Bulega Claims First WorldSBK Title at Home in Cremona

On a September afternoon at Cremona, Nicolò Bulega rode into the history books.

A homecoming with no drama

The brief was simple: finish, and the title was his. Team-mate Iker Lecuona took victory in Race 2, clearing off by 8.590 seconds, while Bulega cruised home four seconds clear of Yari Montella in third.

Afterwards, in parc ferme, the 26-year-old found words hard to come by. "I'm incredibly happy," he said, before emotion overtook him as he thanked his Aruba.it Racing – Ducati crew.

Twenty-five straight — a record rewritten

The championship was won in the quiet of Cremona, but it was forged in an onslaught that began months earlier. Across the first eight rounds of the year Bulega amassed 23 wins, 21 of them in a single unbroken chain. Add the four consecutive victories that closed his 2025 campaign, and the tally reached 25 — an all-time WorldSBK win-streak record.

The numbers behind his season defy precedent: 26 victories and 30 podiums from 10 rounds, plus a record run of 10 straight pole positions stretching back to Estoril. In fully dry races, Bulega has not finished lower than second since his rookie year.

The paddock child who believed again

Bulega is now the first rider ever to claim both the WorldSSP and WorldSBK crowns, and only the second Italian Superbike world champion after Max Biaggi. The moment carried a personal symmetry. "When I was young I was in this paddock because my dad had a team in WorldSSP," he recalled. "I was just a child walking in this paddock, watching my idols."

A difficult transition from junior stardom tested his belief. That belief was rebuilt with a WorldSSP title in 2023, and it has now delivered a championship that opens a new door: a confirmed move to MotoGP with the VR46 Ducati team.

For the boy who once roamed the paddock chasing glimpses of Bayliss and Haga, Cremona was not merely the end of a season. It was the place where a long arc bent, quietly and conclusively, back to the top.