Artigas strong, Salvador under pressure: Sportbike World Championship wide open again after Cremona

Whilst the 2026 Superbike World Championship has already been decided in favour of Nicolò Bulega (Ducati), and with Albert Arenas (Yamaha) on the verge of winning the Supersport title, the outcome of the new Sportbike World Championship remains more open than ever following the weekend in Cremona, with David Salvador and Xavi Artigas locked in a tight battle.

Artigas, who lies second in the championship, stepped up the pressure on his compatriot with a win and a second place, whilst Salvador could only manage third and fifth. In the space of just one race weekend, Salvador’s lead shrank from 30 to 18 and then down to just twelve points.

The two Spaniards ride for the rival teams MTM and ProDina – both of which were the dominant Kawasaki teams in the now-defunct 300cc World Championship. “We’d done a test here in Cremona, but we didn’t do any laps and started with the same bike as we did previously at Magny-Cours. We changed almost nothing,” said Artigas. “In the first race I felt really good and had the feeling that I could really open the throttle. I was in the lead for almost the entire race. And with second place in the second race, we’ve more than halved the gap to the overall leader and are keeping the championship exciting right until the end. That’s really good, and we’ll try to keep up the same pace in Jerez. We know the bike works.”

The situation ahead of the season finale at the Circuito de Jerez: Artigas has secured the runners-up spot and can only win from here on. However, to still win the title in the final two races, he needs a bit of help, as two wins won’t be enough if Salvador finishes second in both. “The aim is still to win the World Championship. I’m confident because I can see that no one is better than me,” emphasised Artigas.

Salvador has been leading the new entry-level series since Assen. As the championship draws to a close, the MTM rider seems to be getting nervous. “I had difficulties at a few points on the track. And compared to the other motorbikes in the leading group, we were a little short on acceleration,” explained Salvador. “Now we need to carefully analyse what happened and keep working so that we’re more competitive in the next race.”

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