Iker Lecuona won the 10-lap WorldSBK Superpole Race at Cremona, defeating Nicolo Bulega by just over one second and securing his third victory of the 2026 season. Bulega had another opportunity to clinch the championship before the afternoon race, but the result kept the title fight alive for Race 2, scheduled for 15:30 local time. The Superpole Race began at 11:10 in dry conditions, with the air at 21C and the track at 24C.

Lecuona started from pole and took the holeshot ahead of Bulega, Alberto Surra, Yari Montella and Sam Lowes. The leading order changed briefly on lap three, when Bulega passed Lecuona at Turn 11. Lecuona answered at Turn 13 and reclaimed the lead, then gradually built a gap. A track-limits warning after five laps added a complication for the leader, but it did not prevent him from controlling the closing stages.

Tyre selection was one of the race’s notable strategic points. Bulega and Surra used the SCQ, while Lecuona chose the SCX. Bulega remained within reach early on, but Lecuona’s advantage grew beyond one second by the final lap and Bulega had settled for second. The result was Lecuona’s third win in 2026; his two earlier victories had come in Race 1, at Donington and Cremona on Saturday.

Surra takes his first WorldSBK podium

Surra completed the podium after keeping Montella behind him throughout the closing battle. Montella attacked at Turn 11, but Surra squared off the corner and held third place with two laps remaining. It was Surra’s first WorldSBK podium. Sam Lowes finished fifth, followed by Alex Lowes, Bridewell, Miguel Oliveira and Jake Dixon, with Dixon taking the final point in ninth. Andrea Locatelli completed the top 10.

Crashes reshape the race

The race lost several riders through incidents. Lorenzo Baldassarri and Garrett Gerloff collided at Turn 7 on the opening lap. Baldassarri was attempting to pass Gerloff when he lost the front, while Gerloff could not avoid the Ducati. Alvaro Bautista crashed on lap two after choosing the SCQ tyre. Later, Stefano Manzi fell at Turn 10 and left the race; he was up and okay after the incident.

Remy Gardner was absent from both of Sunday’s races after being declared unfit because of a fracture to his left hand. He was the second full-time rider to withdraw from the Cremona weekend after Tarran Mackenzie. Loris Baz replaced Mackenzie at the MGM Ducati team.

Bulega needed to win the Superpole Race while Lecuona finished outside the top three to secure the title before Race 2. Lecuona’s victory and Bulega’s second place therefore removed that route to an early championship decision. Bulega remains unbeaten in Sunday races this season, but his next opportunity now comes in the afternoon’s longer race. The Italian had already faced another title setback after Lecuona won Saturday’s Race 1 by more than five seconds, although Bulega had described his own second place as “clever.”