ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team shows progress at Cremona as crashes cost top-five finishes
BMW's WorldSBK riders found renewed pace at Cremona, with Miguel Oliveira reaching the top five before crashing out and Danilo Petrucci fighting through the field in both Sunday races.
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What Happened
The ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team made what it called an important step forward at the tenth round of the 2026 FIM Superbike World Championship at Cremona, Italy. After a difficult weekend at Magny-Cours in France three weeks earlier, BMW Motorrad Motorsport and the team said the hard work had paid off, with the performance of both BMW M 1000 RRs improving again. Miguel Oliveira (POR) was running fifth after a strong start in Sunday's second race, while Danilo Petrucci (ITA) impressed with strong comebacks through the field, and the team says top-five finishes are within reach again. Ducati's Nicolò Bulega clinched the riders' title early, a result the BMW team congratulated him on.
- Superpole: crashes and yellow flags disrupted the session; Oliveira qualified ninth with a 1:28.001, Petrucci 19th with a 1:28.932.
- Race 1: Petrucci finished 14th to score two points, while Oliveira crashed out.
- Superpole Race: Oliveira finished eighth in the ten-lap sprint, improving his grid position for the second main race, and Petrucci took 11th.
- Race 2: Oliveira worked his way into the top five after a strong start but then crashed; Petrucci battled forward with determined overtakes and finished 12th.
“Here at Cremona, we found our way back in the right direction, and the weekend gives us reason for optimism. With Miguel, we could have achieved top-five finishes if it had not been for the crashes. Now we need to continue working on making sure that he can convert this into race results. Danilo is also heading in the right direction, even though we are not yet where we want to be. The most important thing is that both riders are focusing towards the front again. That gives the entire team a boost, but we also know that there is still a lot of work ahead of us. Congratulations to Ducati and Nicolò Bulega on winning the title early. He is a worthy champion and has had an incredible season. We will give everything to make the championship exciting again next year.”
“It was really nice to race in Italy again. The weekend started with difficulties but we gave our maximum. In Sunday's races, my last ones at home, I made quite a lot of overtakes. The race wasn't the best, but I fought really, really hard. That's what I enjoy. I want to thank everyone who came here to cheer for me, and all the BMW crew who are always pushing – they're the best. I'd like to finish the season strong. I can't wait to go to the next race; we've been testing at Estoril so let's push there.”
“Cremona was a tough pill to swallow, especially race two. We had a really good pace and track position to achieve an excellent result. Unfortunately, in Turn 10, I took a little more rear brake, the bike started to chatter, and I couldn't stay on top of it. It's frustrating, but I think we're in a better position than we were after Magny-Cours, so that's already good. It would have been nice to go to my home race with some momentum from a good result, but this won't take away our determination to have a very good weekend for the Portuguese fans. I'm looking forward to it.”
- 620 points
- 151 points
- 109 points
BMW endures a difficult weekend at Magny-Cours, France.
Tenth round of the 2026 FIM Superbike World Championship at Cremona, Italy.
WorldSBK action continues at Estoril, Portugal.
Season finale at Jerez de la Frontera, Spain.
Why this matters
Cremona was BMW's tenth of twelve rounds in the 2026 FIM Superbike World Championship, so the team's improved speed on both BMW M 1000 RRs is the clearest sign yet that it has recovered from a difficult weekend at Magny-Cours. For the riders and the BMW Motorrad Motorsport crew, the weekend matters because top-five finishes are described as within reach again, even though crashes kept both riders from converting that pace into results. Two rounds remain for the team to build on it.
Terms in This Story
- WorldSBK
- The FIM Superbike World Championship, a motorcycle racing series run over a season of rounds at circuits around the world.
- Superpole
- The qualifying session that decides the starting grid for the weekend's main races.
- Superpole Race
- A short sprint race held on the final morning of a WorldSBK round that also helps set part of the grid for the second main race.
- DNF
- Did not finish — a rider who retires from a race before the end.
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