WorldSBK riders reflect on P.I. Test and look towards season opener

WorldSBK 2026

Phillip Island Test Quotes

Nicolò Bulega – P1

“I’m happy because, during this second day, we had the chance to try many different solutions. I liked some of them; others less so, but this helped us understand which path to take. We need to improve further in some areas, but the base is definitely good”.

Sam Lowes – P2

“I had a really good day. We improved the bike this afternoon and I started to find a good rhythm after doing a longer run this morning to understand my feeling with the bike. I did my best lap on the second run of the tyre which is positive at Phillip Island. I feel competitive. With the hard tyre I think we’ll be a bit closer and that’s the tyre that we’ll have for the race. The team has done a great job to improve the bike session by session. I still have areas we can work on but we’re in the mix.”

Lorenzo Baldassarri – P3

“Day 2 went even better than expected. We finally started working on the bike’s setup, finding some interesting solutions. Today I did fewer long runs, but I focused on studying some of my rivals and figuring out where I can improve my riding. I was fast all day, I consistently improved my lap times, and being third at the end of the day really pumps me up. We’ll see where the others are from Friday. We’ll try to improve even more because I feel like I’m just at the beginning. The new Pirelli tyre will also need to be tested, and then at the end of the day we’ll know what our real goal is. By now, I’m just enjoying the two past days and recharging my batteries for a few days before getting back on the bike!”

Yari Montella – P4

“I’m quite satisfied with these two test days. Both yesterday and today we completed two long runs, trying different set-ups and tyre solutions. We are also working a lot on the electronics to adapt the bike as much as possible to my riding style. Today confirmed the work we started yesterday; it was a good day with two positive sessions. We didn’t go for a time attack, we focused mainly on race pace and on finding a set-up that gave me the right feeling. In terms of time available and tyre allocation, the conditions weren’t there to push for a time attack anyway. I’m still satisfied. The team did a great job and I’m happy with how we managed the work on track. Now we’ll take two days of rest, then it’s time to start the first race weekend of the Championship.”

Axel Bassani – P5

“In the sessions, we are always around the top three, top four, and new were consistent. We tried some different things. We also did a 21-lap long run today, and the results were not bad. I am not completely happy because in the first seven or eight laps, I struggled a little bit to have a good pace, so we have to understand that. In general, the feeling is quite good. Every time I go out on the track, I have a good rhythm, and inside the box, I am feeling good. Now we will check some data because we have only had our first two days, after last year, and also with my new crew chief. There is a lot of work to do, but we are going well. We know where we can be, and I think we can improve a little bit for the first race weekend of the year. We also have to see how the weather is, because it always changes quite fast here. I think, in general, we are quite ready for the weekend. For sure, the race weekend is something different, so I think we have to start calmly and step-by-step, try to arrive where we want to be.”

Alex Lowes – P6

“We have done this pre-season Phillip Island test a lot of times in past years and it is easy to get crazy and over-excited – especially this year, with everything that happened in the winter and not getting that many laps in. We finished the Australian test with a bit more of an understanding of the bike. It is always strange here because you are testing in Europe on different tyres, essentially, because we have to bring harder tyres for the layout of this track. So the grip and how the bike works is a bit different here. During the test, we worked on the pace of the bike, a bit of electronics, and did some longer runs. The consistency was good but we are missing some things in a few areas. We were working really well in one place and sacrificing in another. Pere has got some data to look at for the next couple of days. He will piece it altogether and I think we are in an OK position going into the weekend. I think this is one of the better Phillip Island tests we have had, really.”

Iker Lecuona – P8

“I must admit that I am very satisfied, also because my pre-season basically only started yesterday. The feelings are extremely positive, both on and off the track, and for this, I want to thank the team that has put me in a position to work calmly, without pressure, but with the right concentration. We have learned a lot in these two days, and I am sure that we can continue to make great steps forward during the weekend”.

Xavi Vierge – P9

“Happy to finally be back on my R1 in good conditions, especially yesterday here in Phillip Island! We had a lot of work to do and we used these two days to recover time that we lost in the pre-season –it wasn’t easy to fix all in the available schedule, but anyway, I am quite happy with the work done. We have plenty of data now to analyse and to start the weekend with a very clear base – that was the goal of this test. I want to say thank you to the team because they worked very hard – we had some issues and they solved them super-fast, so very happy and now we go into “race mode”. Also, today with the wind it was super hard on track. We decided to make a kind of race simulation in what I think was the “worst-case scenario” in terms of the conditions, but even like this it was important for me to understand the character of the bike and to learn how to go through the whole race here. All the main things that we had in this test, we achieved, so now a couple of days left to analyse the data and then we will start the season.”

Garrett Gerloff – P10

“This is really the first test we have had all year because the previous two, in Portugal and Spain, were basically rained out the entire time. I am really impressed with my whole crew and the job that they have been able to do here. After almost no testing, then to arrive here and find – immediately – that I had a good feeling with the bike, it speaks a lot about the guys I have around me. Yesterday I was happy to finish fifth and today I think I finished up tenth, but I think I am in a good position. I have felt consistent and I feel good with race tyres. I’m looking forward to having two days of recovery and then starting the first race weekend of the season.”

Álvaro Bautista – P11

“We finally completed our first two test days together with the team. They were demanding days, during which we worked intensively to build a base with the new bike on a unique and challenging track like Phillip Island. On the first day the feeling wasn’t the best, but step by step we managed to improve it. The work with the team is progressing well, even if we still need to get to know each other better to understand which changes to the bike can help me gain more confidence and improve the feeling on track. Overall, I’m quite satisfied. Especially in the last outing we made an important change and I felt a positive step, which allowed me to start pushing with more confidence on this set-up. Now we need to analyse the data carefully and understand exactly what I need to further improve the feeling. I’m happy with the work done. Now a short break and then we’ll be ready to start the season in the best possible way.”

Stefano Manzi – P15

“It’s definitely been a thrilling two days of testing. I’m happy to be back on the bike and finally get some dry track time, although it was also demanding with the two crashes. Thankfully, I was able to get back on the bike both times, and I’d like to thank the whole team for the great work they did. We managed to complete some useful laps ahead of the race and made good progress. We know it’s a long road and there’s still room to improve, but we’re confident we can continue to move forward.”

Andrea Locatelli – P16

“This winter we didn’t ride a lot, so to put everything together was never going to be easy during these two days here at Phillip Island. We tried to get some feeling and a base set-up here – unfortunately, the feeling is not really amazing and we are struggling a bit. I am feeling a lot the bumps on this track which looks like the main problem, so we will look forward to try to have a solution for that and then we will see what we can do. I trust in my team and I want to be able to push 100%. We will have different tyres during the race weekend, so this can be also another option that is on the table – there are some things that we don’t have within our control. My motivation is high to be faster and we will try to do our best. It’s the first race, I know it’s important to start in a good way and unfortunately we are a bit in trouble but we will stay positive and look forward.”

Remy Gardner – P17

“It hasn’t been the easiest couple of days, but I knew it would be tricky here. I’m still struggling a bit physically, but it should improve during the week, so I’m staying confident. I’m happy we were able to finalise some work on the setup and try a few things ahead of the race weekend. We now have two days to recover and then we’ll be back, so let’s stay positive.”

Tetsuta Nagashima – P20

“Overall, the test was quite positive. We tried a lot of different settings, and I was able to understand things step by step. Session by session I felt better, and improving gradually like this is important. I can clearly see areas where we still need to improve in terms of overall set-up, including on the electronics side, but all in all we’ve found a promising base setting for Phillip Island, which is positive. This track is very different compared to the European circuits we tested at over the winter; I think it’s one of the most unique circuits in WorldSBK actually. For me, it’s also a matter of finding a compromise because as a tester you focus on trying many things and building a base, while as a racer you need to be much closer to the limit here. During the last session I tried to up my pace a little more and I felt better. I think I can do a better job this weekend. Lastly, I want to wish Jake Dixon all the best; I hope he can recover soon.”

Marco Barnabò – Barni Ducati Team Principal

“These were the first two days in which we were able to ride entirely in dry conditions. Yari immediately found a good feeling with the bike and we managed to carry out some positive work. They were two productive days. Today as well, using the tyre we will have during the race weekend, we completed a long run with an interesting pace. We didn’t fit the softest compound at the end to chase a lap time, but we are still very satisfied with the work done. Here, the tyre situation remains a question mark: the specific race tyre was not available among the options we had, and of the two compounds at our disposal, only one will be the same for the race weekend. So there is still something to understand from this point of view. With Álvaro we still have a bit more work to do. The positive aspect is that the changes we made to the bike during the tests gave us clear indications about the direction we need to take. For him everything is new, so we still need to fully understand his requirements and continue working with strong commitment. However, these two days were crucial; we have identified the path to follow and we are confident that we can make another step forward starting from Friday and further improve the situation.”

Pere Riba – Crew Chief for Alex Lowes

“After the winter tests in Europe, when it was raining, we could not confirm some items. That was our focus over the two days here at Phillip Island. We tried to confirm if we could go ahead with some quite big things. We did that, and it was quite clear that the results were what we expected. We also worked a bit with the new rear tyre that we will have for the race weekend. Alex did a good job, and we will have some data now. We are ready to start the first race of 2026.”

Uri Pallares – Crew Chief for Axel Bassani

“We started from the beginning with a really good feeling about the bike from Axel. To be fair, he is riding the bike really well. From the first session, things came naturally and very smoothly. We tried a couple of things in terms of balance, some hardware on the bikes, and we did quite a good test programme. As Axel and I have said many times, this is like a November test for us, as we have not had the chance in the previous winter tests to start working and spend time on the track. So, this is a good way to start.”

WorldSBK Phillip Island Test Times

WorldSBK Combined Times

WorldSSP Combined Times

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	Algarve Int’l	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