Winner of the first race this season, making him the first WorldSBK rider to achieve that feat as a WorldSSP champion, Nicolo Bulega has continued to impress as h💛e leads the championship standings after two rounds (s💫ix races).

Bulega has not only shown the type of consistency that rookies find difficul💜t, but the speed and ability to battle against established stars such as team-mate Alvaro Bautista and Toprak Razgatliogl🦂u has been extremely impressive to watch.

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Tipped by many to be strong as a rookie, Bulega has exceeded expectations as he look𒉰s to continue his current run🌄 of form at Assen.

“I think now is the best moment because I’m in a very goꦏod team,” Bulega told WorldSBK.com. “I feel stron🗹g on the bike, and I feel that I can be competitive; for a rider, this is very important.

“They brought me from Moto2 and I was in a bad moment. I didn’t enjoy riding bikes anymore, but they believed in me, and they g🍸ave 𓃲me a second chance.

“They gave me a really good package and bike, they alwa🌳ys believed in me and tried to give me the perfect bike every weekend.”

While discussing♎ his journey so far with Ducati, Bulega, to no surprise, intends to stay with the Borgo Panigale🌠 factory.

“It was very important for me to join this team two years ago,” added Bulega. “We are growing up together. I found a very good ⛎team, next year I will stay here.

“I will try to, I❀ don’t know about fighting for the championship, stay in front and then we’ll see. 

“I always say you have pressure when you’re in a bꩵad position, like I was two years ago. That time, I had pressure.

“When you’re in a good team, you have a good bike and when results are coming, you don’t feel pr𒀰ess🎐ure.”

While Bulega has joined the 👍Aruba.it Ducati team during a period where Bautista has not been his usual dominant🔴 self, being alongside a double world champion would be difficult for most riders, let alone rookies.

But Bulega hasꦏ maintained the stance that focusing on what bautista does is not his priority.

“When you arrive in a ෴new category, and your teammate is the world champion, they’re always the🌠 first one you want to beat but not for me,” began Bulega.

“If you asꦫk every rider, it’s always the same. Alvaro is a very good guy. We’re in a very different situation.

“I’m happy to share the garage 🏅with him because he’s very fast. I like it when you have a teammate who is fast because you want to do more.

“𒉰It’s nice to have a two-time w﷽orld champion in the box. Phillip Island didn’t change anything.

“I won just one race, Alvaro is a two🐼-time champion, so I have to learn a loꦐt from him.”

‘I already won a race, I would like more’ 

Bulega’s adaptation to WorldSBK has been arguably the biggest storyline this season, along with Toprak Razgatlioglu becoming a winner w𒊎ith BMW so early on.

Discussing his expectations prior to the season but also now that he’s becom🧔e a Superbike race winner, Bulega admitted they have changed significantly.

Bulega said: “I think that, at the beginning of the seaso🌠n, if I was in the top ten as a rookie, it was a good result.

“I already won a race so I wo🦋uld like to win some more. It’s too earl☂y to understand what I can do until the end of the season.

“I would like to stay in front in a lot of races and try to be on the podium. I 🌳don’t care too much about the final results because I’ꦯm only in my first year, so I want to enjoy every race.

I have no pressure because it’s my first year. I just have to learn. If ♎I can beat my rivals like in Australia it's ni🦄ce but if I can’t, it’s not a problem, because it’s my first year.”