Two rounds remain in the third-ever FIM Women’s Circuit Racing World Championship, and the tension is palpable in the paddock at the Donington Park Circuit. Maria Herrera (Terra & Vita GRT Yamaha WorldWCR) currently rides as the queen of the hill as the field arrives at the Prosecco DOC UK Round, but with 100 points still on the table and a lead of only 24 points ahead of Beatriz Neila (Ampito Crescent Yamaha); the #6 can clinch the title in Race 2 but has by no means closed the door behind her.
NEILA TO DIG DEEP AT DONINGTON
Herrera has been spotless this season, landing on the podium in every race, only finishing lower than second place once, with a third-place finish. That consistency has put her in a position in which she could leave the UK a two-time WorldWCR Champion. To accomplish that, she will need to outscore Neila by a net 26 points over the two races to come. Thus, among the Championship-clinching scenarios for Herrera, if she can win both races while the #36 falls back as far as fifth place in both events, she will hoist the World Championship trophy after Race 2. For Neila, the gloves will have to come off, as her best chance to pull off a title comeback starts with beating the #6 head-to-head in each of the remaining races. While she has only managed that on one occasion this season – in Race 2 at Assen – last season at Donington Park saw the pair split the spoils with one race win apiece. Neila has an overall record of three podiums in four races, while Herrera has achieved two wins and three total podiums in four races at the venue.
A SLIM SHOT AT THE TITLE, BUT A SHOT NONETHELESS
WorldWCR rookie Paola Ramos (Klint Racing Team) rides 84 points behind the title leader. Her dream of a rookie Championship title would be a tall order but not impossible. She would need to win each remaining race while Herrera scores a total of no more than 15 points across the remaining four races. The same is true for Roberta Ponziani (Klint Racing Team) and Muklada Sarapuech (Yamaha AD78 FIMLA by EEST NJT Racing), but with even slimmer margins. With that said, a much tighter race is that of the Championship’s third-place position; Ramos leads Ponziani by eight points, with Sarapuech a further six points back, but the #58 and #12’s lack of WorldWCR experience at the British track is a notable advantage for Ponziani in the round to come. On the heels of her maiden WorldWCR podium and her best-ever result, the Thai rider now has a full-time seat, taking the place of Karolina Danak with the Yamaha AD78 FIMLA team this round.
JONES’S TIMELY TURN IN FORM
British rider Chloe Jones (Monster Energy Crescent Yamaha) has enjoyed some of her best racing of the 2026 campaign as of late, as while she ended the 2025 campaign on a tear – taking five podiums from the final six races – she had to wait until Round 4 at Misano to step on the rostrum for the first time in 2026. With the monkey off her back, however, she arrives home with the wind in her favour and will hope to top the thrills brought with her maiden podium earned at Donington Park back in 2025. Five points behind her, 19-year-old Spanish rider Natalia Rivera (Terra & Vita GRT Yamaha WorldWCR Team) has ridden a tidy 2026 season; apart from a pair of P11s she has been inside the top ten every race and will hope to take a step in the UK, where she earned her second-best result of the 2025 season of P9. Pakita Ruiz (PR46+1 Racing Team) has been right with Rivera all season so far, and while she has recorded a better season-high position of P5, her crash at Assen places her six points behind her compatriot.
CERPA HOPES FOR A MAIDEN PODIUM LATE IN 2026
Yvonne Cerpa (MotosCerpa-Gradara Corse) completed the best round of her 2026 rookie season at Misano last time out, taking P6 and P4 in Italy. A single point behind Ruiz, she will look to take every point possible from the final two rounds and is a name to keep an eye on, as despite sitting in P9, she has shown podium pace as of late. With P10 rider Lucie Boudesseul remaining out with an injury, Astrid Madrigal (Pons Italika Racing FIMLA), currently in P11, has a shot at an improved result at the British venue where she will hope to break back into the top six after managing to do so for the first time this season at Balaton Park.
WILDCARDS AND REPLACEMENTS
Justine Pedemonte (GMT94 Yamaha) rides as a replacement for her French compatriot Lucie Boudesseul (GMT94 Yamaha), who remains injured after suffering two fractured vertebrae and two fractures on her left foot while competing in French Superbike in the Yamaha Challenge 700 at Nogaro. Returning to the paddock for her first time in 2026, French rider Ornella Ongaro (Prata Motor Sport) rides as a replacement for Martina Guarino. Lastly, Polish rider Patrycja Sowa (Team Trasimeno) will be replaced by French rider Julie Ritaine.
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