#EmiliaRomagnaWorldSBK Saturday Reflections

Posted June 14, 2026

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Credit: WorldSBK

At Ducati’s home round at Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli, Nicolò Bulega continued his remarkable 2026 campaign by securing pole position and victory in Race One. The championship leader maintained his perfect qualifying record with a new lap record in Superpole before leading every lap of the opening race to claim Aruba.it Racing – Ducati’s nineteenth win of the season.

The Italian admitted that his winning streak will eventually come to an end, but was determined to savour a special victory at a circuit that holds particular significance for him.

“I’m ready for this because, you know, it’s impossible to win every race. One day, one guy will arrive, and he will beat me. It will not be something so dramatic to finish second or third. I don’t know, but anyway, now we are enjoying this moment. I’m really happy to continue these victories in line, especially here in Misano, because I’ve never won here in Misano. The last two years, I won only one time in Supersport. So to do it on a Ducati bike in front of a lot of my friends that came here to celebrate me was fantastic.”

Aruba.it Racing – Ducati’s Nicolò Bulega. Credit: WorldSBK

Bulega’s day began with another dominant performance in the 15-minute Tissot Superpole session. A lap of 1’31.343s secured his seventh pole position of the year and set a new benchmark around the Misano circuit. The Italian then converted the pole into victory despite briefly losing the lead to teammate Iker Lecuona at the start. Bulega responded immediately at Turn 8 and steadily built an advantage that eventually exceeded six seconds, while also lowering the lap record once again during the race.

“Today was incredible, and I’m really happy. We had a very good pace in the race, and I added another lap record to my collection during the Superpole session. It’s been a fantastic day. I really wanted to win here in Italy because I had never won here in WorldSBK, and just one race here in WorldSSP. To do it in front of all my fans and supporters is incredible. It’s special to have them here in Italy, and I want to dedicate this win to all of them. Winning on an Italian bike with an Italian team in Italy makes it even more special.”

Aruba.it Racing – Ducati’s Iker Lecuona. Credits: WorldSBK

Lecuona completed another Aruba.it Racing – Ducati one-two after running second throughout the majority of the race. The Spaniard initially grabbed the lead through Turn 2 and remained Bulega’s closest challenger despite a small mistake at Turn 12 midway through the race.

After the race, Lecuona admitted that while he knew he had the pace to stay with Bulega, he never felt comfortable enough to consistently ride at the limit in the challenging conditions and instead focused on banking important championship points.

“I don’t understand. I know for sure I’m with him, but honestly, today I didn’t feel confident to go to the limit every lap. I preferred to be conservative and just finish the race. Twenty points more is important because Montella was maybe quite near in the championship, but now he’s a bit further back. Right now that’s the target. It’s time to work, and also for myself, I need to understand what I need to do, what I need to work on and where I need to improve.”

“I missed a little bit in terms of lap time. My best lap was still two-tenths under Nicolò’s lap record from last year. During the race, after five laps, I realised it wasn’t my day. I struggled because I don’t have the extra speed that Nicolò has. I’m frustrated with my performance during the race, so after lap five I started to back off a little bit. The bike and the team have the potential, but it’s down to me. I need to understand what I need to do and where I need to improve.”

Barni Spark Racing Team Ducati’s Yari Montella. Credits: WorldSBK

Completing an all-Ducati podium was Yari Montella, who delivered a strong performance for Barni Spark Racing Team. The Italian rode a lonely race in third position to secure another podium finish in front of his home crowd and ensure Ducati riders filled all three positions on the rostrum.

Montella admitted he had been preparing for a difficult race with Team Goeleven’s Lorenzo Baldassarri close behind throughout the opening stages, but was able to manage the pressure to secure another podium result at Misano.

“At the first part of the race, I had Baldassarri behind me. I was already mentally ready for a hard race because I know Balda. He’s always like a killer. Here at Misano, it’s something incredible. Super, super proud, super happy with my fans, with my family, with my team. It’s my home race, so it’s something that I won’t forget.”

“It has been a solid weekend so far. We needed a result like this after Aragon, and to take a podium in Misano in front of my family and friends is really nice. I pushed from the beginning to the end of the race, but we need to analyse everything and try to improve because tomorrow is another day. We still have two races in what will probably be even hotter conditions. We need to improve my feeling with the bike because I struggled a bit with the front tyre in the closing stages.”