Assen WorldSBK Saturday – Bulega wins again as Masiá, Buis and Herrera strike

Round Three – Assen – Saturday

Nicolo Bulega kept his perfect 2026 WorldSBK run alive at Assen on Saturday, winning a rain-affected Race 1 that underlined both his control and Ducati’s depth. Behind the headline class, Jaume Masiá stole WorldSSP late, Jeffrey Buis gave Suzuki a home WorldSPB breakthrough, and Maria Herrera emerged from a chaotic restarted WorldWCR opener.

Aruba.it Ducati celebrates after Bulega led Lecuona home in Race 1.

Australian interest ran through every category, from Remy Gardner’s WorldSBK recovery to Oli Bayliss’ fightback, Carter Thompson’s front-group pace and Tayla Relph’s cruel Turn 1 exit.

WorldSBK Race One

Bulega handles the weather, Lecuona closes in, Ducati locks out the top four

Nicolo Bulega made it seven wins from seven starts in 2026, but Assen Race 1 at least forced him to work for it. Lecuona launched from third and led the opening lap before Bulega reclaimed control on lap two, only for light rain in the closing stages to reopen the fight.

The full WorldSBK field charges away at the start of Race 1 at Assen.

Lecuona attacked again when grip levels changed, briefly moved back ahead, and gave Bulega his sternest in-race challenge of the season before the Ducati rider regrouped and came back to win by 1.618s. Bulega’s 1m33.341s also stood as a new race lap record.

Assen finally asks a question — and Bulega still answers it

The result mattered beyond just another 25 points. Bulega’s Assen win was his 27th WorldSBK victory, drawing him level with Doug Polen for 11th on the all-time list. It was also his 11th straight win. Bulega has now led all but eight laps so far this season.

Lecuona, though, deserves more than a supporting mention. The Spaniard led a WorldSBK race for the first time on the opening lap, breaking a streak of four races entirely led by Bulega, and his second place made it four straight 1-2 finishes for the Aruba.it Ducati pairing. In other words, Bulega still won, but Lecuona kept Saturday from becoming another one-man exercise.

Nicolò Bulega and Iker Lecuona celebrate an Aruba.it Ducati one-two at Assen.

Ducati’s strength runs deeper than the race winner

Sam Lowes spent the race in a secure third and banked his first podium of the season, while Alvaro Bautista continued his gradual upward trend with fourth after another encouraging day with Barni. That gave Ducati first, second, third and fourth.

Alex Lowes split the red bikes in fifth for bimota, with Andrea Locatelli sixth and Miguel Oliveira again impressive in seventh after starting 13th.

Alex Lowes leads Alvaro Bautista during WorldSBK Race 1 at Assen.

Gardner limits the damage as penalties hurt others

From the Australian point of view, Remy Gardner’s day was more about salvaging something than cashing in on what had looked possible earlier. He qualified 10th, was close enough to the right group early, then lost ground after contact in the race before recovering to 14th and securing points.

Remy Gardner in the thick of the WorldSBK Race 1 fight at Assen.

Danilo Petrucci’s afternoon unravelled more sharply, a jump start earning him a double long-lap penalty that dropped him to 18th, while Garrett Gerloff missed the points in 16th, Jonathan Rea was 17th, and Stefano Manzi finished 19th after a long-lap penalty of his own. Somkiat Chantra did not make the grid after his FP3 crash.

WorldSBK Race One Results

WorldSBK Rider Quotes

Nicolo Bulega -P1

“This was a more complicated race than I expected! It was a very good race though and in the last seven laps, when it started to rain, and when you’re leading it’s difficult to understand how hard you can push. When Iker overtook me, I thought it didn’t make sense to take too many risks, so I followed him. During the final laps the track started to dry again so I pushed again. My pace was strong because I had managed the front tyre well during the race, and in the end I could take the win. I’m on a good run of results and I want to continue like this. Winning is everything.”

Iker Lecuona – P2

“I’m really happy with P2. When the rain arrived, it was quite heavy for one lap so I took a risk because I usually feel good in those tricky conditions. I saw it as an opportunity, so I pushed, recovered the gap and overtook Nicolo. My front tyre dropped a lot with the rain and I started to struggle so Nicolo passed me again. In any case, P2 is a good result. We still need to improve and find something more for tomorrow but step by step we are getting there.”

Sam Lowes – P3

“I think it’s the right result for us. The rain helped me get a bit closer but in reality I’ve been third in terms of pace all weekend. My lap in Superpole was good too so I’m happy with that. This track suits me well from my Moto2 experience, The fast, flowing sections in sectors three and four are good for me and the bike is working well. I still need to improve in a few areas, Turns 1, 3 and 10, so we’ll look into it tonight.”

Álvaro Bautista – P4

“Compared to yesterday, we managed to improve the feeling with some setup changes. This is important because we gain confidence every time and I feel better and better on the bike. We are getting closer to a strong performance, we are working on it, but we are not quite there yet. Today in Race 1 I had a good start from the third row, also thanks to a better Superpole compared to the previous ones. I was able to move up to fourth position right away and defend it in the early laps, which is the phase where I struggle the most due to the weight of the bike. I find it difficult and I can’t ride the lines I would like. I managed to keep fourth position. After mid-race, when the rain started, I stayed focused and tried to bring home the best possible result without taking too many risks, even though I lost some ground to the leaders. In the final laps, when the rain stopped, I couldn’t find the same feeling with the tyres. Fourth place is a good result, but above all the improved feeling is a very positive sign.”

Alvaro Bautista chased by Alex Lowes during a strong run to fourth at Assen.

Alex Lowes – P5

“I did as well as I could, honestly. I felt quite good in the race, and the pace was a lot faster than our long run on Friday. I enjoyed the first race, and thank you to the guys because the bike was good. When it started to rain, I probably rolled off a bit too much, but we will try again tomorrow. We have some really strong parts of the track, so let’s see how we go on Sunday.”

Andrea Locatelli – P6

“After a difficult day yesterday, today we planned very well our qualifying and did a good job. The feeling is coming back and let’s say, it feels a little bit easier to go faster, and it’s helping us to improve in general on my R1. I’m quite happy, it was a positive qualifying and then a quite positive race – but we are still working to keep improving and improving, because this result is not enough. Also, the gap from the front is quite big so we need to be realistic and look forward, continue to work hard and increase our level every time we go on track and try to improve. It was tricky with the rain and the conditions during the race, but we managed well and finished in the top six – not so bad, not “perfect”, but a positive step forward.”

Lorenzo Baldassarri – P8

“I’m satisfied with how the race ended, even though after yesterday I hoped for a bit more. We could have done better, but in the end, eighth place is an excellent result in a crazy race like today’s. I gained a lot of experience on the track; on the first lap, I almost touched at the first corner, and to avoid crashing, I had to go really wide, losing a lot of positions. Around halfway through the race, it started to rain, making it difficult to stay focused, push, and not make mistakes. I made a lot of overtakes and had a great battle, and despite the contact with Oliveira, which cost me a lot of time, I managed to get back in the group for the final laps. We have to be satisfied with today; tomorrow we have two more opportunities, and I can’t wait to get back on track!”

Xavi Vierge – P10

“I can’t be happy with the race – we worked very well during all the weekend with strong pace and the first goal of the day was to make a good Superpole qualifying. We achieved P5 with a good lap and could take a good spot on the grid. Unfortunately, the start was not the best, I lost some positions and then I was battling during the first laps to try to go forward. But it was impossible and also meant that I destroyed my front tyre on the right side and started to struggle quite early in the race. In the last nine laps, the right-hand corners were difficult to manage – the rain arrived and the riders behind also arrived. I was in the mix of a group where without the performance of the front tyre it was difficult to defend my position. We need to learn from today, we had much better pace to fight for a good result. We have two more opportunities tomorrow and I am determined to do better.”

Yari Montella – P11

“This morning in Superpole we had a technical issue with the bike and we weren’t able to qualify in a better position. Here in Assen we are struggling more than in the previous rounds to find a strong pace. At the moment we have the pace of the second group, but that group is very close, around eight riders with a similar pace, so it’s difficult to make the difference in the race. Because of that, and starting from twelfth position, I found myself right in that group. We struggled a bit to stand out: in some corners I was gaining time, in others I was losing something. We were still able to fight within the group for sixth position, but in the middle of the battle we dropped back to eleventh. The conditions became more tricky and I had some issues with the front tyre, and we were missing that extra something to be able to attack. We will use today’s data to work for tomorrow and try to make a step forward.”

Axel Bassani – P12

“It was a difficult Superpole Qualifying session today, and we started the race from P17. We tried to cover as many positions as possible. In the end, we finished in P12, so we improved and got some points. Now we are working for tomorrow, and we will try to take better results. But for today, this was the maximum I was able to do with my bike. For sure, we will push, and we will see what we can do tomorrow.”

Axel Bassani ahead of Tommy Bridewell in the Assen pack.

Remy Gardner – P14

“Unfortunately, it wasn’t our best day. We had the potential for more in qualifying, but a small mistake in the final sector cost us a second row start. Starting from tenth made things more difficult, although I had a good start and stayed close to the group ahead. Later, I was pushed wide by another rider, which dropped me back. I had to recover positions and salvage points. The race pace was encouraging, and we’ll aim to improve in the sprint race tomorrow to set up a stronger Race 2.”

Garrett Gerloff – P16

“I am kind of confused a bit still because I don’t feel I have a big problem with my riding right now, or with the bike also. But I seem to be just a little bit off in every sector and that just adds up. We are really kind of struggling to figure out what we need to do to improve because it looks like I need to improve a little bit everywhere. We are working on it and we will try some things tomorrow. So far, this weekend has not been the best one for us, but we will keep on trying.”

Jonathan Rea – P17

“A disappointing end to Saturday. In Superpole, I did a 33.8, which felt fast to me, but unfortunately, I was really frustrated when I saw the position. Then I made a bad start to the race. The bike wouldn’t go forward off the line, so I lost some positions. I felt okay with the bike in the early stages and the grip was not so bad. But then I was fighting with another rider, and I lost track position to the group in front. I was struggling with some areas of the bike, and then the rain came, so I just concentrated on avoiding mistakes and bringing it home. We have a lot of data to look through now to try to improve, and I think today’s race highlighted some of our weak areas that we can focus on and give the engineers something to think about.”

Stefano Manzi – P19

“We are still struggling; there’s no denying it. We’re working hard and seeing small improvements, but we’re not where we want to be yet. In the race, the pace was not too bad and I felt more confident lap by lap. Unfortunately, the long lap penalty affected our progress, but I’m confident we can take another step forward tomorrow and end the weekend on a more positive note.”

Somkiat Chantra – DNS

“The crash was a bit unexpected honestly. Coming out of Turn 5, I lost the front and although I attempted to save it, I couldn’t and I crashed. The rear tyre impacted on my leg. I was checked over at the Medical Centre and luckily nothing is broken. I have a  painful leg following what was quite a hard impact. We will stay calm for today and see how I am tomorrow, when I will be reassessed by the doctors.”

WorldSBK Superpole Times

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WorldSSP Race One

Masiá steals it late as Bayliss fights forward from the back

Jaume Masiá’s second WorldSSP win of the season arrived in the most class-appropriate way possible — late, tight, and only truly settled in the final sector. The Spaniard came through from eighth on the grid to beat Albert Arenas by just 0.080s, with Tom Booth-Amos third, Valentin Debise fourth, Lucas Mahias fifth and Dominique Aegerter sixth. Only 1.999 seconds covered the top 10 at the finish.

Albert Arenas and Jaume Masiá fight for victory in WorldSSP Race 1 at Assen.

The race kept shifting until the final sector

The final classification only tells part of the story. Can Öncü led the opening two laps and then again from laps 10 to 13, Debise controlled much of the middle phase, Mahias briefly led on lap 17, and Masiá only headed the field when it mattered most — on the final lap and the run to the flag, moving from third to first in the final sector with late passes on Mahias and Arenas to steal the win.

Lucas Mahias at the head of the WorldSSP field during Race 1 at Assen.

Jaume Masia – P1

“I am fighting as hard as I can and, in our current situation with this bike and the team, I think I’m quite tough to beat. I’m really, really happy. This was a crazy race with a few drops of rain and a big group fighting at the front. The slipstream helped a lot to keep everyone together and in the end we managed to finish first. I really enjoyed the battle with Arenas. It was a fair fight between two different manufacturers.”

Albert Arenas, Jaume Masiá and Tom Booth-Amos on the WorldSSP podium at Assen.

Arenas came away with the fastest lap of the race, a 1m37.085s, which gives him pole position for Race 2.

Tom Booth-Amos chased by Jaume Masiá in the lead group at Assen.

Late contact and a penalty shuffle the lead group

The closing phase did not just reward Masiá’s timing, it also punished others. Öncü and Booth-Amos clashed at Turn 17 on the final lap, with the Ten Kate rider pushed wide and dropping to 10th. Debise also slipped from the provisional podium picture after a one-place post-race penalty for exceeding track limits late in the race, leaving the order at the front even tighter than it first appeared. The championship consequences were immediate, too, with Masiá extending his lead to 11 points over Arenas, while Debise remains third but 33 points back.

Bayliss gives himself something to work with

Oli Bayliss’ 18th place does not look spectacular until the starting position is added back into the picture. Bayliss came from 33rd on the grid to finish 18th, just 11.907s from the winner in a race where track position mattered enormously once the lead group formed. He later described it as another difficult day after starting from the back with a penalty, but the recovery at least put him in a more workable spot for Sunday than where he began Saturday.

WorldSSP therefore did what it often does best: compress a half-dozen plausible winners into one last frantic sequence and let racecraft decide it. This time, it favoured Masiá.

WorldSSP Race One Results

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WorldSPB Race One

Buis gives Suzuki a home breakthrough as Thompson’s speed goes unrewarded

The new WorldSPB class roars away at the start of Race 1 at Assen.

Jeffrey Buis delivered one of the most significant results of the day by giving Suzuki its first WorldSPB victory, and doing it at home. The Dutchman won by just 0.065s from Xavi Artigas, with David Salvador another 0.408s back in third, while Matteo Vannucci and Ferre Fleerackers rounded out a top five separated by only 0.526s.

Jeffrey Buis battles Ferre Fleerackers in a tight WorldSPB Race 1 contest

Opening-lap chaos changes the race immediately

The race did not build into tension so much as start with it. Early incidents for Matteo Sorrenti, Harry Dessoy and Adrian Fuertes around Turn 10-11.

Xavi Artigas on his way to second place in WorldSPB Race 1 at Assen.

Poleman Loris Veneman and Freddie Seabright both retired without completing a lap, Veneman the innocent party in that clash. That removed Friday’s headline qualifier straight away and left the race to be reshaped by those who avoided the first-wave trouble.

Xavi Artigas, Jeffrey Buis and David Salvador on the WorldSPB podium at Assen.

Suzuki converts the chance, Salvador still leaves with the points lead

Once the race settled, Buis and Fleerackers kept Suzuki central to the contest, Artigas and Salvador gave Kawasaki a firm reply, and Vannucci ensured Aprilia stayed in the argument too.

David Salvador in action on his way to another WorldSPB podium finish.

Buis’ victory was Suzuki’s first in the class, while Salvador’s third-place finish was enough to preserve his championship lead, now eight points clear of Buis.

Jeffrey Buis – P1

“The race went really well. I made a small mistake one lap from the end and I looked behind and lost a couple of positions. I had to fight back but I managed to overtake them on the final lap and this made the win even more special. To take three wins in a row here in Assen is incredible and I don’t really have the words for it. It’s also fantastic to give Suzuki their first victory in the Sportbike category. That means a lot to me.”

Jeffrey Buis celebrates a breakthrough home win for Suzuki in Assen.

Benat Fernandez’s ninth also gave Kove its first points of the season, another small milestone for a category already producing a broad spread of competitive machinery.

Thompson’s P13 flatters the race, not the pace

Carter Thompson’s final result undersells how competitive he actually looked. The Australian finished 13th, but his 1m42.706s fastest lap was the second quickest of the race and will put him on the front row for Sunday. Thompson later said the last lap did not go his way after he was forced wide into the gravel.

WorldSPB Race One Results

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WorldWCR Race One

Herrera wins the restart after Relph is wiped out at Turn 1

Maria Herrera won WorldWCR Race 1 at Assen, but the result sat on top of a race that had already been dramatically reshaped before the restart. The original start was red-flagged after a Turn 1 pile-up involving Emma Bondi, Tayla Relph, Line Vieillard and Pakita Ruiz. Relph was taken to the medical centre and was unable to make the eight-lap restart.

The WorldWCR field charges into Assen’s opening lap in Saturday’s Race 1.

Turn 1 pile-up ruins Relph’s chance before the race settles

From an Australian perspective, that crash was the defining moment of the class on Saturday. Relph had qualified fourth and looked well placed to challenge for a podium, but instead her race ended before the first lap had properly formed. She later said she had been taken out before even reaching Turn 1 and was then hit by her own bike and two more, escaping without breaks but with significant bruising and foot pain and will be subject to a medical clearance on Sunday.

Herrera and Neila clear off once the restart comes

When the restarted race got underway, Herrera and Beatriz Neila quickly detached themselves from the rest. Herrera led all eight laps and won by just 0.083s, while Neila’s 1m47.150s on lap seven stood as a new race fastest-lap record and handed her pole for Race 2. Just as important, the pair finished more than 10 seconds clear of the next battle, underlining how decisive their pace was once the race settled into rhythm.

Roberta Ponziani came through for third from seventh on the grid, Chloe Jones produced one of the better rides of the race to finish fourth, and Muklada Sarapuech followed her home in fifth after a lively race inside the chasing group.

Late crashes and a heavy penalty reshape the points behind them

The group behind the leaders kept changing right to the end. Lucie Boudesseul, Sara Sanchez and Paola Ramos all crashed on the last lap, costing Ramos what had looked like another strong points day. Yvonne Cerpa, who had shown top-five pace, was eventually classified 17th after receiving a penalty for causing the Turn 1 incident. That left the final result looking much calmer than the race itself had felt.

For Herrera, though, the outcome was again simple enough: another win, another extension of her early grip on the season, and another reminder that she remains the clear reference point.

WorldWCR Race One Results