The Aprilia RS 660 has added another significant racing title to its growing tally, with Filippo Bianchi crowned Italian Sportbike Champion following an impressive weekend at the Cremona Circuit. Riding for the MMP Velocità team, the 2005-born Italian secured the championship with one round still remaining after taking victory in the Superpole Race. The result follows Aprilia’s recent success in the equivalent Twins Cup category in MotoAmerica and further underlines the competitiveness of the RS 660 in middleweight production-based racing. Bianchi arrived at Cremona for the fifth and penultimate round of the season in excellent form and was immediately on the pace from the opening free practice session. He went on to secure pole position before taking an important victory in Saturday’s Race 1, putting himself within touching distance of the championship.
Bianchi completed the job on Sunday morning when victory in the Superpole Race officially secured the Italian Sportbike title with a full round of the championship still to run. It has been an impressive season for the young Italian, who has recorded seven victories from eleven races on his way to the crown. The championship also continues Bianchi’s successful association with Aprilia machinery, having previously won the Aprilia RS 660 Trophy in 2024. His latest success highlights both his development as a rider and the performance of the RS 660 in production-based competition, while also rewarding the work carried out throughout the season by the MMP Velocità team. With titles now secured on both sides of the Atlantic, the RS 660 continues to build an impressive competition record.
There was further success for Aprilia machinery at Cremona, with Luca Bernardi taking victory aboard the Aprilia RSV4 1100 in the CIV Superbike class. Bernardi produced a commanding solo performance in Race 1, an impressive achievement given that the Cremona Circuit was new territory for the Italian Championship competitors. Aprilia was also represented on the international endurance racing stage during the same weekend, as the famous Bol d’Or hosted the final round of the FIM Endurance World Championship. The REVO-M2 team entered an Aprilia RSV4 1100 in the Superstock category, with Kevin Calia, Simone Saltarelli, Flavio Ferroni and Mathieu Gines sharing riding duties during one of the toughest events on the motorcycle racing calendar.
The REVO-M2 team’s Bol d’Or challenge got off to a difficult start following a crash during the opening hour of the race, but the crew managed to repair the damaged RSV4 in rapid time and return it to the circuit. From there the riders began an impressive recovery through the field, eventually climbing back to sixth position in the Superstock category. Unfortunately, a further crash after eight hours brought the team’s race to a premature conclusion despite the pace shown by the bike and riders throughout the weekend. While the endurance result ultimately went unrewarded, the weekend still proved a successful one for Aprilia competition machinery, headed by Bianchi’s Italian Sportbike Championship victory and Bernardi’s CIV Superbike win aboard the RSV4 1100.
