Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing - Ducati) made it 20 wins in 2026 by claiming victory in the Tissot Superpole Race for the MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship ahead of teammate Iker Lecuona and Yari Montella (Barni Spark Racing Team), with the #5 completing the rostrum for the second race at the Pirelli Emilia-Romagna Round. Bulega’s win streak is now up to 24 races, including the final four of last season, while half of his WorldSBK victories have come in 2026 alone.

BULEGA BEATS LECUONA

Bulega got the best start when the lights went out while teammate Lecuona had a lot of wheelie off the line, hampering his chances of challenging the #11 off the line and into Turn 1. He closed up over the first lap, but Bulega started eking out a gap over his teammate. That allowed ‘Bulegas’ to make it 24 consecutive WorldSBK victories, extending his all-time record. He’s also won 20 races this season, one behind Toprak Razgatlioglu’s 21 from 2025 for the second-highest value. Lecuona finished in second place, ahead of Montella who claimed a second consecutive podium on home soil, and his seventh of the season. The three Ducati riders will start Race 2 from the front row.

BAD LUCK FOR ALEX LOWES, SURRA PENALISED

Alex Lowes (bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team) was running in fourth before he slowed with a technical problem and forcing him out of the race, meaning he’ll have a P10 starting position for Race 2. That promoted Alberto Surra (Motocorsa Racing) into a provisional P4 but he had to defend from a hard-charging Axel Bassani (bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team), but a mistake from Surra allowed Bassani through on Lap 8 at Turn 14. Surra then had to defend from Miguel Oliveira (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team), who started from P11, and was able to do so. However, the #88 lost out to Lorenzo Baldassarri (Team GoEleven) on the final lap, with Surra crossing the line in P5, ‘Balda’ in P6 and Oliveira in seventh. Surra was given a one position drop penalty for an unsafe re-join after he made the mistake at Turn 14. However, it was converted to a three-second time penalty after the race concluded. It means the final order was Baldassarri fifth, Oliveira sixth and Surra seventh.

FIGHTING HARD FOR A TOP NINE

Andrea Locatelli (Pata Maxus Yamaha) got a barnstorming start to jump from eighth to fifth on the first lap, but he was unable to keep that over the 10-lap race and eventually dropped back to P8. Tarran Mackenzie (MGM Optical Express Racing) climbed up to ninth place and was less than a tenth away from ‘Loka’, while Stefano Manzi (GYTR GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Team) rounded out the top ten.

CRASHING OUT OF THE SUPERPOLE RACE

Sam Lowes (ELF Marc VDS Racing Team) crashed out of contention while in the top nine on Lap 2 at Turn 4, meaning he’ll start from the fourth row. Tommy Bridewell (Superbike Advocates) crashed at Turn 1 on Lap 3, while Xavi Vierge (Pata Maxus Yamaha) dropped out of contention after a Turn 16 crash on Lap 5.

The top nine from WorldSBK’s Superpole Race, full results here:

1. Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing - Ducati)
2. Iker Lecuona (Aruba.it Racing - Ducati) +1.133s
3. Yari Montella (Barni Spark Racing Team) +7.422s
4. Axel Bassani (bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team) 11.940s
5. Lorenzo Baldassarri (Team GoEleven) +13.754s
6. Miguel Oliveira (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) +14.143s
7. Alberto Surra (Motocorsa Racing) 15.960s
8. Andrea Locatelli (Pata Maxus Yamaha) +16.572s
9. Tarran Mackenzie (MGM Optical Express Racing) +16.638s
   Fastest lap: Nicolo Bulega (Ducati), 1'31.945s – new lap record

Watch Race 2 at 14:00 Local Time (UTC+2) using the WorldSBK VideoPass – now half price!