Estoril, Superpole: Bulega smashes Toprak’s record – BMW, Honda in the top 7

Following Ducati works rider Nicolò Bulega’s dominant performance on Friday, Bimota ace Alex Lowes surprisingly set the fastest lap of the weekend so far at the Circuito do Estoril on Saturday morning in FP3, clocking a time of 1:34.740. This is already faster than Bulega’s lap record from last year, but 0.5 seconds slower than Toprak Razgatlioglu’s (BMW) pole record of 1:34.203 minutes.

Qualifying began at 11.15 am under clear skies and took place in glorious weather. The sun shone from an almost cloudless sky and the thermometer read a pleasant 22 degrees. Superpole is a traditional qualifying session in which all riders have 15 minutes to set the best possible time. For the eleventh round of the season, Pirelli is supplying the high-grip SCQ tyres. Depending on the track, the extra grip provided by the soft compound can result in lap times up to one second faster.

When the lights at the end of the pit lane turned green, most riders headed straight out onto the track – the Ducati riders Bulega, Yari Montella and Lorenzo Baldassarri were the ones who waited the longest.

Local hero Miguel Oliveira (BMW) set the first fast lap after five minutes with a time of 1:34.651. The Portuguese rider’s time was first beaten by Alberto Surra (Ducati) by 0.140 seconds, then Bulega set a new record with a time of 1:34.105.

After the first run, Ducati held a one-two-three lead with Bulega, Surra and Lecuona, whilst Alex Lowes and Oliveira rounded off the top five. Montella (6th) and Axel Bassani (7th, Bimota) also impressed with lap times under 1:35. The best Japanese bike was ridden by Garrett Gerloff (Kawasaki) in ninth place. Jake Dixon (Honda) was eleventh and Xavi Vierge (Yamaha) 13th.

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Estoril: Rennen 1

FIM Superbike World Championship

10.10.2026 - 15:40

Ducati star Nicolo Bulega clinches his tenth pole position of 2026 in record time

With six minutes remaining, the leading Superbike riders took to the track on fresh rear tyres. On the relatively short 4.2 km circuit, up to three fast laps were still possible. With three sector best times, Bulega was on course for a new fastest lap – and impressed with a time of 1:33.884 minutes! At that point, the world champion led by 0.6 seconds (!) ahead of the runner-up.

No matter how hard the competition tried, they were unable to take pole position away from the Ducati works rider. Not even his team-mate Iker Lecuona, who had ended Bulega’s run of pole positions in Cremona, came within 0.157 seconds of him. Alex Lowes completes the front row.

BMW with Oliveira on row 2 – Dixon continues Honda’s upward trend

BMW ace Miguel Oliveira secured fifth on the grid, 0.665 seconds off the pace and sandwiched between the Ducati privateers Surra (4th) and Montella (6th).

Jake Dixon put in a strong Superpole performance to take seventh place on the third row – Honda’s upward trend appears to be continuing at Estoril. Gerloff, on the sole Kawasaki, dropped back to eleventh position, whilst Vierge secured a modest 13th place on the grid for Yamaha.