Can Oncu topped FIM Supersport World Championship Superpole qualifying Friday afternoon at Portimao, in Portugal. Riding his Pata Ten Kate Yamaha YZF-R9 on Pirelli control tires, Oncu lapped the 2.85-mile (4.59 km) course in 1:42.670 to top the field of 32 riders and earn pole position.
Former MotoAmerica Supersport regular Valentin Debise was the best of the rest with a 1:43.303 on his Evan Bros Racing ZXMOTO 820RR, and Lucas Mahias earned the third and final spot on the front row with a lap time of 1:43.357 on his GMT94 Yamaha YZF-R9.
Row-two qualifiers included BLU CRU Racing Team Yamaha’s Albert Arenas (1:43.493), Feel Racing Ducati’s Philip Oettl (1:43.513) and Orelac Racing Verdnatura Ducati’s Jaume Masia (1:43.606).
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More from a press release issued by WorldSBK:
Oncu back on top of the WorldSSP grid at Portimao while Debise and ZXMOTO impress in P2. Lucas Mahias sprang at the chance to improve his position as time expired, thanks to a lengthy red flag.
The FIM Supersport World Championship’s Pirelli Portuguese round is a go! The World Supersport field’s excitement to take to a sunny Autodromo Internacional do Algarve on Friday afternoon was tangible as they flew out onto the tarmac for their Tissot Superpole session. Can Oncu (Pata Yamaha Ten Kate Racing) was the fastest on the day, sending himself to pole position for the fifth time in his WorldSSP career for Saturday’s Race 1. A late red flag was waved after smoke and liquid sprayed out of Josh Whatley’s (Orelac Racing Verdnatura) bike on the descent into Turn 1, but with just five minutes left, only a few clever riders were able to capitalise on the little remaining time to improve their position.
ONCU BACK ON POLE: The #61 takes his fifth career WorldSSP pole
Can Oncu took a strong first step towards getting his season back on track. The Turkish star took his first pole position of the season with his time of 1’42.670s. Speaking of getting seasons back on track, Debise’s Phillip Island results of P24 and P25 weren’t representative of his running at the front Down Under, and the Frenchman did well with a 1’43.303s lap to send him to P2. Lucas Mahias (GMT94 Yamaha) and his team played the red flag restart to perfection as he left long after the other riders but left himself just enough time to be able to ride a two-lap stint in which he could ride alone, improving his time to 1’43.357s for P3
ARENAS TO FIGHT FROM ROW 2: The Spanish rider is on the hunt for his second WorldSSP win in two rounds
Albert Arenas (AS BLU CRU Racing Team) is hungry for a second win this rookie season after a breakout win Down Under, and his 1’43.493 P4 set him up well in that pursuit. Philipp Oettl (Feel Racing WorldSSP Team) placed P5 as well as claimed top Ducati honours on the back of his 1’43.513s. Jaume Masia (Orelac Racing VerdNatura) was mired further down the order for most of the session, until in the final quarter of the session prior to the red flag. The Spanish phenom did enough to start P6 with a personal best lap on the day of 1’43.606s
ZACCONE BEATS THE BUZZER: Seizes the restart opportunity and sends himself to P10
Corentin Perolari (Honda Racing World Supersport) closed 2025 with growing form, and in their second Superpole session of 2026, the Frenchman slotted in a 1’43.625s time to lead the third row on Saturday. Roberto Garcia (GMT94 Yamaha) fought his way up the order as the session wore on, and before the red flag, he had sent himself up to P8 with his time of 1’43.684s. Federico Caricasulo (ZXMOTO Factory Evan Bros Racing) sent his ZXMOTO 820RR up to the front of the grid to join his teammate Debise, and while his time was later sent back down, he will still start from the third row in P9 with a time of 1’44.088s. Alessandro Zaccone (Ecosantagata Althea Racing Team) was one of the only riders to benefit from the restart, as a 1’44.152s lap registered as time expired sent him up from P23 to P10.
The top six from the WorldSSP Tissot Superpole session, full results here!
1. Can Oncu (Pata Yamaha Ten Kate Racing) 1’42.670s
2. Valentin Debise (ZXMOTO Factory Evan Bros Racing) +0.633s
3. Lucas Mahias (GMT94 Yamaha) +0.687s
4. Albert Arenas (AS BLU CRU Racing Team) +0.823s
5. Philipp Oettl (Feel Racing WorldSSP Team) +0.843s
6. Jaume Masia (Orelac Racing Verdnatura) +0.936s
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