Evan Bros bets on ZXMoto: from romantic roots to a factory challenge in the Supersport World Championship

Tuesday, 20 January 2026 at 14:58

There are those who see racing only as a job and those who see it as a true passion. Evan Bros is a historic presence in the Supersport World Championship, multi-titled, hyper-professional yet with a romantic soul. It would have been easy to carry on with the Yamaha R9, an already winning bike. But no, Fabio Evangelista has thrown himself into an exciting new challenge with China’s ZXMoto.

In 2026 Evan Bros is a factory team working in total synergy with the young Chinese company. The goal is to push the bike’s development forward and significantly contribute to the brand’s growth in the sporting arena, with knock-on effects in the market. Fabio Evangelista, Evan Bros Team Principal, tells Corsedimoto about his first months with ZXMoto.

"The Chinese are good people. It sounds simple, but it’s the first thing that comes to mind working with them. We immediately hit it off very well. They spoke beautifully about us, filling us with pride. The ZXMoto 820 has great potential and that was evident right away, but it’s a bike that needs to be developed from scratch. We raced for years with the R6 and then with the R9 which, although new, has many racing components. The ZX, on the other hand, is a newly born Chinese bike that’s practically stock. We have great experience in bike development, so we’ll try to make it competitive and take it as high as possible."

In China they’ve recently been producing high-level machines, but clearly they lack the know-how that European or Japanese companies have. That’s also why manufacturers rely on Italian teams with proven experience, as QJ did with Puccetti and now ZXMoto with Evan Bros.

"Our best technicians went to China to give their support. Specifically, Technical Director Mauro Pellegrini, engine specialist Jeremy Togni, and mechanic Mauro D'Ascenzo went. They worked on-site together with the Chinese engineers, who were thrilled with the collaboration. They focused mainly on the engine. The goal right now is to find the right compromise between reliability and performance. The power unit is the stock one; the FIM is doing the homologations right now at our headquarters, which is serving somewhat as a branch of ZXMoto."

Evan Bros will therefore start the Supersport World Championship with the stock bike.

"We’re trying to make small changes that could still prove very significant. We’ll start the championship with a bike that is more or less stock. In addition, we’re working on a complete Racing Kit that will cover both engine and chassis. It will be ready for the second half of the championship and will allow for a major step forward."

The tests have brought the first smiles.

"The riders are very motivated. After a very first taste at Pomposa and Vallelunga, in January we went to Andalusia for our first real test. The tests went well. Our priority was to work on engine reliability. We were there for three days and our two riders covered 200 km each on every single day. This week we’ll do more tests organized directly by us, and there will be other Supersport teams as well, so from the second day we’ll be able to start making an initial comparison with the others. Lap times, however, are of relative value at this moment: what matters is reliability. We want to go to Australia with a bike that offers a certain peace of mind. The signs are good."

Fabio Evangelista has never indulged in flights of fancy, and he’s not about to start now—quite the opposite. In the paddock, some light the fuse of excitement while he reaches for the fire extinguisher.

"Our goal at the moment is the points zone. If we don’t achieve it already at Phillip Island, it won’t be a big deal and we’ll keep working calmly, as we are doing. Simply being in the top 15 would be an excellent result. If we were to crack the top 10, that would be huge. Step by step, we’ll get there. ZXMoto will present the bike in March in China, and there will also be Evan Bros Supersport replicas. It will then be launched on the Chinese market. It’s possible that from 2027 there will be other ZX 820s on track, in the Supersport World Championship and in national championships. We would be very pleased; it would be a great source of pride for all of us."