You knew this day was coming, even if you were one of the many, many fans that Jonathan Rea has gathered around the globe throughout his racing career. Every racer, after all, has an expiration date. It's the circle of life, and it seemingly moves even faster for racers than it does for those of us normal folks. Which makes sense, really; there are, after all, reasons they're the ones out there on track and we're not.
On Monday, August 25, 2025, six-time World Superbike (WSBK) championship winner Jonathan Rea formally put an end to the speculation about what his next move would be. On his social media and YouTube channels, Rea announced that he's planning to retire from full-time racing at the end of the current WSBK season.
Here's the YouTube video he posted about it.
To be clear, Rea does specify that this isn't the end of his involvement with racing. That's also not a surprise, seeing how clear it is that it's well and truly in his blood. Like many a racer who's been both privileged and talented to get to this point in his career, he's planning to still be involved in the sport he loves so much; just perhaps in a different way.
He stopped short of giving any insight or speculation about what that involvement might be. Will he remain as an advisor, maybe get into team ownership or mentorship, or perhaps open a racing school? Maybe all of the above? So far, he hasn't seemed to indicate an interest in getting into four-wheeled motorsport instead, like Valentino Rossi has done. But it's difficult to say at this point, other than that he plans to find a way to remain involved in a different capacity than he has in the past. Who knows, maybe he'll wildcard from time to time, like several other fantastic racers have done. Danilo Petrucci, anyone?
One thing that's absolutely clear, if you take the time to read through the comments on his YouTube and Instagram posts about his retirement, is how much both other racers in the paddock and the fans will miss Rea's presence at races. He's a popular racer, both among his peers and among the fans, and while it's sad to see him leave full-time racing, we look forward to seeing what he does next and how he goes on to shape the world of motorsport that he clearly loves so much.
We at RideApart thank Rea for all the years of fantastic racing he's brought to the table, and wish him all the best for what's to come.
