In winning the 2009 Hannspree FIM Superbike World Championship at Portimao, Ben Spies became:

- The sixth American rider to win the title and the first since Colin Edwards in 2002;

- Third in the age ranking with 25 years 3 months and 14 days, behind James Toseland who in 2004 won the title at 23 years 11 months and 28 days and Troy Corser, who won in 1996 at 24 years and 11 months;

- The first champion on a Yamaha.

- The rider who has needed the fewest number of race starts (28 after Portimao) to win a world title (the previous record was 29 races and one full season, Doug Polen, 1991), excluding Fred Merkel, who won the first championship made up of only seventeen races.

- The first rider to win the championship despite not scoring any points in the season opener (he was 16th in the first Phillip Island race). Up to now all the world champions have finished the first race of the season in at least fourth position;

- The second rider to win the title despite not scoring points in five races during the season. Troy Bayliss won the title last year despite a mechanical failure at Monza, a fall and a failure at Miller, a fall at Donington and at Vallelunga. Spies this year failed to score at Phillip Island after a first lap tangle with Biaggi and Haslam, he fell in race 1 at Valencia and race 2 at Assen, was sidelined by a mechanical failure in race 2 at Kyalami and was taken out of the race by Fabrizio in Brno. He also had to add an empty fuel tank at the end of the first Monza race when he coasted to the line gaining only one point (he was leading) and a clutch problem in Misano (race 2, seven points gained);

- The World Champion with the highest number of poles in his winning year, eleven, posting also the all-time season record of poles.