How Nicolo Bulega can win 2026 WorldSBK title in Race 2 at Cremona

This weekend’s WorldSBK Italian Round could see Nicolo Bulega crowned world champion for the second time in his career.

Bulega’s first world title came back in 2023 when he won the World Supersport crown with Ducati. 

It was that season that earned him a step up in 2024 with the Aruba.it Racing Ducati team in WorldSBK. After finishing runner-up to Toprak Razgatlioglu in 2024 and 2025, Bulega has enjoyed almost complete domination in 2026, taking all nine pole positions so far this season and winning 26 of 29 races, beaten only by Iker Lecuona in Race 1 at Donington before the Cremona round.

Lecuona beat Bulega again in Race 1 and the Superpole Race at Cremona, meaning the title battle goes on to Sunday's Race 2, the final race of the weekend.

Bulega came to Cremona with a 146-point lead, but that's now been trimmed to 138 points after the first two races of the weekend.

For Bulega to win the title in Race 2 at Cremona, he would need to have a points lead of 124 points at its finish. 

This means the Italian needs to avoid being out-scored by Lecuona by 15 points or more. Therefore, any finish in the top-five will do for Bulega regardless of Lecuona's result.

If Lecuona finishes second, Bulega would have to be at least 10th at the finish, and third for Lecuona would require the Italian to finish at least 14th. If Lecuona finishes off the podium, 

Given that since round two there has been only one race in which the two factory Ducati riders have not finished first and second, it’s unlikely Lecuona will be able to deny Bulega in Race 2.

Race 2 will be the first time the title has been fully in Bulega's hands. His worst result this season is second, a position he has taken twice already this weekend. The most likely scenario is that only a rare crash or a mechanical problem would deny him taking the title at his home round.

The factor coming into this weekend that has not been present all season is Bulega’s fitness, which is relatively unknown after a crash at Mugello while testing the 850cc Ducati MotoGP bike that saw him taken to hospital afterwards. There have been no reports of major injuries for the WorldSBK championship leader, but he has been off his usual form all weekend, crashing twice in Friday practice and being beaten to pole position for the first time since Estoril last October in Superpole.