Bulega, king of Phillip Island, matches Max Biaggi: the only "threat" is rain

Bulega triumphs in Australia, confirming he’s number 1 on a track that suits him perfectly: will he win the other SBK races as well?

He was the big favorite and he didn’t disappoint. Nicolò Bulega took pole position and then led Superbike Race 1 from start to finish. For the third year in a row he triumphed in the opening race at Phillip Island, where in 2025 he also scored a hat-trick—something that seems repeatable this weekend. But watch the weather, because on Sunday there could be some rain and, if that’s the case, it will be interesting to see if the pecking order on track shifts a bit.

In the meantime, the Aruba Ducati rider is enjoying the first 25 points of this 2026 season. Today he also drew level with Max Biaggi for number of wins (21) in the WorldSBK Championship and moved to within one of Marco Melandri, the Italian with the most victories in the history of the series.

Bulega is pleased with his perfect day at Phillip Island, a special place for him: "An amazing Saturday. I was in front in every session, I took pole position and then I won Race 1. For me this track is incredible; every time I ride here, I always have fun. It’s fantastic. When you have a good feeling with the bike on this circuit, it’s something you can’t explain. I’m happy and I want to keep going like this."

Even though he’s aware he has a winning Ducati Panigale V4 R, the rider from Emilia had to tackle Superbike Race 1 with the right mindset, avoiding the assumption it would all be easy: "I was definitely confident, but winning is never easy; you always have to stay focused lap after lap, also because there are things that can happen during the race. You have to be precise, perfect, manage the tires, be fast... There are so many things to do."

As mentioned earlier, there’s a chance of rain at Phillip Island on Sunday. Bulega feels ready to face any conditions: "First of all we’ll have to see the weather, because it might rain. If it’s dry, I’ll be ready; if it’s wet, I’ll be just as ready."

Finally, the Aruba Ducati rider commented on sharing the podium with two fellow Italians, Yari Montella and Lorenzo Baldassarri, both riding Panigale V4 Rs: "Montella had good pace on Friday; I expected he could be on the podium. But not Baldassarri—I’m happy for him, because we have a similar story. When he was in Moto3 and Moto2 he was fast, but he had some tough times, like me. And now he’s back on the podium; I’m really happy."