Nicolo Bulega was quickest during FIM Superbike World Championship Free Practice 1 Friday morning at Cremona Circuit, in Italy. Riding his Pirelli-shod Aruba.it Racing – Ducati Panigale V4R on the 2.34-mile (3.76 km) track, the Italian recorded a 1:29.158 to lead the field of 24 riders.
Danilo Petrucci was the best of the rest with a 1:29.537 on his Barni Spark Racing Ducati Panigale V4R.
Toprak Razgatlioglu was third-fastest with a 1:29.553 on his ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team M1000RR.
American Garrett Gerloff finished the opening session in 15th with a 1:30.545 on his Kawasaki ZX-10RR.
More, from a press release issued by Dorna:
Bulega beats Petrucci and Razgatlioglu in FP1 at Cremona, ‘Petrux’ and Bautista among five crashers. The opening 45-minute session of the Italian Round was dramatic as Bulega topped the timesheets while five riders went down.
Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) kicked off his home Acerbis Italian Round in the perfect fashion as he claimed P1 in the opening Free Practice 1 session for the MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship. The #11 set a 1’29.158s as he claimed first place ahead of fellow Italian Danilo Petrucci (Barni Spark Racing Team) in second, despite last year’s hat-trick hero at the Cremona Circuit crashing at Turn 2. Toprak Razgatlioglu (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) was third in his first competitive session at Cremona, having not raced at this circuit in 2024.
Bulega is looking to bounce back from his disappointment on Sunday at Assen and started his quest off perfectly as he claimed the top spot by almost four tenths ahead of compatriot Petrucci, who set a 1’29.537s. However, ‘Petrux’ was one of five crashers during FP1 as he had a lowside at Turn 2, ending his session early. Reigning Champion Razgatlioglu secured third place as he got up to speed at a venue he didn’t race at last year, lapping 0.395s slower than Bulega’s pace-setting time.
It was a strong start to the weekend for Honda HRC, with Iker Lecuona (Honda HRC) and teammate Xavi Vierge both inside the top seven. Lecuona claimed fourth with a 1’29.621s as he led the Japanese manufacturer’s charge, while Vierge was seventh and just two tenths behind the #7. Between the two Hondas were Sam Lowes (ELF Marc VDS Racing Team) in fifth and Alex Lowes (bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team) in sixth, with the twins only a tenth apart on the timesheets.
WorldSBK’s newest race winner, Andrea Locatelli (Pata Maxus Yamaha), was the top Yamaha in FP1 with eighth place after setting a 1’29.970s, with Remy Gardner (GYTR GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Team) just behind ‘Loka’. Gardner secured ninth as he lapped a tenth behind Locatelli, while home hero Axel Bassani (bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team) rounded out the top ten.
Andrea Iannone (Team Pata GoEleven) was 12th after he was the first rider to go down when he crashed at Turn 11, which cost him around 10 minutes of running. Ryan Vickers (Motocorsa Racing) was 14th after he fell at Turn 2, while Michael van der Mark (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) was 16th; he came down at Turn 11. Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) crashed on his second flying lap and finished in 21st, only able to re-join the session in the final minute after his Turn 7 spill.
Elsewhere, Jonathan Rea (Pata Maxus Yamaha) claimed P17 on his comeback from injury with a 1’30.613s. Like Razgatlioglu, Rea did not race here last year, so he’s got the added challenge of learning the circuit and he lapped 1.455s down on Bulega and around six tenths down on teammate Locatelli.
The top six from WorldSBK FP1, full results here:
1 Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) 1’29.158s
2. Danilo Petrucci (Barni Spark Racing Team) +0.379s
3. Toprak Razgatlioglu (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) +0.395s
4. Iker Lecuona (Honda HRC) +0.463s
5. Sam Lowes (ELF Marc VDS Racing Team) +0.511s
6. Alex Lowes (bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team) +0.609s
Watch WorldSBK FP2 at Cremona LIVE and UNINTERRUPTED at 15:00 Local Time (UTC+2) using the WorldSBK VideoPass!