Superbike is Bulega Park: rivals are rooting for his move to MotoGP

Total dominance by the Emilian rider in Hungary as well—no one can stop him: would a move to MotoGP in 2027 be better?

He had said that the Balaton Park Circuit was the worst place for his riding style, but in the fourth round of the 2026 Superbike World Championship Nicolò Bulega scored another hat-trick. It’s his fourth in a row, a result that allowed him to set both the new record for consecutive wins (12) at the start of a championship and the all-time streak record (16). He has also caught Colin Edwards and Toprak Razgatlioglu for the most consecutive podiums (25). At Most he can surpass them and carve his name even deeper into the category’s history.

In the overall standings he is the undisputed leader with an 82-point advantage over his teammate Iker Lecuona, who arrived in Hungary confident he could beat him but once again had to bow to Bulega’s superiority. There are still eight rounds left on the calendar, but it seems unthinkable that his first SBK world title could slip away. He is totally in command of his Panigale V4 R and manages every moment of the races perfectly; he has reached an extremely high level that his grid mates have so far been unable to approach.

The Aruba.it Racing Ducati rider could only smile at the end of the weekend in Hungary: "Another fantastic weekend. I’m very happy, even more than after the last round, because this was my worst track. I wanted this hat-trick, because I thought winning here would be important for the championship and for the upcoming rounds. I knew Iker would be very strong this weekend, but in my head I knew I had to win."

Bulega was also asked about what happened at the first start of the Superpole Race, when he ran wide at Turn 1 and lost positions: "Montella came in really fast, but luckily I sensed him and picked the bike up, letting him through. I went very wide and found myself a bit back. Then I was lucky, because when the Oliveira–Locatelli incident happened I was wide in that corner; I was lucky to make a mistake. The red flag came out and on the restart I did everything right."

Setting records in the Superbike World Championship is something that makes him proud of himself and the team he races for: "It makes me proud to reach these milestones with Ducati. Italian brand, Italian bike, Italian rider: it’s something really special. I want to keep going like this. Winning every race? The championship is still long; there are tracks I like more and others less. The weather can change the situation and make it more complicated."

On Tuesday he’s expected at Mugello for a test with the Ducati MotoGP bike with an 850cc engine and all the technical regulation specs that will come into force in 2027: "I can’t wait to try the new MotoGP bike," commented the Emilian rider, "Maybe the weather won’t be good, but I’m happy to ride a MotoGP again and I hope to have a good test."

It’s no secret that his dream is to make it to the top class of Grand Prix motorcycle racing. Negotiations are underway and there’s a chance he’ll make the big leap in 2027, thus closing an important circle in his career. After tough years in Moto3 and Moto2, rebirth in Supersport, and consecration in Superbike, it’s only natural that he wants to test himself in MotoGP as well. Probably, SBK rivals wouldn’t mind if he were to leave at the end of 2026...