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The Pirelli Dutch Round has thrown up some surprises in recent years. Jonathan Rea (Honda HRC) on pole in 2024 for Yamaha and Andrea Locatelli (Pata Maxus Yamaha) winning last year are two examples that spring to mind. Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing - Ducati) and Ducati have dominated the MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship season so far but what of the challengers? WorldSBK commentator Steve English looks at the threats to Ducati. 

BULEGA’S IMPERIOUS START: Six from six for the #11

Six races. Six wins for Bulega. The Ducati star is expected to complete another hat-trick this weekend at Assen. Coming into the season it was expected that he needed to go out and dominate the early rounds to be rewarded with a MotoGP seat. It now looks like even dominating in WorldSBK won’t be enough for Ducati to reward him with a seat in the premier class. If that’s the case, enjoy what you’re seeing from Bulega. Bulega is a great rider who is riding at the top of his game and Ducati dominating WorldSBK is nothing new.

THE CHALLENGERS: Bimota and BMW look best placed

However, there are plenty of reasons to be excited by what we’ve already seen this season. Bimota and BMW have plenty of reason to believe that they have made progress over the winter and can challenge the Bologna machines at times this season. The season opener in Australia was about Bimota and Axel Bassani (bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team) bagging a brace of podiums. Last time out at Portimao it was the home hero Miguel Oliveira (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) that was the surprise package. The BMW man finished with three podiums and showed how quickly he has adapted to the M 1000 RR. Oliveira, unsurprisingly, is a quick study and is already competitive. There’s no reason to think the #88 won’t challenge this weekend at the Dutch Round. The TT Circuit Assen was never one of his best tracks during his Grand Prix career, although he was a race winner in Moto3, but it was a solid track for the rookie. He knows the lay of the land and the quirks of the track. That won’t be the case at many tracks this year, so Oliveira needs to take advantage this weekend.

AIMING TO TURN THEIR FORTUNES AROUND: Can Yamaha kickstart their 2026 at Assen?

That innate track knowledge helped Yamaha in recent years. A wet weather Tissot Superpole in 2024 allowed Rea to claim his most recent pole position. The following day Remy Gardner (GYTR GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Team) claimed his first career podium. Last year it was Locatelli’s turn to surprise with the Italian finally claiming his first WorldSBK victory. It was a great result for ‘Loka’ and it came at one of the best tracks. Assen suits his riding style, but the start of 2026 has been a difficult time for him. Teammate Xavi Vierge has been the pace setter for the men in blue this season and he came away with three points scoring finishes last time out. Vierge has had three crashes in races and a non-start this season, but when he’s been on track, he’s been a surprise package.

ANOTHER SURPRISE ON THE CARDS? Plenty of challengers to Bulega’s run…

All eyes will remain focused on Bulega this weekend. With another dominant weekend he will equal the record for most consecutive wins in WorldSBK history, drawing level with three-time Champion Toprak Razgatlioglu, and further cement his status as the standout rider of the season. The questions of his future will remain until Ducati confirms their GP plans for 2027, but Bulega isn’t pushed to jump ship. Winning races and claiming titles are more than enough for him. Assen though has a habit of producing surprises. Last year it was technical issues for Bulega that opened the door for Locatelli to win and with Oliveira’s rapid rise, Bimota’s resurgence and a host of fast Independent Ducatis the Dutch Round could yet deliver the first real challenge to Bulega’s early-season supremacy.

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