Civ 2026 opens in Misano with a first day full of themes: Delbianco dominates in Superbike ahead of the surprising Giannini and Pirro, confirming the value of the new formula closer to production. Zannoni wins in Supersport, Bianchi signs the Sportbike ahead of a brilliant Ieraci, while the new Moto4 debuts with Rizzi’s success by just one thousandth. In Moto3 Perez draws a blank, but the fight remains close behind him. A start that confirms the numbers, quality and technical variety of the Italian championship
The 2026 Italian Speed Championship restarted from Misano with a first day that confirmed the increasingly central importance of Civ in the national and international speed panorama. The Arrow round, hosted by the Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli, opened a particularly rich season: 130 riders at the start, five championship categories, the Women’s Civ and a program completed by the Aprilia, Ducati and Suzuki trophies. Important numbers, but above all a precise technical and sporting signal: the speed tricolor continues to be a fundamental transition point between the training championships, the derivatives from the series and professional motorcycling.
38 on the grid for the superbike
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The category that most of all captures this phase is Superbike. The premier class showed up at Misano with a grid of 38 entries, a figure that alone speaks to the success of the new formula. There is not only the recall effect linked to return to the Civ of Michael Ruben Rinaldi, protagonist of the Superbike World Championship in recent years and now at the start with the Ducati of the B-Max Racing Team. There is also a regulation that has brought the category back towards bikes closer to production, with the absorption of the Production Bike philosophy and a technical management designed to contain costs and rebalance performance. The new 2026 Superbike is in fact reserved for basic models, with the exclusion of the more specialized versions such as the Ducati Panigale V4 R or Yamaha R1 M. The unique MoTec control unit has disappearedreplaced by electronic kits approved by individual manufacturers, while the Balance of Performance allows the Federation to intervene on minimum weight and maximum rotation speed to maintain a more balanced comparison. It is a choice that has made the grid more accessible, but also more interesting for the manufacturers: Ducati, Yamaha, Aprilia, Honda, BMW and Kawasaki are represented at Misano, with a technical level that has immediately raised the bar.
names that matter
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Qualifying had already revealed a high-profile Superbike. Alessandro Delbianco, reigning champion, confirmed his role as a reference by conquering pole position with the Yamaha of Dmr Racing thanks to a time of 1’34″943, which remained unbeaten even after the second session. Next to him on the front row were Michael Ruben Rinaldi, immediately competitive with the Ducati of Team B-Max Racing, and Michele Pirro, third with the Ducati of Garage51 by Dto, in what also represents a new phase of his sporting career. In the second row Gabriele Giannini led the Honda of Scuderia Improve Firenze Motor ahead of Samuele Cavalieri, while Riccardo Russo completed the group of top six with the BMW.
superbike: delbianco leaves and greets everyone
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In the race, however, there wasn’t the expected battle for victory. Delbianco took the lead from the start and never relinquished it, transforming pole into a test of strength. Thirteen laps in control, without giving any real chances to their opponents, and the first success of the season with a 4″738 margin. Yamaha Dmr Racing left Misano with a very clear message: the reigning champion remains the reference for the Italian Superbike. The most significant surprise came behind him, where Gabriele Giannini took the Honda of Scuderia Improve Firenze Motor to second place. He had already been fast in qualifying, but the result in the race weighs more, because it confirms that the new Superbike can really open up space for different technical values compared to the past. Third was Michele Pirro, with the Ducati, while Rinaldi finished fourth. For him, the debut was positive, but less incisive than the expectations created by the tests and the front row. Behind the first four, Christian Gamarino took the BMW of the Sisma Racing Team to fifth place, preceding Samuele Cavalieri with the Ducati Broncos by just 271 thousandths. Kevin Manfredi finished seventh with the Ducati of the Atomico Racing Team, in front of Luca Ottaviani, eighth with another Honda, who confirms the competitiveness of the Japanese manufacturer at this start of the season. Ninth position for Luca Vitali with the Aprilia of the Vitali Racing Team, tenth Emanuele Pusceddu with the BMW of the Axon Seven Team. The race soon lost some protagonists. Gabriele Ruiu stopped already on the first lap, Lorenzo Gabellini on the second, while Riccardo Russo, who started from the sixth place, stopped. retired on the seventh lap. This also affected the reading of the top ten, because it removed a BMW from the leading group that could have entered the fight for the important positions.
the fanged supersport
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Supersport also confirmed the indications from qualifying, with Kevin Zannoni capable of transforming pole into victory. The Broncos Racing Team driver built on the success lap after lap, closing the 13 laps in 21’26″021 and also signing the fastest lap right on the last lap, in 1’38″098. The result is clear in substance, but not in the gaps, because Niccolò Antonelli and Lorenzo Dalla Porta remained close enough to keep the race alive until the checkered flag. Antonelli finished second with the Yamaha of the Altogo Racing Team at 375 thousandths, while Dalla Porta completed the podium with the Yamaha Promodriver at 580 thousandths from the winner. Three riders in just over half a second, enough to say that the 2026 Supersport starts with a hierarchy, but not with an absolute master. Behind them, Andrea Mantovani finished fourth, ahead of Glenn van Straalen and Biagio Miceli, separated by just 29 thousandths. The race also had episodes that affected the rankings. Stefano Valtulini, fourth on the grid, didn’t even start due to a technical problem on the warm-up lap. Julio Garcia had to deal with technical problems before retiring, while Jarno Ioverno and Gabriele Mastroluca also retired.
sportbike: perfect whites
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The Sportbike confirms itself as one of the most interesting categories of the new Civ. In terms of numbers, balance and proximity to medium-sized sports cars, it represents an ideal terrain for young drivers, already experienced names and manufacturers interested in valorising products close to the series. At Misano Filippo Bianchi completed a practically perfect weekend, with pole position, victory and race management that allowed him to finish ahead of everyone on the Aprilia of the Mmp Velocita team. Behind him was Bruno Ieraci. The Triumph rider had been the surprise of qualifying, after having climbed up to fourth position on the grid, and in the race he confirmed everything with second place and a fastest lap of 1’42″104 on the eleventh lap. Bianchi won with a margin of 572 thousandths, but Ieraci demonstrated that he could be much more than an outsider. Third was Alfonso Coppola, also on an Aprilia Mmp Velocita, at 10″128: a result that confirms the strength of the team, only partially interrupted by the inclusion of Ieraci between the two bikes. Fourth was Loris Pedrotti on the Aprilia of Gradara Corse, fifth was Ivan Spada, again on an Aprilia, demonstrating a very favorable start for the RS 660 in the new category. The most competitive part of the race, however, was the immediately following one. Giacomo Zannoni, Samuel Di Sora, Manuel Rocca, Unai Calatayud and Mattia Virone finished from sixth to tenth place within less than eight tenths. It is there that the Sportbike showed its most interesting potential, not only the fight for victory, but a continuous position war, with five riders and three different brands fighting for important points until the end. Even in this category there were episodes that influenced the final ranking. Emiliano Ercolani, second on the grid, crashed at turn 13 on the fifth lap, the same passage where Romano and Di Napoli also retired. Fabbri, Trubia and Schepis were also out, while Federico Iacoi, who started fifth, only finished fourteenth after a race complicated by four laps canceled due to track limits at turn 15 and a one-position penalty on the last lap.
moto4: rizzi for a thousandth
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The debut of Moto4, the new name of Premoto3, could not have been more spectacular. The category, aligned with the international structure linked to Dorna and designed as the first training step towards professionalism, opened its season with a sprint determined by a thousandth of a second. Luca Rizzi, with We Race PosCorse, won in 21’38”659 ahead of Mathias Tamburini, second in 21’38”660. The finale was even more particular because Tamburini had finished first in the provisional results, but then received a one-position penalty for an episode at turn 14. The victory thus went to Rizzi, while the podium was completed by Stefano Salvetti with the Buccimoto Factory, third at 9″285. The race lost poleman Edoardo Savino on the last lap, who fell at turn 14 while he was recovering. A heavy episode, because it took him out of the scene one of the most anticipated protagonists of the weekend. Bartolomeo Roberto and Lorenzo Fino also retired, falling at turn 15, while Nicolò Sorbino, initially at the finish line, was then excluded due to a technical irregularity.
moto3: perez clears the air
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Moto3 remains on the Civ calendar, although with smaller numbers compared to the past and in contrast to many European national championships, where the category has now disappeared or has been replaced by more accessible formulas. At Misano the point of reference for qualifying was Vicente Perez Selfa, who returned with the GP Project 2Wheels and was immediately ahead of everyone. Behind him, Matteo Masili and Valentino Sponga stood out. Race 1 confirmed the prediction of the day before with the success of the Spaniard Vicente Perez, who after the pole position transformed the first race of the season into a test of strength, followed by two compatriots. The GP Project 2 Wheels rider, riding the 2WheelsPoliTO, closed the 12 laps in 20’34″002, gradually gaining a margin over his pursuers and leaving the battle for the positions of honor to the others. Behind him the race was much more competitive. Victor Cubeles, with the BeOn of the Sgm Tecnic team, finished second at 7″043, but had to defend the position until the end from Pablo Olivares Rodriguez, third with the other 2WheelsPoliTO of GP Project 2 Wheels, trailing by just 177 thousandths. A little further back, Matteo Masili took the MR Racing Team Honda to fourth place, preceding Valentino Sponga by just 57 thousandths. Four riders within less than a second from second to fifth place: that’s where the race retained its liveliest interest, while Perez had now built the victory. Sixth was Enrico Dal Bosco with the BeOn of SM Corse – Gea Motorsport, ahead of Mirko Gennai, seventh with the bike of the Polimi (Milan Polytechnic) Motorcycle Factory. Even with smaller numbers compared to other categories, the Italian Moto3 thus retains an interesting technical value, between university projects, lightweight prototypes and riders already capable of racing at very similar paces.
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