Brilliant move: Carlos Checa praises Ducati’s MotoGP plan with Nicolo Bulega

The Spaniard Carlos Checa, now 53 years old, has competed in 194 races in the premier class, winning two during the 500cc era, as well as securing 17 podium finishes and a further seven in the modern MotoGP era with four-stroke engines. In 2008, the Catalan moved to the World Superbike Championship, where he secured a further 24 wins, 49 podium finishes and, to cap it all, the title in 2011.

Carlos is a regular guest at the World Superbike Championship; otherwise, he works as a consultant for the Barcelona circuit and serves as a TV pundit for DAZN at five Grands Prix. The Catalan remains deeply passionate about motorsport and follows both world championships closely. He is closely monitoring Nicolo Bulega’s imminent move to MotoGP; the Italian will ride for Valentino Rossi’s Ducati VR46 team alongside Fermin Aledguer in 2027 and 2028.

Rivals cannot make up for this

“Ducati is making a strong showing in the Superbike World Championship; their new bike is a second faster than last year’s,” Checa explained in a one-on-one interview with SPEEDWEEK.com. “The changes add up to a second – something the others can’t make up for at short notice. Bulega is the rider with the most experience, the best team and, what’s more, he’s perfectly suited to this bike. But even with these advantages, it’s incredibly difficult to win so many races in a row (25 so far – the author). That shows he’s riding with a large safety margin.”

“That’s not good for the championship; we need challengers and more battles,” emphasised Checa. “At the moment, Iker Lecuona is the only one who can get close to him. But that’s how it goes sometimes: Johnny Rea dominated on the Kawasaki for years, and now we’re seeing Bulega’s era. If he’s no longer in the World Superbike Championship next year, he’ll make way for someone else – perhaps Iker. Or perhaps future regulations will bring about a better balance.”

Nicolò Bulega

Foto: Gold & Goose

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During MotoGP tests with the new 850cc machine, Bulega recently put in an outstanding performance at Misano, outclassing test riders from other manufacturers such as Dani Pedrosa (KTM), Augusto Fernandez (Yamaha) and Lorenzo Savadori (Aprilia) by 1 to 2 seconds at a track temperature of 62 degrees Celsius.

Alongside Yamaha rider Toprak Razgatlioglu and the riders moving up from Moto2, Bulega will be one of the few in the 2027 MotoGP field to have extensive experience with the tyres of the future sole supplier, Pirelli. The engineers in Milan also always pay particularly close attention to the Superbike series winner.

Ducati has the best plan for next year

Carlos Checa

Bulega will have a significant knowledge advantage

By the end of the season, Bulega is expected to have completed seven days of testing on the 850cc Ducati fitted with Pirelli tyres. When next year’s factory riders, Marc Marquez and Pedro Acosta, take to the Circuito Ricardo Tormo on the 850cc bike on Tuesday, 1 December, following the finale in Valencia, Bulega will have more experience with this machine than anyone else, making him particularly valuable to Ducati. The prestigious brand will be able to draw on mountains of data from its rider, whilst current MotoGP regulars are not permitted to ride the race bike outside of official IRTA tests.

“Ducati has the best plan for next year,” Checa emphasised. “Bulega is fast and has matured a great deal mentally. He can handle his current position and provide the engineers with the best possible feedback so that they can take the best course of action. At the Superbike race in Aragon, he was just 1 second slower than Marc Marquez in qualifying – on a long circuit, on a bike carrying an extra 11 kg and fitted with steel brakes. He is certainly at the level required for MotoGP. If Ducati didn’t have the fuel limit, he’d be even faster on the Superbike.”

Marc Marquez mit der 850er-Ducati beim Brünn-Test

Foto: David Ulrich