Nicolo Bulega sets out a stark speed warning for Toprak Razgatlioglu

Nicolo Bulega insists his red-hot speed at the Misano test can be improved at the race weekend - which would be a huge setback to Toprak Razgatlioglu.

Ducati rider Bulega has a 31-point lead at the top of the World Superbike Championship from reigning champion Razgatlioglu.

They shared the Misano track on Wednesday, Day 2 of a mid-season test, before the sixth round of the championship at the same venue on June 13-15.

Razgatlioglu broke the WorldSBK lap record and was set top the timesheet until the final minutes of the day, when Bulega posted a 1’32.093s lap.

If Bulega managed that on a race weekend, it would have smashed the existing record by quarter of a second.

“Honestly, it was a difficult day, we had some problems at the beginning of the day,” Bulega admitted.

“We solved most of them, but there are still some corners that I don’t feel 100%.

“I’m happy because I’m fast anyway, but I would like to improve. The speed maybe not, but my feeling on the bike could be better.

“The problems I was having were mostly regarding my feeling with the bike. I now feel 90% happy with the bike.

“If the track temperatures don’t get too hot, I think I can make it into the 1’31s range."

Such speed would be a damaging blow to Razgatlioglu’s hopes of retaining the title.

Last year, the BMW rider won all three races at Misano.