Can Öncü Wins at Thruxton: A Turkish Victory in British Supersport

Can Öncü added another remarkable line to his career by winning the main race with McAMS Yamaha in the Thruxton round of the Quattro Group British Supersport Championship. Racing as a wildcard in place of the injured Ben Currie, Öncü experienced both the track and the British-specification motorcycle for the first time this weekend; starting from 9th place, he completed the 18-lap race 0.260 seconds ahead of Oli Bayliss. Climbing to the top step by step within a single weekend at a track he had never seen before is the kind of performance anyone who has spent long years in this business would admire.

How Did Can Öncü Win at Thruxton?

The answer is partly technical, partly about character. Thruxton, with its fast and flowing layout in Hampshire, is one of the most distinctive stops of British track racing; the 7th round of the 2026 BSB season was held there. Öncü had never turned a lap at this track before, and the Yamaha R9 in his hands was a British-specification version, unfamiliar to him, of the machine he uses in World Supersport. In other words, when he went out on track on Friday morning, he was learning two variables from scratch at once.

The learning process showed in the numbers as well. Öncü, who was 9th on Friday morning with a 1:18.314, dropped to a 1:18.078 in the afternoon; on Saturday morning he closed qualifying 5th with a 1:16.932. That is an improvement of 1.382 seconds compared to Friday morning - a remarkable adaptation speed within a single weekend. Luke Stapleford took pole in qualifying with a lap of 1:16.177; the top 11 riders were 0.943 seconds apart, meaning the field was extremely tight.

Sprint: A lead slipping away at the final corner

Saturday's Sprint race revealed the character of the weekend early on. Starting from 5th, Öncü led for most of the race and entered the final lap in the lead as well. However, Stapleford smartly capitalized on his battle with Oli Bayliss and made a move at the final corner; Öncü had to settle for second. In sprint formats like this, nerves matter as much as raw material; the lesson the young rider learned here was clearly visible in Sunday's main race.

Main race: From 9th to the top

In Sunday's Feature Race, Öncü-competing as a wildcard, meaning he carried no championship points but shared in the winner's honors-started from ninth place and took the checkered flag 0.260 seconds ahead of Bayliss after 18 laps. To achieve podium potential both in qualifying and in two races on a track he had never ridden before is no small feat given the ruthless competitiveness of the British scene. Out-qualifying his teammate Harry Truelove, who was seventh, by 0.152 seconds shows just how difficult this was on a motorcycle he was introduced to only midweek.

What Does Wildcard Status Mean?

Öncü's appearance at Thruxton was a one-time wildcard invitation to the McAMS Yamaha seat vacated by the injured Ben Currie. His main program is to continue in World Supersport in 2026 with Ten Kate Racing under Hardline Nutrition sponsorship. This distinction matters: British Supersport is the feeder series of the British Superbike championship, a separate world with its own specifications, its own calendar, and its own ecosystem. The impact of wildcard races on championship points has not been clearly addressed in the sources; therefore it would be wrong to state anything definitive about this victory's effect on the World Supersport standings.

For the rest of the season, Öncü's trajectory is trending upward. The rider opened his season in Australia and claimed his first podium of the season at Assen; he finished the first race in the Netherlands third and won the second, completed the Czech round on the podium, and after a third place at Misano returned with a victory. He also finished the first race of the UK round of World Supersport in fifth place. So his performance at Thruxton was not a sudden leap, but an extension of a form built throughout the season.

The Other Numbers of the Thruxton Weekend

The full picture of the weekend is useful for putting Öncü's performance into context. The top four of the qualifying sessions shaped up as follows:

The same weekend, in the British Superbike main class, Ryan Vickers took his first victory of 2026 at Thruxton with Honda Racing UK, ahead of Redding and Ray. For followers of the Öncü brothers, this detail is not empty: having Turkish riders' names mentioned in both the feeder and main tiers of the British scene within the same week would have been unimaginable fifteen years ago.

Comparison with Deniz Öncü: Two Twins, Two Summits

Reading about Can's victory, one naturally thinks of his twin Deniz. The twins, born on 26 July 2003 in Alanya, started motorcycling at age 4 with their family's encouragement and raced together in the Asia Talent Cup in 2016-2017. Since then their paths have diverged: Deniz races in Moto2 with ELF Marc VDS and lost to Diogo Moreira at Aragon by only 0.003 seconds winning by a margin to become the first Turkish athlete to win Moto2; one of the closest Moto2 victories in history. Can, meanwhile, holds the title of the youngest race-winning rider in Moto3 history; he raced in Moto3 in 2019 and in the Supersport side from 2020 onward, finishing the 2025 World Supersport Championship in second place.

Deniz's 2026 Moto2 season has been full of ups and downs but instructive. In Indonesia, in the 17th round of the season, he started from 25th on the grid and finished 22nd; at Silverstone, he started from 21st and delivered a performance his team congratulated him for. In Catalonia, he stayed directly in Q2 and started from 16th, while at Motegi he put in a strong performance in Moto2. For Deniz, who has stated his long-term goal as "becoming a MotoGP champion," this is a phase in which the lessons learned in the middle ranks of the championship are converted into gains.

The Significance of This Victory for Turkish Motorsport

Having followed this field for many years, let me say this: a Turkish rider winning a main race as a wildcard on a track he had never raced before, in British Supersport, may look like a one-line entry on a career list, but it carries more weight because of the level of the scene. British series offer a tougher environment than most continental European series in terms of grid depth and number of races; developing a winning habit there is concrete evidence on the road to the goals in World Supersport.

Öncü's goal for 2026 was of course not Thruxton but the World Supersport championship with Ten Kate; at the start of the season his name was mentioned among the favorites at the Portimao test. The results at Assen, Misano, and the Czech Republic showed that this label was no empty marketing. The Thruxton victory, however, reveals this: this rider can manage to come out on top within a single weekend even on unfamiliar equipment. For any team boss, there is no clearer reference than that.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why did Can Öncü race in British Supersport?

At Thruxton, he entered as a wildcard for McAMS Yamaha, replacing the injured Ben Currie. His main program continues in World Supersport with Ten Kate Racing; the British entry was a one-off.

How did he win at a track he had never seen?

He spent Friday getting to know the track and the British-spec motorcycle; he completed the weekend by climbing progressively - 5th in qualifying, 2nd in the Sprint, and 1st in the main race - to achieve the result.

Where does Deniz Öncü race now?

In Moto2, with the ELF Marc VDS team. He holds the title of being the first Turkish athlete to win Moto2, and his long-term goal is the MotoGP championship.

The picture that emerged at Thruxton can be summed up as follows: a Turkish rider who entered the weekend from scratch, learned his lesson at the last corner on Saturday, and on Sunday was the best of his class. The most productive story of Turkish motorsport in recent years, this brothers' story is still being written.

Sources

• Can Öncü finished first in British Supersport
• Can Öncü Won at Thruxton: Started from 9th Place and Won the Main Race
• Stapleford Took Pole at Thruxton, Can Öncü Completed Qualifying in 5th
• Can Öncü Surprise: He Will Take to the Track at Thruxton
• Vickers victorious in Thruxton dogfight
• ZYN British Superbike Championship - Thruxton Racing
• Deniz Öncü finished the Moto2 Indonesia race in 22nd place
• The motorcycle "Öncü brothers" are riding to the top
• Who Is Can Öncü? WorldSSP Runner-Up
• Can Öncü at the Top in the Netherlands