Misano Superpole: Debise Puts ZXMOTO on the Front Row as Oncu Claims Pole

Friday at the Misano World Circuit brought exactly the kind of session that can define an entire weekend. In the closing moments of WorldSSP Superpole, the top three riders were separated by barely more than a tenth of a second, and ZXMOTO's Valentin Debise emerged right in the middle of that fight.

Can Oncu secured pole position with a best lap of 1:36.755, while championship leader Albert Arenas followed just 0.100 seconds behind. Debise, representing EASTROC ZXMOTO Factory Evan Bros Racing, completed the front row at only 0.114 seconds off the top spot. For a team still establishing itself among the category's elite, that was another strong confirmation that the 820RR-RS belongs at the front.

A Session Interrupted, Then Decided

The session was not straightforward. Late in Superpole, Hector Garzo crashed at high speed and brought out the red flag, leaving the entire field with only a short dash after the restart to improve their times. That kind of pressure can easily punish a rider who overreaches, but Debise remained composed.

Instead of forcing the issue, the Frenchman delivered a measured final effort that preserved third place on the grid. It was not pole, but it was exactly the kind of qualifying performance the team needed after the difficult Aragon weekend, where race pace never fully matched starting position.

WorldSBK's official report highlighted the significance of the result: Debise returned to the front row for the third consecutive round, placing ZXMOTO directly in the middle of the championship fight from the opening metres.

What It Meant for ZXMOTO

Coming into Misano, Debise sat second in the riders' standings after a frustrating Aragon, where two eighth-place finishes limited the damage but widened the gap to Arenas. A front-row start in Italy immediately shifted the tone of the weekend. It suggested that the ZXMOTO package had recovered the sharpness that delivered wins in Portugal, Hungary and Most.

Debise's advantage has never been raw aggression alone. Over the course of 2026, he has repeatedly shown that he can manage tyre life, wait for the right opening, and still produce the decisive attack when it matters. That trait mattered even more at Misano, where hot conditions and close lap times promised a tactical Race 1.

For ZXMOTO, the wider message was simple: after six rounds, this was no longer a team hoping for chaos to deliver results. It had become a genuine front-row regular.

Saturday Opportunity

With Oncu on pole, Arenas second and Debise third, Race 1 promised a direct confrontation between three of the fastest riders in the category. The positioning also mattered strategically. Starting ahead of riders like Oettl, Zaccone and Booth-Amos reduced the risk of being trapped in a dense midfield battle at the opening corners.

Misano had already given ZXMOTO a clean platform. The only remaining question was whether the team could convert that pace into points, podiums, or something even bigger.