Nicolo Bulega was at the Ducati launch and talked about how his adaptation to WorldSBK was going ahead of his rookie season

With the Aruba.it Racing – Ducati team unveiling their challenger for the 2024 World Superbike Championship, it was a chance to see Superbike rookie Nicolo Bulega as a factory Ducati rider for the first time at a team launch. The #11 spoke about his feelings about being a rookie in WorldSBK, his impressive speed at the Jerez test last year and where he’s looking to make gains throughout the upcoming test days before the opening round of the season.

Bulega said: “It feels amazing. It’s a good opportunity for me. I know it’ll be a very important year. I will try to enjoy this incredible bike and team and try to do my best. We go to Spain for the first test of the year. I think it’ll be very important to prepare me and the bike to have a good feeling for when we go to Phillip Island in a month.”

While 24-year-old Bulega has tried the Panigale V4 R, he is still learning to adapt as he looks to make positive steps during his first WorldSBK campaign. Speaking at the team launch, Bulega explained how his lap time at the last Jerez test was set when he was “only at 80%”.

The Italian said about the previous and future tests: “I was very happy. My lap time was good, and my feeling was good. But I was only at 80%. I was very happy to be fast and to be at 80%. I think I have a very good package and team so I will try to bring out all my speed and talent. I have to improve everywhere a little bit because it’s a new bike for me. I’ve never tried a bike with so much horsepower, so I need to adapt my riding style to understand it better. When you ride this very fast bike, you have to understand braking points, how to accelerate and pick up, and you have to adapt to this bike. I think I have to improve everywhere and try to be fast.”