On Day 1 of the test, Szoke seemed happy enough with the Battlax slicks, saying “It’s going to take some getting used to, but the grip feels really good so far.”
We’ll know more in May, as the riders open the 2023 season at Shannonville. If Dumas regains the edge that saw him win in 2021, we’ll see a three-way battle for first that might be the best racing of the past decade.
2023 CSBK Schedule
Round One May 19-21  Shannonville Motorsport Park, Shannonville, Ontario
Round Two  June 8-11  Grand Bend Motorplex, Lake Huron, Ontario
Round Three  July 20-23  Atlantic Motorsport Park, Shubenacadie, Nova Scotia *
Round Four  August 18-20  Canadian Tire Motorsport Park, Bowmanville, Ontario **
Round Five September 15-17  Shannonville Motorsport Park, Shannonville, Ontario
