Nicolo Bulega won the WorldSBK Superpole Race at Estoril after Iker Lecuona’s lap-three mistake changed the course of the contest. Lecuona had made the stronger launch and moved into the lead, leaving Bulega behind his team-mate for roughly two laps.

The turning point came under braking for Turn 1. Lecuona lost control and ran wide, coming close to the gravel before returning to the track ahead of Miguel Oliveira. That preserved second place, but he could not close the gap to Bulega again and challenge for victory before the finish.

Lecuona blamed the incident on wind whose strength kept changing without warning. He explained that a sudden gust produced heavy lift at the rear of the motorcycle, leaving him unable to stop as planned. Despite the error, he said the bike felt comfortable and fast during the race and that he had recovered part of the deficit to Bulega.

The next priority for Lecuona is understanding tyre performance over the longer race distance. The way the drop in performance is managed will be different there, and he wants to make another small step so he can remain with Bulega through to the finish.

Record figures for Bulega and Ducati

The Estoril result gave Bulega his 28th win of the season, a record for a single rider and one more than Alvaro Bautista achieved in 2023. Ducati also reached 36 consecutive victories. The run began with Race 2 at Estoril the previous year and now stands as a new outright record for the manufacturer.