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The 2026 MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship field is complemented by one of the most stacked pools of rookies seen in recent memory, each highly motivated and raring to throw their hat in the ring in their debut season. They have been thrown a bit of a curveball by the 2026 preseason’s uncooperative weather so far, with practically just a single half-day of mixed conditions riding across the combined four days of testing at Jerez and Portimao. While they haven’t ridden as many laps as they'd like to in order to hit the ground running, their quality as riders is clear for all to see.

BIG BOOTS TO FILL: Oliveira jumps atop Razgatlioglu’s bike as the pair swap paddocks

In one of the largest stories of the offseason, it was announced that eventual 2026 Champion Toprak Razgatlioglu would move to MotoGP from the ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team, and his teammate Michael van der Mark would change roles internally to ride for the German manufacturer’s test team. This left two big seats available aboard the team of the defending Riders’ Champion, and BMW succeeded in bringing in big names to fill them. Joining the factory team from his previous ride with the Ducati Independent Barni Spark Racing Team, Danilo Petrucci will ride with a factory squad for the first time in his WorldSBK career. The opportunity has many in the BMW camp very excited, and he looks to capitalise on it and give Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing - Ducati) a run for his money after seeing largely just his rear tyre in 2025. The winter’s blockbuster move came in the form of Petrucci’s new teammate, Miguel Oliveira, who said an emotional farewell to the MotoGP paddock after seven seasons in the Championship and said hello to the WorldSBK field. While the five-time MotoGP race winner has had a very limited preseason to get to know his new M 1000 RR, but once he gets the hang of the new style of bike, his proven speed makes him one of Bulega’s biggest potential threats for the title.

ALL-NEW LOOK FOR HRC: Chantra and Dixon hope to keep the Honda factory project moving forward

With Xavi Vierge's move to Pata Maxus Yamaha, and Iker Lecuona's move to Aruba.it Racing – Ducati, Honda HRC was left with two open seats atop their pair of CBR10000RR-R SPs. They didn’t disappoint and completed two marquee signings to fill out their 2026 lineup. Jake Dixon, who took fifth place in his seventh season in Moto2 was announced to fill the factory seat alongside MotoGP’s Somkiat Chantra who put pen to paper with the Japanese manufacturer after his rookie season in MotoGP. So far in testing, Dixon has made the most of his limited running, focusing primarily on understanding the bike through volume of laps. While the conditions make it hard to draw too many conclusions from the tests, he finished Day 2 at Portimao third fastest. Unfortunately, his Thai teammate suffered an injury to both forearms in training, requiring surgery, and the subsequent recovery will rule Chantra out of competition at Phillip Island.

A CHAMPION TAKES ON A NEW FIELD: Manzi moves up to WorldSBK as the reigning WorldSSP Champion

Italian rider Stefano Manzi (GYTR GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Team) rode into the final round at Jerez having already been crowned the WorldSSP Champion after finishing runner-up in 2023 and 2024. GRT Yamaha hope he can capitalise on that momentum as he joins the WorldSBK field with one of the two official Yamaha teams. He has thrown the kitchen sink at the offseason testing days so far, riding a plenitude of laps in the post-season test at Jerez, and while poor weather has limited the running so far in 2026, it is clear that the #62 is aiming to be among the riders up at the front this season.

BIG OPPORTUNITY TO THE BREAKOUT STAR: Surra hopes to make the most of his WorldSBK ride

Three third-place seasons in the Moto2 European Championship from 2023 to 2025 built Alberto Surra’s (Motocorsa Racing) profile internationally, and when Aldi Mahendra (AS Racing) suffered a training injury, Surra’s moment arrived. He received the call to replace the Indonesian in WorldSSP, and didn’t waste any time showing his quality, landing on the podium in his first race, then continued to impress, missing the top ten only once. The #67 has now been given a tremendous opportunity, earning a spot in the World Superbike class atop a capable Motocorsa Ducati bike; eyes will be on the rookie to see if he can capitalise on this season the same way he did in 2025.

RATO READY TO IMPRESS: The Italian youngster aims to prove his place among the world’s best

At 21 years old, Mattia Rato (Motoxracing WorldSBK Team) will be the grid’s youngest rider. Hailing from the motorsport hotspot of Monza, Italy, he will team up with Turkish sophomore rider Bahattin Sofuoglu atop their Independent Yamaha R1. The #13 has already made his debut in the WorldSBK paddock, after earning it by competing in WorldSSP at Cremona last season. Apart from that wildcard appearance, the bulk of Rato’s professional riding experience comes from his five years competing in the Moto2 European Championship, and more recently his two seasons in the Italian Supersport championship, where last season he took third. His lack of time competing professionally atop a superbike makes assessing the youngster difficult, but he shows clear potential once he learns the ropes.

Tune in with full access to live broadcasts and OnDemand uploads to see how these rookies fare in their first season in the Championship with the WorldSBK VideoPass!