Magny-Cours, Sprint: Quadruple triumph for Ducati – Bulega sets lap record

The Superpole Race, which started at 11.10 am and consisted of just 10 laps at the Circuit de Nevers Magny-Cours, took place under a mix of sun and clouds and pleasant temperatures of 23 degrees Celsius. The appeal of this format lies in the fact that the riders do not have to worry about tyre wear and can push to the limit on every lap. In France, the SCQ qualifier tyre may be used, which offers an alternative to the soft SCX race tyre for the short sprint.

The sprint race gets its name because the result determines the starting grid for the second race. The top nine receive up to twelve World Championship points and take the first nine grid positions; the remaining positions correspond to Saturday’s Superpole.

The starting grid for the sprint, in turn, mirrored the Superpole. Ducati dominated the front row with Race 1 winner Nicolò Bulega, Sam Lowes and Iker Lecuona. The second row was made up of the Ducati privateers Yari Montella and Alberto Surra, as well as Bimota’s star rider Alex Lowes.

Bulega got off to the best start and entered the first corner in the lead ahead of Lecuona, Sam Lowes, Surra and Montella. Alex Lowes held on to 6th place. The championship leader finished the first lap 0.4 seconds clear and continued to pull away. Xavi Vierge settled into eighth place as the best-placed Yamaha rider, followed by Honda ace Jake Dixon and Axel Bassani on the second Bimota. Garrett Gerloff, on the sole Kawasaki, dropped back to 16th place, with BMW rider Miguel Oliveira behind him.

On lap 2, Lecuona edged his team-mate out of the lead, but the Italian countered promptly. Lecuona tried again, but after a mistake, the 26-year-old lost a crucial 1.5 seconds. Meanwhile, Yari Montella had moved up to fourth place; otherwise, the top nine remained unchanged.

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Magny-Cours: Rennen 2

FIM Superbike World Championship

06.09.2026 - 13:40

At the halfway stage, Bulega led by 2 seconds ahead of his team-mate. Sam Lowes and Montella were battling for position. Alex Lowes (6th) was under pressure from Tommy Bridewell (Ducati). Oliveira had overtaken Gerloff and was running in 15th place.

With the fastest lap of the race in 1:34.750 minutes, Bulega pulled further clear in the second half of the race. After running wide, Dixon dropped back to 16th place on lap 7.

Whilst Bulega switched to a conservative pace and comfortably saw out the Superpole Race, there were no direct battles for position in the top seven during the final laps either. Only a crash by Sam Lowes on the final lap altered the result: behind winner Nicolò Bulega and Iker Lecuona in second place, Yari Montella completed the podium.

Once again, Alex Lowes was the best non-Ducati rider on his Bimota KB998. Remy Gardner crossed the finish line in eighth place – making him the best-placed Yamaha rider – after overtaking factory rider Xavi Vierge (9th) in the final chicane.

Miguel Oliveira’s impressive comeback ended in 12th place, meaning the BMW rider will once again have to start the second race from well down the field. Behind the Portuguese rider, Garrett Gerloff (13th/Kawasaki) and Jake Dixon (14th/Honda) crossed the finish line.