Miguel Oliveira concluded that his debut WorldSBK outing showed progression despite starting from the back in all three races.
The BMW rider crashed on his first hot lap of Saturday’s 15-minute Superpole session at Turn 2 after suffering an electronics issue, preventing him from setting a time.
After starting from the back, Oliveira finished eighth, 18th and seventh across the three races, and was on course for another top-10 result in Sunday’s shorter race before a late gear-shifting issue.
He ultimately saw improvement despite a difficult season opener and limited pre-season testing, which disrupted his transition from prototype machinery to Superbikes.
“For sure, the progress is there,” he said to WorldSBK.
“I’ve shown more speed, I’m better with the bike, and I’ve ridden in probably every condition now. I did two different races: a full wet race and a full dry race. I also came from the back of the grid.
“Now we just need to fix that qualifying, which I’m sure we’ll do it in Portimao, and see what our potential is starting far more up in the front of the grid.”
Oliveira said the treacherous final-race conditions strengthened both him and team-mate Danilo Petrucci, as BMW head into 2026 with an all-new pairing.
Despite posting his best result of the weekend, the 31-year-old described the conditions as a huge challenge and was glad to keep the bike upright.
“In Race 2, we had another chance to go for points, and I did that,” he shared.
“Danilo and I worked really well together, even racing a bit together; it was a question of the ‘proud teammate’ and who would finish in front of whom.
“Danilo got the better of me in Race 2, but we should be able to move forward from here. I have to say, making that comeback in the full wet conditions from all the way in the back was the hardest thing I had to do because visibility was so poor.
“We managed to stay on the bike, which was already an accomplishment in itself, and finishing P7 is something we have to be happy about.
“We were really close to Danilo; it’s not the place we want to be, but we have to be happy about it.”
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