Nicolo Bulega’s dominance in WorldSBK continued at Balaton Park, securing his fourth consecutive pole of the season.
The Italian set another lap record in 2026, posting a rapid 1.38.094s, a time that’s over half a second quicker than the rest of the pack.
GoEleven Ducati’s Lorenzo Baldassarri secured second place on his debut WorldSBK appearance around the Hungarian track.
Yari Montella rounded off the front row with a Ducati 1-2-3, closely followed by BMW’s Miguel Oliveira.
Iker Lecuona was one of Bulega’s closest challengers on Friday, but will start in fifth after an issue on his first run.
Andrea Locatelli secured sixth for Pata Maxus Yamaha, followed by a trio of Ducati riders consisting of Sam Lowes, Alberto Surra and Alvaro Bautista.
Alex Lowes and Bimota rounded off the top 10 qualifying positions, lapping ahead of Tarran Mackenzie, Garrett Gerloff and BMW’s Danilo Petrucci.
Remy Gardner finished as the second-highest Yamaha down in 14th, ahead of Axel Bassani, Tommy Bridewell, and factory rider Xavi Vierge.
Mattia Rato secured 18th place, lapping ahead of fellow Yamaha riders Stefano Manzi and Bahattin Sofuoglu.
To conclude the grid, the factory Honda qualified in the final two places, featuring Somkiat Chantra and Jake Dixon’s stand-in, Yuki Kunii.
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