The 2026 FIM Yamaha BLU CRU R3 World Cup is set to reach its midway point with Round 3 of the campaign at Great Britain’s Donington Park circuit this weekend as the field look to chase down early series leader Xarly Mendez.
The rider from the Dominican Republic has built a healthy lead atop of the standings after the first two rounds, sitting 21 points ahead of Brazil’s Aymon Bocanegra after the opening two rounds. Mendez has only been off the podium once so far in 2026, and with two victories to his name so far this year he has established himself as an early favourite.
Emmanuele Pastore (Italy), who sits third in the championship, is the only rider from the current field who finished on the podium at Donington Park 12 months ago, taking third in both of the weekend’s races. Pastore is one of three riders to have won so far in 2026, taking victory in Race 1 at Aragon last time out – the other 2026 victors being Mendez and Bocanegra.
Series rookie Riichi Takahira (Japan) sits fourth in the championship and will be looking to secure his first victory of the season after taking a debut podium in Aragon.
The weekend’s action gets underway at 09:00 local time on Friday with FP1, ahead of Superpole at 13:00 with the weekend’s two races taking place on Saturday and Sunday at 10:20 and 10:10 respectively.
Watch the races live on the Yamaha Racing YouTube channel here.