New WorldSPB category delivers five-brand top six as Aragon Friday sizzles

WorldSBK 2026 – Round Six – Aragon – Friday

Bulega fastest, Arenas on WorldSSP pole, Salvador stars in WorldSPB

The Aragon Round opened in oppressive heat at MotorLand Aragon on Friday, with WorldSBK practice and Superpole sessions for WorldSSP and the new WorldSPB category producing three very different stories across the paddock.

WorldSBK was dominated by the cooler morning conditions, while WorldSSP delivered a late home pole for Albert Arenas by just 0.015 seconds, and WorldSPB underlined why the new Sportbike class is shaping up as one of the more intriguing technical battlegrounds in the championship, with five manufacturers inside the top six.

Nicolo Bulega did his damage early at Aragon, his 1m48.916 in FP1 standing as the fastest WorldSBK lap of Friday as afternoon track temperatures climbed above 50 degrees and most riders failed to improve in FP2.

Nicolo Bulega ended Friday on top of the WorldSBK order at Aragon, but it was not the afternoon session that did the damage. The Aruba.it Racing Ducati rider’s 1m48.916 from FP1 stood as the fastest lap of the day, just 0.022 seconds ahead of team-mate Iker Lecuona.

That mattered because the second session was held in punishing conditions, with the FP2 timing sheet showing 35-degree air temperature and 53-degree track temperature. The heat effectively turned the afternoon into a race-pace and survival exercise for most of the field, with only Garrett Gerloff and Jake Dixon improving their FP1 times in FP2.

Lecuona did top FP2 with a 1m49.578, but his session ended in the gravel at Turn 8 after losing the front while trying to push on again. The Spaniard had already done enough to finish second overall and, crucially, he again looked capable of keeping pressure on Bulega, who arrived at Aragon with his remarkable winning run still intact.

Iker Lecuona topped FP2 with a 1m49.578 before crashing at Turn 8, but his FP1 lap kept him second overall, just 0.022 seconds behind Aruba.it Racing Ducati team-mate Bulega.

Behind the factory Ducati pair, the bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team made one of the day’s stronger statements. Alex Lowes was third overall on the KB998 Rimini with a 1m49.442, with team-mate Axel Bassani only 0.053 seconds further back in fourth. Lowes had not expected to be so close to the front at Aragon, but the Bimota appeared to cope well in the hottest part of the day, an encouraging sign given the race distance and temperatures expected across the weekend.

The Ducati presence behind them was impossible to miss. Sam Lowes completed only limited running in FP1 after a crash at Turn 12, yet still ended Friday fifth overall and was second-fastest in FP2. Yari Montella, Lorenzo Baldassarri, Tarran Mackenzie, Tommy Bridewell, Alberto Surra and Alvaro Bautista made it nine Panigale V4Rs inside the top 11.

Bautista’s return from injury was another point of interest. The double WorldSBK Champion was cleared to ride after his foot injuries from Most and completed 32 laps across the day, finishing 11th overall and sixth in FP2.

Alvaro Bautista returned to WorldSBK action at Aragon with a solid 32-lap Friday on the Barni Spark Ducati, finishing 11th on combined times and only a second from Nicolo Bulega’s FP1 benchmark despite still recovering from injury.

Gerloff was the best of the Kawasaki ZX-10RR runners in 12th, and one of the few riders to go quicker in the afternoon than he had in FP1. Xavi Vierge led the Yamaha contingent in 13th, ahead of Andrea Locatelli in 15th and Remy Gardner in 16th.

Garrett Gerloff was one of the few to improve in FP2, his 1m49.991 putting him 12th on combined times in demanding afternoon conditions.

For Gardner, the final position was not where he wanted to be, but there were positives. The Australian said the high temperatures made it a difficult day, although he felt some items tested at Misano were working well and that there was still potential in the package. His late FP2 crash at Turn 1 prevented any further improvement, but he was unhurt and remained confident of finding a better race set-up on Saturday.

Remy Gardner finished Friday 16th on the GYTR GRT Yamaha, his day compromised by a late FP2 crash at Turn 1, although the Australian said some of the items tested at Misano were working well in the Aragon heat.

Honda’s day was headed by Somkiat Chantra in 14th, while Jake Dixon’s first WorldSBK race weekend on the CBR1000RR-R SP started with a Turn 12 crash in FP1. Dixon passed a follow-up medical check on his wrist and returned in FP2, where he improved to 17th overall.

Jake Dixon’s first WorldSBK race weekend with Honda HRC started with a Turn 12 crash in FP1, but he returned in the afternoon and was one of only two riders to improve his personal best in the hotter FP2 session.

BMW was without both Danilo Petrucci and Miguel Oliveira at Aragon, with Michael van der Mark and Hannes Soomer riding the factory M 1000 RR machines. Van der Mark was 18th and Soomer 20th on the combined times. BMW is targeting Misano for the return of its regular riders if their recoveries continue to progress.

WorldSBK Combined FP1/FP2 Results

WorldSSP

WorldSSP’s Friday story was less about one dominant rider and more about a class now rich in machinery variety. The front of the Superpole order featured the Yamaha YZF-R9, ZXMOTO 820RR, Triumph Street Triple 765 RS and Ducati Panigale V2, while QJMOTOR, Kawasaki, Honda and MV Agusta were also represented further down the grid.

Albert Arenas left it late to grab WorldSSP pole on home soil, the AS BLU CRU Yamaha rider stopping the clock at 1m53.142 to beat Valentin Debise’s ZXMOTO by just 0.015 seconds.

Albert Arenas came out on top in the final moments, the AS BLU CRU Racing rider taking pole at his home round with a 1m53.142. That was only 0.015 seconds quicker than Valentin Debise on the EASTROC ZXMOTO Evan Bros 820RR, with Roberto Garcia third on the GMT94 Yamaha YZF-R9 after looking a strong chance to claim a first WorldSSP pole.

The timing mattered in more ways than one. Arenas had only been ninth in Free Practice, but the team found enough in the hotter Superpole conditions to put him back at the front of the championship fight. He said the heat changed the plan from the morning, forcing both set-up and riding-style adjustments, but the work paid off at the end of the session.

Valentin Debise led briefly in the final minutes before Arenas snatched pole away, but second place by 0.015 seconds still kept the ZXMOTO 820RR firmly in the centre of WorldSSP’s machinery debate.

Debise’s second place continued the increasingly serious ZXMOTO story. The Chinese 820RR has already been a major talking point in WorldSSP this season, and Aragon again showed the bike has genuine front-row performance rather than simply occasional top-end speed. The second ZXMOTO of Federico Caricasulo was 15th, adding further depth to the machinery narrative.

Garcia completed the front row, while Can Oncu recovered from an early Turn 1 crash to qualify fourth on the Pata Yamaha Ten Kate R9. Tom Booth-Amos also went down at Turn 1 but recovered to fifth on the PTR Triumph, ahead of Alessandro Zaccone on the fastest Ducati Panigale V2.

That Ducati pace was particularly interesting through the speed trap. Zaccone’s Panigale V2 registered 282 km/h, the fastest top speed of the session, ahead of Jaume Masia and Lorenzo Taccini at 279.1 km/h. Arenas’ pole-sitting Yamaha was clocked at 273.4 km/h, while Debise’s ZXMOTO registered 269.3 km/h, underlining that the lap time was coming from more than straight-line performance alone.

Oli Bayliss was 10th on the PTR Triumph Street Triple 765 RS, continuing his stronger recent form with a 1m53.873. The Australian later noted that the feeling on the bike was good and that, while the top two had a little margin over the rest, he did not feel too far away. However, a six-place grid penalty for slow riding during the session means Bayliss is set to start Race 1 from 16th rather than 10th.

Aldi Mahendra put the second AS BLU CRU Yamaha eighth, Yuki Okamoto was 26th on the second Pata Yamaha Ten Kate entry, while Lucas Mahias, who had shown strong pace in Free Practice, was left 19th after a crash interrupted his Superpole.

WorldSSP Tissot Superpole

WorldSPB

New WorldSPB category delivers five-brand top six as Aragon Friday sizzles

The new WorldSPB category brought the most interesting machinery spread of the day. The Superpole top six featured five different manufacturers: Kawasaki, Aprilia, Triumph, Suzuki and Yamaha. For a class still establishing its identity, that is a useful early sign that the balance of performance between very different middleweight production platforms is at least producing variety at the sharp end.

David Salvador and Team ProDina Kawasaki XCI celebrate WorldSPB pole at Aragon, the championship leader taking his second Superpole success of the season by a commanding 0.523 seconds.

David Salvador claimed his second WorldSPB pole with a 1m59.433 on the Team ProDina Kawasaki XCI ZX-6R 636, more than half a second clear of Matteo Vannucci on the Revo-M2 Aprilia RS 660 Factory. Bruno Ieraci completed the front row on the CM Triumph Factory Racing Daytona 660.

Matteo Vannucci again put the Aprilia RS 660 Factory on the WorldSPB front row, qualifying second behind Salvador and ahead of the Triumphs, Suzukis and Yamahas in a diverse Sportbike order.

Salvador’s margin was emphatic, but the picture behind him was more complex. Vannucci again put the Aprilia on the front row, continuing the RS 660 Factory’s strong early-season form, while Ieraci’s Triumph Daytona 660 added another manufacturer and engine concept to the Race 1 front row.

Triumph had two Daytona 660s inside the WorldSPB top eight, with Bruno Ieraci third on the grid and Eduardo Bartolini eighth, giving the new class one of its strongest machinery storylines at Aragon.

The second row was just as varied. Fenton Seabright qualified fourth on another Triumph Daytona 660, Jeffrey Buis was fifth on the Suzuki GSX-8R, and Australian Carter Thompson took sixth on the Team BrCorse Yamaha YZF-R7. Thompson’s result was his best Superpole performance of the season and gives him a much better platform for Race 1 after a difficult start to the campaign.

The top-speed numbers also added texture to the machinery comparison. Ieraci’s Triumph topped the trap at 241.1 km/h, ahead of WorldSPB pole man Salvador at 237.4 km/h, while Thompson’s Yamaha was clocked at 238.4 km/h and Buis’ Suzuki at 237.4 km/h. Vannucci’s Aprilia, second on the grid, was recorded at 235.3 km/h.

Salvador’s Kawasaki ZX-6R 636 was the benchmark in WorldSPB Superpole, his 1m59.433 the only sub-two-minute lap in a session that put five manufacturers inside the top six.

Kawasaki depth was clear through the order, with Loris Veneman seventh, Xavi Artigas ninth, Alvaro Fuertes 10th, Antonio Torres 11th, Jacob Correa 18th, Roberto Fernandez 20th and Julio Risueno 21st on ZX-6R 636 machinery. Yamaha’s YZF-R7 was also heavily represented, while the Aprilia RS 660 Factory, Triumph Daytona 660, Suzuki GSX-8R and Kove 450RR all added to the class’s broader technical mix.

The Kove 450RRs of David Mogeda and Oliver Svendsen were 30th and 33rd, giving the grid another point of difference in a category that is already more mechanically varied than many had expected.

Salvador came into Aragon leading the WorldSPB standings, but without a race win to his name this season despite five podiums from the opening six races. His pole position gives him a chance to change that on home soil, while Vannucci, Ieraci, Buis and Thompson all have reason to believe they can make the opening race more than a one-rider contest.

WorldSPB Tissot Superpole

2026 Motul FIM Superbike World Championship calendar

……Date…….	Country	Circuit	WorldSBK	WorldSSP	WorldSPB
20-22 Feb	AUS	Phillip Island GP	X	X
27-29 Mar	POR	Portimao	X	X	X
17-19 Apr	NED	TT Assen	X	X	X
1-3 May	HUN	Balaton Park	X	X
15-17 May	CZE	Most	X	X	X
29-31 May	ESP	MotorLand Aragon	X	X	X
12-14 Jun	ITA	Misano – Marco Simoncelli	X	X	X
10-12 Jul	UK	Donington Park	X	X
4-6 Sep	FRA	Nevers Magny-Cours	X	X	X
25-27 Sep	ITA	Cremona	X	X	X
9-11 Oct	POR	Estoril	X	X
16-18 Oct	ESP	Jerez – Angel Nieto*	X	X	X

2026 World Superbike Championship Entry List

Rider	Bike	Team
I.Lecuona	Duc	Aruba.It Ducati
N.Bulega	Duc	Aruba.It Ducati
D.Petrucci	BMW	ROKiT BMW Motorrad
M.Oliveira	BMW	ROKiT BMW Motorrad
A.Locatelli	Yam	Pata Maxus Yamaha
X.Vierge	Yam	Pata Maxus Yamaha
Y.Montella	Duc	Barni Spark
A.Bautista	Duc	Barni Spark
A.Lowes	Bim	bimota by Kawasaki
A.Bassani	Bim	bimota by Kawasaki
S.Chantra	Hon	Honda HRC
J.Dixon	Hon	Honda HRC
S.Manzi	Yam	GYTR GRT Yamaha
R.Gardner	Yam	GYTR GRT Yamaha
S.Lowes	Duc	ELF Marc VDS
L.Baldassarri	Duc	Goeleven
T.Mackenzie	Duc	MGM Racing
G.Gerloff	Kaw	Kawasaki WorldSBK
A.Surra	Duc	Motocorsa
M.Rato	Yam	Motoxracing
B.Sofuoglu	Yam	Motoxracing
A.Iannone	Duc	Cainam Racing