Ducati Sporting Club UK > News Items > Ducati Press Releases > Bulega tops Friday's timesheets at Phillip Island. Lecuona makes progress throughout the day to finish P8.

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WSBK | 20 February 2026

Bulega tops Friday's timesheets at Phillip Island. Lecuona makes progress throughout the day to finish P8. Tomorrow the first race in the 2026 WorldSBK season.

The 2026 WorldSBK season officially began today at the iconic Phillip Island circuit (Australia).
After two days of testing earlier this week, the first free practice sessions of the Australian Round took place this morning, illuminated by warm sunshine that ensured ideal weather conditions for the afternoon session as well.

As in testing, Nicolò Bulega finished at the top of both FP1 and FP2, working hard on tyre choice, including a productive long run that saw him lap consistently in the low 1'29s.

Iker Lecuona continued to make steady progress, recording the seventh fastest time in the afternoon (eighth in the combined standings), just two tenths of a second off the hypothetical front row.

The complete data analysis of the free practice sessions is available in the download section.

Nicolò Bulega (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati #11)
“I am very satisfied, especially with how things went this morning: the feeling with my Panigale V4 R was really good. In the afternoon, I didn't have the same feeling, probably because the asphalt was hotter. In any case, it was an extremely positive day.”

Iker Lecuona (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati #7)
“We worked very well, managing to improve lap after lap. I feel I'm starting to recognise the limit, and this is very important for making significant progress. Things went very well in the afternoon, and I managed to gain 3-tenths of a second compared to FP1. There is a lot of confidence: we are on the right track.”