Yari Montella (Barni Spark Racing Team) can now say he is a MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship podium finisher in his 37^th race and 13 rounds into his career. The Italian finished second in Race 1 at the Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit to secure a first podium in the Championship and, while he’s shown impressive pace before, it was the first time he had really been in podium contention. Montella revealed after that he used the lower moments from his rookie campaign to work on himself ahead of 2026.

FROM FRONT ROW TO ROSTRUM: Montella’s rise to the podium

Montella had been quick in the Official Test leading up to the Australian Round and he was able to convert that during the round as well. He finished seventh in Friday’s combined classification with a 1’29.561s, putting him 0.703s down on pacesetter Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing - Ducati). In Saturday’s Tissot Superpole session, the #5 secured P2 on the grid for his first front row start in WorldSBK, and he converted that into a podium.

He got off to a great start as he maintained P2 behind eventual winner Bulega. Although he finished just under five seconds behind the #11, Montella was able to manage his pace throughout the race to keep a healthy distance ahead of Lorenzo Baldassarri (Team GoEleven), who battled his way up from seventh to third as he also secured a first WorldSBK podium. Race 1 was the first time two riders shared their first podium together since the same race in 2024, when Bulega and Andrea Iannone were on the podium.

MONTELLA’S INSTANT THOUGHTS: “I’m so happy about my first podium after a hard season last year”

Reacting to his first rostrum, Montella said: “To have my first podium here at Phillip Island is like a dream for everybody. I want to say thanks to the whole team for the work we did this winter, last Monday and Tuesday here. I’m so happy for that. In the end, since the beginning, we started with a good base setup. Our job was to just put this work together. This is the result. In the end, in Superpole and in Race 1, we did our job; nothing more, nothing less. I’m so happy about my first podium after a hard season last year. It’s unbelievable.”

A MIXED ROOKIE CAMPAIGN: Some highs, lots of lows

Montella made his WorldSBK debut last season with the Barni Spark Racing Team, the outfit he enjoyed success with in WorldSSP. Although he often showed glimpses of his outright speed, he made several mistakes and was the rider with the most crashes alongside Michael van der Mark, with 15. He had 12 retirements from his 36 races last season, with nine top-ten finishes; he claimed a best of P7 in Race 1 at Balaton Park. Despite the lows, Montella revealed how he used this to work on himself in the winter.

On this topic, the 26-year-old said: “It means a lot. We worked hard this winter, including a lot on myself. I analysed all of last year’s races to understand what was wrong because I made a lot of mistakes and had a lot of crashes. There were more downs than ups. I used all the experience that I gained last year, and I put everything together and here we are. I’m so happy for that. We’re on a strange circuit because Phillip Island is something unique in the world. At the moment, I’ll enjoy it. I’m focused on tomorrow.”

Can Montella repeat his success on Sunday? Find out using the WorldSBK VideoPass!