Maria Herrera stormed to another race victory at the Misano World Circuit, securing her fourth win of the 2026 WorldWCR season in Race 1 and extending her championship lead. It was also a strong performance from Natalia Rivera, who recovered seven positions to finish 11th.
Following the morning Warm-Up session, Herrera headed into Race 1 in confident form. Starting from second on the grid, she immediately took the lead and showcased impressive pace throughout the 12-lap contest. Locked in another intense battle with Beatriz Neila (Ampito Crescent Yamaha), Herrera managed the race perfectly and held firm until the chequered flag to secure victory. Thanks to another outstanding performance on Saturday, she further strengthened her championship advantage. Having also set the third-fastest lap of the race, the championship leader will once again start from the front row in Sunday's Race 2.
Rivera also delivered a solid performance after lining up 18th on the grid. The Spaniard made an excellent start and showed competitive pace throughout the race. Fighting for a top-eight finish until the closing stages, she gained seven positions from her starting spot to secure valuable championship points with an 11th-place result. Rivera will start Race 2 from 12th on the grid and will be aiming to make the most of her potential on Sunday.
The Terra&Vita GRT Yamaha WorldWCR Team also maintains its lead in the Teams' Championship standings, now sitting on 210 points and holding a 12-point advantage over Ampito Crescent Yamaha. Both riders will return to action tomorrow, with Race 2 scheduled to start at 11:50 local time.
Maria Herrera – P1
"It feels fantastic to win again here in Misano. This is the team's home round and there were so many people supporting us, so it's great to make everyone happy with this result. It wasn't an easy race, though. The temperatures were very high and managing the race over all 12 laps was quite challenging. I tried to focus on my own pace and be as fast and consistent as possible. In the end, I found myself battling once again with Beatriz (Neila), and it's always a tough fight. I pushed as hard as I could and, fortunately, we managed to get the job done. I'm really happy with today's result and with all the work the team has put in. However, there's still one more race to go, so we need to stay fully focused. We want to repeat this performance tomorrow and finish the weekend in the best possible way."
“Race 1 was tough, but overall I think we can be satisfied. We made good progress with our pace, and I was consistently faster, even improving on my qualifying time. Most importantly, I stayed with the group fighting for sixth until the end. It’s all valuable experience, and now we’ll keep working to make more progress tomorrow and in the future, because we’ve shown we have the pace to improve further.”
"Overall, it was a positive race and we managed to recover several positions. Starting so far back on the grid certainly wasn't ideal and unfortunately I wasn't able to bridge the gap to the group ahead, but our pace was strong and we made a clear step forward compared to yesterday, which gives us confidence for tomorrow. I pushed hard throughout the race, although it wasn't enough to secure a place within the first three rows for Race 2. Even so, starting from 12th still gives us a good opportunity. If we can make a strong start and stay with the group from the opening laps, we should be able to fight closer to the front. We'll keep our focus high and continue working hard. There's still one more day of racing ahead and I want to finish the weekend with a strong result."
