07:35
Bulega a step ahead after day 1 at the Phillip Island WorldSBK test
Nicolo Bulega did eleven laps that were quicker than the best lap time, of 1m 29.636s, by 2nd on the timesheets Axel Bassani.
Nicolo Bulega, 2026 Phillip Island WorldSBK Test (Gold&Goose).
2026 Official Phillip Island WorldSBK Test: Day 1 - LIVE UPDATES
Live updates from the opening day of the Official 2026 Phillip Island WorldSBK Test.
After a winter tormented by bad weather, WorldSBK riders and teams will be hoping for bright sunshine as the final pre-season test gets underway at Phillip Island in Australia today.
Taking place on Monday and Tuesday, ahead of this weekend’s 2026 season-opener, the full grid will be in action down under – with the exception of injured HRC rookie Somkiat Chantra.
The 22-rider entry list, with the addition of wild-card Ryan Vickers, is led by reigning title runner-up and 2026 favourite Nicolo Bulega (Ducati).
The Italian has a new team-mate this season in the form of Iker Lecuona, with former champion Alvaro Bautista switching to the satellite Barni Spark Team.
Danilo Petrucci has left Barni to take over departing champion Toprak Razgatlioglu’s factory BMW ride, with the Italian joined by fellow MotoGP race winner Miguel Oliveira.
Moto2 title contender Jake Dixon (HRC) is another star rookie making his final preparations for 2026.
Andrea Iannone, who famously head-butted a seagull while leading the 2015 Australian MotoGP, is absent from the Phillip Island entry list amid doubts over the proposed ‘Cainem Racing’ project.
The track sessions alternate between the WSBK and WSS classes:
Phillip Island Test - Monday schedule (local time):
09:10-11:00 – WorldSSP Free Practice 1
11:10-13:10 – WorldSBK Free Practice 1
13:40-15:30 – WorldSSP Free Practice 2
15:40-17:40 – WorldSBK Free Practice 2
16 Feb 2026
07:31
FP2 top speeds
The official WorldSBK top speeds during FP2...
1 N. BULEGA - Ducati Panigale V4R 314.5km/h
2 I. LECUONA - Ducati Panigale V4R 314.5
3 G. GERLOFF- Kawasaki ZX-10RR 313.6
4 Y. MONTELLA - Ducati Panigale V4R 312.7
=5 X. VIERGE - Yamaha YZF R1 311.8
=5 A. BAUTISTA - Ducati Panigale V4R 311.8
7 M. OLIVEIRA - BMW M 1000 RR 310.9
8 S. LOWES - Ducati Panigale V4R 310.0
=9 J. DIXON - Honda CBR1000RR-R SP 309.1
=9 D. PETRUCCI - BMW M 1000 RR 309.1
=9 A. SURRA - Ducati Panigale V4R 309.1
=9 L. BALDASSARRI - Ducati Panigale V4R 309.1
=13 T. NAGASHIMA - Honda CBR1000RR-R SP 308.2
=13 A. LOWES - bimota KB998 Rimini 308.2
=15 A. LOCATELLI - Yamaha YZF R1 307.3
=15 S. MANZI - Yamaha YZF R1 307.3
=15 R. GARDNER - Yamaha YZF R1 307.3
=18 R. VICKERS - Honda CBR1000RR-R SP 306.5
=18 B. SOFUOGLU - Yamaha YZF R1 306.5
=18 A. BASSANI - bimota KB998 Rimini 305.6
21 T. MACKENZIE - Ducati Panigale V4R 304.7
22 M. RATO - Yamaha YZF R1 303.0
06:46
Phillip Island WorldSBK Test: Final Day 1 Results
2026 Official Phillip Island WorldSBK Test: Free Practice 2 (FINAL)
06:42
Nicolo Bulega fastest on day one at Phillip Island
With the chequered flag waving, Nicolo Bulega sets a new best of 1m 29.345s, for a final day one advantage of 0.291s over Axel Bassani.
06:39
Miguel Oliveira top BMW
Miguel Oliveira's final run sees the MotoGP race winner climb to 11th place with a mid 1m 30s lap, putting the Portuguese two places ahead of team-mate Danilo Petrucci.
06:37
Dixon puts Honda into the top 10
Jake Dixon delivers his and Honda's best lap of the day to move into ninth place, 1.092s behind Bulega.
06:36
5mins to go
Into the final five minutes of day one and there are plenty of personal best sectors showing for the likes of Sam Lowes, Yari Montella, Jake Dixon and Miguel Oliveira.
06:34
Lowes in the '29s.
There's a Lowes in the '29s now, but it's not Alex - the quicker of the twins for much of the day - but brother Sam, who jumps up to third place with a 1m 29.907s for Marc VDS.
06:31
... Another '29.6s from Bulega.
06:30
Bulega sets a 1m 29.593s, that's 0.193s from his best, but still faster than nearest rival Bassani.
06:29
Bassani is not threatening his previous best lap.... but Nicolo Bulega is back out and flashing up red sectors.
06:25
There's a lull in the action ahead of the last runs, but Bassani is heading out. Can he cause a surprise and topple Bulega in the closing minutes? He needs to find 0.236s.
06:22
Garrett Gerloff into 3rd
Approaching the final runs of the day and Kawasaki's Garrett Gerloff strikes first, putting his green machine into 3rd on the timesheets - between the Bimotas - with a 1m 30.015s.
06:19
20ins to go on day one of the Phillip Island WorldSBK test
Top 10: Nicolo Bulega, Axel Bassani, Alex Lowes, Lorenzo Baldassarri, Sam Lowes, Yari Montella, Xavi Vierge, Iker Lecuona, Danilo Petrucci.
Others further back include Jake Dixon in 13th, Miguel Oliveira in 14th and home star Remy Gardner in 18th.
06:17
Alex Lowes looked on course for a personal best lap, but pits and remains 0.859s from Bulega in third.
06:14
Axel Bassani into the 29s.
Axel Bassani makes a big gain and smashes the 1m 30s barrier with a '29.636s, that's just 0.236 slower than Bulega.
06:13
Into the final half hour of day one and both Bimota riders are setting personal best sectors.
06:11
A new best lap for Alex Lowes, who leapfrogs Lorenzo Baldassarri for third and is now less than 0.2s behind Bimota team-mate Axel Bassani.
06:07
Other riders, like Montella, yet to improve in FP2 are: Xavi Vierge, Garrett Gerloff, Jake Dixon, Miguel Oliveira, Alberto Surra, Andrea Locatelli, Ryan Vickers, Tarran Mackenzie and Bahattin Sofuoglu.
06:04
Lorenzo Baldassarri makes it an all-Italian top three, behind Bulega and Bassani, on the Goeleven Ducati.
The top six riders - Bulega, Bassani, Baldassarri, Alex Lowes, Bautista, and Sam Lowes have all set their best laps of the day in FP2.
Yari Montella, the only rider other than Bulega to break into the 1m 29s, is in seventh and half-a-second off his morning best.
05:51
Bulega's advantage
Axel Bassani is currently the only rider within 0.682s of Nicolo Bulega, but the next 0.682s covers nine riders!
05:40
Full Results: Phillip Island WorldSBK test - FP2 (Hour 1)
Results at the halfway stage of FP2...
2026 Official Phillip Island WorldSBK Test: Free Practice 2 (Hour 1)
05:33
New Monday best for Bulega
Bulega picks up where he left off on his opening run, punching out a succession of fast laps. The Ducati rider is now down to a 1m 29.400s, beating his FP1 time, and is 0.682s clear of Axel Bassani.
Nicolo Bulega, 2026 Phillip Island WorldSBK Test (Gold&Goose).
05:25
45mins gone and Nicolo Bulega heads back out.
05:23
Fastest for each brand
1. Nicolo Bulega, Ducati, 1m 29.590s.
2. Axel Bassani, Bimota, 1m 30.082s
7. Xavi Vierge, Yamaha, 1m 30.523s
8. Danilo Petrucci, BMW, 1m 30.763s
10. Garrett Gerloff, Kawasaki, 1m 30.824s
11. Jake Dixon, Honda, 1m 31.008s.