Second Italian Round On The Ho...

The 2026 FIM Superbike World Championship will get back underway soon for the bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team, as they make a second journey to race in bimota’s home country - Italy. The Cremona Circuit, in the Lombardy region, will host the tenth round of WorldSBK between 25-27 September.

This will also be a second home round for BbKRT’s Italian rider Axel Bassani, who will be joined by his regular team-mate Alex Lowes.

After the return to race action in France two weeks ago, Lowes is still well in the fight for overall third place in the championship, as he currently sits fourth, with a points total of 201. Axel is seventh as things stand, with 169 points, and is only two points from a top six placing.

Each BbKRT rider has been on the podium this season, at the opening round in Australia, and have subsequently recorded multiple top six results, despite their KB998 Rimini machine having two reductions imposed on it under the maximum fuel flow rate rules during the season.

Entering the Cremona weekend, Axel and Alex have recent experience of the relatively short 3.768km circuit, as they joined many of their rivals for a test session, setting some useful dry laps before bad weather closed in.

Friday 25 September at Cremona will feature two Free Practice sessions, then Saturday will host a short FP3, Superpole Qualifying and a 23-lap Race One. Sunday will conclude the Italian action, with a ten-lap Superpole Race in the morning and a second 23-lap Race Two in the afternoon.

After the Cremona event has been completed, there will be one free weekend before two back-to-back rounds complete the 2026 WorldSBK Championship campaign. The Estoril event will take place between 9-11 October, and Jerez will host the final round between 16-18 October.

Alex Lowes, stated: “It is always nice to be racing in Italy, especially being a part of the overall bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team project. We had a test in Cremona after the Magny-Cours round, but like all the testing this year, we also had rain. Cremona features an enjoyable layout, especially the first two sectors. It is tight and twisty, but it is good fun to ride. It’s something a little bit different, and a bit quirky compared to a lot of tracks. In sector three, which features some quicker parts, I was not very strong at the tests, so I need to work on myself in those corners. That will be my focus for FP1 and FP2 on Friday, and as always, we will do the best job we can in practice to get as much information as we can. Then we can enjoy the races and hopefully get close to the podium. I am really looking forward to it, and I hope to see a good crowd there.”

Axel Bassani, stated: “I am really happy to go and race in Cremona, which will be a home race for bimota and me. We had a test there two weeks ago, but we did not get a lot of laps because of the weather. But we gathered some data and found some feeling with the track. I do not know what to expect at Cremona, but I will go there to do my best with the team. We will see what we can do, and we are ready for everything. We have been working hard, so we will be really focused on these last races of the year and give our maximum. We will also try to enjoy every moment on track.”