Iker Lecuona (Ducati) believes: Franco Morbidelli will have an easier time of it

This weekend, Superbike World Championship runner-up Iker Lecuona will once again step in as a stand-in in MotoGP, riding for Gresini Ducati in Qatar in place of the injured Alex Márquez.

Lecuona has just enjoyed the best season of his career, finishing on the podium 32 times in 36 Superbike races, including four victories. Only against high-flyer and Aruba team-mate Nicolo Bulega did he – like everyone else – struggle to make an impact.

Prior to that, Lecuona was under contract with Honda for four years, but in their factory team, riding the Fireblade, he managed only two third-place finishes in 119 races and finished 13th, 12th, 13th and 9th in the World Championship. Iker’s 2026 season impressively demonstrates just how crucial having the right bike is for success in the Superbike World Championship.

Champion Nicolo Bulega has signed a MotoGP contract for 2027 with Valentino Rossi’s VR46 team; in exchange, their current rider, Franco Morbidelli, will become Lecuona’s pit neighbour at Team Aruba.it Ducati.

Franco Morbidelli has two major advantages

Morbidelli comes from a championship-winning team and bike and will also find ideal conditions at Aruba. SPEEDWEEK.com asked Lecuona whether this would make the Italian’s task easier. “He has a different background to me,” the Spaniard noted. “What definitely makes it easier for him is this: I came from Honda and had never ridden a Ducati until this year, whereas he has been training on the V4 for years. That certainly makes his task easier. On top of that, next year we’ll be on Michelin tyres instead of Pirelli. These will be different from the ones he’s currently using in MotoGP, but in terms of his riding style, the tyres will be the same.”

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Lecuona continued: “Either way, he’s a fast rider and has demonstrated his pace time and again. In 2016 and 2017 we were racing in Moto2, and even back then it was clear to me that he was fast. He’s struggled in recent years, though. If he joins the World Superbike Championship, he certainly has the potential to be fast. My main goal has to be to beat Franky.”

Lecuona and Morbidelli will take part in their first joint test on 9–10 December in Valencia. The other riders currently in MotoGP – Brad Binder (with BMW) and Jack Miller (with Yamaha) – will also be in action for the first time.

Iker Lecuona fuhr 2026 die Saison seines Lebens

Foto: Gold and Goose Photography