Iker Lecuona took pole position during World Superbike Superpole qualifying Saturday at Cremona Circuit, in Italy. Riding his Aruba.it Racing Ducati Panigale V4 R, Lecuona recorded a lap time of 1:27.253, which was not only good enough to top the 22-rider field and secure pole position it also eclipsed the All-Time Lap Record Alberto Surra set, 1:27.666, during Free Practice Three (FP3) this morning.
His teammate, Nicolo Bulega qualified second with a 1:27.297.
Alberto Surra did a 1:27.437 on his Motocorsa Racing Ducati Panigale V4R to earn the third and final spot on the front row.
Row two starters include ELF Marc VDS Racing’s Sam Lowes (1:27.627), Barni Spark Racing’s Yari Montella (1:27.723), and Team Goeleven’s Lorenzo Baldassarri (1:27.791).
American Garrett Gerloff qualified 8th with a 1:27.963 on his Kawasaki ZX-10RR.
Danilo Petrucci finished 19th with a time of 1:28.932 on his ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team M1000RR and Loris Baz qualified 21st with a time of 1:29.034 on his MGM Optical Express Racing Ducati Panigale V4R.
WSBK SUPERPOLE QP
More, from a press release issued by WSBK:
SUPERPOLE BATTLE: Lecuona fends off late Bulega challenge for Cremona pole as Surra claims third. The two factory Ducati riders finished 1-2 in Superpole at Cremona while rookie Surra battled for pole.
Iker Lecuona (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) claimed a stunning pole position at the Cremona Circuit in the MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship ahead of teammate Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati), with just 0.044s separating the pair. It’s Lecuona’s first pole in four years as he denied ‘Bulegas’, while rookie Alberto Surra (Motocorsa Racing) claimed third place at the EICMA Italian Round.
THE FIRST RUN
The first laps were disrupted due to a yellow flag at Turn 10 due to a crash for Jake Dixon (Honda HRC), but Lecuona was ahead of the #96’s fall. He immediately set a new lap record with a 1’27.639s, although didn’t improve on his second lap. Bulega set a 1’27.912s to slot into a provisional P2 but his lap was deleted for track limits, which promoted Yari Montella (Barni Spark Racing Team) into second and Lorenzo Baldassarri (Team GoEleven) into third. Surra, who was fastest in FP3, was setting red sectors but found yellow flags at Turn 13 after Mattia Rato (Motoxracing WorldSBK Team) crashed.
LECUONA BEATS BULEGA, SURRA STARS
On the first lap of his second stint, Surra re-took the lap record with a 1’27.437s to claim provisional pole position, but it was beaten by Bulega who set a 1’27.297s before Lecuona usurped his teammate with a 1’27.253s to claim P1 for his first pole since Barcelona 2022, and his second in WorldSBK. It also ended Bulega’s pole streak, who will start second, and it’s the first time in WorldSBK the #11 has been outqualified by a teammate. Surra will go from third, equalling his career-best Superpole result.
DRAMATIC ENDING FOR SAM LOWES
Sam Lowes (ELF Marc VDS Racing Team) goes from fourth place despite a late crash at Turn 13 after setting a 1’27.627s, with Yari Montella (Barni Spark Racing Team) securing a second row start with fifth place. The #5 was 0.470s off Lecuona’s pole time, but lines up alongside his rival in the Championship. Lorenzo Baldassarri (Team GoEleven) will go from sixth place with a 1’27.791s; the top six were all under last year’s pole time.
INSIDE THE TOP TEN
Alex Lowes (bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team) will line up from seventh after he lapped 0.642s down on Lecuona, while Garrett Gerloff (Kawasaki WorldSBK Team) was P8 – as he was across Friday’s two sessions – with a 1’27.963s. Miguel Oliveira (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) set a 1’28.001s to claim ninth, although he had been running as high as fourth at the start of the second stint. Tommy Bridewell (Superbike Advocates) completed the top ten, just over nine tenths off the pole time.
The top six from WorldSBK Superpole, full results here:
- Iker Lecuona (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) 1’27.253s
- Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) +0.044s
- Alberto Surra (Motocorsa Racing) +0.184s
- Sam Lowes (ELF Marc VDS Racing Team) +0.374s
- Yari Montella (Barni Spark Racing Team) +0.470s
- Lorenzo Baldassarri (Team GoEleven) +0.538s
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