Montella renews with Barni Ducati for 2026 WorldSBK campaign
The Italian rookie has put in some impressive performances so far this season and they have secured his seat for 2026
Yari Montella's future in the MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship has been confirmed with the news that the #5 will stay with the Barni Spark Racing Team for a second campaign. Montella made his WorldSBK debut this year with Marco Barnabo’s outfit and has impressed with his speed, and he is the first of the Barni Ducati riders to be confirmed for next season with the team on their Ducati Panigale V4 R machine.
IMPRESSING IN WORLD SUPERSPORT: a title contender in 2024
Montella’s first WorldSSP race came in 2021 with the GMT94 Yamaha squad, where he finished in the top ten twice at Portimao. He returned in 2022 with Kawasaki Puccetti Racing and claimed his first win, in Australia, before moving to Barni Spark Racing Team’s new WorldSSP effort for 2023. Five podiums followed in his first year with the Ducati Panigale V2 before a title challenge in 2024: he claimed 14 podiums and seven wins in 24 races as he finished in third place, behind Adrian Huertas and Stefano Manzi (Pata Yamaha Ten Kate Racing). Despite not clinching the title, the Italian secured a WorldSBK seat in 2025 alongside Danilo Petrucci.
WORLD SUPERBIKE ROOKIE CAMPAIGN: a series of top tens
Montella made his WorldSBK debut in 2025 at the Barni Ducati team at Phillip Island and claimed two top ten finishes. While Portimao was trickier, he still took P10 in Race 2, while he was eighth in Assen’s Tissot Superpole Race. P8 is the best result Montella has managed this season, on five occasions, although he has often threatened to finish higher in what is an incredibly close field in the top lower end of the top ten.
THE OVERALL PICTURE: 46 points, 16th place in the standings
The Italian rookie has taken 46 points from the 18 races so far this season, although a series of crash – all in Race 1 at Phillip Island, Portimao and Assen – meant he hasn’t scored as many points as his pace has shown. Despite that, he is ahead of the more experienced Garrett Gerloff (Kawasaki WorldSBK Team) and just three points behind double WorldSSP Champion Dominique Aegerter (GYTR GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Team).
MONTELLA SAYS: “Knowing I have a team that supports me, pushes me and believes in me is fundamental
Discussing his 2026 renewal, Montella stated: “I want to thank Barni for this opportunity. It is the continuation of a project we both believe in, and I’m happy we are on the same wavelength. I also wanted to confirm my commitment to carry forward this path we started in 2023 in WorldSSP. The idea of doing another year together in WorldSBK is something we’ve all earned. This year, in races, we’ve shown we can be competitive. There’s still a lot of work to do, but knowing I have a team that supports me, pushes me and believes in me is fundamental. I’m really very happy. Now the goal is to finish this second half of the Championship in the best possible way.”
THE TEAM’S THOUGHTS: “There is plenty of room for growth and continuity is the key to further progress”
Providing the team’s view on the news, Team Principal Marco Barnabo said: “We are happy to continue the project started with Yari three seasons ago. We have believed in him since 2023 in WorldSSP and today, in his first WorldSBK season, he is showing all his potential. The results speak for themselves. There is plenty of room for growth and continuity is the key to further progress. Our goal remains to eld two bikes in the WorldSBK. With the arrival of the new Ducati Panigale, everything will change. It’s a challenging task, but we’re already working on it. We strongly believe in this project, which requires a great deal of resources and energy.”
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