What a ride 2026 has been for Iker Lecuona. The Spanish rider (Aruba.it Racing - Ducati) finished off his phenomenal MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship campaign with a brilliant podium triple right at his home Circuito de Jerez - Angel Nieto, Andalucia. The #7 machine has every right to look back on this historic year with immense pride, especially given how rapidly he adapted to new heights.
Saturday's action at the season finale brought a P3 finish in the Tissot Superpole event. The #7 crossed the line just under half a second behind his 2026 Champion teammate Nicolo Bulega on pole, and around a tenth behind Sam Lowes (ELF Marc VDS Racing Team). They held their starting order through the first lap of Race 1, and as the leaders charged into the second half, Lecuona ran two and a half seconds behind the #14. He pushed hard into the final laps to cut the margin to P2 to 1.1s, but ultimately had to settle for P3.
I felt sad when I first heard that his MotoGP rumours are true, because he pushed me so hard,
Sunday brought more hard-fought action as Lecuona jumped into his familiar P2 spot early in the Tissot Superpole Race while Sam Lowes dropped back after a poor start. Lecuona laid down blistering pace, setting sub-1’38s times on every lap except the opening and final ones. From Lap 5 to the chequered flag, he actually set faster lap times than Bulega up front, though he still came up nearly eight tenths short of P1 behind the 2026 Champion.
The final race of the year saw Lecuona grab the holeshot at lights out, leading for the first five turns of Race 2. But at the heavy-braking ‘Dani Pedrosa’ corner, Bulega cut inside and blasted ahead on the brakes to take P1. The gap stretched to more than half a second by Lap 2 and over a second by Lap 4. Amid a torrential downpour at the circuit, Lecuona brought his machine home in P2 for the 27th time this season—a staggering tally that would normally dominate conversation across the entire WorldSBK paddock.
Reflecting on his Sunday results and the closing laps of the year, Lecuona admitted: “Saturday I struggled a lot, but Sunday morning, I found that changing some small details in my riding style helped me. I felt fast in the Superpole Race, and I recovered some time compared to Nicolo. In Race 2, however, he was much faster; he deserved it. At one point, the rain arrived, and the rear dropped a lot with the cold wind. I decided to finish the year in that position. I’m really happy. Like I said many times this year, this team changed my life. I was very happy riding that cooldown lap; I was smiling the entire time. I remembered all of this year. It’s been incredible.”
Sharing a box with the #11 was not without its frustrations as Lecuona chased Bulega’s dominance on the top step. Yet he credits that very battle for the monumental leap he made in 2026, jumping from just two podiums over four seasons to securing the fourth-most podiums ever in a single WorldSBK season. That intense front-running pace helped him claim a maiden win at Donington Park and a stunning maiden hat trick at Cremona, totaling four wins in his first season in factory Ducati red.
With rumours confirming his sparring partner's departure to MotoGP, Lecuona expressed genuine sorrow. “I felt sad when I first heard that his MotoGP rumours are true, because he pushed me so hard,” Lecuona said. “When I was angry, or frustrated, or sad about finishing in P2. He told me that he’s been there too. I’m in P2 because of how hard he pushed me. I’m very happy for him, he had an amazing season. We always fight, aggressively, but always leaving a bit of space for each other. Honestly, I’m not happy that he’s leaving just so that I don’t have to compete with him. To me, if someone is better than me, I want to work and compete with them. Both of the other podiums I had before this year were because something happened up front; this year, I won four races. I feel more sad than happy to see him leave.”
