Superbike 2027, the grid is complete: Miller, Morbidelli and Binder take on Lecuona. Bautista and Petrucci are out

Monday, 09 November 2026 at 17:11

The world champion is heading to MotoGP, while three riders are coming from MotoGP. The 2027 World Superbike grid is now final. In the season that marks the debut of Michelin tyres, the production-based paddock bids farewell to Nicolò Bulega and welcomes Jack Miller, Franco Morbidelli and Brad Binder: three riders who have won Grands Prix in the premier class.

They are three high-profile ‘rookies’ who will immediately try to make their presence felt in the title fight. The first benchmark will be Iker Lecuona, the reigning world runner-up and therefore the man to beat in Bulega’s absence.

Ducati leads the numbers

There will be 22 riders on the grid. Ducati remains the best-represented manufacturer, with nine bikes, ahead of Yamaha with six. BMW, bimota and Honda follow with two bikes each, while Kawasaki will have just one machine on track. The SBK World Championship will therefore get underway with a clear majority of Panigales, but on new ground for everyone: the change of tyre supplier will force every team to start almost from scratch with their setup. In addition, engine-speed limits are being reintroduced alongside fuel-flow control: both parameters will be adjusted every three rounds based on the results.

Nicolò Bulega moves up to MotoGP, leaving the Superbike title vacant

Who misses out

The arrival of three MotoGP stars comes at a cost. The 2027 entry list does not include Alvaro Bautista, a former Superbike world champion, or Danilo Petrucci, who has won races in both MotoGP and the production-based categories. Two big names, especially for Italian fans, will be without a seat in next year’s World Championship.

The final spot has gone to Albert Arenas, the newly crowned Supersport world champion, who will ride the Go Eleven team’s second Ducati V4 R alongside Lorenzo Baldassarri. The Spaniard came out ahead of Alex Delbianco, a two-time Italian champion, as we reported in SBK: Albert Arenas, another Spaniard joins the Ducati fold as Alex Delbianco is overlooked.

With the grid set, attention now turns to the first laps on Michelin tyres: that is when we will see how long Miller, Morbidelli and Binder need to adapt to Superbike, and whether Lecuona can take up Bulega’s mantle.