Toprak Razgatlioglu’s ominous warning after BMW iron out “bad luck”
“I asked for a new seat position, BMW immediately made it," Toprak Razgatlioglu explains
Toprak Razgatlioglu is far more upbeat after an anticlimactic BMW debut - a potential warning for the rest of the World Superbikes field.
Razgatlioglu was hit with a time penalty en route to a P5 finish in Race 1 at Phillip Island, the first round of the 2024 WorldSBK championship.
But a mechanical issue on his new bike meant he didn’t finish Race 2.
After two days of testing his M 1000 RR, Razgatlioglu is raring to go at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya for this weekend’s second round.
“I like this circuit, just it has the problem of the grip,” Razgatlioglu said.
“In testing, we find some good setups. I hope this weekend, my feeling is good, especially with the grip and that I’m fighting for the win. It’s a very difficult track for everyone.”
Razgatlioglu warned that his team have learned from Phillip Island: “After some bad luck, BMW are working a lot; it looks like everything is fine.
“I asked for a new seat position, BMW immediately made it but I’ll use it at Assen.
“In the Superpole Race in Australia, Alvaro Bautista didn’t pass me on the straight; this is very good.
“In general, I’m very happy because the bike is very fast on the straight.
“In testing, I was worried because the pace wasn’t strong, especially on day two.
“Then, we found some setup, we had a good race pace in a 12-lap race simulation; all laps were in the 1’41s and really strong lap times.
“I hope we are in the top three or four but I’m ready to fight in the last laps.
“The target is to win, or the podium.
“Realistically, my target is the podium. It looks possible. In the race, if I’m feeling the potential for the fight, I’ll try to win because I’ve never won here.”
BMW look particularly strong on paper since teaming Razgatlioglu with test riders Sylvain Guintoli and Bradley Smith.
Ducati’s test rider Michele Pirro watched BMW impress at the Catalunya test last week.
“I must say that Toprak and BMW are impressive,” Pirro told GPOne.
“BMW seems to be the KTM because they are structured in an incredible way, exactly like a MotoGP team.”
James was a sports journalist at Sky Sports for a decade covering everything from American sports, to football, to F1.
