Althea Racing Ducati's Carlos Checa (Photo: Althea Racing)

5. Carlos Checa

Carlos Checa had a pretty decent season by most standards, but his campaign was rather abysmal when compared to his own from just a year prior. Checa fell from 15 wins to four, six poles to just one, 21 podiums to nine, and a runaway title victory to fourth in the standings.

4. Jonathan Rea

Jonathan Rea again flashed with six podiums and a pair of impressive victories while thrashing new teammate and former MotoGP pilot Hiro Aoyoma. There's a line of thought that suggests that Rea has been better than the Honda machinery he's been armed with, although that should be better answered in '13 when he's paired with Leon Haslam, who will serve as a more accurate gauge.

3. Marco Melandri

Marco Melandri might be the best rider in the Superbike World Championship. Actually, he's almost certainly the best rider in the Superbike World Championship, but he snatched defeat from the jaws of victory in 2012 and his rider ranking reflects that reality. He won more races than any other rider (six) but collapsed when he needed to step up. Holding a healthy 18.5-point advantage with just three rounds remaining, the Italian scored points in just one of the season's final six races thanks to four crashes and one battered and bruised DNS.

2. Max Biaggi

Max Biaggi walks away from his professional motorcycle racing career on top; he claimed a sixth world title in 2012 following an ultra-tight battle that saw him triumph by just a half-point after the dust had cleared. The Italian has his share of fans and critics alike, but no one has ever questioned his ability or accomplishments. The Roman Emperor notched up five wins, 11 podiums, five fast laps, and a pole en route to his second-career World Superbike title in 2012.

1. Tom Sykes

Tom Sykes needed just one more point to win the World Superbike title (shame about that Monza win for which he was awarded just 12.5 points instead of 25…). However, while he missed out on the crown in the end, Sykes' reputation was thoroughly bolstered in 2012, when he regularly proved to be the series' outright fastest man, as evidenced by nine poles, four wins, and a lot of burnt up Pirellis. With a motivated manufacturer behind him that continues to develop its racebike into a powerhouse, Sykes should be even better positioned to keep his tires under him and battle for the title in 2013.

SPEED.com Motorcycle Racing Editor Chris Martin saw Eddie Lawson win aboard a Kawasaki the first time he attended an AMA Superbike race and witnessed Ben Bostrom win a World Superbike race aboard a V&H Ducati the first time he worked one. He has written about AMA SBK, WSBK, and MotoGP for SPEED.com since 2003. Chris is now on Twitter.