Teammates or not, Iker Lecuona (Aruba.it Racing - Ducati) was not going to lie down and let Nicolo Bulega put the final touches on his 2026 MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship campaign unbothered. In the EICMA Italian Round’s opening race, Lecuona uncorked an emphatic win, crossing the finish line more than five and a half seconds faster than his Championship-leading teammate. The numbers suggest Bulega will still be crowned on Sunday at Cremona Circuit, but Lecuona is looking to put the entire paddock on notice about who the man to beat is next season.
“I WENT STEP BY STEP, IMPROVING BY A TENTH OR SO EACH LAP UNTIL I STARTED TO LOSE THE FRONT”
After sailing clear to two Free Practice-topping sessions on Friday, Lecuona took pole on Saturday morning by a narrow four hundredths of a second ahead of Bulega, despite a near-catastrophic collision with the barrier at the end of the Turn 1 gravel trap. After missing the braking point at the end of the start-finish straight. Setting off at lights out from pole position, he enjoyed fresh air all race, taking the contest from pole to flag. By the end of Lap 1, he was already just under a second clear of the #11, and thanks to consistent sub-1’28.5s lap times, it proved to be the closest Bulega would get to him, as the race ended with a margin just shy of six seconds. Lecuona’s victory continues Ducati’s dominant streak here; the Italian manufacturer has won seven of Cremona’s seven races so far.
On his close call in Superpole and his dominant Race 1 win, Lecuona said: “I almost hit the wall in the Superpole session! I lost my reference leaving pit lane, and arrived very fast at the wall; luckily, I avoided it and escaped to earn pole. I didn’t expect to get pole position after that huge moment, but I felt very strong on the bike on Friday, and we found something to improve in the afternoon. I feel very strong and comfortable on the bike. My pace was very strong in Race 1. I had one of my worst starts of the year, but I held first. I went step by step, improving by a tenth or so each lap until I started to lose the front around the middle of the race. I didn’t make any stupid mistakes, and I enjoyed the package. I’m really happy.”
“IT WAS VERY SPECIAL, IT’S MY FIRST YEAR WITH DUCATI AND MY SECOND WIN AT THE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP LEVEL”
Lecuona’s habitual pace at Cremona hasn’t gone anywhere since his move onto the Ducati Panigale V4 R this last offseason. Since the circuit first appeared on the calendar in 2024, Lecuona has excelled here, taking a high of P4 back in 2024, and apart from two 2025 DNFs, he has never placed worse than P6. Even if Lecuona wins both races on Sunday, his teammate will likely be crowned Champion as long as ‘Bulegas’ scores 15 points over the final day’s two races. Lecuona, however, is more focused on battling it out on track and letting the cards fall where they may.
On what the Race 1 win means to him and what he expects for Sunday, Lecuona said: “It was very special; it’s my first year with Ducati and my second win at the World Championship level. To earn that with an Italian bike at an Italian track with Gigi Dall’Igna here, I’m very happy, and we will try to do the same tomorrow. Maybe I am the favourite tomorrow, but Nicolo always finds something; I will just look to enjoy everything, let’s see. When Nicolo closes the Championship in Race 2, maybe he will try to push more, but we will be there to fight.”
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