Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing - Ducati) took two more wins on Sunday at the Cremona Circuit to claim an emotional hat-trick in a weekend where he was determined to bounce back from his Assen disappointment – and did so emphatically with all three wins. The #11 beat title rival Toprak Razgatlioglu (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) in all three races with the pair battling in the opening few laps of Race 2 before ‘Bulegas’ was able to get ahead of Razgatlioglu before going on to claim an emotional hat-trick.

SUPERPOLE RACE MASTERCLASS: pole, lead every lap, victory

Despite early pressure from Razgatlioglu, Bulega was able to lead every lap in the 10-lap race to claim his second victory of the weekend, finishing almost 1.5 seconds clear of ‘El Turco’ for victory and to secure P1 on the Race 2 grid. It was his 33^rd podium in WorldSBK and tenth of the season as he claimed his sixth victory in 2025. It also meant he equalled his 2024 win tally in just the 11^th race of the season – last year, it took him 35 races to take his sixth win.

RACE 2 VICTORY: Bulega resists early Razgatlioglu challenge

The first few laps of Race 2 were similar to Race 1 on Saturday. Although Bulega got the holeshot when lights went out for the 23-lap race, Razgatlioglu was able to get ahead at the Turn 13 hairpin at the end of the lap. Bulega stayed close to the BMW of Razgatlioglu, but over the first four laps, was unable to make a move stick. That changed at Turn 11 on Lap 5 as he got up the inside of Razgatlioglu under braking, before defending through Turn 13 and going on to lead every lap from that point, although the #1 stayed closer to Bulega than he managed in Race 1.

Discussing his hat-trick, Bulega said: “If someone had told me a few days ago that I’d win three races at Cremona, I wouldn’t have believed them! It’s incredible to have a hat-trick here at my worst track. It’s something out of my head. Thanks to all the Italian fans that came here to support us, and all the Ducati guys. It’s very nice to win here in Italy.”

MATCHING DUCATI LEGENDS: surpassing Falappa and Chilli for an Italian winning for Ducati

Bulega became the most successful Italian riders for Ducati in terms of victory after his Race 2 win, taking his tally to 13. That moves him ahead of Giancarlo Falappa and Frankie Chilli, who had previously held the record for wins by an Italian for Ducati. He’s also led laps in the last 15 races, closing in on the all-time record set by Razgatlioglu (18) from Assen Race 1 to Magny-Cours Race 2 in 2022.

GOING FORWARD: what does winning at his “worst track” mean for the rest of 2025?

Bulega won all three races at Cremona despite describing it as his ‘worst’ track for his riding style, helping to show the step forward he’s made from his rookie season – which was already very impressive with multiple race wins and consistent performances. He discussed what winning at a circuit he didn’t expect to win at would do for the future, including at Most which, traditionally, has been a Razgatlioglu-style circuit.

He said: “This is my worst track, and I still can’t believe I did a hat-trick at Cremona! At the start of the season, I was thinking, ‘I don’t want to go to Cremona’, and now I love the circuit! It’s incredible. I’ll try to do the same every time I come here. Toprak is always very strong at Most; I think it’s one of his favourite tracks. I don’t have a plan, just to give 100% and try to beat him; if I can’t beat him, try to stay very close.”

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