Yamaha explains Jonathan Rea crew chief switch

Following the earlier revelation that Jonathan Rea will change crew chief in 2025, clarification has been offered by the Yamaha WorldSBK team.

It was revealed earlier this week that Rea has decided to end his one-year relationship with Andrew Pitt, who he took on as crew chief when he joined Yamaha at the end of 2023, after Andrea Locatelli — who had worked with Pitt since he stepped up to WorldSBK in 2021 — decided to split with the Australian for the 2024 season and forge a new partnership with Tom O’Kane.

In Pitt’s place will step Oriol Pallares, who moved with Rea from Kawasaki to Yamaha over the 2023–24 winter to be chief mechanic on the #65 side of the Pata Yamaha garage.

Pata Prometeon Yamaha team principal Paul Denning said the change was down to a desire from Rea to change the “communication style” on his side of the garage.

“Any change involving people in any organisation is always difficult, especially in a close-knit organisation such as a racing team,” Denning told WorldSBK.com.

“Andrew’s [Pitt] been with us for more than seven years and, over that time, became a very trusted colleague and a friend to everyone in the team, including Jonathan.

“The situation was not the easiest to manage. However, after such a difficult season, Jonathan [Rea] simply felt that he needed a reset and a change of communication style and a change of working atmosphere in the box.

“The thinking behind it had nothing to do with the technical job done or commitment or experience or ability. It was purely based on, as I say, a rider’s feeling and the need to try something different after such a tough season.

“Andrew is an ex-rider and World Champion, so he understands better than anyone how the mentality can work. I have to say, one of the biggest credits that we can give to Andrew was his level of professionalism and effort all the way until the last lap of the last race together with Jonathan.”

Denning added that there is a hope that Rea’s new crew chief, the aforementioned Pallares, will be able to recreate the kind of environment for Rea that Pere Riba managed during the Northern Irish rider’s title winning years at Kawasaki.

“The fact Uri [Pallares] and Jonathan know each other and have such a close personal and professional relationship is, in the end, the primary reason behind the change,” Denning said.

“Uri also had the benefit of seeing, first-hand, how Pere Riba managed JR [Rea] and was able to forge that winning relationship. Uri was part of that triangle of performance that they experienced before.

“It’s always a challenge in the pressure cooker of racing to separate personal and professional sides but Uri’s a strong enough character to manage JR and get the best out of him at all times.

“We’re trusting him and his intellect and his ability to do that and we’ve got confidence he’ll do well.”