The MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship bursts back into action at the Circuit de Nevers Magny-Cours this week as the ninth round of the 2026 season kickstarts the action after the summer break. It’s a crucial end to the campaign as riders look to finalise their futures or end the year on a high and that all starts with the Acerbis French Round at Magny-Cours.
THE PATH TO GLORY FOR BULEGA
Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing - Ducati) is on the verge of winning this year’s title and he could win it at Magny-Cours, if he outscores teammate Iker Lecuona by 53 points – ‘Bulegas’ would need to leave France 186 points or more clear of his teammate, with the current gap sitting at 133. Of course, on the flip side, to delay Bulega’s title-winning moment by another round, the #7 only needs to score 10 points across the weekend – given his form of one win and 19 second places in the last 21 races, it seems likely he’ll do this. Bulega has five podiums, including two wins, at Magny-Cours while Lecuona has yet to stand on the Magny-Cours rostrum.
AIMING FOR THE ROSTRUM
Alex Lowes (bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team) will be aiming to return to the rostrum for the first time since the season-opening round, and last year he put the KB998 Rimini on the podium in all three races at Magny-Cours. His brother, Sam Lowes (ELF Marc VDS Racing Team), has been in podium contention all season although last year was a bit of a disappointment for the #14, finishing ninth in Race 1 and retiring from both of Sunday’s races. Of course, Yari Montella (Barni Spark Racing Team) will look to tighten his grip on P3 in the standings by standing on the podium but 2025 was nothing short of a disaster as he retired from all three races. Lorenzo Baldassarri (Team GoEleven) has been close to the rostrum throughout the year and will look to continue that form in France.
TESTING AHEAD OF THE ROUND
Miguel Oliveira (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) and teammate Danilo Petrucci took advantage of a two-day test in scorching conditions at Magny-Cours in August to get up to speed with the track, particularly for Oliveira who will race there for the first time. For Petrucci, he was on the rostrum there in 2024 in all three races, and he’ll hope the French Round can kickstart a strong end to the year. Also present at the test were Honda HRC duo Jake Dixon and Somkiat Chantra who were preparing for their first visit to Magny-Cours, while Sam Lowes also took to the track as he took advantage of air temperatures above 35 degrees Celsius. While not on his race bike, Tommy Bridewell (Superbike Advocates) took to the circuit a few days after the test on his Ducati Panigale V4 S as he got to know the circuit, aiming to remain a constant fixture in the top ten.
IN THE MIX?
Garrett Gerloff (Kawasaki WorldSBK Team) has always gone well at Magny-Cours, taking a podium in 2024 when racing for BMW while his only WorldSBK pole position came at the French venue in 2023. With the form the Texan has shown this year, could he be in the podium mix? Alvaro Bautista (Barni Spark Racing Team) is a two-time winner at the French venue and will look to return to his best form heading into the final four rounds of the season, while Axel Bassani (bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team) searches for his first French Round rostrum since Race 2 in 2022. For Andrea Locatelli (Pata Maxus Yamaha), the wait has been longer for a podium in France, having stood on the rostrum in Race 1 in 2021 – his first WorldSBK race at Magny-Cours – but not since. That said, he did win there in 2020 in WorldSSP. Stefano Manzi (GYTR GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Team) has not raced in WorldSBK at the French venue, but he was incredibly strong here in WorldSSP: when on Yamaha machinery, he only finished off the podium once, when he crashed in a wet race in Race 1 in 2024. Xavi Vierge (Pata Maxus Yamaha) has gone well at Magny-Cours in the past on Honda machinery, often inside the top ten, while Remy Gardner (GYTR GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Team) has two P6 finishes at Magny-Cours as his best in WorldSBK. Bahattin Sofuoglu (Motoxracing WorldSBK Team) claimed his only top-ten finish in WorldSBK in Race 1 last year and will aim to repeat that, while teammate Mattia Rato races for the first time at the French venue in WorldSBK.
AIMING TO BE BACK ON TRACK
Tarran Mackenzie (MGM Optical Express Racing) was declared unfit at Donington Park after a heavy crash in Free Practice 2 and has since undergone surgery on his injuries. If he is to race in France, he will need to pass a pre-round medical check on Thursday. The same applies to rookie Alberto Surra (Motocorsa Racing), who missed out on racing in the UK due to a shoulder injury after symptoms arose after FP3. Surra secured his only WorldSSP rostrum at Magny-Cours last year as he stood in for Aldi Mahendra (AS BLU CRU Racing Team), while he claimed victory in the Moto2 European Championship at the historic venue in the same year.
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