Pata Yamaha team boss Paul Denning believes Alex Lowes and Sylvain Guintoli could be targeting World Superbike podiums and race wins on the YZF-R1 by the second half of the season.

Denning is already impressed by the speed of the new bike, and with the performance of his youth and experience rider duo, and believes that wins can come before the team sets their sights on a world title in 2017.

“We should compete at the start of the year and see where we are. It’s quite possible we can finish sixth in the first two races of the year and then understand we have to improve. If we are sixth and 15 seconds off the lead or something. If it is worse than that, then we have to improve more quickly,” said Denning, speaking to bikesportnews.com at Jerez.

“If you ask the riders, they are turning up at Phillip Island with the intention of winning. The base of the R1 is so good and the biggest tool it has in its armoury is the engine character. Perhaps the expectation could be advanced a little but the goal is to improve over the course of the year, challenge for podiums and race wins in the second half of the season and try to be world champion in 2017.”

Get more on this in the next issue of Bikesport News, in your app store on February 4