Marron: Toprak has evolved as a professional, he’s very precise

Toprak Razgatlioglu is gunning for a first WorldSBK title this weekend and should he win will become the first ever Turkish champion in the premier class. 

Razgatlioglu has put one of the more impressive seasons together in recent memory and in doing so has put six-time world champion Jonathan Rea on the back foot. 

Razgatlioglu has over win advantage over the Kawasaki rider who is now his only threat for the title after Scott Redding was eliminated from contention at San Juan.

While others have made more than one mistake throughout the year, Razgatlioglu has so far been inch-perfect. 

Without being taken out in race two at Assen and two unfortunate mechanical issues in Catalunya and Portimao, Razgatlioglu might well have already taken the title, however, that’s not the case and Rea has done a phenomenal job to keep pace throughout the year despite struggling with his ZX10-RR at several rounds. 

One person who has been there every step of the way during Razgatlioglu’s journey at Yamaha and therefore getting an up close view of how he operates is crew chief Phil Marron. 

The 2021 season is just Razgatlioglu’s fourth in the series, but the second-year Yamaha man is already looking like a formidable opponent for years to come, something that has been greatly aided by his ability to ‘evolve as a professional’.

Speaking about the qualities that have put him in this position, Marron told the official World Superbike website: "Since starting to work with Toprak, he’s evolved as a professional in his preparation and his riding. 

"Now, when we analyse his data, almost all his laps are identical and he’s very precise on the bike. In the early days, it was difficult to find two laps the same. 

"The atmosphere in Yamaha is pretty special, the complete group works very well together and we are all enjoying racing. 

"Some team members get a little more nervous than others but with the racing in 2021, that’s understandable."

Since the beginning of the year Razgatlioglu has never wavered from his stance of not thinking about the title, instead racing for wins has been the only priority.

But with just one race left surely that has changed… "This is a little bit different because we're leading the Championship and Toprak doesn't have to go out and win it, but everyone knows what Toprak is like,” added Marron. 

"He's a racer and he doesn't like settling for second. I've no doubt that at some point this weekend, we'll have to tell him to think about the championship but I'm sure for Saturday's race he won't be thinking about the championship but just to win the race."