Perfect Season Continues for Bulega at Emilia-Romagna | Nicolo continued his extraordinary 2026 WorldSBK campaign at Misano, completing a record seventh consecutive hat-trick as Ducati strengthened its dominance at the halfway point of the season. Photos: WorldSBK Press

Nicolo Bulega’s remarkable unbeaten run rolled on in front of his home fans at the Misano World Circuit “Marco Simoncelli”, where the Aruba.it Racing Ducati rider completed another flawless weekend to further cement his place in the WorldSBK record books.

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Already enjoying one of the most dominant seasons in championship history, Bulega swept Race 1, the Tissot Superpole Race and Race 2 to claim his seventh consecutive hat-trick, extending his winning streak to 25 races dating back to last season. More importantly, the Italian reached an incredible 434 championship points after just seven rounds, opening an enormous 121-point lead over teammate Iker Lecuona.

While the statistics suggest another comfortable weekend, Misano delivered some of the closest racing of the year. Lecuona once again emerged as Bulega’s closest challenger, pushing his teammate throughout the weekend and refusing to allow the championship leader an easy path to victory.

Saturday’s Race 1 saw Bulega convert another pole position into victory, although the margin over Lecuona was far from comfortable. The Spanish rider remained within striking distance throughout the race, while Sam Lowes completed another all-Ducati podium after a measured ride aboard the Marc VDS machine. Behind the leading trio, Alex Lowes continued Bimota’s impressive resurgence with fourth place, reinforcing the Italian manufacturer’s growing consistency as the best of the non-Ducati runners.

Sunday morning’s Tissot Superpole Race arguably produced the highlight of the weekend. Unlike previous rounds where Bulega had often controlled proceedings from the front, the ten-lap sprint became a multi-rider battle involving Lecuona, Sam Lowes and several independent Ducati riders. Lecuona led much of the race, while Sam Lowes even enjoyed a spell at the front before Bulega launched his attack in the closing laps. His ability to preserve tyre life and strike when it mattered most again demonstrated why he has become the benchmark rider of the 2026 season.

Race 2 followed a similar pattern. Bulega grabbed the holeshot but immediately came under pressure from Lecuona, who briefly looked capable of ending his teammate’s remarkable winning streak. The pair traded fastest laps during the opening stages before Bulega gradually edged clear, eventually taking the chequered flag just over five seconds ahead of Lecuona.

Behind the dominant Aruba.it Racing duo, local favourite Yari Montella delighted the Italian crowd by claiming third place after overcoming a determined challenge from Alex Lowes. Bimota’s British rider continued his outstanding recent form with fourth, while Tarran Mackenzie produced one of the surprise rides of the weekend to finish an excellent fifth for MGM Optical Express Racing. Alberto Surra capped off another strong weekend for Ducati in sixth.

Not everyone enjoyed smooth sailing. Alvaro Bautista’s race ended almost immediately following a first-lap crash at Turn 8, while BMW’s Miguel Oliveira was forced to retire after his injured shoulder again became too painful to continue. The Portuguese rider deserves enormous credit for returning to competition only weeks after suffering serious injuries in Hungary, but Misano underlined that he still has a long road back to full fitness.

Bulega remained typically measured after another perfect weekend.

“It’s important to enjoy these moments, but we can’t think about what we’ve achieved already,” he said after securing his 22nd consecutive victory of the current campaign. “Every race starts from zero and we have to keep working because the championship is still long.”WorldSBK 2026 Round 7

With seven rounds complete, Ducati’s superiority has become overwhelming. The Panigale V4 R remains the class benchmark at every circuit, while the factory pairing of Bulega and Lecuona continue to deliver maximum points almost every weekend. Behind them, however, the fight for the remaining podium positions is becoming increasingly competitive. Montella has moved into third overall, Alex Lowes continues to impress aboard the new Bimota, while Sam Lowes and Axel Bassani remain firmly in contention.

As the championship heads to Donington Park, the title battle appears increasingly one-sided. Bulega has not only rewritten the record books with seven consecutive hat-tricks but has also established one of the largest championship leads ever seen at this stage of a WorldSBK season. Unless the chasing pack can find an answer quickly, the Italian’s march towards a maiden world title looks increasingly inevitable.

Full results here…

WorldSBK Championship – Top 10

Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) – 434 pts
Iker Lecuona (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) – 313
Yari Montella (Barni Spark Racing Team) – 170
Alex Lowes (bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team) – 156
Sam Lowes (ELF Marc VDS Racing Team) – 148
Axel Bassani (bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team) – 128
Lorenzo Baldassarri (Team GoEleven) – 123
Alvaro Bautista (Barni Spark Racing Team) – 99
Miguel Oliveira (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) – 97
Alberto Surra (Motocorsa Racing) – 95

WorldSSP Championship – Top 10

Albert Arenas (AS BLU CRU Racing Team) – 235 pts
Jaume Masia (Orelac Racing Verdnatura) – 195
Valentin Debise (EASTROC ZXMOTO Evan Bros Factory) – 179
Can Öncü (Pata Yamaha Ten Kate Racing) – 156
Philipp Oettl (Feel Racing WorldSSP Team) – 133
Matteo Ferrari (WRP Racing) – 121
Roberto Garcia (GMT94 Yamaha) – 116
Lucas Mahias (GMT94 Yamaha) – 98
Tom Booth-Amos (PTR Triumph Factory Racing) – 90
Oli Bayliss (PTR Triumph Factory Racing) – 82

World Sportbike Championship – Top 10

David Salvador (Team ProDina Kawasaki XCI) – 164 pts
Antonio Torres (Team ProDina Kawasaki XCI) – 137
Xavi Artigas (MTM Kawasaki) – 128
Jeffrey Buis (Track & Trades Wixx Racing) – 106
Matteo Vannucci (Revo-M2) – 98
Carter Thompson (Team BrCorse) – 93
Ferre Fleerackers (Track & Trades Wixx Racing) – 91
Harrison Dessoy (PHR Performance Triumph) – 88
Elia Bartolini (CM Triumph Factory Racing) – 84
Fenton Seabright (PHR Performance Triumph) – 79

Championship Outlook

The championship now moves to Donington Park, one of the most distinctive circuits on the calendar and traditionally a venue where different manufacturers have been able to challenge Ducati. However, with Bulega carrying an extraordinary 121-point championship advantage and showing no signs of slowing, the pressure is firmly on the chasing pack to halt his record-breaking momentum before the title race slips completely out of reach.

How Did the Aussies Go?

Remy Gardner continued to show encouraging pace aboard the GYTR GRT Yamaha throughout the Misano weekend and finished eighth in Race 2 after a spirited battle with Andrea Locatelli, collecting valuable championship points despite Ducati’s overwhelming pace. In WorldSSP, Oli Bayliss continued his consistent campaign with another points-scoring weekend for PTR Triumph, maintaining his place inside the championship top ten as the series heads to Donington Park. Carter Thompson also impressed in the World Sportbike Championship, finishing a superb second in Race 2 after leading part of the final-lap battle, highlighting Australia’s continued strength across the WorldSBK support categories.

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