Nicolò Bulega crowned 2026 World Superbike Champion with Ducati

Nicolò Bulega has been crowned the 2026 FIM Superbike World Champion, making history as the first Italian rider to win the Riders’ Championship with Ducati. The Aruba.it Racing – Ducati rider secured his maiden title in the premier production-based motorcycle racing category with a second-place finish in Race 2 at the Cremona Circuit on Sunday, with two rounds of the championship still remaining.

The historic achievement comes in the year of Ducati’s centenary celebrations, making Bulega’s championship victory even more significant for the Italian manufacturer. Celebrating in front of his home crowd, Bulega brought an outstanding season to a fitting conclusion, having dominated the championship aboard the new Ducati Panigale V4 R.

His success also completed Ducati’s triple crown, with the manufacturer securing the Riders’, Manufacturers’ and Teams’ Championships in a remarkable 2026 campaign. The title was already guaranteed to go to a Ducati rider following the Donington round, where Bulega and teammate Iker Lecuona were the only two competitors mathematically capable of winning the championship with four rounds remaining.
Bulega’s second-place finish at Cremona, combined with Lecuona’s three victories over the weekend, further underlined Ducati’s dominance throughout the season and added another milestone to the manufacturer’s extensive WorldSBK history.

With 26 victories from 30 races, Bulega has delivered one of the most successful campaigns of his career. His remaining results have all been second-place finishes behind Lecuona, with four Aruba.it Racing – Ducati one-two finishes highlighting the strength of the team. The Italian has also demonstrated exceptional qualifying pace, recording nine consecutive pole positions and setting an outright lap record at every circuit visited up to the Cremona round.

The 2026 championship marks Bulega’s second world title with Ducati, following his World Supersport Championship success in 2023. He has now become the first rider to win both the World Supersport and World Superbike titles with the manufacturer, adding his name to a distinguished list of Ducati world champions and securing the company’s 17th Riders’ Championship in WorldSBK.

Ducati CEO Claudio Domenicali described the achievement as a victory that extended beyond the sporting result, particularly given its significance during the manufacturer’s centenary year and Bulega’s success in front of his home fans.
“There are victories whose meaning goes beyond the sporting result, and this is certainly one of them. Nicolò is the first Italian rider to become Superbike World Champion with Ducati, and he has done it in front of his home crowd, in the year in which we celebrate our centenary. It is difficult to imagine a more beautiful way to experience this moment!”

Domenicali also reflected on Bulega’s development within the Ducati racing programme, having watched the Italian progress from his World Supersport success to becoming a leading contender in WorldSBK and ultimately securing the premier title.

“What makes me even prouder is thinking about everything that lies behind it. We have seen Nicolò grow with us, win in Supersport, establish himself in Superbike and become the extraordinary rider he is today.”

The Ducati CEO also praised the development of the new Panigale V4 R, which achieved its objective of immediately competing at the front in its debut season.

“Together with him, we brought the new Panigale V4 R to the track, designed and developed in Borgo Panigale, facing the most ambitious goal right from its debut: to be immediately at the top, and that is exactly what happened.”

Domenicali thanked the employees at Ducati, Ducati Corse and the Aruba.it Racing team for their contribution to the championship-winning campaign. He also looked ahead to Bulega’s next challenge, with the Italian set to continue his journey with Ducati in the MotoGP World Championship in 2027.

While Bulega’s achievements have been central to Ducati’s success, the new Panigale V4 R has also established itself as one of the defining machines of the 2026 season. The latest generation of Ducati’s flagship Superbike brings technology developed through the manufacturer’s racing programme to the track, including MotoGP-derived Corner Sidepods and the Ducati Racing Gearbox, innovations introduced for the first time on a road-legal Ducati motorcycle.

The new machine continued the success of its predecessor, which had dominated WorldSBK since 2022, and immediately established itself as the benchmark in its debut campaign. Completing all 30 races with victories, the Panigale V4 R remained unbeaten throughout the 2026 season and secured Ducati’s fifth consecutive Manufacturers’ Championship.

The achievement takes Ducati’s total to 22 Manufacturers’ titles across the championship’s 38 editions, further extending its position as the most successful manufacturer in WorldSBK history. The Panigale V4 R has now won five consecutive titles between 2022 and 2026, continuing a legacy established by several generations of Ducati machinery.

The motorcycle’s success also extends beyond the racetrack. Its design received three prestigious international awards in 2025, including the Red Dot Award, the iF Design Award and the Good Design Award, recognising the latest generation of Ducati’s supersport engineering and styling.

Since WorldSBK began in 1988, Ducati has accumulated 479 race victories and 1,266 podium finishes, alongside its 17 Riders’ Championships and 22 Manufacturers’ titles. Its championship-winning machinery has included the Ducati 888, 916, 996, 998, 999, 1098, 1198 and Panigale V4 R, with the latter now having secured five consecutive Manufacturers’ Championships.

The 2026 season also places the new Panigale V4 R among a select group of Ducati motorcycles to win both the Riders’ and Manufacturers’ Championships in their debut seasons, alongside the legendary 916 and 999.

For Bulega, the title represents the culmination of an exceptional season and a significant moment in his career, as he becomes the first Italian rider to win the World Superbike Championship with Ducati. For the manufacturer, it is a fitting way to celebrate its centenary, with a homegrown champion, an undefeated new-generation Panigale V4 R and all three major WorldSBK titles secured in the same season.

Picture Credits: Ducati Corse