Albert Arenas won FIM Supersport World Championship Race Two Sunday at Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit, in Australia. The AS BLU CRU Yamaha YZF-R9 rider won the 18-lap race by 4.937 seconds.
His teammate Aldi Mahendra was second, and Matteo Ferrari got third on his WRP Racing Ducati Panigale V2.
Former MotoAmerica regular Valentin Debise finished 24th on his ZXMOTO Factory Evan Bros 820RR.
Albert Arenas leads the championship with 38 points, 7 ahead of Jaume Masia who has 31 points. Matteo Ferrari is third with 26 points.
More from a press release issued by FIM WorldSuperbike:
PODIUM DEBUTANTS: Arenas takes maiden WorldSSP win ahead of Mahendra and Ferrari on podium for the first time.
For the first time since Phillip Island back in 2001, three riders have taken their maiden podium at once.
The FIM Supersport World Championship’s opening salvo at the Australian Round has concluded! WorldSSP’s first round of 2026 opened the campaign on a high note, promising a shootout of a season to come! Race 2 brought rain for the first time of the weekend Down Under, featuring a wet track at lights out. Several riders chose wisely, opting for slicks and enabling them to sail ahead of the rest of the pack, who had to return to pit lane to discard their rain tyres. Albert Arenas (AS BLU CRU Racing Team) prevailed for his first WorldSSP win and his first win since his Moto3 Austrian GP victory. 2024 WorldSSP300 Champions Aldi Mahendra (AS BLU CRU Racing Team) became Indonesia’s first podium finisher in WorldSSP. Rounding out the trio of first-time podium finishers, Matteo Ferrari (WRP Racing) brings his country of Italy its 260th WorldSSP podium.
ARENAS ON TOP: Becomes Spain’s seventh WorldSSP race winner
Philipp Oettl (Feel Racing WorldSSP Team) fired off from lights out for the holeshot, followed into Turn 1 by Can Oncu (Pata Yamaha Ten Kate Racing). As the laps piled up and the track dried up, the order changed dramatically. Aldi Mahendra’s decision to use slick tyres paid off early; despite his back-of-grid start, he didn’t show a lick of fear of the wet conditions as he was up into P4 after a single lap. By Lap 2, the Indonesian had taken P1 from Oncu. Albert Arenas caught up to the pair, and the trio of Yamaha riders sparred at the front of the pack before Arenas and Mahendra had put more than 11 seconds between themselves and Oncu as the Spaniard and the Indonesian both came prepared on slick tyres. Oncu later ducked into pit lane on Lap 6 to change to slicks, but it was too little too late to challenge for the rostrum spots and had to settle for P5 at the head of all the riders who had to pit. Despite starting back in P11, Matteo Ferrari found himself sailing up the grid as he came equipped with slick tyres. While by then he was unable to catch the pair in front of him, he took a proud P3 finish for his maiden podium.
Albert Arenas won the WSSP Race 2 at Phillip Island. Photo courtesy WSBK
TOUGH LUCK FOR #77: The Swiss rider suffers a tech issue from P4
Andrea Giombini (Motozoo by Madforce Dubai) was the last clever rider to have equipped the slicks, and he was rewarded with a P4 finish, 39 seconds ahead of Oncu. The result comes as a clear improvement from Giombini’s previous best result of P21, set in Race 1 earlier this weekend. Dominique Aegerter (Kawasaki WorldSSP Team) was another beneficiary of a clever tyre selection; despite starting in P23, he settled into P4, a huge improvement on his Race 1 P23. Unfortunately for the Swiss rider, he suffered a tech issue in the final moments. The result means he finished outside the points in both races at Phillip Island.
GARCIA CAPITALIZES: The Spaniard climbs six positions for sixth place
Roberto Garcia (GMT94 Yamaha) played his hand well, climbing from P12 to finish P6. Alessandro Zaccone (Ecosantagata Althea Racing Team) was battling among the front of the riders who needed to pit. A big moment in Lap 5’s Turn 2 saw him lose speed, resulting in a still-positive P7.
MAHIAS RECOVERS POINTS: The Frenchman will take eight points from Race 2
Lucas Mahias (GMT94 Yamaha) pitted on Lap 5 and rode to a P8 finish, 1.430s behind Zaccone. Jeremy Alcoba (Kawasaki WorldSSP Team) finished as the top Kawasaki after Aegerter’s tech issue, snagging a P9 to salvage two top ten finishes from an off-pace opening weekend for the team. He did well to recover from a Minimum Pit Time Infringement penalty of 0.160s. Jaume Masia (Orelac Racing VerdNatura) was mired farther down the pack than he enjoyed in Race 1; this time around, he had to change tyres and was only able to salvage P10 from the rain-affected contest.
Nicolo Bulega won the World Superbike Superpole Race Sunday afternoon at Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit, in Australia. Riding his Aruba.it Racing Ducati Panigale V4R, the Italian won the 10-lap race by 2.752 seconds.
Axel Bassani was the runner-up on his Bimota by Kawasaki KB998 Rimini, and Alex Lowes was right behind his teammate in third.
American Garrett Gerloff finished 6th on his Kawasaki ZX-10RR.
Danilo Petrucci finished his race 10th on his ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team M1000RR.
Nicolo Bulega leads the championship with 37 points, 11 ahead of Yari Montella who has 26 points. Axel Bassani is third with 22 points.
More from a press release issued by FIM Superbike World Championship:
DRAMATIC BATTLE: Bulega fights back for P1 in the Superpole Race, Bassani takes his first Bimota podium.
Bulega doubled up in Australia with victory in the 10-lap race, with rain falling which made it a chaotic affair
Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) made it two from two in the Australian Round in the MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship, but it was anything but simple for the #11. After losing ground at the start at the Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit, finishing ahead of Axel Bassani (bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team) who claimed his first podium for Bimota and his first rostrum in 939 days. Teammate Alex Lowes completed the rostrum.
Teammates Axel Bassini and Alex Lowes finished 2nd and 3th of the Superpole race. Photo courtesy WSBK.
MONTELLA LEADS, BULEGA DROPS: Off to a dramatic start…
Yari Montella (Barni Spark Racing Team) got the holeshot as lights went out as he stormed into the lead, while polesitter Bulega dropped down to fourth on the opening lap. The #5 looked to build a gap over the chasing pack, but Alex Lowes closed the gap over the second lap as he chased Bimota’s first win in 26 years. At the start of Lap 4, Bulega got ahead of Alex Lowes at Turn 1 to move into second, after passing Bassani at the same corner the lap before. On Lap 4, Bulega barged his way ahead of Montella at Turn 10 to take the lead, while white flags were showing for spots of rain in Sectors 2 and 3 at the same time.
BASSANI CHASES BULEGA: The #11 holds on as ‘El Bocia’ returns to the rostrum
The drops of rain coincided with Bassani gaining on Bulega, after he got ahead of his teammate, gaining multiple tenths on the #11 across the final two sectors. Bulega was able to hold on heading on to Lap 7, while Montella ran wide at Turn 1 as he dropped out of the podium battle. At the front, on Lap 8, Bulega built up a lead of over a second to Bassani as he claimed his second win of the weekend and 22nd in WorldSBK, putting him level with Marco Melandri. Bassani took his first podium for Bimota with second, while Alex Lowes held on from Montella to make it a double Bimota podium for the first time since Race 2 at Estoril in 1988, when Stephane Mertens beat Davide Tardozzi.
SECOND ROW START IN RACE 2: Montella fourth ahead of Sam Lowes and Gerloff
Montella was classified in fourth, just 0.022s behind the #22 as he finished in fourth, although he did lead a lap in WorldSBK for the first time. He finished four tenths clear of Sam Lowes (ELF Marc VDS Racing Team) in fifth as the Brit secured a second row start for Race 2 this afternoon. Garrett Gerloff (Kawasaki WorldSBK Team) had been in the podium fight but Montella’s error at Turn 1 in the second half of the race cost them time.
Alvaro Bautista (Barni Spark Racing Team) battled from the fourth row to finish in seventh ahead of Race 1 podium finisher Lorenzo Baldassarri (Team GoEleven), while Iker Lecuona (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) was ninth. The #7 lost a huge chunk of time on the opening lap at Turn 1, but fought his way back through the field to secure a third-row start, with Danilo Petrucci (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) just missing out in P10. Miguel Oliveira (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) had been in that fight after starting 21st on the grid but he hit drama on the last lap, dropping from the top nine to 18th place.
VIERGE DOESN’T TAKE THE START: Technical problem hinders the #97
Xavi Vierge (Pata Maxus Yamaha) did not take part in the race. He had been due to line up from ninth, but a technical issue on the bike forced him into the pits, with the Spanish rider unable to start the race. With Petrucci finishing tenth in the Superpole Race, he will line up from the same position in Race 2, with Vierge dropping from ninth to P11.
The top nine from the WorldSBK Superpole Race, full results here:
Racer Jim Still died February 14th at age 73. He was best known for racing with the We’re Human Too WERA National Endurance team, which he formed with partner Kurt Hall in 1989. In 1990 the team was renamed Hall ‘N Still Racing.
Larry Lawrence posted this on his Rider Files Facebook page on November 3rd, 2011:
In 1989 the WERA National Endurance team We’re Human Too was formed by Jim Still and Kurt Hall. The name was a play on the team that Hall raced for, The Human Race Team. In this photo (seen above) from Turn Five at Road Atlanta, both principals of We’re Human Too are shown. Jim Still is leading on the We’re Human Too Suzuki (No. 60) ahead of Team Suzuki Endurance rider Mike Smith (No. 2) and Kurt Hall on the Human Race Team Yamaha (No. 1). If I remember correctly Hall once told me that Suzuki contingency money was such that they could actually turn a profit if the team had consistent top results. It did, winning the Mediumweight Production class in the 1989 WERA National Endurance Series. When Hall left The Human Race Team the next year and moved to Team Suzuki, the link with The Human Race Team was gone and We’re Human Too became Hall ‘N Still Racing.
Jim Still’s sister, Mary Still, posted this tribute on February 17th, 2026:
A Tribute to My Big Brother, Jim
Jim was my big brother – and he was an extraordinary person in more ways than I can express.
There was seemingly nothing he couldn’t do. Whatever he set his mind to, he pursued with determination and mastered with excellence. Whether it was repairing a car engine, racing cars, cooking an unbelievable meal, playing tennis or riding motorcycles, Jim didn’t just try – he perfected. He never stopped learning, never stopped improving, until he reached the very top of whatever he attempted.
But what defined Jim most was not just his talent – it was his strength.
He was always the strong one. The one who made sure everyone else was okay. The one who carried responsibility without complaint. His family could rest easier because Jim was there – steady, capable, and protective.
His greatest devotion was to his wife, Debbie and to his children. Jim accepted nothing short of complete care and security for them. He worked tirelessly to ensure they were provided for and protected. If there was one mission that stood above all others in his life, it was making sure they were cared for. His love for them was constant, unwavering, and evident in everything he did.
Jim showed his love in action. Every Thanksgiving, after spending hours carefully preparing and perfecting each dish, he would personally deliver dinner to his mother, brothers, and sister. He didn’t do anything halfway. Every recipe was perfected. Every detail mattered. His love was conveyed not through words alone, but through devotion – through giving his very best.
When we were kids, we decided gift-giving was too difficult. So instead, we exchanged five dollars – often the very same five-dollar bill – back and forth. It was simple, funny, and perfectly us. That small tradition says so much about our bond: uncomplicated, steady, and full of quiet affection.
In his illness, Jim was remarkable. He refused to complain. He refused to burden others, even when his suffering was great. Somehow, no matter what he was enduring, he kept going. He put others first. He carried his pain with dignity and strength.
Jim valued his privacy, and we respected that. With the weight of so many responsibilities on his shoulders, he needed his quiet moments. Yet even in his solitude, his presence was deeply felt by all of us.
Jim will continue to inspire me. His drive for excellence. His devotion to family. His quiet strength. His perseverance. He set a standard – to do our best, to care deeply, and to stand strong for the people we love.
In 1 Thessalonians 4:13, we are urged not to grieve as those without hope. We mourn, but we do so with a hope that brings comfort instead of despair. Because of that promise, this is not goodbye forever.
The 2026 season is officially underway for Bodie Paige and Jake Paige, as the brothers opened their Idemitsu Moto4 Asia Cup campaign with the first official test at Sepang International Circuit in Malaysia.
This season, the Paige brothers are racing both the Idemitsu Moto4 Asia Cup and the full MotoAmerica series.
Saturday action concludes with a familiar duo on top – but plenty of stories continue to build ahead of race action.
Day 1 is in the books at the Buriram Test and it’s 2025 runner-up Alex Marquez (BK8 Gresini Racing MotoGP) who tops the timesheets with a 1:29.262 in Thailand. Hot on his heels despite two crashes it’s reigning World Champion Marc Marquez (Ducati Lenovo Team), 0.129 in arrears, with Franco Morbidelli (Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team) just taking third as he edged out Aprilia Racing’s Marco Bezzecchi by just 0.011. It was a tight fight for that P3 as Johann Zarco (CASTROL Honda LCR) lurked only another 0.005 back too.
Here’s what we saw on Saturday – on the timesheets and beyond.
Franco Morbidelli (21) at Buriram. Photo courtesy MotoGP Sports Entertainment Group
BK8 GRESINI RACING MOTOGP, PERTAMINA ENDURO VR46 RACING TEAM, DUCATI LENOVO TEAM
Alex Marquez continued working out which aero package he prefers, and took that P1. His full-time teammate in the box, Fermin Aldeguer, is out injured and replaced by Michele Pirro, with the Italian completing the running 3.3s off Marquez but putting in some valuable track time.
After the highs of Sepang, Marc Marquez didn’t have it all his own way on Day 1 at Buriram. Two crashes for the reigning World Champion saw the first half of his day spent in the gravel or in the box. The first one was a fast one at the final corner as he was braking on the kerbs whilst the second was a small get-off at Turn 5, but rider ok. He also got back out there and finished the day in P2 on the combined times in somewhat classic style #93 bounce back.
Teammate Francesco Bagnaia was P12 but continued his positive pre-season form and was seen smiling throughout the day in the box. In the red corner there was more debate about the 2025 aero vs the 2024 package as well as different variations of the 2025 one itself. There’s now one day to decide…
From the blue of Gresini to the fluorescent yellow of the Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team Ducatis. Fabio Di Giannantonio was up inside the top three for the majority of the day whilst Franco Morbidelli left it late to replicate what he showed in Sepang and pull off a leapfrog. The #21 jumped up the order into the top three in the closing 20 minutes, taking the chequered flag in third. Ninth at the conclusion of day one for ‘Diggia’ but with both riders strong throughout testing, there’re exciting times ahead for VR46.
Jorge Martin (89) at Buriram. Photo courtesy MotoGP Sports Entertainment Group.
APRILIA RACING & TRACKHOUSE MOTOGP TEAM
Aprilia’s pre-season has been the highlight of many within the MotoGP paddock and day one was no exception. Bezzecchi took fourth whilst teammate Jorge Martin was less than four tenths off the #72 despite riding the RS-GP at Buriram for the first time, ending the day in P13. Bezzecchi had a small crash on his way back to the pits but was perfectly OK. They had the latest spec of rear aero which was featured at Sepang as well as some new air ducts – but with a slightly different objective: to channel air to go around the riders legs.
Like in Bezzecchi and Martin’s garage, Raul Fernandez (Trackhouse MotoGP Team) also had the latest spec of rear aero on his RS-GP. The 2025 Australian GP winner put in a fast run at the end of the day too, moving up into the top three originally before concluding the day in sixth. Teammate Ai Ogura likes Buriram, the place of his debut in MotoGP last year and thus his best result of the season but did struggle to match the #25. Ogura back-to-back tested the rear aero with the one seen in Valencia last season, confirming which direction he wants to go in. 15th at the flag, expect the Japanese star to make bigger moves on the final day tomorrow.
Johann Zarco (5) at Buriram. Photo courtesy MotoGP Sports Entertainment Group.
CASTROL HONDA LCR, HONDA HRC CASTROL & PRO HONDA LCR
Leading Honda’s charge, a mighty effort from Zarco saw the Frenchman climb up the order to fifth with a flying lap putting him just 0.205s away from Alex Marquez in P1. It wasn’t all smooth for Zarco – literally – though, as he said he struggled with consistent control of the bike as it evolved from one lap to another. Elsewhere, teammate Diogo Moreira (Pro Honda LCR) continued to adapt to his new MotoGP environment and said it’s all about the fast corners. A challenging day in the soaring heat, he was 20th at the end of it all but expect his time to drop significantly if all goes well on day two; he stated he has homework to do and plans to watch other riders’ lines.
Despite only having one bike available after a technical issue, Joan Mir (Honda HRC Castrol) was right in the thick of it once again, backing up Zarco’s pace and confirming Honda’s progress. He clinched seventh on the timesheets and confirmed that for him and teammate Luca Marini, there’ll be some aero-related items to try on day two before getting into the Grand Prix weekend.
Maverick Viñales (12) at Buriram. Photo courtesy MotoGP Sports Entertainment Group.
RED BULL KTM FACTORY RACING & RED BULL KTM TECH3
KTM’s charge on Saturday was led by Maverick Viñales (Red Bull KTM Tech 3) in eighth place. He was using the latest aero seen for the first time at Sepang, seemingly smaller than their previous incarnation. Teammate Enea Bastianini followed the same method of working as his teammate but struggled to match his pace as yet, finishing in P16.
There were small improvements made by Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) as he finished 10th at the end of play on day one, stating that his day went “great”. He also used the smaller aero from Sepang but teammate Pedro Acosta left it until later in the day to make the switch to it. The #37 was the third-best KTM though and after the highs of Sepang where he was fourth and the best in orange, he finished day one in 13th – work to do for The Shark.
Fabio Quartararo (20) at Buriram. Photo courtesy MotoGP Sports Entertainment Group.
MONSTER ENERGY YAMAHA MOTOGP & PRIMA PRAMAC YAMAHA MOTOGP TEAM
The adaptation period is very much continuing at Yamaha as they seek to find their way forwards with the V4. Fresh from a quick trip to Adelaide to welcome the Australian city onto MotoGP’s calendar from 2027, Jack Miller (Prima Pramac Yamaha MotoGP) was the best of the Yamahas in 17th and just over a second adrift of Alex Marquez’s top time. Teammate Toprak Razgatlioglu had a modified handlebar as well as a tweaked seat unit. Like in Sepang, there were no stegosaurus wings on the rear of the YZR-M1 due to height restrictions. Ergonomics are vital for ‘El Turco’, the tallest rider on the grid; the triple WorldSBK Champion was 21st on the opening day.
Unfortunately for Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP), it was not a day one to remember. He wasn’t impressed with the performance of the bike out on track, showing his anger in the box as well as a clear signal to the bike itself. ‘El Diablo’ also had chassis variations to try as well as the latest swingarm at his disposal. On the other side of his box, Alex Rins was behind the 2021 World Champion but was less than a tenth of a second away; the Spaniard had a different chassis available to him that wasn’t seen on his teammate’s side but both had the latest spec aero. They finished the day in 18th and 19th respectively with just one more day remaining to get the bike in the best of shape possible.
There’s another whole day of track action to come before pre-season concludes, but the countdown is very much on now. Join us for Sunday from Buriram as the final test day gets underway – half an hour earlier than first scheduled from 9:30am (UTC+7) local time! Check out the full RESULTS HERE.
More from a press release issued by Pertamina Enduro VR46:
Positive first day of Official MotoGP test for the Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team, which is in third place with Franco Morbidelli and in ninth with Fabio Di Giannantonio at Buriram.
At the Chang International Circuit, the last Official MotoGP winter test got underway, and the Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team had a solid Day 1 despite the very high temperatures. Franco Morbidelli finished the first day in third place, while Fabio Di Giannantonio ended in ninth place.
Consistent Day 1 for Morbidelli, who continued in Buriram the work started during the Sepang test. On the Thai track, Franco also focused on the setup of his Ducati Desmosedici GP, completing 59 laps overall. The heat did not slow down the Italian-Brazilian rider, who set a 1’29”451 as his best time of the day, a lap that secured him third place in the combined classification.
A solid day as well for Di Giannantonio, who worked on the updates to his Ducati: Fabio focused on confirming the work carried out during the Sepang test also in Buriram, where the first race of the season will take place. The rider from Rome ended Day 1 in ninth place in the combined classification after completing 66 laps overall, with a best time of 1’29”643.
The Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team will return to the track tomorrow for the second and final day of MotoGP collective testing in Buriram before the start of the season, which will kick off with the Thai Grand Prix, scheduled from February 27th to March 1st.
Fabio Di Giannantonio (49) at Buriram. Photo courtesy VR46
Fabio Di Giannantonio: “I’m much happier today than in Malaysia test. Today it wasn’t an easy day, but we were able to stick to the plan and try everything we had in the plan. I’ve never been very quick on this track, but it seems we found a way to go fast here too, and it’s very important. The feeling with the bike is good, we tried many things and some of them were an improvement on the bike. The goal is to put all the things together to get the best package possible, so let’s see if we can start to prepare the race weekend already. Tomorrow we will also try the new aero once again, let’s see if we can use it for the first race.”
Franco Morbidelli (21) at Buriram. Photo courtesy VR46
Franco Morbidelli: “It was a positive day, we tried to adapt the setup to this track. We went back and forth with some setting solutions in terms of electronics and chassis, and it went well. We were able to adapt very well to the track and to the different tyres as well. I like the new aero package, it’s a bit different in some areas. The plan for tomorrow is to continue working on the setup but also doing a race simulation. We will try some time attacks in the morning. I feel well, I look forward to starting the season, we are fast. The test started well, and this is giving me even more will to start and more confidence.”
More from a press release issued by CASTROL Honda LCR:
Castrol Honda LCR rider Johann Zarco finished 5th on Saturday at the Buriram Test.
After completing 74 laps, Johann Zarco and the team had a solid day on Thai soil, as today marked the first of the two scheduled testing days before next week’s race.
It was a steady day where hard work paid off in the end, with the #5 rider securing 5th place.
However, there is still room for improvement, as the rider admits to missing some feeling to fully push. Tomorrow will be another chance to search for it.
Johann Zarco (5) at Buriram. Photo courtesy Honda LCR.
Johann Zarco 5th – (1:29.467):“It was a tough day, as I struggled a bit at the start. By the end, we managed to be fast and set a good lap time, but we still need to improve to feel more comfortable. We know the bike is competitive, but we need to find its full potential and the right setup. It’s a work in progress. We are looking for that ‘really good feeling’, we’ll see tomorrow!”
More from a press release issued by Honda HRC:
Marini and Mir find their rhythm at the Buriram Test.
The last chance to experiment without the pressures of a race weekend for the Honda HRC Castrol squad as the Buriram Test commences, Joan Mir and Luca Marini positive after the first day on track.
The penultimate test of the 2026 MotoGP World Championship pre-season began at the Chang International Circuit, the Honda HRC Castrol team resuming their work from the previous outing in Sepang. Time between tests gave Honda HRC’s engineers the perfect opportunity to assess the data gathered, the most successful manufacturer in Grand Prix racing arriving in Thailand with several new ideas.
Joan Mir put in a best lap of 1’29.494 on his final run of the day to go seventh overall and end within a quarter of a second of Alex Marquez, fastest of the first day. Still working on the setup of his Honda RC213V, the #36 was left content with the time he achieved but is aiming to complete more laps tomorrow.
Ending the morning session in third place, Luca Marini remained within half a second of the top times throughout the entirety of the day. A total of 60 laps produced a best time of 1’29.774 for the Italian and saw him end in 12th as 0.9s split the top 16. Improving rear grip remains Marini’s main focus for the last day of the Buriram Test.
Now just a single day of testing awaits, a final chance to gather data and prepare the plan for the opening Grand Prix of the 2026 MotoGP World Championship season.
Joan Mir (36) at Buriram. Photo courtesy Honda HRC
Joan Mir:“A good day overall but maybe not as straight forward as I was expecting because we had a few things to work on between the two bikes we have here. It lost us a bit of time in the morning, but after that we focused and got through a lot for a really positive part of the day. Our package isn’t perfect, but we can make a good lap time alone with it, so this is positive for the first day here. More tomorrow as we try a few final items and then turn an eye to the race.”
Luca Marini (10) at Buriram. Photo courtesy Honda HRC
Luca Marini: “Another step compared to the last test, improving a little bit more and more. Friday practice is where it matters, but I am satisfied with what we have done so far and what items we have been able to get through. Everyone worked well today as we chase our main target – more rear grip. Everything else is in a good position, especially when we compare to where we were one year ago.”
More from a press release issued by Monster Energy Yamaha:
Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Take P18 and P19 on Day 1 of Testing in Thailand.
Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Team’s Fabio Quartararo and Álex Rins started the two-day Buriram MotoGP Official Test by getting a solid number of laps in and preparing for the upcoming Grand Prix of Thailand (27 February – 1 March). The teammates ended Day 1 in 18th and 19th place respectively in the overall rankings.
The Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Team sprung to action today at the Chang International Circuit for the two-day Buriram MotoGP Official Test. Fabio Quartararo and Álex Rins completed the first day in 18th and 19th place respectively in the overall timesheets.
The Buriram Test Day 1 consisted of two riding sessions: Session 1 from 10:00-13:00 GMT +7 and Session 2 from 13:20-18:00.
The team was in high spirits having Quartararo back in the garage after he sustained a finger injury at the Sepang Test two weeks’ prior. The Frenchman was fully motivated to get back to work and ran a total of 67 laps on Day 1. His fastest lap was a 1’30.507s (Session 2), which put him in 18th place in the combined Session 1 + Session 2 timesheets, 1.245s from the top.
Rins enjoyed a productive outing. As the Chang International Circuit will be hosting the opening GP of the season next week, he and his crew are fully focused on bike set-ups. He completed 64 laps over the course of the first day. His best lap of 1’30.512s (Session 2) had him rank 19th in the Day 1 classifications, 1.250s from first.
The Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Team will be back at the Chang track tomorrow from 09:30-13:00 GMT +7 and 13:20-17:30 to wrap up 2026 preseason testing.
Fabio Quartararo (20) at Buriram. Photo courtesy Yamaha.
Fabio Quartararo:“It was a long day. We will try to figure out something to improve a bit more tomorrow. Yamaha know the list of priorities and what they have to do. I just focus on providing feedback on what it is we need. Today we changed quite a lot on the bike. Tomorrow, I want to keep the same bike and do some runs in a row with the same base set-up.”
Alex Rins (42) at Buriram. Photo courtesy Yamaha.
Alex Rins: “With the parts – chassis, swingarm, etc. – already decided on, we focused on settings today, trying to understand the bike better and to see where we can improve. It was a productive day. We need to keep working, and Yamaha will keep working to give us further updates, and like this, we can improve a bit more.”
More from a press release issued by Pro Honda LCR:
Pro Honda LCR rider Diogo Moreira finished 20th on the opening day of the Buriram test.
After completing 75 laps, Diogo Moreira and the crew had a consistent day on Thai soil, learning the track and continuing his adaptation to the category on a different layout.
The rider admitted to noticing improvements and is working hard to find the best balance on the bike.
On Sunday, a race simulation is planned ahead of next week’s race, and both the rider and the crew are fully determined to make the most of the day and finish the test in the best way possible.
Diogo Moreira (11) at Buriram. Photo courtesy Pro Honda LCR.
Diogo Moreira 20th – (1:30.953):“Coming here is nice for me; it’s a different layout. It’s been a positive day, and we need to keep this up. Tomorrow, we’ll try to keep improving. It’s difficult to find the lines, and that’s why today I followed some rivals to learn from them. We’re working hard. Everything will come in time; the important thing is to improve day by day. Tomorrow, we’ll focus on the race simulation. Let’s see how it goes!”
More from a press release issued by Prima Pramac Yamaha:
Prima Pramac Yamaha MotoGP begins final two days of testing at Buriram Circuit ahead of Thailand season opener.
Prima Pramac Yamaha MotoGP completed a full testing programme on Day 1, with Jack Miller and Toprak Razgatlıoğlu evaluating multiple set-ups and technical solutions on their respective machines. The focus was not on single-lap performance, but on identifying the most effective base setting ahead of tomorrow‘s second test day and next week‘s season-opening round of the 2026 MotoGP World Championship.
Jack Miller (43) at Buriram. Photo courtesy Prima Pramac Yamaha
Jack Miller:“It was a decent day. We worked through different chassis options and several set-ups, and overall the bike is working reasonably well. I‘m quite happy with our base setting, especially as the chassis feels like a clear step forward compared to Malaysia. Sector 1 and Sector 2 are still our weak points at the moment, which was expected, but in Sector 3 and 4 I feel strong, particularly with the tyre allocation we have here. There‘s still work to do and we know we‘re not going to find 10 km/h overnight, but in general I‘m enjoying the bike and we have a clear direction for tomorrow.”
Toprak Razgatlıoğlu (07) at Buriram. Photo courtesy Prima Pramac Yamaha.
Toprak Razgatlıoğlu:“I‘m still in a learning phase and adapting to this bike, but I can see progress in many areas. The biggest challenge at the moment is understanding the rear tyre, while I feel more comfortable with the front. That said, I don‘t yet have the confidence to fully lean on it the way I used to with the Pirelli. I‘m trying to improve corner by corner, and tomorrow I would like to attempt a sprint-style simulation and maybe also a fast lap like Jack did today — he did a very good job. Step by step, we‘re moving forward.”
Harrison Voight has landed the first major blow in the 2026 Penrite Australian Superbike Championship presented by Pirelli (ASBK), easily winning today’s season opener at Phillip Island.
The Queenslander put his McMartin Racing Ducati into the lead from the outset, with his speed and work rate then proving to be an irresistible combination as he eased his way to victory ahead of Jacob Roulstone (Motocity Honda) and Cameron Dunker (Blue Marlin Pools Racing Yamaha) – three of Australia’s young circuit racing tyros on the one SW-Motech Superbike podium.
In a spectacular day of ASBK action, Olly Simpson (DesmoSport Ducati) and Roberto Tamburini (Addicted to Track Yamaha) shared Kawasaki Supersport victories, while New Zealander Tyler King (Kawasaki) got the job done in a manic Race and Road Supersport 300 race..
Meanwhile, Aussie Oli Bayliss (Triumph) kept the crowd on its toes with his first world Supersport (WorldSSP) podium after a brilliant third place. He’s the first Australan to finish top three in a WorldSSP race since Ant West at Jerez in 2017.
Tickets are still avalable for a huge Sunday of racing at Phillip Island, or they can be purchased at the gate.
The SW-Motech Superbike pack gets underway. Photo courtesy ASBK.
SW-MOTECH SUPERBIKE
Could this be the first sod turned in a changing of the SW-Motech Superbike guard?
It was a crushing victory for Voight, who checked out from the start en route to a second Superbike success at Phillip Island in just his sixth race.
While the 19-year-old was producing a masterful front-running performance, it was a bumper battle for second place with Superbike rookie and former Moto3 rider Roulstone and Dunker providing most of the heart-stopping moments as Mike Jones (Yamaha Racing Team) kept a watching brief in his normal free-flowing manner.
Defending champion Josh Waters (McMartin Racing Ducati), in recovery mode after running off at turn four on lap two, Jonathan Nahlous (Yamaha Racing Team) and polesitter Ant West (DesmoSport Ducati) eventually latched onto the back of the group to make it a six-way freight train.
The pecking order didn’t change much, though, with Roulstone flashing across the line in second position, 2.932sec behind Voight and just a whisker ahead of Dunker, Waters, Jones and Nahlous.
For Waters, in particular, the result was semi-seismic: the first time he had finished off a Phillip Island ASBK podium since round one of the 2022 championship!
West, Cru Halliday (Stop and Seal Ducati), Glenn Allerton (Superbike Advocates Racing Ducati) and Jack Favelle (Addicted to Track Yamaha) completed the top 10 in the 11-lapper.
Races two and three will be held at 9:45am and 1:40pm on Sunday.
The SW-Motech Superbike race one podium: (L to R): Roulstone, Voight and Dunker. Photo courtesy ASBK
KAWASAKI SUPERSPORT
The Kawasaki Supersport and Supersport Next Gen riders delivered two fiercely contested races to kickstart the 2026 season, with Simpson and evergreen Italian Tamburini the winners.
Simpson’s margin in the opening 10-lapper was a wafer thin 0.075sec over polesitter Hayden Nelson (BCperformance Kawasaki), while Tamburini took maximum advantage of some late squabbling in race two to prevail by nearly a second over Tom Edwards (BCperformance Kawasaki).
With the pressure meter dialled up to maximum, the third places were shared by Edwards and Simpson under brilliant Phillip Island sunshine.
Across the two separate championships – Supersport and the fledgling Supersport Next Gen class – Tamburini (1-1) finished Saturday ahead of Valentino Knezovic (Addicted to Track, 2-2) and 2025 Supersport 300 champion Scott Nicholson (TeamBWR Yamaha, 5-5) in Supersport, and in Supersport Next Gen Simpson (1-2) enjoyed the most profitable harvest from Edwards (3-1) and Nelson (2-3).
Race three is at 11:25am on Sunday.
Kawasaki Supersport Race 1 at Phillip Island. Photo courtesy ASBK
RACE AND ROAD SUPERSPORT 300
Another hyper Race and Road Supersport 300 race, with the leading combatants going hammer and tongs for the whole eight laps.
This time, it was King who enjoyed the Trans-Tasman bragging rights after a frenzied multi-bike lunge across the finish line, turning the tables on race one winner Nauta.
Just 0.593sec separated the top 11, with reigning No. 2 Jordy Simpson seizing the final spot on the podium ahead of Rossi McAdam, Jake Senior and Phoenix O’Brien – all on Yamahas.
Lincoln Knight (Yamaha), who finished on the tail of the 11-bike rolling scrum battling for race honours, set the fastest lap of the race – a 1:48.742.
Race three is at 9:10am on Sunday morning to complete round one of five in the 2026 championship.
Tyler King was today’s Race and Road Supersport 300 winner. Photo courtesy ASBK
For more information on the 2026 Penrite Australian Superbike Championship presented by Pirelli:
Nicolo Bulega won FIM Superbike World Championship Race One Saturday afternoon at Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit, in Australia. Bulega started from pole position and rode his Aruba.it Racing Ducati Panigale V4R to a 4.77-second margin of victory in the 22-lap race.
Yari Montella was the runner-up on his Barni Spark Racing Ducati Panigale V4R, 1.371 second ahead of Lorenzo Baldassarri, who rode his Team Goeleven Ducati Panigale V4R to third.
Danilo Petrucci crossed the finish line 10th on his ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team M1000RR.
American Garrett Gerloff finished the race 11th on his Kawasaki ZX-10RR.
Nicolo Bulega leads the championship with 25 points, 5 ahead of Yari Montella who has 20 points. Lorenzo Baldassarri is third with 16 points.
STARTING IN STYLE: Bulega takes lights-to-flag victory at Phillip Island as Montella, Baldassarri claim maiden podiums.
The #11 continued his sensational form in Australia by taking victory ahead of two riders who stunned the field to claim their first WorldSBK podiums
Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) claimed victory in Race 1 of the MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship as he led from lights out to the chequered flag as he beat his rivals for the first 25-point haul of the season. However, there were big stories behind him as both Yari Montella (Barni Spark Racing Team) and Lorenzo Baldassarri (Team GoEleven) claimed their first podiums in WorldSBK as the Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit once again threw up plenty of surprises during the Australian Round.
THE EARLY LAPS: Bulega leads Montella, Baldassarri climbs the order
Bulega got the holeshot when lights went out for the opening race of the year, defending his pole position before building up a lead over his rivals. Montella held on to second as Alex Lowes (bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team) initially moved up to the rostrum. Baldassarri was another who made quick progress, climbing from seventh on the grid to fourth, before passing Alex for P3 at Turn 1 on Lap 5.
Nicolo Bulega (11) won the WSBK Race 1 at Phillip Island. Photo courtesy Dorna
ON THE ROSTRUM: Bulega victorious as Montella, Baldassarri stand on the podium
As the laps progressed, Bulega opened up the gap over Montella although the #11 was able to manage the gap at just under three seconds. Baldassarri was around two seconds behind Montella as he ran in a podium place, and, despite Axel Bassani (bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team) hounding him over the final two laps, was able to hold on for a maiden podium. Bulega made it his fourth consecutive Phillip Island victory, with Montella holding on to take his first WorldSBK podium. For Bulega, it was his 21st WorldSBK win as he equalled Max Biaggi’s tally, and made it his 14th consecutive rostrum, equalling a streak set by four-time Champion Carl Fogarty across 1994 and 1995.
Yari Montella (5) and Lorenzo Baldassarri (34) during the WSBK Race 1 at Phillip Island. Photo courtesy Dorna
SIBLING RIVALRY: Sam vs Alex as Lecuona makes gains
The Lowes twins battled for fifth around halfway through the race as the #14 got ahead of the #22 at Turn 1 as they looked to close the gap to Bassani in fourth and Baldassarri in third. Once Sam Lowes (ELF Marc VDS Racing Team) got ahead of his brother, he quickly closed on Bassani as they fought over P4, renewing a rivalry that ignited in the early laps. Bassani bundled his way past the Ducati rider at Turn 4, with ‘El Bocia’ ordered to give the place back. Despite Sam Lowes chasing Bassani, the #47 held before setting his target on ‘Balda’ in P3, unable to close down his compatriot. Behind, Alex Lowes had to fight with Iker Lecuona (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) who methodically made his way through the field to finish in the top six, with the Bimota rider in seventh.
HISTORIC COMEBACK: Oliveira from the back of the grid to P8
Miguel Oliveira (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) was forced to start from the back of the grid after a crash in Tissot Superpole session meant he didn’t set a time. However, the #88 battled his way through the field to claim eighth place on his WorldSBK debut and his 13 positions gained is the best comeback at Phillip Island since Ryuichi Kiyonari climbed from 19th to sixth in Race 2 in 2008. Oliveira was a second clear of rookie Alberto Surra (Motocorsa Racing), who secured a top-ten result on his debut as he claimed P9. Danilo Petrucci (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) had a rollercoaster race. He started from sixth, dropped out of the top then before battling his way back into tenth.
SCORING POINTS: Late drama for Gerloff
Garrett Gerloff (Kawasaki WorldSBK Team) had been on for a top ten but ran wide at Turn 4 in the closing stages, dropping him to 11th although he was only 0.017s behind ‘Petrux’. Tarran Mackenzie (MGM Racing Performance) secured 12th place ahead of Andrea Locatelli (Pata Maxus Yamaha), who was outside the top seven when taking the flag at Phillip Island for the first time in his career. Tetsuta Nagashima (Honda HRC) was 14th ahead of wildcard Ryan Vickers, who raced in WorldSBK for Honda HRC for the first time. Bahattin Sofuoglu (Motoxracing WorldSBK Team) was 16th ahead of teammate Mattia Rato, who rounded out the WorldSBK field.
CRASHING OUT: Falls for Bautista and Vierge
Alvaro Bautista’s (Barni Spark Racing Team) new adventure got off to a bad start as he crashed at Turn 11 when he lost the front of his Panigale V4 R. Xavi Vierge (Pata Maxus Yamaha) had been running inside the top ten when he had a big crash, losing it through the high-speed Turn 3 and coming to a stop on the inside of Turn 4. The #97 was taken to the medical centre for a check-up, where he was declared fit. There were two other retirements from Race 1. GYTR GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Team’s Stefano Manzi retired in the first half of the race while teammate Remy Gardner came into the box with just a handful of laps to go.
The top six from WorldSBK Race 1, full results here:
Jaume Masia won FIM Supersport World Championship Race One Saturday at Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit, in Australia. Riding his Orelac Racing Verdnatura Ducati Panigale V2 on Pirelli control tires, the Spaniard won the 18-lap race by 5.521 seconds.
Philip Oettl was the runner-up on his Feel Racing Ducati Panigale V2, 1.745 seconds ahead of third-place finisher Oli Bayliss who rode his PTR Triumph Factory Racing Street Triple 765 RS.
Former MotoAmerica Supersport regular Valentin Debise crashed his ZXMOTO Factory Evan Bross 820RR and finished the race 25th.
Jaume leads the championship with 25 points, 5 ahead of Philip Oettl who has 20 points. Oli Bayliss is third with 16 points.
CLASSIC SEASON OPENER: Masia claims victory as Bayliss secures dream home podium at Phillip Island.
With his rostrum result, Bayliss becomes Australia’s youngest-ever WorldSSP podium finisher.
Lights are out at the Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit on the 2026 FIM Supersport World Championship campaign as the field sunk their teeth into the new season in Saturday’s Race 1! The first race of 2026’s 12 rounds featured Jaume Masia (Orelac Racing VerdNatura) taking the first 25 points on offer for his third career WorldSSP win. Joining him on the campaign’s first podium was German rider Philipp Oettl (Feel Racing WorldSSP Team) for his 14th podium in the category and home hero Oli Bayliss (PTR Triumph Factory Racing) who claimed his first WorldSSP rostrum.
MASIA FLIES OUT OF THE GATE IN 2026: He closed 2025 with a win, and now opens 2026 doing the same
Oncu flew up from P4 to take the holeshot ahead of Valentin Debise (ZXMOTO Factory Evan Bros Racing) and Jaume Masia. The Spaniard flexed his Ducati Panigale V2’s straight line speed as he took P1 from the #61 and built up a healthy gap of nearly a second by the outset of Lap 3. The Spaniard converted his dominant pace in testing to land the first race win of the season, as from there he pulled away for the win; finishing the contest with a gap of over five seconds. Oettl missed the 2025 Australian Round with a knee injury, but this season, he started strong with a rostrum finish in second place. Tom Booth-Amos (PTR Triumph Factory Racing) saw his race end on Turn 4 in the second corner as the bike slid out from under him as he battled with Oettl for the second spot on the podium.
Jaume Masia won the WSSP Race 1 at Phillip Island. Photo courtesy Dorna
FIVE-WAY FIGHT FOR THE PODIUM: Bayliss, Arena, Oncu, Mahias, and Debise trade blows
Oncu had a healthy gap of around a second behind him on Lap 8 as he rode in P3; until a mistake on that Lap saw Oli Bayliss, Valentin, Albert Arenas (AS BLU CRU Racing Team), and Lucas Mahias (GMT94 Yamaha) close the gap and start a fight for the final podium spot. Debise had a tough break as he fell out of the fight on Lap 8 after he entered Turn 4 with a fraction too much lean angle and crashed out of Race 1. Bayliss took the lead of the group, until he lost the lead by running wide onto the grass on Turn 6 of Lap 13, just before Lucas Mahias (GMT94 Yamaha) crashed out of the race on Turn 4. The Australian recovered well to hang with the other two riders, and after the trio traded overtakes throughout the final eight laps, it was Bayliss who came out on top, earning his first WorldSSP podium of his career. The bronze-medal effort got the monkey off of his back after the longest-ever wait for a WorldSSP podium of 84 races, and claimed Australia’s first rostrum result since Anthony West back in 2017.
ARENAS HITS THE GROUND RUNNING: The Spanish rider starts his WorldSSP story in P4
Behind them, Albert Arenas (AS BLU CRU Racing Team) rode well in his WorldSSP debut, finishing P4 with the feather in his cap of winning the final laps shootout with the title favourite Can Oncu (Pata Yamaha Ten Kate Racing). Despite his incredible jump off the line, the Turk’s early mistake proved critical, erasing his gap and miring him in a wrestling match through which he fell to P5. Matteo Ferrari (WRP Racing) ran a clean race, taking advantage of other riders’ errors to land a strong debut result of sixth place.
VOSTATEK TIES CAREER HIGH: The Czech rider maintained his strong speed from testing
Ondrej Vostatek (Compos Racing Team) tied his career-best result of P7 in the season-opening race, emerging just +0.158 faster than 2025 MotoE Champion Alessandro Zaccone (Ecosantagata Althea Racing Team), who took P9. Spanish riders Roberto Garcia (GMT94 Yamaha) and Jeremy Alcoba (Kawasaki WorldSSP Team) landed in the final two positions of the top ten. Alcoba’s effort landed him as the top Kawasaki, as his two-time WorldSSP Champion teammate suffered a tech issue on the last lap and finished in P23.
The top ten of the season-opening WorldSSP Race 1 at Australia: Full results here!
1. Jaume Masia (Orelac Racing Verdnatura)
2. Philipp Oettl (Feel Racing WorldSSP Team) +5.521s
3. Oli Bayliss (PTR Triumph Factory Racing) +7.266s
4. Albert Arenas (AS BLU CRU Racing Team) +7.721s
5. Can Oncu (Pata Yamaha Ten Kate Racing) +7.743s
6. Matteo Ferrari (WRP Racing) +11.856s
Fastest lap: Jaume Masia, Ducati – 1’32.310s
Catch the final race of the season-opening Australian Round on Sunday LIVE with the WorldSBK VideoPass!
Nicolo Bulega took pole position during World Superbike Superpole qualifying Saturday at Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit, in Australia. Riding his Aruba.it Racing Ducati Panigale V4R on spec Pirelli tires, Bulega covered the 2.76-mile (4.45 km) track in 1:28.244 to lead the 21-rider field.
Yari Montella qualified second with a 1:28.663 on his Barni Spark Ducati Panigale V4R.
Sam Lowes did a 1:28.729 on his ELF Marc VDS Racing Ducati Panigale V4R to earn the third and final spot on the front row.
Row two starters include Bimota by Kawasaki’s Alex Lowes (1:28.943), and Axel Bassani (1:28.972), and ROKiT BMW’s Danilo Petrucci (1:29.049).
American Garrett Gerloff qualified 8th with a 1:29.237 on his Kawasaki ZX-10RR.
Bulega became the first rider since Troy Bayliss to take three consecutive poles at Phillip Island, while Montella claimed his first front row start in WorldSBK.
It was a historic Tissot Superpole session for the MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship as Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) claimed pole position, giving Ducati their 200th in the Championship. The #11 was 0.419s clear of his rivals, the biggest pole margin at the Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit since Troy Bayliss beat Troy Corser by 0.518s in 2008, as he led a Ducati front-row lockout. Yari Montella (Barni Spark Racing Team) will go from the front row for the first time in WorldSBK, with Sam Lowes (ELF Marc VDS Racing Team) joining them on the front row during the Australian Round.
THE FIRST RUN: Bulega lays down a gauntlet, Oliveira crashes
Bulega was the early pacesetter with a 1’28.610s to lock in a provisional pole position, with Montella and Sam Lowes completing an early top three. There was disruption to the early running of the 15-minute session when Miguel Oliveira (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) crashed at Turn 2, with the #88 falling on his first flying lap. He was able to remount his bike and return it to the pits for repairs. However, Oliveira was unable to return to the track once he returned to the pits and he failed to set a lap time.
BULEGA MATCHES BAYLISS: Third consecutive Phillip Island pole for the #11, Montella on the front row
Despite having a 0.266s advantage over Montella heading into the second runs, Bulega found another couple of tenths to set a 1’29.392s to cement his grip on pole position, with the #11 one of the first to head out and start their second runs. On the second lap of his second run, he improved once again to a 1’28.244s. He secured his third consecutive pole on ‘The Island’, the first rider to do so since Troy Bayliss between 2006 and 2008. Montella has always been strong at Phillip Island and continued that with second, 0.419s behind Bulega, as he claimed his first front row start in WorldSBK. The front row will be completed by Sam Lowes (ELF Marc VDS Racing Team), with the #14 exchanging positions with Montella in the latter stages, as he posted a 1’28.729s.
BIMOTAS QUICK, PETRUCCI FINDS GAINS: On the second row
Alex Lowes (bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team) will be just one place behind his twin brother as he finished fourth after posting a 1’28.943s, 0.699s off the pole-setting time. Both Bimotas will line up alongside each other with Axel Bassani in fifth, 0.029s behind the #22. Danilo Petrucci (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) had been a bit off the pace as he adapted to the BMW M 1000 RR machine, but he pulled out a 1’29.049s to claim a second-row start with P6.
BALDASARRI CONTINUES TO IMPRESS: P7 after shadowing Bulega
Lorenzo Baldassarri (Team GoEleven) secured his first top-ten Superpole result in WorldSBK with seventh place. His 1’29.191s lap time came when he followed Bulega in the latter stages of the session. Garrett Gerloff (Kawasaki WorldSBK Team) will go from eighth place with the #31 the last rider within a second of Bulega. Xavi Vierge (Pata Maxus Yamaha) was the lead Yamaha rider in ninth as rookie Alberto Surra (Motocorsa Racing) rounded out the top ten.
WORK TO DO: Bautista in P12, Lecuona P13, Locatelli P15
There are a few riders who will think they are out of position. Alvaro Bautista (Barni Spark Racing Team) is the only other rider, after Bulega, to take a pole at Phillip Island but he will go from 12th. He’s directly ahead of Iker Lecuona (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) in 13th. Andrea Locatelli (Pata Maxus Yamaha) has only been out of the top seven in terms of race results once at ‘The Island’, but will line up from 15th on the grid.
The top six from WorldSBK Superpole, full results here:
1. Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) 1’28.244s
2. Yari Montella (Barni Spark Racing Team) +0.419s
3. Sam Lowes (ELF Marc VDS Racing Team) +0.485s
4. Alex Lowes (bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team) +0.699s
5. Axel Bassani (bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team) +0.728s
6. Danilo Petrucci (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) +0.805s
The first race of the 2026 season is up next! Tune in to all the action from 13:00 Local Time (UTC+11) using the WorldSBK VideoPass!
Nicolò Bulega led FIM Superbike World Championship Free Practice 3 (FP3) Saturday morning at Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit, in Australia. Riding his Aruba.It Racing – Ducati Panigale V4R on spec Pirelli tires, the Italian rider covered the 2.76-mile (4.45 km) track in 1:28.273 to lead the field of 21 riders.
Sam Lowes was second-best with a 1:28.575 on his ELF Marc VDS Ducati Panigale V4R.
Axel Bassani was third with a 1:28.722 on his Bimota by Kawasaki KB998 Rimini and his teammate Alex Lowes finished the session fourth with a lap tine of 1:28.742.
American Garrett Gerloff was fifth with a time of 1:28.743 on his Kawasaki ZX-10RR.
Danilo Petrucci was 9th on his ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team M1000RR with a time of 1:28.842.
Nicolo Bulega continued showing his pace in Australia as he topped Saturday morning’s FP3 session by more than three tenths.
The final practice session of the Australian Round concluded with Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) topping the times for the MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship. The #11 has topped every session from the Official Test and the three Free Practice sessions at the Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit, as he finished ahead of Sam Lowes (ELF Marc VDS Racing Team) and Axel Bassani (bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team).
Bulega made it a hat-trick of session-topping times in Free Practice 3 as he finished three tenths clear of his rivals, while also showing his consistent pace once again. His best time was a 1’28.273s as he beat Sam Lowes, with the #14 putting in a late lap to move into second ahead of Bassani. The Italian had been quick out of the blocks to set a 1’28.722s and secure a top-three spot in FP3, putting him in good stead for this afternoon’s Tissot Superpole session.
Sam Lowes (14) during FP3 at Phillip Island. Photo courtesy Dorna
Alex Lowes (bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team) ensured both Bimota riders were in the top four as he lapped just 0.020s slower than his teammate. All three Kawasaki-powered teams were in the top five, and all showing relatively similar pace. Garrett Gerloff (Kawasaki WorldSBK Team) claimed P5 with a 1’28.743s, exactly 0.001s slower than the #22 ahead. Iker Lecuona (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) closed the gap to teammate Bulega in the 20-minute session as the #7 finished in sixth, less than half-a-second down on the #11.
Yari Montella (Barni Spark Racing Team) set a 1’28.788s as he finished in seventh, directly ahead of teammate Alvaro Bautista who was 0.050s away from Montella’s pace. Both BMW riders featured in the top ten in FP3. Danilo Petrucci (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) was the faster of the pair as he set a 1’28.842s, but there was little to separate him from Miguel Oliveira. 0.007s was the difference, in Petrucci’s favour.
WSSP Race 2 at Phillip Island. Photo courtesy WSBK
Albert Arenas won FIM Supersport World Championship Race Two Sunday at Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit, in Australia. The AS BLU CRU Yamaha YZF-R9 rider won the 18-lap race by 4.937 seconds.
His teammate Aldi Mahendra was second, and Matteo Ferrari got third on his WRP Racing Ducati Panigale V2.
Former MotoAmerica regular Valentin Debise finished 24th on his ZXMOTO Factory Evan Bros 820RR.
Albert Arenas leads the championship with 38 points, 7 ahead of Jaume Masia who has 31 points. Matteo Ferrari is third with 26 points.
More from a press release issued by FIM WorldSuperbike:
PODIUM DEBUTANTS: Arenas takes maiden WorldSSP win ahead of Mahendra and Ferrari on podium for the first time.
For the first time since Phillip Island back in 2001, three riders have taken their maiden podium at once.
The FIM Supersport World Championship’s opening salvo at the Australian Round has concluded! WorldSSP’s first round of 2026 opened the campaign on a high note, promising a shootout of a season to come! Race 2 brought rain for the first time of the weekend Down Under, featuring a wet track at lights out. Several riders chose wisely, opting for slicks and enabling them to sail ahead of the rest of the pack, who had to return to pit lane to discard their rain tyres. Albert Arenas (AS BLU CRU Racing Team) prevailed for his first WorldSSP win and his first win since his Moto3 Austrian GP victory. 2024 WorldSSP300 Champions Aldi Mahendra (AS BLU CRU Racing Team) became Indonesia’s first podium finisher in WorldSSP. Rounding out the trio of first-time podium finishers, Matteo Ferrari (WRP Racing) brings his country of Italy its 260th WorldSSP podium.
ARENAS ON TOP: Becomes Spain’s seventh WorldSSP race winner
Philipp Oettl (Feel Racing WorldSSP Team) fired off from lights out for the holeshot, followed into Turn 1 by Can Oncu (Pata Yamaha Ten Kate Racing). As the laps piled up and the track dried up, the order changed dramatically. Aldi Mahendra’s decision to use slick tyres paid off early; despite his back-of-grid start, he didn’t show a lick of fear of the wet conditions as he was up into P4 after a single lap. By Lap 2, the Indonesian had taken P1 from Oncu. Albert Arenas caught up to the pair, and the trio of Yamaha riders sparred at the front of the pack before Arenas and Mahendra had put more than 11 seconds between themselves and Oncu as the Spaniard and the Indonesian both came prepared on slick tyres. Oncu later ducked into pit lane on Lap 6 to change to slicks, but it was too little too late to challenge for the rostrum spots and had to settle for P5 at the head of all the riders who had to pit. Despite starting back in P11, Matteo Ferrari found himself sailing up the grid as he came equipped with slick tyres. While by then he was unable to catch the pair in front of him, he took a proud P3 finish for his maiden podium.
Albert Arenas won the WSSP Race 2 at Phillip Island. Photo courtesy WSBK
TOUGH LUCK FOR #77: The Swiss rider suffers a tech issue from P4
Andrea Giombini (Motozoo by Madforce Dubai) was the last clever rider to have equipped the slicks, and he was rewarded with a P4 finish, 39 seconds ahead of Oncu. The result comes as a clear improvement from Giombini’s previous best result of P21, set in Race 1 earlier this weekend. Dominique Aegerter (Kawasaki WorldSSP Team) was another beneficiary of a clever tyre selection; despite starting in P23, he settled into P4, a huge improvement on his Race 1 P23. Unfortunately for the Swiss rider, he suffered a tech issue in the final moments. The result means he finished outside the points in both races at Phillip Island.
GARCIA CAPITALIZES: The Spaniard climbs six positions for sixth place
Roberto Garcia (GMT94 Yamaha) played his hand well, climbing from P12 to finish P6. Alessandro Zaccone (Ecosantagata Althea Racing Team) was battling among the front of the riders who needed to pit. A big moment in Lap 5’s Turn 2 saw him lose speed, resulting in a still-positive P7.
MAHIAS RECOVERS POINTS: The Frenchman will take eight points from Race 2
Lucas Mahias (GMT94 Yamaha) pitted on Lap 5 and rode to a P8 finish, 1.430s behind Zaccone. Jeremy Alcoba (Kawasaki WorldSSP Team) finished as the top Kawasaki after Aegerter’s tech issue, snagging a P9 to salvage two top ten finishes from an off-pace opening weekend for the team. He did well to recover from a Minimum Pit Time Infringement penalty of 0.160s. Jaume Masia (Orelac Racing VerdNatura) was mired farther down the pack than he enjoyed in Race 1; this time around, he had to change tyres and was only able to salvage P10 from the rain-affected contest.
WSBK Race start at Phillip Island. Photo courtesy WSBK
Nicolo Bulega won the World Superbike Superpole Race Sunday afternoon at Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit, in Australia. Riding his Aruba.it Racing Ducati Panigale V4R, the Italian won the 10-lap race by 2.752 seconds.
Axel Bassani was the runner-up on his Bimota by Kawasaki KB998 Rimini, and Alex Lowes was right behind his teammate in third.
American Garrett Gerloff finished 6th on his Kawasaki ZX-10RR.
Danilo Petrucci finished his race 10th on his ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team M1000RR.
Nicolo Bulega leads the championship with 37 points, 11 ahead of Yari Montella who has 26 points. Axel Bassani is third with 22 points.
More from a press release issued by FIM Superbike World Championship:
DRAMATIC BATTLE: Bulega fights back for P1 in the Superpole Race, Bassani takes his first Bimota podium.
Bulega doubled up in Australia with victory in the 10-lap race, with rain falling which made it a chaotic affair
Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) made it two from two in the Australian Round in the MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship, but it was anything but simple for the #11. After losing ground at the start at the Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit, finishing ahead of Axel Bassani (bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team) who claimed his first podium for Bimota and his first rostrum in 939 days. Teammate Alex Lowes completed the rostrum.
Teammates Axel Bassini and Alex Lowes finished 2nd and 3th of the Superpole race. Photo courtesy WSBK.
MONTELLA LEADS, BULEGA DROPS: Off to a dramatic start…
Yari Montella (Barni Spark Racing Team) got the holeshot as lights went out as he stormed into the lead, while polesitter Bulega dropped down to fourth on the opening lap. The #5 looked to build a gap over the chasing pack, but Alex Lowes closed the gap over the second lap as he chased Bimota’s first win in 26 years. At the start of Lap 4, Bulega got ahead of Alex Lowes at Turn 1 to move into second, after passing Bassani at the same corner the lap before. On Lap 4, Bulega barged his way ahead of Montella at Turn 10 to take the lead, while white flags were showing for spots of rain in Sectors 2 and 3 at the same time.
BASSANI CHASES BULEGA: The #11 holds on as ‘El Bocia’ returns to the rostrum
The drops of rain coincided with Bassani gaining on Bulega, after he got ahead of his teammate, gaining multiple tenths on the #11 across the final two sectors. Bulega was able to hold on heading on to Lap 7, while Montella ran wide at Turn 1 as he dropped out of the podium battle. At the front, on Lap 8, Bulega built up a lead of over a second to Bassani as he claimed his second win of the weekend and 22nd in WorldSBK, putting him level with Marco Melandri. Bassani took his first podium for Bimota with second, while Alex Lowes held on from Montella to make it a double Bimota podium for the first time since Race 2 at Estoril in 1988, when Stephane Mertens beat Davide Tardozzi.
SECOND ROW START IN RACE 2: Montella fourth ahead of Sam Lowes and Gerloff
Montella was classified in fourth, just 0.022s behind the #22 as he finished in fourth, although he did lead a lap in WorldSBK for the first time. He finished four tenths clear of Sam Lowes (ELF Marc VDS Racing Team) in fifth as the Brit secured a second row start for Race 2 this afternoon. Garrett Gerloff (Kawasaki WorldSBK Team) had been in the podium fight but Montella’s error at Turn 1 in the second half of the race cost them time.
Alvaro Bautista (Barni Spark Racing Team) battled from the fourth row to finish in seventh ahead of Race 1 podium finisher Lorenzo Baldassarri (Team GoEleven), while Iker Lecuona (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) was ninth. The #7 lost a huge chunk of time on the opening lap at Turn 1, but fought his way back through the field to secure a third-row start, with Danilo Petrucci (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) just missing out in P10. Miguel Oliveira (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) had been in that fight after starting 21st on the grid but he hit drama on the last lap, dropping from the top nine to 18th place.
VIERGE DOESN’T TAKE THE START: Technical problem hinders the #97
Xavi Vierge (Pata Maxus Yamaha) did not take part in the race. He had been due to line up from ninth, but a technical issue on the bike forced him into the pits, with the Spanish rider unable to start the race. With Petrucci finishing tenth in the Superpole Race, he will line up from the same position in Race 2, with Vierge dropping from ninth to P11.
The top nine from the WorldSBK Superpole Race, full results here:
At Road Atlanta in 1989, Jim Still on the We're Human Too Suzuki Katana (60) leads Mike Smith on a Team Suzuki Endurance (2) GSX-R1100 and Kurt Hall on a Human Race Team Yamaha (1) FZ1000. Photo by Larry Lawrence.
Racer Jim Still died February 14th at age 73. He was best known for racing with the We’re Human Too WERA National Endurance team, which he formed with partner Kurt Hall in 1989. In 1990 the team was renamed Hall ‘N Still Racing.
Larry Lawrence posted this on his Rider Files Facebook page on November 3rd, 2011:
In 1989 the WERA National Endurance team We’re Human Too was formed by Jim Still and Kurt Hall. The name was a play on the team that Hall raced for, The Human Race Team. In this photo (seen above) from Turn Five at Road Atlanta, both principals of We’re Human Too are shown. Jim Still is leading on the We’re Human Too Suzuki (No. 60) ahead of Team Suzuki Endurance rider Mike Smith (No. 2) and Kurt Hall on the Human Race Team Yamaha (No. 1). If I remember correctly Hall once told me that Suzuki contingency money was such that they could actually turn a profit if the team had consistent top results. It did, winning the Mediumweight Production class in the 1989 WERA National Endurance Series. When Hall left The Human Race Team the next year and moved to Team Suzuki, the link with The Human Race Team was gone and We’re Human Too became Hall ‘N Still Racing.
Jim Still’s sister, Mary Still, posted this tribute on February 17th, 2026:
A Tribute to My Big Brother, Jim
Jim was my big brother – and he was an extraordinary person in more ways than I can express.
There was seemingly nothing he couldn’t do. Whatever he set his mind to, he pursued with determination and mastered with excellence. Whether it was repairing a car engine, racing cars, cooking an unbelievable meal, playing tennis or riding motorcycles, Jim didn’t just try – he perfected. He never stopped learning, never stopped improving, until he reached the very top of whatever he attempted.
But what defined Jim most was not just his talent – it was his strength.
He was always the strong one. The one who made sure everyone else was okay. The one who carried responsibility without complaint. His family could rest easier because Jim was there – steady, capable, and protective.
His greatest devotion was to his wife, Debbie and to his children. Jim accepted nothing short of complete care and security for them. He worked tirelessly to ensure they were provided for and protected. If there was one mission that stood above all others in his life, it was making sure they were cared for. His love for them was constant, unwavering, and evident in everything he did.
Jim showed his love in action. Every Thanksgiving, after spending hours carefully preparing and perfecting each dish, he would personally deliver dinner to his mother, brothers, and sister. He didn’t do anything halfway. Every recipe was perfected. Every detail mattered. His love was conveyed not through words alone, but through devotion – through giving his very best.
When we were kids, we decided gift-giving was too difficult. So instead, we exchanged five dollars – often the very same five-dollar bill – back and forth. It was simple, funny, and perfectly us. That small tradition says so much about our bond: uncomplicated, steady, and full of quiet affection.
In his illness, Jim was remarkable. He refused to complain. He refused to burden others, even when his suffering was great. Somehow, no matter what he was enduring, he kept going. He put others first. He carried his pain with dignity and strength.
Jim valued his privacy, and we respected that. With the weight of so many responsibilities on his shoulders, he needed his quiet moments. Yet even in his solitude, his presence was deeply felt by all of us.
Jim will continue to inspire me. His drive for excellence. His devotion to family. His quiet strength. His perseverance. He set a standard – to do our best, to care deeply, and to stand strong for the people we love.
In 1 Thessalonians 4:13, we are urged not to grieve as those without hope. We mourn, but we do so with a hope that brings comfort instead of despair. Because of that promise, this is not goodbye forever.
Jake Paige (15) and Qabil Irfan (14) at Sepang. Photo courtesy Moto4 Asia Talent Cup.
The 2026 season is officially underway for Bodie Paige and Jake Paige, as the brothers opened their Idemitsu Moto4 Asia Cup campaign with the first official test at Sepang International Circuit in Malaysia.
This season, the Paige brothers are racing both the Idemitsu Moto4 Asia Cup and the full MotoAmerica series.
Alex Marquez (73) at Buriram. Photo courtesy Dorna
Saturday action concludes with a familiar duo on top – but plenty of stories continue to build ahead of race action.
Day 1 is in the books at the Buriram Test and it’s 2025 runner-up Alex Marquez (BK8 Gresini Racing MotoGP) who tops the timesheets with a 1:29.262 in Thailand. Hot on his heels despite two crashes it’s reigning World Champion Marc Marquez (Ducati Lenovo Team), 0.129 in arrears, with Franco Morbidelli (Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team) just taking third as he edged out Aprilia Racing’s Marco Bezzecchi by just 0.011. It was a tight fight for that P3 as Johann Zarco (CASTROL Honda LCR) lurked only another 0.005 back too.
Here’s what we saw on Saturday – on the timesheets and beyond.
Franco Morbidelli (21) at Buriram. Photo courtesy MotoGP Sports Entertainment Group
BK8 GRESINI RACING MOTOGP, PERTAMINA ENDURO VR46 RACING TEAM, DUCATI LENOVO TEAM
Alex Marquez continued working out which aero package he prefers, and took that P1. His full-time teammate in the box, Fermin Aldeguer, is out injured and replaced by Michele Pirro, with the Italian completing the running 3.3s off Marquez but putting in some valuable track time.
After the highs of Sepang, Marc Marquez didn’t have it all his own way on Day 1 at Buriram. Two crashes for the reigning World Champion saw the first half of his day spent in the gravel or in the box. The first one was a fast one at the final corner as he was braking on the kerbs whilst the second was a small get-off at Turn 5, but rider ok. He also got back out there and finished the day in P2 on the combined times in somewhat classic style #93 bounce back.
Teammate Francesco Bagnaia was P12 but continued his positive pre-season form and was seen smiling throughout the day in the box. In the red corner there was more debate about the 2025 aero vs the 2024 package as well as different variations of the 2025 one itself. There’s now one day to decide…
From the blue of Gresini to the fluorescent yellow of the Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team Ducatis. Fabio Di Giannantonio was up inside the top three for the majority of the day whilst Franco Morbidelli left it late to replicate what he showed in Sepang and pull off a leapfrog. The #21 jumped up the order into the top three in the closing 20 minutes, taking the chequered flag in third. Ninth at the conclusion of day one for ‘Diggia’ but with both riders strong throughout testing, there’re exciting times ahead for VR46.
Jorge Martin (89) at Buriram. Photo courtesy MotoGP Sports Entertainment Group.
APRILIA RACING & TRACKHOUSE MOTOGP TEAM
Aprilia’s pre-season has been the highlight of many within the MotoGP paddock and day one was no exception. Bezzecchi took fourth whilst teammate Jorge Martin was less than four tenths off the #72 despite riding the RS-GP at Buriram for the first time, ending the day in P13. Bezzecchi had a small crash on his way back to the pits but was perfectly OK. They had the latest spec of rear aero which was featured at Sepang as well as some new air ducts – but with a slightly different objective: to channel air to go around the riders legs.
Like in Bezzecchi and Martin’s garage, Raul Fernandez (Trackhouse MotoGP Team) also had the latest spec of rear aero on his RS-GP. The 2025 Australian GP winner put in a fast run at the end of the day too, moving up into the top three originally before concluding the day in sixth. Teammate Ai Ogura likes Buriram, the place of his debut in MotoGP last year and thus his best result of the season but did struggle to match the #25. Ogura back-to-back tested the rear aero with the one seen in Valencia last season, confirming which direction he wants to go in. 15th at the flag, expect the Japanese star to make bigger moves on the final day tomorrow.
Johann Zarco (5) at Buriram. Photo courtesy MotoGP Sports Entertainment Group.
CASTROL HONDA LCR, HONDA HRC CASTROL & PRO HONDA LCR
Leading Honda’s charge, a mighty effort from Zarco saw the Frenchman climb up the order to fifth with a flying lap putting him just 0.205s away from Alex Marquez in P1. It wasn’t all smooth for Zarco – literally – though, as he said he struggled with consistent control of the bike as it evolved from one lap to another. Elsewhere, teammate Diogo Moreira (Pro Honda LCR) continued to adapt to his new MotoGP environment and said it’s all about the fast corners. A challenging day in the soaring heat, he was 20th at the end of it all but expect his time to drop significantly if all goes well on day two; he stated he has homework to do and plans to watch other riders’ lines.
Despite only having one bike available after a technical issue, Joan Mir (Honda HRC Castrol) was right in the thick of it once again, backing up Zarco’s pace and confirming Honda’s progress. He clinched seventh on the timesheets and confirmed that for him and teammate Luca Marini, there’ll be some aero-related items to try on day two before getting into the Grand Prix weekend.
Maverick Viñales (12) at Buriram. Photo courtesy MotoGP Sports Entertainment Group.
RED BULL KTM FACTORY RACING & RED BULL KTM TECH3
KTM’s charge on Saturday was led by Maverick Viñales (Red Bull KTM Tech 3) in eighth place. He was using the latest aero seen for the first time at Sepang, seemingly smaller than their previous incarnation. Teammate Enea Bastianini followed the same method of working as his teammate but struggled to match his pace as yet, finishing in P16.
There were small improvements made by Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) as he finished 10th at the end of play on day one, stating that his day went “great”. He also used the smaller aero from Sepang but teammate Pedro Acosta left it until later in the day to make the switch to it. The #37 was the third-best KTM though and after the highs of Sepang where he was fourth and the best in orange, he finished day one in 13th – work to do for The Shark.
Fabio Quartararo (20) at Buriram. Photo courtesy MotoGP Sports Entertainment Group.
MONSTER ENERGY YAMAHA MOTOGP & PRIMA PRAMAC YAMAHA MOTOGP TEAM
The adaptation period is very much continuing at Yamaha as they seek to find their way forwards with the V4. Fresh from a quick trip to Adelaide to welcome the Australian city onto MotoGP’s calendar from 2027, Jack Miller (Prima Pramac Yamaha MotoGP) was the best of the Yamahas in 17th and just over a second adrift of Alex Marquez’s top time. Teammate Toprak Razgatlioglu had a modified handlebar as well as a tweaked seat unit. Like in Sepang, there were no stegosaurus wings on the rear of the YZR-M1 due to height restrictions. Ergonomics are vital for ‘El Turco’, the tallest rider on the grid; the triple WorldSBK Champion was 21st on the opening day.
Unfortunately for Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP), it was not a day one to remember. He wasn’t impressed with the performance of the bike out on track, showing his anger in the box as well as a clear signal to the bike itself. ‘El Diablo’ also had chassis variations to try as well as the latest swingarm at his disposal. On the other side of his box, Alex Rins was behind the 2021 World Champion but was less than a tenth of a second away; the Spaniard had a different chassis available to him that wasn’t seen on his teammate’s side but both had the latest spec aero. They finished the day in 18th and 19th respectively with just one more day remaining to get the bike in the best of shape possible.
There’s another whole day of track action to come before pre-season concludes, but the countdown is very much on now. Join us for Sunday from Buriram as the final test day gets underway – half an hour earlier than first scheduled from 9:30am (UTC+7) local time! Check out the full RESULTS HERE.
More from a press release issued by Pertamina Enduro VR46:
Positive first day of Official MotoGP test for the Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team, which is in third place with Franco Morbidelli and in ninth with Fabio Di Giannantonio at Buriram.
At the Chang International Circuit, the last Official MotoGP winter test got underway, and the Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team had a solid Day 1 despite the very high temperatures. Franco Morbidelli finished the first day in third place, while Fabio Di Giannantonio ended in ninth place.
Consistent Day 1 for Morbidelli, who continued in Buriram the work started during the Sepang test. On the Thai track, Franco also focused on the setup of his Ducati Desmosedici GP, completing 59 laps overall. The heat did not slow down the Italian-Brazilian rider, who set a 1’29”451 as his best time of the day, a lap that secured him third place in the combined classification.
A solid day as well for Di Giannantonio, who worked on the updates to his Ducati: Fabio focused on confirming the work carried out during the Sepang test also in Buriram, where the first race of the season will take place. The rider from Rome ended Day 1 in ninth place in the combined classification after completing 66 laps overall, with a best time of 1’29”643.
The Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team will return to the track tomorrow for the second and final day of MotoGP collective testing in Buriram before the start of the season, which will kick off with the Thai Grand Prix, scheduled from February 27th to March 1st.
Fabio Di Giannantonio (49) at Buriram. Photo courtesy VR46
Fabio Di Giannantonio: “I’m much happier today than in Malaysia test. Today it wasn’t an easy day, but we were able to stick to the plan and try everything we had in the plan. I’ve never been very quick on this track, but it seems we found a way to go fast here too, and it’s very important. The feeling with the bike is good, we tried many things and some of them were an improvement on the bike. The goal is to put all the things together to get the best package possible, so let’s see if we can start to prepare the race weekend already. Tomorrow we will also try the new aero once again, let’s see if we can use it for the first race.”
Franco Morbidelli (21) at Buriram. Photo courtesy VR46
Franco Morbidelli: “It was a positive day, we tried to adapt the setup to this track. We went back and forth with some setting solutions in terms of electronics and chassis, and it went well. We were able to adapt very well to the track and to the different tyres as well. I like the new aero package, it’s a bit different in some areas. The plan for tomorrow is to continue working on the setup but also doing a race simulation. We will try some time attacks in the morning. I feel well, I look forward to starting the season, we are fast. The test started well, and this is giving me even more will to start and more confidence.”
More from a press release issued by CASTROL Honda LCR:
Castrol Honda LCR rider Johann Zarco finished 5th on Saturday at the Buriram Test.
After completing 74 laps, Johann Zarco and the team had a solid day on Thai soil, as today marked the first of the two scheduled testing days before next week’s race.
It was a steady day where hard work paid off in the end, with the #5 rider securing 5th place.
However, there is still room for improvement, as the rider admits to missing some feeling to fully push. Tomorrow will be another chance to search for it.
Johann Zarco (5) at Buriram. Photo courtesy Honda LCR.
Johann Zarco 5th – (1:29.467):“It was a tough day, as I struggled a bit at the start. By the end, we managed to be fast and set a good lap time, but we still need to improve to feel more comfortable. We know the bike is competitive, but we need to find its full potential and the right setup. It’s a work in progress. We are looking for that ‘really good feeling’, we’ll see tomorrow!”
More from a press release issued by Honda HRC:
Marini and Mir find their rhythm at the Buriram Test.
The last chance to experiment without the pressures of a race weekend for the Honda HRC Castrol squad as the Buriram Test commences, Joan Mir and Luca Marini positive after the first day on track.
The penultimate test of the 2026 MotoGP World Championship pre-season began at the Chang International Circuit, the Honda HRC Castrol team resuming their work from the previous outing in Sepang. Time between tests gave Honda HRC’s engineers the perfect opportunity to assess the data gathered, the most successful manufacturer in Grand Prix racing arriving in Thailand with several new ideas.
Joan Mir put in a best lap of 1’29.494 on his final run of the day to go seventh overall and end within a quarter of a second of Alex Marquez, fastest of the first day. Still working on the setup of his Honda RC213V, the #36 was left content with the time he achieved but is aiming to complete more laps tomorrow.
Ending the morning session in third place, Luca Marini remained within half a second of the top times throughout the entirety of the day. A total of 60 laps produced a best time of 1’29.774 for the Italian and saw him end in 12th as 0.9s split the top 16. Improving rear grip remains Marini’s main focus for the last day of the Buriram Test.
Now just a single day of testing awaits, a final chance to gather data and prepare the plan for the opening Grand Prix of the 2026 MotoGP World Championship season.
Joan Mir (36) at Buriram. Photo courtesy Honda HRC
Joan Mir:“A good day overall but maybe not as straight forward as I was expecting because we had a few things to work on between the two bikes we have here. It lost us a bit of time in the morning, but after that we focused and got through a lot for a really positive part of the day. Our package isn’t perfect, but we can make a good lap time alone with it, so this is positive for the first day here. More tomorrow as we try a few final items and then turn an eye to the race.”
Luca Marini (10) at Buriram. Photo courtesy Honda HRC
Luca Marini: “Another step compared to the last test, improving a little bit more and more. Friday practice is where it matters, but I am satisfied with what we have done so far and what items we have been able to get through. Everyone worked well today as we chase our main target – more rear grip. Everything else is in a good position, especially when we compare to where we were one year ago.”
More from a press release issued by Monster Energy Yamaha:
Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Take P18 and P19 on Day 1 of Testing in Thailand.
Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Team’s Fabio Quartararo and Álex Rins started the two-day Buriram MotoGP Official Test by getting a solid number of laps in and preparing for the upcoming Grand Prix of Thailand (27 February – 1 March). The teammates ended Day 1 in 18th and 19th place respectively in the overall rankings.
The Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Team sprung to action today at the Chang International Circuit for the two-day Buriram MotoGP Official Test. Fabio Quartararo and Álex Rins completed the first day in 18th and 19th place respectively in the overall timesheets.
The Buriram Test Day 1 consisted of two riding sessions: Session 1 from 10:00-13:00 GMT +7 and Session 2 from 13:20-18:00.
The team was in high spirits having Quartararo back in the garage after he sustained a finger injury at the Sepang Test two weeks’ prior. The Frenchman was fully motivated to get back to work and ran a total of 67 laps on Day 1. His fastest lap was a 1’30.507s (Session 2), which put him in 18th place in the combined Session 1 + Session 2 timesheets, 1.245s from the top.
Rins enjoyed a productive outing. As the Chang International Circuit will be hosting the opening GP of the season next week, he and his crew are fully focused on bike set-ups. He completed 64 laps over the course of the first day. His best lap of 1’30.512s (Session 2) had him rank 19th in the Day 1 classifications, 1.250s from first.
The Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Team will be back at the Chang track tomorrow from 09:30-13:00 GMT +7 and 13:20-17:30 to wrap up 2026 preseason testing.
Fabio Quartararo (20) at Buriram. Photo courtesy Yamaha.
Fabio Quartararo:“It was a long day. We will try to figure out something to improve a bit more tomorrow. Yamaha know the list of priorities and what they have to do. I just focus on providing feedback on what it is we need. Today we changed quite a lot on the bike. Tomorrow, I want to keep the same bike and do some runs in a row with the same base set-up.”
Alex Rins (42) at Buriram. Photo courtesy Yamaha.
Alex Rins: “With the parts – chassis, swingarm, etc. – already decided on, we focused on settings today, trying to understand the bike better and to see where we can improve. It was a productive day. We need to keep working, and Yamaha will keep working to give us further updates, and like this, we can improve a bit more.”
More from a press release issued by Pro Honda LCR:
Pro Honda LCR rider Diogo Moreira finished 20th on the opening day of the Buriram test.
After completing 75 laps, Diogo Moreira and the crew had a consistent day on Thai soil, learning the track and continuing his adaptation to the category on a different layout.
The rider admitted to noticing improvements and is working hard to find the best balance on the bike.
On Sunday, a race simulation is planned ahead of next week’s race, and both the rider and the crew are fully determined to make the most of the day and finish the test in the best way possible.
Diogo Moreira (11) at Buriram. Photo courtesy Pro Honda LCR.
Diogo Moreira 20th – (1:30.953):“Coming here is nice for me; it’s a different layout. It’s been a positive day, and we need to keep this up. Tomorrow, we’ll try to keep improving. It’s difficult to find the lines, and that’s why today I followed some rivals to learn from them. We’re working hard. Everything will come in time; the important thing is to improve day by day. Tomorrow, we’ll focus on the race simulation. Let’s see how it goes!”
More from a press release issued by Prima Pramac Yamaha:
Prima Pramac Yamaha MotoGP begins final two days of testing at Buriram Circuit ahead of Thailand season opener.
Prima Pramac Yamaha MotoGP completed a full testing programme on Day 1, with Jack Miller and Toprak Razgatlıoğlu evaluating multiple set-ups and technical solutions on their respective machines. The focus was not on single-lap performance, but on identifying the most effective base setting ahead of tomorrow‘s second test day and next week‘s season-opening round of the 2026 MotoGP World Championship.
Jack Miller (43) at Buriram. Photo courtesy Prima Pramac Yamaha
Jack Miller:“It was a decent day. We worked through different chassis options and several set-ups, and overall the bike is working reasonably well. I‘m quite happy with our base setting, especially as the chassis feels like a clear step forward compared to Malaysia. Sector 1 and Sector 2 are still our weak points at the moment, which was expected, but in Sector 3 and 4 I feel strong, particularly with the tyre allocation we have here. There‘s still work to do and we know we‘re not going to find 10 km/h overnight, but in general I‘m enjoying the bike and we have a clear direction for tomorrow.”
Toprak Razgatlıoğlu (07) at Buriram. Photo courtesy Prima Pramac Yamaha.
Toprak Razgatlıoğlu:“I‘m still in a learning phase and adapting to this bike, but I can see progress in many areas. The biggest challenge at the moment is understanding the rear tyre, while I feel more comfortable with the front. That said, I don‘t yet have the confidence to fully lean on it the way I used to with the Pirelli. I‘m trying to improve corner by corner, and tomorrow I would like to attempt a sprint-style simulation and maybe also a fast lap like Jack did today — he did a very good job. Step by step, we‘re moving forward.”
Voight (29) put the hammer down early and cleared out. Photo courtesy ASBK
Harrison Voight has landed the first major blow in the 2026 Penrite Australian Superbike Championship presented by Pirelli (ASBK), easily winning today’s season opener at Phillip Island.
The Queenslander put his McMartin Racing Ducati into the lead from the outset, with his speed and work rate then proving to be an irresistible combination as he eased his way to victory ahead of Jacob Roulstone (Motocity Honda) and Cameron Dunker (Blue Marlin Pools Racing Yamaha) – three of Australia’s young circuit racing tyros on the one SW-Motech Superbike podium.
In a spectacular day of ASBK action, Olly Simpson (DesmoSport Ducati) and Roberto Tamburini (Addicted to Track Yamaha) shared Kawasaki Supersport victories, while New Zealander Tyler King (Kawasaki) got the job done in a manic Race and Road Supersport 300 race..
Meanwhile, Aussie Oli Bayliss (Triumph) kept the crowd on its toes with his first world Supersport (WorldSSP) podium after a brilliant third place. He’s the first Australan to finish top three in a WorldSSP race since Ant West at Jerez in 2017.
Tickets are still avalable for a huge Sunday of racing at Phillip Island, or they can be purchased at the gate.
The SW-Motech Superbike pack gets underway. Photo courtesy ASBK.
SW-MOTECH SUPERBIKE
Could this be the first sod turned in a changing of the SW-Motech Superbike guard?
It was a crushing victory for Voight, who checked out from the start en route to a second Superbike success at Phillip Island in just his sixth race.
While the 19-year-old was producing a masterful front-running performance, it was a bumper battle for second place with Superbike rookie and former Moto3 rider Roulstone and Dunker providing most of the heart-stopping moments as Mike Jones (Yamaha Racing Team) kept a watching brief in his normal free-flowing manner.
Defending champion Josh Waters (McMartin Racing Ducati), in recovery mode after running off at turn four on lap two, Jonathan Nahlous (Yamaha Racing Team) and polesitter Ant West (DesmoSport Ducati) eventually latched onto the back of the group to make it a six-way freight train.
The pecking order didn’t change much, though, with Roulstone flashing across the line in second position, 2.932sec behind Voight and just a whisker ahead of Dunker, Waters, Jones and Nahlous.
For Waters, in particular, the result was semi-seismic: the first time he had finished off a Phillip Island ASBK podium since round one of the 2022 championship!
West, Cru Halliday (Stop and Seal Ducati), Glenn Allerton (Superbike Advocates Racing Ducati) and Jack Favelle (Addicted to Track Yamaha) completed the top 10 in the 11-lapper.
Races two and three will be held at 9:45am and 1:40pm on Sunday.
The SW-Motech Superbike race one podium: (L to R): Roulstone, Voight and Dunker. Photo courtesy ASBK
KAWASAKI SUPERSPORT
The Kawasaki Supersport and Supersport Next Gen riders delivered two fiercely contested races to kickstart the 2026 season, with Simpson and evergreen Italian Tamburini the winners.
Simpson’s margin in the opening 10-lapper was a wafer thin 0.075sec over polesitter Hayden Nelson (BCperformance Kawasaki), while Tamburini took maximum advantage of some late squabbling in race two to prevail by nearly a second over Tom Edwards (BCperformance Kawasaki).
With the pressure meter dialled up to maximum, the third places were shared by Edwards and Simpson under brilliant Phillip Island sunshine.
Across the two separate championships – Supersport and the fledgling Supersport Next Gen class – Tamburini (1-1) finished Saturday ahead of Valentino Knezovic (Addicted to Track, 2-2) and 2025 Supersport 300 champion Scott Nicholson (TeamBWR Yamaha, 5-5) in Supersport, and in Supersport Next Gen Simpson (1-2) enjoyed the most profitable harvest from Edwards (3-1) and Nelson (2-3).
Race three is at 11:25am on Sunday.
Kawasaki Supersport Race 1 at Phillip Island. Photo courtesy ASBK
RACE AND ROAD SUPERSPORT 300
Another hyper Race and Road Supersport 300 race, with the leading combatants going hammer and tongs for the whole eight laps.
This time, it was King who enjoyed the Trans-Tasman bragging rights after a frenzied multi-bike lunge across the finish line, turning the tables on race one winner Nauta.
Just 0.593sec separated the top 11, with reigning No. 2 Jordy Simpson seizing the final spot on the podium ahead of Rossi McAdam, Jake Senior and Phoenix O’Brien – all on Yamahas.
Lincoln Knight (Yamaha), who finished on the tail of the 11-bike rolling scrum battling for race honours, set the fastest lap of the race – a 1:48.742.
Race three is at 9:10am on Sunday morning to complete round one of five in the 2026 championship.
Tyler King was today’s Race and Road Supersport 300 winner. Photo courtesy ASBK
For more information on the 2026 Penrite Australian Superbike Championship presented by Pirelli:
Lorenzo Baldassarri (34) at Phillip Island. Photo courtesy Dorna.
Nicolo Bulega won FIM Superbike World Championship Race One Saturday afternoon at Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit, in Australia. Bulega started from pole position and rode his Aruba.it Racing Ducati Panigale V4R to a 4.77-second margin of victory in the 22-lap race.
Yari Montella was the runner-up on his Barni Spark Racing Ducati Panigale V4R, 1.371 second ahead of Lorenzo Baldassarri, who rode his Team Goeleven Ducati Panigale V4R to third.
Danilo Petrucci crossed the finish line 10th on his ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team M1000RR.
American Garrett Gerloff finished the race 11th on his Kawasaki ZX-10RR.
Nicolo Bulega leads the championship with 25 points, 5 ahead of Yari Montella who has 20 points. Lorenzo Baldassarri is third with 16 points.
STARTING IN STYLE: Bulega takes lights-to-flag victory at Phillip Island as Montella, Baldassarri claim maiden podiums.
The #11 continued his sensational form in Australia by taking victory ahead of two riders who stunned the field to claim their first WorldSBK podiums
Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) claimed victory in Race 1 of the MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship as he led from lights out to the chequered flag as he beat his rivals for the first 25-point haul of the season. However, there were big stories behind him as both Yari Montella (Barni Spark Racing Team) and Lorenzo Baldassarri (Team GoEleven) claimed their first podiums in WorldSBK as the Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit once again threw up plenty of surprises during the Australian Round.
THE EARLY LAPS: Bulega leads Montella, Baldassarri climbs the order
Bulega got the holeshot when lights went out for the opening race of the year, defending his pole position before building up a lead over his rivals. Montella held on to second as Alex Lowes (bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team) initially moved up to the rostrum. Baldassarri was another who made quick progress, climbing from seventh on the grid to fourth, before passing Alex for P3 at Turn 1 on Lap 5.
Nicolo Bulega (11) won the WSBK Race 1 at Phillip Island. Photo courtesy Dorna
ON THE ROSTRUM: Bulega victorious as Montella, Baldassarri stand on the podium
As the laps progressed, Bulega opened up the gap over Montella although the #11 was able to manage the gap at just under three seconds. Baldassarri was around two seconds behind Montella as he ran in a podium place, and, despite Axel Bassani (bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team) hounding him over the final two laps, was able to hold on for a maiden podium. Bulega made it his fourth consecutive Phillip Island victory, with Montella holding on to take his first WorldSBK podium. For Bulega, it was his 21st WorldSBK win as he equalled Max Biaggi’s tally, and made it his 14th consecutive rostrum, equalling a streak set by four-time Champion Carl Fogarty across 1994 and 1995.
Yari Montella (5) and Lorenzo Baldassarri (34) during the WSBK Race 1 at Phillip Island. Photo courtesy Dorna
SIBLING RIVALRY: Sam vs Alex as Lecuona makes gains
The Lowes twins battled for fifth around halfway through the race as the #14 got ahead of the #22 at Turn 1 as they looked to close the gap to Bassani in fourth and Baldassarri in third. Once Sam Lowes (ELF Marc VDS Racing Team) got ahead of his brother, he quickly closed on Bassani as they fought over P4, renewing a rivalry that ignited in the early laps. Bassani bundled his way past the Ducati rider at Turn 4, with ‘El Bocia’ ordered to give the place back. Despite Sam Lowes chasing Bassani, the #47 held before setting his target on ‘Balda’ in P3, unable to close down his compatriot. Behind, Alex Lowes had to fight with Iker Lecuona (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) who methodically made his way through the field to finish in the top six, with the Bimota rider in seventh.
HISTORIC COMEBACK: Oliveira from the back of the grid to P8
Miguel Oliveira (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) was forced to start from the back of the grid after a crash in Tissot Superpole session meant he didn’t set a time. However, the #88 battled his way through the field to claim eighth place on his WorldSBK debut and his 13 positions gained is the best comeback at Phillip Island since Ryuichi Kiyonari climbed from 19th to sixth in Race 2 in 2008. Oliveira was a second clear of rookie Alberto Surra (Motocorsa Racing), who secured a top-ten result on his debut as he claimed P9. Danilo Petrucci (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) had a rollercoaster race. He started from sixth, dropped out of the top then before battling his way back into tenth.
SCORING POINTS: Late drama for Gerloff
Garrett Gerloff (Kawasaki WorldSBK Team) had been on for a top ten but ran wide at Turn 4 in the closing stages, dropping him to 11th although he was only 0.017s behind ‘Petrux’. Tarran Mackenzie (MGM Racing Performance) secured 12th place ahead of Andrea Locatelli (Pata Maxus Yamaha), who was outside the top seven when taking the flag at Phillip Island for the first time in his career. Tetsuta Nagashima (Honda HRC) was 14th ahead of wildcard Ryan Vickers, who raced in WorldSBK for Honda HRC for the first time. Bahattin Sofuoglu (Motoxracing WorldSBK Team) was 16th ahead of teammate Mattia Rato, who rounded out the WorldSBK field.
CRASHING OUT: Falls for Bautista and Vierge
Alvaro Bautista’s (Barni Spark Racing Team) new adventure got off to a bad start as he crashed at Turn 11 when he lost the front of his Panigale V4 R. Xavi Vierge (Pata Maxus Yamaha) had been running inside the top ten when he had a big crash, losing it through the high-speed Turn 3 and coming to a stop on the inside of Turn 4. The #97 was taken to the medical centre for a check-up, where he was declared fit. There were two other retirements from Race 1. GYTR GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Team’s Stefano Manzi retired in the first half of the race while teammate Remy Gardner came into the box with just a handful of laps to go.
The top six from WorldSBK Race 1, full results here:
Oli Bayliss (32), Lucas Mahias (94) and Matteo Ferrari (11) during the WSSP Race 1 at Philip Island. Photo courtesy Dorna.
Jaume Masia won FIM Supersport World Championship Race One Saturday at Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit, in Australia. Riding his Orelac Racing Verdnatura Ducati Panigale V2 on Pirelli control tires, the Spaniard won the 18-lap race by 5.521 seconds.
Philip Oettl was the runner-up on his Feel Racing Ducati Panigale V2, 1.745 seconds ahead of third-place finisher Oli Bayliss who rode his PTR Triumph Factory Racing Street Triple 765 RS.
Former MotoAmerica Supersport regular Valentin Debise crashed his ZXMOTO Factory Evan Bross 820RR and finished the race 25th.
Jaume leads the championship with 25 points, 5 ahead of Philip Oettl who has 20 points. Oli Bayliss is third with 16 points.
CLASSIC SEASON OPENER: Masia claims victory as Bayliss secures dream home podium at Phillip Island.
With his rostrum result, Bayliss becomes Australia’s youngest-ever WorldSSP podium finisher.
Lights are out at the Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit on the 2026 FIM Supersport World Championship campaign as the field sunk their teeth into the new season in Saturday’s Race 1! The first race of 2026’s 12 rounds featured Jaume Masia (Orelac Racing VerdNatura) taking the first 25 points on offer for his third career WorldSSP win. Joining him on the campaign’s first podium was German rider Philipp Oettl (Feel Racing WorldSSP Team) for his 14th podium in the category and home hero Oli Bayliss (PTR Triumph Factory Racing) who claimed his first WorldSSP rostrum.
MASIA FLIES OUT OF THE GATE IN 2026: He closed 2025 with a win, and now opens 2026 doing the same
Oncu flew up from P4 to take the holeshot ahead of Valentin Debise (ZXMOTO Factory Evan Bros Racing) and Jaume Masia. The Spaniard flexed his Ducati Panigale V2’s straight line speed as he took P1 from the #61 and built up a healthy gap of nearly a second by the outset of Lap 3. The Spaniard converted his dominant pace in testing to land the first race win of the season, as from there he pulled away for the win; finishing the contest with a gap of over five seconds. Oettl missed the 2025 Australian Round with a knee injury, but this season, he started strong with a rostrum finish in second place. Tom Booth-Amos (PTR Triumph Factory Racing) saw his race end on Turn 4 in the second corner as the bike slid out from under him as he battled with Oettl for the second spot on the podium.
Jaume Masia won the WSSP Race 1 at Phillip Island. Photo courtesy Dorna
FIVE-WAY FIGHT FOR THE PODIUM: Bayliss, Arena, Oncu, Mahias, and Debise trade blows
Oncu had a healthy gap of around a second behind him on Lap 8 as he rode in P3; until a mistake on that Lap saw Oli Bayliss, Valentin, Albert Arenas (AS BLU CRU Racing Team), and Lucas Mahias (GMT94 Yamaha) close the gap and start a fight for the final podium spot. Debise had a tough break as he fell out of the fight on Lap 8 after he entered Turn 4 with a fraction too much lean angle and crashed out of Race 1. Bayliss took the lead of the group, until he lost the lead by running wide onto the grass on Turn 6 of Lap 13, just before Lucas Mahias (GMT94 Yamaha) crashed out of the race on Turn 4. The Australian recovered well to hang with the other two riders, and after the trio traded overtakes throughout the final eight laps, it was Bayliss who came out on top, earning his first WorldSSP podium of his career. The bronze-medal effort got the monkey off of his back after the longest-ever wait for a WorldSSP podium of 84 races, and claimed Australia’s first rostrum result since Anthony West back in 2017.
ARENAS HITS THE GROUND RUNNING: The Spanish rider starts his WorldSSP story in P4
Behind them, Albert Arenas (AS BLU CRU Racing Team) rode well in his WorldSSP debut, finishing P4 with the feather in his cap of winning the final laps shootout with the title favourite Can Oncu (Pata Yamaha Ten Kate Racing). Despite his incredible jump off the line, the Turk’s early mistake proved critical, erasing his gap and miring him in a wrestling match through which he fell to P5. Matteo Ferrari (WRP Racing) ran a clean race, taking advantage of other riders’ errors to land a strong debut result of sixth place.
VOSTATEK TIES CAREER HIGH: The Czech rider maintained his strong speed from testing
Ondrej Vostatek (Compos Racing Team) tied his career-best result of P7 in the season-opening race, emerging just +0.158 faster than 2025 MotoE Champion Alessandro Zaccone (Ecosantagata Althea Racing Team), who took P9. Spanish riders Roberto Garcia (GMT94 Yamaha) and Jeremy Alcoba (Kawasaki WorldSSP Team) landed in the final two positions of the top ten. Alcoba’s effort landed him as the top Kawasaki, as his two-time WorldSSP Champion teammate suffered a tech issue on the last lap and finished in P23.
The top ten of the season-opening WorldSSP Race 1 at Australia: Full results here!
1. Jaume Masia (Orelac Racing Verdnatura)
2. Philipp Oettl (Feel Racing WorldSSP Team) +5.521s
3. Oli Bayliss (PTR Triumph Factory Racing) +7.266s
4. Albert Arenas (AS BLU CRU Racing Team) +7.721s
5. Can Oncu (Pata Yamaha Ten Kate Racing) +7.743s
6. Matteo Ferrari (WRP Racing) +11.856s
Fastest lap: Jaume Masia, Ducati – 1’32.310s
Catch the final race of the season-opening Australian Round on Sunday LIVE with the WorldSBK VideoPass!
Nicolo Bulega (11) at Phillip Island. Photo courtesy Dorna
Nicolo Bulega took pole position during World Superbike Superpole qualifying Saturday at Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit, in Australia. Riding his Aruba.it Racing Ducati Panigale V4R on spec Pirelli tires, Bulega covered the 2.76-mile (4.45 km) track in 1:28.244 to lead the 21-rider field.
Yari Montella qualified second with a 1:28.663 on his Barni Spark Ducati Panigale V4R.
Sam Lowes did a 1:28.729 on his ELF Marc VDS Racing Ducati Panigale V4R to earn the third and final spot on the front row.
Row two starters include Bimota by Kawasaki’s Alex Lowes (1:28.943), and Axel Bassani (1:28.972), and ROKiT BMW’s Danilo Petrucci (1:29.049).
American Garrett Gerloff qualified 8th with a 1:29.237 on his Kawasaki ZX-10RR.
Bulega became the first rider since Troy Bayliss to take three consecutive poles at Phillip Island, while Montella claimed his first front row start in WorldSBK.
It was a historic Tissot Superpole session for the MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship as Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) claimed pole position, giving Ducati their 200th in the Championship. The #11 was 0.419s clear of his rivals, the biggest pole margin at the Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit since Troy Bayliss beat Troy Corser by 0.518s in 2008, as he led a Ducati front-row lockout. Yari Montella (Barni Spark Racing Team) will go from the front row for the first time in WorldSBK, with Sam Lowes (ELF Marc VDS Racing Team) joining them on the front row during the Australian Round.
THE FIRST RUN: Bulega lays down a gauntlet, Oliveira crashes
Bulega was the early pacesetter with a 1’28.610s to lock in a provisional pole position, with Montella and Sam Lowes completing an early top three. There was disruption to the early running of the 15-minute session when Miguel Oliveira (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) crashed at Turn 2, with the #88 falling on his first flying lap. He was able to remount his bike and return it to the pits for repairs. However, Oliveira was unable to return to the track once he returned to the pits and he failed to set a lap time.
BULEGA MATCHES BAYLISS: Third consecutive Phillip Island pole for the #11, Montella on the front row
Despite having a 0.266s advantage over Montella heading into the second runs, Bulega found another couple of tenths to set a 1’29.392s to cement his grip on pole position, with the #11 one of the first to head out and start their second runs. On the second lap of his second run, he improved once again to a 1’28.244s. He secured his third consecutive pole on ‘The Island’, the first rider to do so since Troy Bayliss between 2006 and 2008. Montella has always been strong at Phillip Island and continued that with second, 0.419s behind Bulega, as he claimed his first front row start in WorldSBK. The front row will be completed by Sam Lowes (ELF Marc VDS Racing Team), with the #14 exchanging positions with Montella in the latter stages, as he posted a 1’28.729s.
BIMOTAS QUICK, PETRUCCI FINDS GAINS: On the second row
Alex Lowes (bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team) will be just one place behind his twin brother as he finished fourth after posting a 1’28.943s, 0.699s off the pole-setting time. Both Bimotas will line up alongside each other with Axel Bassani in fifth, 0.029s behind the #22. Danilo Petrucci (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) had been a bit off the pace as he adapted to the BMW M 1000 RR machine, but he pulled out a 1’29.049s to claim a second-row start with P6.
BALDASARRI CONTINUES TO IMPRESS: P7 after shadowing Bulega
Lorenzo Baldassarri (Team GoEleven) secured his first top-ten Superpole result in WorldSBK with seventh place. His 1’29.191s lap time came when he followed Bulega in the latter stages of the session. Garrett Gerloff (Kawasaki WorldSBK Team) will go from eighth place with the #31 the last rider within a second of Bulega. Xavi Vierge (Pata Maxus Yamaha) was the lead Yamaha rider in ninth as rookie Alberto Surra (Motocorsa Racing) rounded out the top ten.
WORK TO DO: Bautista in P12, Lecuona P13, Locatelli P15
There are a few riders who will think they are out of position. Alvaro Bautista (Barni Spark Racing Team) is the only other rider, after Bulega, to take a pole at Phillip Island but he will go from 12th. He’s directly ahead of Iker Lecuona (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) in 13th. Andrea Locatelli (Pata Maxus Yamaha) has only been out of the top seven in terms of race results once at ‘The Island’, but will line up from 15th on the grid.
The top six from WorldSBK Superpole, full results here:
1. Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) 1’28.244s
2. Yari Montella (Barni Spark Racing Team) +0.419s
3. Sam Lowes (ELF Marc VDS Racing Team) +0.485s
4. Alex Lowes (bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team) +0.699s
5. Axel Bassani (bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team) +0.728s
6. Danilo Petrucci (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) +0.805s
The first race of the 2026 season is up next! Tune in to all the action from 13:00 Local Time (UTC+11) using the WorldSBK VideoPass!
Nicolo Bulega (11) during FP3 at Phillip Island. Photo courtesy Dorna
Nicolò Bulega led FIM Superbike World Championship Free Practice 3 (FP3) Saturday morning at Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit, in Australia. Riding his Aruba.It Racing – Ducati Panigale V4R on spec Pirelli tires, the Italian rider covered the 2.76-mile (4.45 km) track in 1:28.273 to lead the field of 21 riders.
Sam Lowes was second-best with a 1:28.575 on his ELF Marc VDS Ducati Panigale V4R.
Axel Bassani was third with a 1:28.722 on his Bimota by Kawasaki KB998 Rimini and his teammate Alex Lowes finished the session fourth with a lap tine of 1:28.742.
American Garrett Gerloff was fifth with a time of 1:28.743 on his Kawasaki ZX-10RR.
Danilo Petrucci was 9th on his ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team M1000RR with a time of 1:28.842.
Nicolo Bulega continued showing his pace in Australia as he topped Saturday morning’s FP3 session by more than three tenths.
The final practice session of the Australian Round concluded with Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) topping the times for the MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship. The #11 has topped every session from the Official Test and the three Free Practice sessions at the Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit, as he finished ahead of Sam Lowes (ELF Marc VDS Racing Team) and Axel Bassani (bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team).
Bulega made it a hat-trick of session-topping times in Free Practice 3 as he finished three tenths clear of his rivals, while also showing his consistent pace once again. His best time was a 1’28.273s as he beat Sam Lowes, with the #14 putting in a late lap to move into second ahead of Bassani. The Italian had been quick out of the blocks to set a 1’28.722s and secure a top-three spot in FP3, putting him in good stead for this afternoon’s Tissot Superpole session.
Sam Lowes (14) during FP3 at Phillip Island. Photo courtesy Dorna
Alex Lowes (bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team) ensured both Bimota riders were in the top four as he lapped just 0.020s slower than his teammate. All three Kawasaki-powered teams were in the top five, and all showing relatively similar pace. Garrett Gerloff (Kawasaki WorldSBK Team) claimed P5 with a 1’28.743s, exactly 0.001s slower than the #22 ahead. Iker Lecuona (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) closed the gap to teammate Bulega in the 20-minute session as the #7 finished in sixth, less than half-a-second down on the #11.
Yari Montella (Barni Spark Racing Team) set a 1’28.788s as he finished in seventh, directly ahead of teammate Alvaro Bautista who was 0.050s away from Montella’s pace. Both BMW riders featured in the top ten in FP3. Danilo Petrucci (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) was the faster of the pair as he set a 1’28.842s, but there was little to separate him from Miguel Oliveira. 0.007s was the difference, in Petrucci’s favour.
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Color adjustments – users can select various color contrast profiles such as light, dark, inverted, and monochrome. Additionally, users can swap color schemes of titles, texts, and backgrounds, with over seven different coloring options.
Animations – person with epilepsy can stop all running animations with the click of a button. Animations controlled by the interface include videos, GIFs, and CSS flashing transitions.
Content highlighting – users can choose to emphasize important elements such as links and titles. They can also choose to highlight focused or hovered elements only.
Audio muting – users with hearing devices may experience headaches or other issues due to automatic audio playing. This option lets users mute the entire website instantly.
Cognitive disorders – we utilize a search engine that is linked to Wikipedia and Wiktionary, allowing people with cognitive disorders to decipher meanings of phrases, initials, slang, and others.
Additional functions – we provide users the option to change cursor color and size, use a printing mode, enable a virtual keyboard, and many other functions.
Browser and assistive technology compatibility
We aim to support the widest array of browsers and assistive technologies as possible, so our users can choose the best fitting tools for them, with as few limitations as possible. Therefore, we have worked very hard to be able to support all major systems that comprise over 95% of the user market share including Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Apple Safari, Opera and Microsoft Edge, JAWS and NVDA (screen readers).
Notes, comments, and feedback
Despite our very best efforts to allow anybody to adjust the website to their needs. There may still be pages or sections that are not fully accessible, are in the process of becoming accessible, or are lacking an adequate technological solution to make them accessible. Still, we are continually improving our accessibility, adding, updating and improving its options and features, and developing and adopting new technologies. All this is meant to reach the optimal level of accessibility, following technological advancements. For any assistance, please reach out to
