Assen Weekend Overview
The third round of the 2026 FIM Superbike World Championship unfolded at the iconic TT Circuit in Assen, Netherlands. For BMW Motorrad Motorsport and the ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team, the weekend was marked by highs and lows, notably highlighted by Danilo Petrucci’s strong Superpole performance and Miguel Oliveira’s commendable comeback on Saturday.
Superpole Performance
Danilo Petrucci secured fourth place in Superpole qualifying, indicating his growing comfort with the BMW M 1000 RR. Confidence was high as the team looked forward to Saturday’s main race. However, a jump start resulted in Petrucci serving a double long-lap penalty, relegating him to an 18th-place finish.
Race Results
Miguel Oliveira started the first race from 13th on the grid and managed to work his way up to seventh, collecting valuable points. Sunday proved more difficult for both riders; Petrucci finished the Superpole Race and Race Two in seventh and ninth positions respectively, while Oliveira crossed the line in 11th and 12th places. The next round will take place in two weeks at the Balaton Park Circuit in Hungary.
Team Reactions
Sven Blusch, Head of BMW Motorrad Motorsport: “Assen was a challenging race weekend for us, despite arriving with strong momentum from Portimão. Several factors hindered our expected results. It is crucial for us to analyse the insights gained and address them effectively as we move forward.”
Christian Gonschor, Technical Director BMW Motorrad Motorsport: “Our objective was clear: to accumulate points. We partially succeeded, but our results did not align with our goals. Both riders showed pace that indicated potential podium finishes, yet execution and some bad luck prevented us from converting that potential into results.”
Rider Insights
Miguel Oliveira: “It was a tough weekend for us at Assen. The team worked hard to provide the best bike possible, but we struggled with our qualifying position, which made it difficult to optimise our results.”
Danilo Petrucci: “This weekend was chaotic. I felt good on the bike during Superpole but faced penalties that impacted my race positions. Nevertheless, we managed to score points and will focus on the positives as we look towards upcoming rounds.”
Facts and Figures from Assen
Superpole Conditions: Air temperature: 16°C; track temperature: 20°C; humidity: 59%; conditions: dry.
Pos.RiderTeamManufacturerTime
1.
Nicolò Bulega (ITA)
Aruba.it Racing – Ducati
Ducati
1:32.144*
4.
Danilo Petrucci (ITA)
ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team
BMW
1:32.921
13.
Miguel Oliveira (POR)
ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team
BMW
1:33.304
Current Standings After Assen
The riders’ classification after nine of 36 races sees Nicolò Bulega leading with 186 points, followed by Iker Lecuona with 117 points. Miguel Oliveira is currently in fourth place with 69 points while Danilo Petrucci is positioned eleventh with 41 points.
The manufacturers’ standings reveal Ducati leading with 186 points, followed by Bimota and BMW trailing behind with 76 points.
© BMW Group
