WorldSSP runner-up Can Öncü will join Pata Yamaha Ten Kate Racing for 2026, targeting the title after a strong debut season on Yamaha’s R9.
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One of the biggest transfer stories in World Supersport is confirmed! 2025 Championship runner-up Can Öncü will step up to the Pata Yamaha Ten Kate Racing squad for 2026.
Öncü delivered his strongest season yet in 2025 (six race wins, 16 podiums, and runner-up in the World Championship) all on Yamaha’s all-new R9, which itself took a blockbuster debut year by securing the Riders’, Manufacturers’ and Teams’ titles.
For 2026, the 22-year-old Turkish star now links up with the most decorated team in WorldSSP history. Pata Yamaha Ten Kate Racing have claimed 13 World Supersport titles and remains the benchmark reference in the class for championship craftsmanship and rider development.
Ten Kate is making this move to convert potential into a world crown because they do not sign riders merely to occupy a seat. They sign to win.
Öncü will partner with Yuki Okamoto, the 2024 Japanese Superbike Champion, who stays with Ten Kate for a second season.
The move also echoes history: Ten Kate famously elevated Kenan Sofuoğlu, Turkey’s greatest ever racing icon, into WorldSSP title glory. Öncü now hopes to follow the same path, and more recently, to mirror the Stefano Manzi→World Champion story that Ten Kate executed over the past three years.
Öncü said the target is clear: one position higher.
Ten Kate has the pedigree. Yamaha has believed in him since the start of 2025. The R9 is a proven title-winning package.
2026 will be the year Can Öncü makes his push for the crown with the most successful Supersport team in the world at his back.
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