Nicolo Bulega declared Estoril WorldSBK demolition “one of the best” of 2026

Three more wins for Nicolo Bulega at the Estoril WorldSBK marked a return to form after a winless Cremona round, but the Italian thinks round 11 might’ve even surpassed his other dominant weekends from this season.

The Cremona round saw Bulega clinch the title, but it also passed without a single win for the Italian, the first round to do so in 2026.

Before Cremona, Bulega had been beaten only once, so returning to the top step in Race 1 at Estoril was already an important statement that the lack of wins at Cremona was circumstance-specific.

On Sunday, the dominance was as relentless as usual, winning comfortably in both the Superpole Race and Race 2.

“I’m really happy,” Nicolo Bulega told WorldSBK.com after Race 2 at Estoril.

“Amazing weekend again – one of the best, maybe, of the season because my feeling was good. 

“My pace today, Race 2, was incredible. Iker [Lecuona] was close to me at the beginning of the race, but then I continued to push and then my pace from half-race was a bit better so I could manage the tyre a bit better. 

“So, I’m really happy about my performance and about what my team did, so thanks a lot to them.”

Bulega’s Superpole Race win was his 28th this season, which means he broke Alvaro Bautista’s record for the most wins in a WorldSBK (27, set in 2023), while his tally of 664 points means Bulega’s 2026 is the most successful season in the series’ history from a points-scoring perspective as well.

Bulega has spoken frequently this season about how the records matter less than the wins themselves, but the Italian admitted after Race 2 in Estoril that he’s proud to have racked up so many statistics this season.

“It’s fantastic,” Bulega reflected. “It’s not that I don’t care – I care, it really makes me proud a lot to achieve records and see my name on a big list. 

“But at the end, for me, important is to win more races, so I’m already thinking about Jerez and, if I can make more records, even better.”