Nicolo Bulega’s closest WorldSBK rival “not sure” of Portimao potential

Axel Bassani enters the second round of the 2026 WorldSBK season second in the standings behind Nicolo Bulega, but also unsure of his “potential” at Portimao.

Bassani’s Bimota team was one that stayed on for a third day of testing at Portimao on 13 March, after the two-day test on 9–10 March was hit by rain.

The extra third day saw dry conditions for those that stayed for it, but while Bassani’s teammate Alex Lowes focused on race setup for the race weekend, the Italian was testing new items with a view to the future.

It means that although Bassani says he is “ready” for the Portuguese World Superbike Round this weekend (27-29 March) and that he thinks he knows what he needs to change on the bike setup for this weekend, he cannot be sure of what kind of performance levels to expect from himself.

“We are ready for the second round of the season and I think we will arrive there quite ready,” Axel Bassani said.

“The season began in a really solid way, with two podiums, and also a fourth place in the first race. We are ready to race again and we know that if everything is okay we can do a good job. 

“We did some tests at Portimao, but during these tests we tried some different items, so we did not really work for the Portimao race weekend. We did not try to put in fast laps but we focused more on the future and the rest of this season. 

“I think we understand what we need to change for the race weekend at Portimao itself. I am not sure what our potential can be but we will try to be as ready as possible from first practice on Friday, and then we will see what happens.”

Alex Lowes was more convinced about his own potential in Portimao, and identified podium positions as his target for the Portuguese Round.

“Portimao is a mega-track and everybody loves it,” said Lowes.

“We had a test there recently. We worked hard and the bike felt good, so I am excited to get started on the weekend. 

“I felt like the speed we had in the first round in Australia, especially after we made some changes between day one and day two, was good. To pick up the first podium of the year was great, and to have both riders on the podium was fantastic for the team. 

“I feel, probably, I did not quite get the results that I had the speed for at PI, so in Portimao I am looking forward to getting a solid weekend, having a good qualifying, enjoying the racing and trying to fight to be back on the podium. 

“That has to be our target this year; to be as close as we can to podiums. The guys in the team have been doing a good job and I can’t wait to get out on track again.”