Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing - Ducati) and his teammate Iker Lecuona uncorked a historic performance at the Autodromo Internacional do Algarve in the Pirelli Portuguese Round. Together, they became the first team to take P1 and P2 in The Tissot Superpole session and all three races in a weekend in the history of the MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship since the beginning of the three-race round weekend era.

The weekend started strong, and it looked like Lecuona would land his first pole with his new team, but in the final moments of the session, ‘Bulegas’ pulled an unbelievable lap time out of the bag right at the end of the session to make it back-to-back poles to start 2026. His 1’38.495s beat Lecuona’s time by 0.142s as they both obliterated the lap record set in 2025 by Toprak Razgatlioglu. Their 1-2 grid start in the weekend’s first two races set them up well for what would turn out to be a historic weekend.

TEAM EFFORT: “I’m very happy for my team, and they deserve it. Iker is very strong; he deserves to fight for the podium”

Bulega used his grid position to his advantage in Race 1 as he got a great start when the lights went out, leading every lap to claim victory. It extended his winning run to eight races as he led an Aruba.it Racing – Ducati 1-2 as Lecuona claimed his first podium in Ducati red. ‘Bulegas’ has started the season in sensational fashion, and that continued on Sunday as he claimed victory in the Tissot Superpole Race; he again led every lap of the 10-lap battle as he finished 1.882s clear of Lecuona.

Later on Sunday afternoon, Bulega was at his shining best, the Italian was firing on all cylinders as the lights went out on Race 2. from the opening lap, 6 of his first seven laps were below 1’40.4, a speed which the entire grid combined only hit a total of seven times across the race’s entire 20 laps, he laid down two laps in the 1’39s range, a feat only his factory Ducati teammate managed once and kept the hammer down until he saw the chequered flag. With two rounds down, Bulega’s record sits at a perfect six for six wins so far in 2026.

Discussing his dominant performance in Portugal, Bulega said: “On Friday, it was difficult, we didn’t start very well, I had a very bad feeling with the bike. We worked hard as a team and found a solution, and by Sunday, the bike was in very good condition. I’m proud to be a part of the history we made this weekend. I’m very happy for my team, and they deserve it. Iker is very strong; he deserves to fight for the podium. He’s on the best bike, so he has everything he needs to be fas,t and he’s showing his potential. Last year was very unlucky at Assen, the speed was fantastic and I hope to be fast this year as well.”

LECUONA GETTING UP TO SPEED: “The bike on Sunday was incredible, my performance was better today, and my confidence is growing”

Iker Lecuona (Aruba.it Racing - Ducati) rode like a changed man at Portimao all weekend. At Australia, he struggled to fight for the podium, whereas at the rollercoaster round, he was clear of the rest, just lacking the pace to fight with Bulega. In Race 1, while Yari Montella (Barni Spark Racing Team) took advantage of a poor jump off the line, Lecuona recovered P2 by the fifth lap after the #5 crashed. As the race progressed, he gradually increased his lead over Miguel Oliveira (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) before putting the hammer down, extending it from 1.2s on Lap 5 to more than two seconds by Lap 18. In the Superpole Race, it was a similar story: he overtook Oliveira on Turn 1 of Lap 6, and by the end of that lap, he had built up a cushion of three tenths ahead of the BMW rider. He went on to claim his second of three P2s later that race.

Finally, in Race 2, he first sent Alex Lowes (bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team) back to P3 on the main straight at the start of Lap 3 – setting the fastest lap of the race of 1’39.792s in the process – before pulling the same move on Oliveira on the downhill approach to Turn 1 to take P2 on the subsequent third lap. From there, he mimicked his teammate ahead of him in P1, consistently putting down laps in the mid-to-low 1’40’s until the final laps of the race.

On his breakout weekend at Portimao, Lecuona said: “There’s nothing to say! Three P2s for me right now is the real target. Today, my starts weren’t the best, so I need to work on some things, but in any case, I’m very happy. I’m really happy for the team as well. We became the first team to be 1-2 all weekend in the races and Superpole session. The bike on Sunday was incredible, my performance was better today and my confidence is growing. It’s only my second round with this bike, so I’m really happy. We have the performance to fight for a top-two finish. Nicolo has a step; a big congratulations for him for going six for six so far this season.”

Tune in next round at Assen to find out if the ‘Ducatisti’ can keep up their dominant run! Watch live or OnDemand with the WorldSBK VideoPass!