The 2023 FIM Supersport World Championship grid is filling up fast as Simon Buckmaster’s Dynavolt Triumph squad have confirmed their line-up for the forthcoming season. Finnish star Niki Tuuli will make the switch from the three-cylinder MV Agusta to the Triumph Triple RS of the PTR outfit, as he hopes to bring the bike more success in 2023 as he re-joins the team he was with back in 2018.
Tuuli has had plenty of success in World Supersport, having achieved a top ten on his debut in 2015 before going on to take three podiums in the only three races of his 2016 campaign. He became a race winner in 2017 before joining the PTR team in 2018 with Honda machinery, where he was a frequent top ten finisher; halfway through the year, he joined the Moto2™ World Championship where he’d be a point-scorer.
Two years as a race winner in the MotoE™ World Cup in 2019 and 2020 preceded his return to World Supersport action in 2021, where top ten finishes and three podiums would see him finish as top MV Agusta. In 2022, he improved again and despite suffering a crash which resulted in the amputation of three toes, he bounced back in style and ended his and MV Agusta’s five-year wait for victory at Mandalika in Race 1.
Tuuli now takes on the Triumph, where he’ll be keen to demonstrate his class again: “I am really, really happy that I can continue in the World Championship. I think I have a lot more to give than I have given until this moment. I am really interested and super happy to join this new project with Triumph. I think they showed really good potential this year, even in their first year they made a really good result and I think that tells a lot about what the team can do and what the bike is capable of. I cannot wait to start the year with the new bike. I am feeling really good and relaxed when I’m thinking about next year.
“I’m happy to be staying with the three-cylinder bike, I think it fits my riding style really well. So, the expectations are I’m looking to make a really good job, I think it’s realistic to say that. In the end, I want to say a huge thanks to Simon and Dynavolt Triumph, all my sponsors; they help me a lot and gave me this chance so I can’t wait to start the year and make the best job together.”
Team manager Simon Buckmaster was also pleased to welcome Tuuli back to the team: “It’s good to bring Niki Tuuli back into the team as he rode for us back in 2018. He’s been back in World Supersport, and he’s taken time to get back to where his level of riding is. He missed some rounds this year with an injury when he lost three toes, but he’s come back and been on good form. It’s good to have him back in the team, I think he’ll do a really good job and we all know each other so we should gel quickly. Coming off one three-cylinder machine to another, the adaption to the Dynavolt Triumph 765 RS Street Triple should be quite quick, which is good because we don’t have too much time for testing. I think he will work very well with Harry, and they will be a really good team unit. So, we welcome Niki into the team and to the Triumph family for a title challenge in World Supersport. We can’t wait to get testing; let’s see what we can do.”