Rookie Nicolo Bulega won FIM Superbike World Championship Race One – his career-first WorldSBK race – Saturday at Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit, in Australia. Bulega started from pole position, made his mandatory mid-race pit stop, and rode his Aruba.it Racing Ducati Panigale V4 R to a 2.28-second margin of victory in the 20-lap race.
Andrea Locatelli was the runner-up on his Pata Yamaha by Prometeon YZF-R1 and just held off Andrea Iannone, who rode his Team Go Eleven Ducati to third in his first WorldSBK race and his first professional motorcycle road race of any kind in four years.
American Garrett Gerloff went from 14th on the grid to ninth at the finish on his Bonovo Action BMW.
More, from a press release issued by Dorna:
Rookie sensation: Nicolo Bulega makes history with maiden win
Nicolo Bulega achieved a remarkable feat by winning Race 1 at Phillip Island on his WorldSBK debut, becoming the first rider to accomplish this since Alvaro Bautista in 2019.
After four years away from racing, Andrea Iannone made a stunning return, leading the race and ultimately securing a podium finish.
Despite initially finishing in fourth place, Toprak Razgatlioglu received a penalty for a Pit Intervention Time infringement, which dropped him to fifth.
WorldSBK Race 1 at Phillip Island provided thrilling action and historic moments with intense battles among the leading riders and strategic maneuvers during the pit stop phase between Laps 9 and 11.
Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) stole the show by claiming victory on his WorldSBK debut, achieving a remarkable feat as the first WorldSSP Reigning Champion to win on his first SBK race, marking an unprecedented accomplishment in the championship’s history.
Andrea Locatelli (Pata Prometeon Yamaha) displayed impressive pace and strategy to claim second place. Making a sensational return to racing, Andrea Iannone (Team GoEleven) secured third place after leading in the early stages of the race. Locatelli and Iannone completed an all-Italian podium sweep, echoing a milestone last achieved in 1993.
Alex Lowes (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) demonstrated strong competitiveness, finishing in fourth position, followed closely by Toprak Razgatlioglu (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK), who initially crossed the line in fourth but was demoted to fifth.
Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) struggled to find his rhythm, ultimately finishing in 15th position after a crash, while Jonathan Rea’s (Pata Prometeon Yamaha) difficulties persisted as he crossed the line outside the points in 17th place. Australian Remy Gardner (GYTR GRT Yamaha WorldSBK), encountered misfortune during the race, as a collision with another rider led to an early retirement.
More on worldsbk.com
P1 | Nicolo Bulega | Aruba.it Racing – Ducati
“Maybe it’s the best day of my life! It’s difficult to already believe it but it is something incredible; I was dreaming about this for many months but now it’s reality. I took pole position; I won my first race and got the lap record. It’s something special that I’ll never forget.
I started to cry a little bit and then, there were good emotions as I saw all my guys on the finish line and all my guys with a big, incredible smile. It was so nice for me. It’s incredible because this team is like my second family, and they always believed in me. When I came here from Moto2™, I was in a bad moment, but they kept believing. This is my third year with them, and we started in a very good way. I’ll try to continue giving them a lot of smiles. I’m ready for my first Tissot Superpole Race and I’ll try to do my best.”
