Nicolo Bulega’s door to 2027 MotoGP seat may now be closed despite WSBK dominance

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Nicolo Bulega may be dominating the World Superbike championship just as expected, but it’s now difficult to see how he will land a MotoGP seat for 2027.

Bulega has won all six races across the first two rounds of the season, amassing nearly double the points of his nearest challenger Iker Lecuona (124 vs 68).

There have been strong rumours that Bulega could follow Toprak Razgatlioglu to MotoGP, particularly after the Italian filled in for Marc Marquez at the end of 2025 and joined Ducati’s test team.

VR46 move no longer looks realistic for Nicolo Bulega

Bulega has been strongly linked with VR46, having previously been part of Valentino Rossi’s academy.

While no official announcement has been made, Fermin Aldeguer is expected to join VR46 in 2027, effectively moving up the Ducati chain from Gresini.

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According to Speedweek, Ducati would like the other seat at Valentino Rossi’s team to go to Fabio Di Giannantonio. Di Giannantonio, who is contracted directly to the Borgo Panigale factory, has made an excellent start to the season.

With two pole positions to his name already, the Italian is the leading Desmosedici rider in the standings – even ahead of reigning world champion Marc Marquez. It appears he will deny Bulega a place at VR46.

Gresini’s potential 2027 line-up has also emerged

With Alex Marquez moving to KTM, Gresini will need two brand new riders. Despite holding talks with Honda, they are expected to extend their Ducati partnership.

Reports suggest Gresini will sign Daniel Holgado from Moto2 to fill one of their seats. After losing out on David Alonso to Honda, Luigi Dall’Igna will at least have access to his teammate.

Enea Bastianini is also heading to Gresini, rumours suggest, when his Tech3 contract expires. As such, there’s no room for Bulega at Nadia Padovani’s squad either.

Bulega may feel his journey in WSBK is complete if he wins the title this year, but unless he finds a way out of the Ducati stable – an immediate factory seat is out of the question – he may only ride MotoGP bikes in test sessions.