AUSTRALIAN ROUND | SUNDAY
February 22, 2026
PORTUGUESE ROUND | SATURDAY
March 28, 2026
The sun at the Autódromo Internacional do Algarve welcomed the first day of the second round of the WorldSBK, also marking the start of the European season. Ideal weather conditions, in stark contrast to those encountered during the winter tests, allowed the Barni Spark Racing Team to return to track with confidence.
In FP1 Álvaro Bautista worked intensively on race pace and bike feeling, completing 15 laps during the session. It was a challenging session for Alvaro, who nevertheless showed encouraging signs in terms of pace. After starting in the high 1:41s, the Spaniard progressively improved his references down to 1:41.0. He finished FP1 in P10.
In the afternoon the Spaniard showed strong potential, particularly in sector one, where he was the fastest rider. However, a crash between Turn 5 and 6 interrupted his programme, causing damage to the left side of the bike. The team reacted brilliantly, completing a rapid repair that allowed him to rejoin the session and continue his work.
Despite the incident, Bautista significantly improved his feeling compared to the morning, finding more front grip with the SC1 tyre and taking an important step forward in terms of sensations. In the final stages, he set a 1:40.476, finishing P6 overall.
#THERECONQUEST
ALVARO BAUTISTA
“It was a very busy day, as we didn’t have clear references on this track. This morning we started with a setup based more on feeling, without clear starting points, and I didn’t find the right confidence straight away, especially with the front. For FP2 we made a good step forward; we also tried the new front tyre from Pirelli, although we still need to improve the overall feeling. The crash was caused by an issue with the rear brake, which didn’t allow me to slow the bike properly and led to a front-end loss. Fortunately, there were no physical consequences. However, this situation gave me the opportunity to try the SC1 front tyre; the step was positive, with more grip and better feeling, allowing me to make progress. Overall, it was a positive day: we collected a lot of useful data to work on.“
