With the summer break all wrapped up, the MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship is about to set off on a critical sprint to the finish in 2026, as with four rounds to go in less than a month and a half, the jumping-off point will be the Acerbis French Round at the Circuit de Nevers Magny-Cours. The French circuit has hosted WorldSBK racing every season since 2003, and this season will mark its 25th time hosting this Championship.
BOTH SCQ AND SCX ON OFFER ON THE REAR
Both the 2026 SCQ and SCX tyres appeared on track here last season as development tyres and have since earned their spot among Pirelli’s standard range. Magny-Cours’s smoother track surface, in conjunction with its unique layout featuring long straights and fast corners have led Pirelli’s engineers to select their softest solutions available on the rear. Their available solutions on the rear will as such feature: SCQ extrasoft for Free Practice, Tissot Superpole session and the Superpole Race and as well as SCX supersoft and SC0 soft for all sessions. If the weather proves them necessary, Pirelli will also have their Intermediate and wet-weather solutions available.
STANDARD FRONT TYRE SOLUTIONS
Similar to last round, on the front axle, World Superbike riders will have a choice between the production SC1 soft and the SC2 medium tyres. Similarly, intermediate and wet tyres will be on standby should the weather take an unexpected turn.
WORLD SUPERSPORT SOLUTIONS
For WorldSSP, the rear tyre allocation remains the same as the last two rounds at Misano and Donington. The French Round will feature the SCX supersoft and SC0 soft compounds on the rear, with SC1 soft and SC2 medium on the front in addition to wet-weather tyres.
“FOR THIS ROUND, WE HAVE CHOSEN THE SOFTEST REAR SOLUTIONS IN THE RANGE”
On his team’s allocation decisions, Pirelli Motorcycle Racing Director Giorgio Barbier said: “Magny-Cours is a circuit that puts very different demands on the tyres: it alternates long straights and fast corners with heavy braking and low-speed exits, requiring a good balance between grip, stability and consistency of performance. This is compounded by a relatively smooth, low-abrasion track surface that is sensitive to temperature variations, making it particularly important to have solutions that work well in different conditions. For this FIM Superbike World Championship round, we have chosen the softest rear solutions in the range: the extrasoft SCQ, intended for qualifying and potentially the Superpole Race, and the supersoft SCX for the long races, in addition to the SC0 should temperatures be relatively low. These are the same specifications introduced at Magny-Cours last year as development tyres and now integrated into the 2026 range. Their combination of performance, wear resistance and wide operating window makes them particularly well suited to a circuit where track and air conditions can have a significant impact on race strategies.”
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