Nicolo Bulega claimed his fourth win of the 2026 season at Portimao, his first ever WorldSBK victory at this circuit, with factory Ducati teammate Iker Lecuona completing a Ducati one-two. Miguel Oliveira took a stunning third place for his first ever WorldSBK podium in front of his home crowd. Alex Lowes fourth. Bautista ninth. Bulega remains unbeaten in 2026. Four rounds. Four wins. Unstoppable.
Fabio Di Giannantonio smashed the COTA all time lap record to claim back to back pole positions. His 2:00.136 lap put him nearly 0.2 seconds clear of Bezzecchi in second, with Acosta completing the front row. Marc Marquez was left sixth after suffering traffic in Q2, while Bagnaia starts fourth despite also being blocked on his final run. Diggia. Back to back. Record broken.
Yari Montella secured his second consecutive front row start of the 2026 season at Portimao, completing an all Ducati front row alongside Bulega and Lecuona. The Italian admitted he needs something more despite his strong showing, feeling he left time on the table in Superpole. He had zero front row starts in 2025. Two rounds into 2026 he already has two. The Barni Ducati is a genuine front runner this season.
Nicolo Bulega starts from pole position for Race 1 at Portimao today at 15:30 local time, his third consecutive Superpole after Australia and Jerez last year. The podium could be an all Ducati affair with Lecuona and Montella joining him on the front row, and Sam Lowes the only major wildcard despite being five weeks from a fractured wrist. Bulega has never won a WorldSBK race at Portimao. Today that changes.
Miguel Oliveira was black flagged in FP3 at Portimao after crashing at Turn 5 and failing to pit before starting a new lap. The regulation requiring riders to return to the pits after a crash is specific to WorldSBK and does not exist in MotoGP. Oliveira clearly forgot the rule applies. A painful lesson for the Portuguese rider at his home round.
Nicolo Bulega snatched pole from factory teammate Lecuona on his final Superpole lap, a stunning 1 minute 38.495 seconds that smashed the previous lap record by over half a second. Montella completed an all Ducati front row in third, with Oliveira fourth and Lowes fifth. Bulega has never won a WorldSBK race at Portimao. He starts today from pole position.
Ducati locked out the top five in FP2 at Portimao, with Sam Lowes the first non Ducati rider in sixth on the Bimota. The pressure inside the Ducati camp is building. Lecuona and Bautista both face scrutiny after being outshone by satellite riders in Australia. One manufacturer. Five bikes in the top five. WorldSBK has a Ducati dominance problem. Or a Ducati dominance spectacle. Depends entirely on your allegiances.
Marco Bezzecchi described Friday at COTA as much better than Brazil, finishing fourth and securing direct Q2 access after starting 20th last weekend in Goiania. He admitted the bike still does not feel completely right but praised the data available heading into Saturday. On Marquez, Bezzecchi was honest. Marc has been super strong, he said. Besides the crash, he showed he can be very quick in very little time.
Marc Marquez admitted he made a big mistake at COTA Turn 10 on Friday morning, saying the high speed impact with the wall left him with severe pain in his neck and back. The rear of his GP26 kicked over the crest before the front folded, sending him into the airfence at 190km/h. He returned with a bandaged left hand and topped afternoon practice anyway. Marquez is built different.
The FIM Harley Davidson Bagger World Cup made its historic race weekend debut at COTA on Friday. Australian Archie McDonald topped FP1 aboard his Joe Rascal Racing Harley Davidson with a lap of 2 minutes 13.705 seconds, beating teammate Cody Wyman and Oscar Gutierrez of Niti Racing. Test pacesetter Eric Granado finished fourth. Eight of the nine riders took part in the session. History is being made in Austin.