WorldSBK: Nicolo Bulega wins on his debut at Phillip Island

Nicolo Bulega won his first WorldSBK race on his debut in a flag-to-flag race.

The 2024 WorldSBK season is officially underway in style with a brilliant opening race which allowed Nicolo Bulega to become a race winner. The WorldSBK rookie picked the right time to attack and pit in a flag-to-flag race. After pitting first he made a gap, allowing no one else to respond.

In Superpole, Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) set the fastest lap, claiming pole position for the opening race of the year on his WorldSBK. Starting in second would be another WorldSBK rookie, Andrea Iannone (Team GoEleven). Joining the Italians on the front row would be Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK’s Alex Lowes.

All riders would have to make one mandatory pitstop during the race due to safety concerns. The rear tyre will only be able to be used for a maximum of 10 laps, before pitting for a new tyre. It is a huge season for WorldSBK with a handful of huge moves in the rider market and a change of rules. On top of this, the race was reduced to 20 laps after the recent resurfacing of Phillip Island.

The lights go out

As the lights went out it was Andrea Iannone who forced his way into the race lead before the first corner. Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) went from ninth to second, before Alex Lowes pushed him down to third. Iannone and Lowes then began their dual for the race lead.

The field did not separate with Sam Lowes (ELF Marc VDS Racing Team) passing and making contact with Bautista – forcing the two-time Champion wide. This was the start of the Spaniard woes with a crash a handful of laps later at the bottom of Lukey Heights. Remy Gardner (GYTR GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Team) and Bradley Ray (Yamaha Motoxracing WorldSBK Team) would crash within laps of Bautista.

Toprak Razgatlioglu (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) qualified in fifth position in his debut with the German manufacturer. It was gloves off in the opening stage of the race – pouncing to third, battling for the podium positions.

Iannone led until lap seven when the reigning WorldSSP Champion and pole position sitter, Nicolo Bulega led for the first time this race. The #11 tried to bridge a gap before pitting, with Lowes making his way into second – continuing to battle with Iannone.

Different strategies

The top four bikes would pit with Danilo Petrucci (Barni Spark Racing Team) opting to stay out for another lap and lead on the road. All riders must change the rear tyre and spend at least one minute and three seconds in the pitlane.

After everyone completed their pitstops it was Bulega who led by over three seconds and tried to extend his gap. He led Andrea Iannone and Toprak Razgatlioglu who received a 1.225 second-time penalty for not meeting the minimum time in the pits. Bonovo Action BMW’s Scott Redding also received a penalty for not meeting the minimum time.

Andrea Locatelli (Pata Prometeon Yamaha) was the final rider in the lead group to pit, hoping to find late race pace. Locatelli caught the podium group and made a brave move for second place. This began a chase to catch the race leader, with Bulega’s advantage now at over three seconds.

Meanwhile, Locatelli’s new teammate Jonathan Rea (Pata Prometeon Yamaha) was battling down the order in 18^th. The six-time WorldSBK Champion was struggling all weekend, with issues continuing in the race.

Alvaro Bautista also continued his recovery ride, making his way to 16^th position behind Philip Oettl (GMT94 Yamaha). Bautista was consistently inside the 1:29s showing that he has the pace for Sunday.

Xavi Vierge (Team HRC) made his way inside the top 10 in between both of the Bonovo Action BMWs. Vierge was the sole factory Honda on the grid with Iker Lecuona declared unfit to race after a crash in testing.

Bulega makes history

Locatelli did everything he could to catch the up-and-coming Italian, but it was too little too late. The chequered flag flew, and Nicolo Bulega came across the line to become the seventh rider to win on their WorldSBK debut. So far, it has been a magical start for Bulega, topping testing, qualifying, and now the first race of the year.

Joining Bulega on the podium was Locatelli and Andrea Iannone who completed his first race in four years. Alex Lowes missed out on his chance to repeat his Phillip Island success of 2020 – finishing fourth. Rounding out the top five was Toprak Razgatlioglu who had a strong showing on his BMW debut.

Dominique Aegerter (GYTR GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Team) was sixth ahead of the second ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK bike of Michael van der Mark. Finishing eighth was Danilo Petrucci who had a strong race with Barni Spark Ducati. Rounding out the top 10 were Garrett Gerloff (Bonovo Action BMW) and Xavi Vierge.

Big names were outside the top 10 including Sam Lowes, Alvaro Bautista, and Jonathan Rea. The six-time WorldSBK Champion was outside the points, finishing in 17^th.

There is still the Superpole and Race Two to get underway on Sunday morning. The Superpole Race will begin at 02:00 am GMT, and Race Two at 05:00 am GMT for another thrilling day of racing.

Image credit: Ducati Media