2026 Portuguese WorldSBK: Nicolo Bulega steals pole from Iker Lecuona
Full results from the Superpole session at the 2026 Portuguese WorldSBK at the Autodromo Internacional do Algarve.
Results from the Superpole session at the 2026 Portuguese WorldSBK at Portimao, the second round of the 2026 season.
Nicolo Bulega took pole position in Superpole at Portimao, setting a new lap record by almost 0.6 seconds.
The session was led from the start by Iker Lecuona, Bulega's teammate, who was the first rider to go into the 1m38s on his second run.
His 1m38.637s seemed to have secured him pole position after Bulega failed to beat it on his first lap of his second tyre. But the Italian found time on his final attempt and took pole with a 1m38.495.
Lecuona secured second, while Yari Montella made it a Ducati front row lockout.
On the second row, Miguel Oliveira proved what he can do in Superpole when he actually sets a lap time, which fo course he didn't do in Australia thanks to a crash on his first timed lap. Fourth for the BMW rider in Portimao, and he'll be joined by Sam Lowes and Xavi Vierge on the second row.
Alex Lowes was only seventh on the leading Bimota, and will have Lorenzo Baldassarri and Danilo Petrucci alongside him on the third row.
Axel Bassani rounded out the qualifying top-10, while Alvaro Bautista and Remy Gardner complete the fourth row.
Full World Superbike results from Superpole are below.
2026 World Superbike Championship | Portuguese Round | Autodromo Internacional do Algarve | Superpole | Result | |||||
| Pos | Rider | Nat. | WorldSBK Team | Superbike | Timing |
| 1 | Nicolo Bulega | ITA | Aruba.it Racing Ducati | Ducati Panigale V4 R | 1:38.495 |
| 2 | Iker Lecuona | ESP | Aruba.it Racing Ducati | Ducati Panigale V4 R | 1:38.637 |
| 3 | Yari Montella | ITA | Barni Spark Racing | Ducati Panigale V4 R | 1:38.933 |
| 4 | Miguel Oliveira | POR | ROKiT BMW Motorrad | BMW M1000 RR | 1:39.068 |
| 5 | Sam Lowes | GBR | Marc VDS Racing Team | Ducati Panigale V4 R | 1:39.090 |
| 6 | Xavi Vierge | ESP | Pata Maxus Yamaha | Yamaha R1 | 1:39.139 |
| 7 | Alex Lowes | GBR | Bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team | Bimota KB998 | 1:39.167 |
| 8 | Lorenzo Baldassarri | ITA | Team Go Eleven | Ducati Panigale V4 R | 1:39.228 |
| 9 | Danilo Petrucci | ITA | ROKiT BMW Motorrad | BMW M1000 RR | 1:39.254 |
| 10 | Axel Bassani | ITA | Bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team | Bimota KB998 | 1:39.375 |
| 11 | Alvaro Bautista | ESP | Barni Spark Racing | Ducati Panigale V4 R | 1:39.477 |
| 12 | Remy Gardner | AUS | GYTR GRT Yamaha | Yamaha R1 | 1:39.500 |
| 13 | Garrett Gerloff | USA | Kawasaki WorldSBK Team | Kawasaki ZX-10RR | 1:39.593 |
| 14 | Andrea Locatelli | ITA | Pata Maxus Yamaha | Yamaha R1 | 1:39.725 |
| 15 | Tarran Mackenzie | GBR | MGM Optical Express Racing | Ducati Panigale V4 R | 1:39.751 |
| 16 | Alberto Surra | ITA | Motocorsa Racing | Ducati Panigale V4 R | 1:39.948 |
| 17 | Stefano Manzi | ITA | GYTR GRT Yamaha | Yamaha R1 | 1:40.203 |
| 18 | Jonathan Rea | GBR | HRC Test Team | Honda CBR1000RR-R | 1:40.298 |
| 19 | Somkiat Chantra | THA | Honda HRC | Honda CBR1000RR-R | 1:40.325 |
| 20 | Tommy Bridewell | GBR | Superbike Advocates Racing | Ducati Panigale V4 R | 1:40.456 |
| 21 | Bahattin Sofuoglu | TUR | Motoxracing Yamaha | Yamaha R1 | 1:40.638 |
| 22 | Mattia Rato | ITA | Motoxracing Yamaha | Yamaha R1 | 1:40.904 |
Portimao WorldSBK Lap Records
- All-time lap record: 1m39.081s (Toprak Razgatlioglu, 2025, Superpole)
- Race lap record: 1m39.441 (Toprak Razgatlioglu, 2025, Superpole Race)
In this article
Alex joined the Crash.net team in August of 2024 having covered consumer and racing motorcycle news at Visordown for two years.