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The MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship returned to the track after the August break, with plenty of big quotes coming after the French Round concluded at the Circuit de Nevers Magny-Cours. We’ve gathered some of the best quotes from debriefs for you to enjoy, as riders reflected on their weekends in France.

Alex Lowes (bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team): “Three podiums with the new project just proves how well the bike is working”

Three podiums and a fierce fight with former teammate Rea in Race 2, Lowes said: “If we look back, Hungary was bad, but at Misano, I had a fourth, a second and then I was fighting for the podium again. At Donington, I was fighting for the podium. It’s not as big a difference as you think, it’s just the first weekend we’ve managed to put everything together. I felt like, at this track, there were parts we had some good advantages. Three podiums with the new project just proves how well the bike is working. Now, the target is to be competitive at more circuits; this is obvious and what we have to work on for next year. I feel like, in 2024 on the Kawasaki I rode really well and I’m still riding as well as that. I wish I was fighting with Jonny right at the front of the race. I don’t need to tell you the respect I’ve got for him. I don’t think, honestly, he really suits that bike, but you see the way he rides and the way he passed me into Turn 5, the front was sliding; from maybe 25 metres from the corner. If it was any other rider, I’d have lifted the bike up but because I knew it was Jonny, I just stayed there. He hit the apex perfectly and I had to try and pass him somewhere else. It’s a pleasure to fight with him and I’m his number one fan. More bikes on the grid would be better for us. In WorldSBK, you practice on Friday and race on Saturday, so the more information you can have, and then the guys to change that information into steps forward, can be helpful. It’s hard for me to say anything against Toprak and the job he does. We don’t really know the level of the BMW, there’s not many bikes on the grid, but I don’t think we can doubt the level of Toprak. I think if Toprak jumped on the Bimtoa, he’s winning races as well. Nicolo’s been fantastic on the Ducati when the window looks like it’s quite small. I think Toprak makes the window wider and that’s why he’s consistent everywhere.”

Toprak Razgatlioglu (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team): “Last year, I had a big crash at Turn 15… this was my plan, after a hat-trick, I’d do a burnout there”

Redemption for ‘El Turco’ as he claimed a hat-trick. He said: “Before I came here, the hat-trick was the plan, and we did it. I always expect Bulega to finish second if I win because he’s also strong. In the Superpole Race, if Sam didn’t crash, I thought maybe he’d finish second. After he crashed, Bulega finished second. I’m not thinking about the Championship. I need to win at Aragon; I’m focused on this. We tested there and the performance wasn’t bad. I feel I’m strong there. I’m just trying to surprise everyone. I know Ducati are very strong but I’m ready to fight for the win there. Last year, I had a big crash at Turn 15 and this year I came here and scored a hat-trick. This was my plan, after a hat-trick, I’d do a burnout there.”

Jonathan Rea (Pata Maxus Yamaha): “I could smell the podium for a few laps, which was nice”

Rea was at his combative best in Race 2 as he hunted down a rostrum. He said: “I had a little bit of fun! It was for a P6, but I could smell the podium for a few laps, which was nice. I got a good start and track position is everything with our bike. Riding with the competitive guys, I was able to understand where I was strong and where we need to improve. This weekend, I really struggled when changing direction. The first load of the tyre was always spinning coming out of all the hard accelerations. Coming out of Turn 3, it’s nice and smooth. I could hold the slipstream of Danilo, which was really nice. The last half of the race, I struggled with turning with my front tyre and had a few front slides and I thought, ‘I’m in a good position, probably my best weekend since my injury, it was time to bring home the result’. I registered my highest heart rate this season… I was at 215bpm max for a bit in that race. I was full of adrenaline and excitement. I’ve got a really low resting heart rate, but my max is crazy, even doing a bicycle race or motocross it goes quite high. I feel like I could have a conversation while riding but it must be adrenaline based and not just aerobic.”

Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing - Ducati): “If I’m not in that window, I’m not riding at 100%. The problem is that this weekend, we were in this window”

Three P2s for Bulega, who was despondent after Sunday’s action: “We tried a lot of things on the bike to improve but, in the end, we improved in one area and lost in another. It’s difficult to improve when you improve a small part and you lose more in other parts. The whole weekend, I was fighting to be a bit faster, but it was impossible. I had a big gap to first, and less gap but still a gap to third. It was the maximum I could do this weekend. There are very technical things to speak about the working window. If I’m not in that window, I’m not riding at 100%. The problem is that this weekend, we were in this window. This was the maximum we could achieve. I don’t know how to improve at the moment. I think Aragon can be a bit better because here, there are a lot of changes of direction, and the Ducati is heavy there. I spoke to Danilo during the weekend and every time we jump off the bike and spoke, we always said to Zambenedetti the same things like we were one person.”

Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing - Ducati): “At least nothing happened in Race 2 because this weekend has been one to forget!”

A difficult for weekend for Bautista, whose highlight was a P4 in Race 2: “On Friday, the feeling with the bike wasn’t good. We tried to change the setup from the last races a little bit, but it didn’t work. In FP3, I had a technical issue and I went directly into Superpole. That wasn’t good and starting from the back, you have more chance of finding some trouble. In Race 1, when Montella crashed into Iannone and Rea, I was behind then Vierge thought I was in the incident. He entered like nobody was there and hit me. The Superpole Race was funny because Bassani passed Iannone, he picked up the bike then Rea was very close to Iannone, but he picked it up very quickly. I was outside and my front tyre hit his rear tyre. Race 2, starting from the back and not having the best feeling, was very difficult. I climbed up to P4. It wasn’t too bad but it’s not the position we have to be. At least nothing happened in Race 2 because this weekend has been one to forget! I hope you enjoyed the overtakes like I did. I think it depends on what BMW did on the bike. It looks like BMW changed from day to night. At the start of the season, they struggled a lot and from Most onwards, it seems like they found something and found the way again. Ducati, believe me, the bike is the same especially because they are working a lot on the new model. The bike is the same as two years ago.”

Danilo Petrucci (Barni Spark Racing Team): “Nothing really worked this weekend; I was never on the pace for the podium”

A tricky weekend for Petrucci as well, but he remained P3 in the standings: “I ended up in eighth. We tried to have a different setup but it’s a short blanket; we fixed the front end and then we’re not good on the rear end of the bike. We fought hard. I started quite good. I tried to overtake as many guys as possible, and I was dreaming about the podium. I was watching the race on the screen, and I saw Jonny was too close to me. I said, ‘If Jonny stays like this the whole race, I can’t keep this pace’. I was using the rear tyre too much and in the second part of the race, I didn’t have any strong points. The only good point was in the hard braking area. Nothing really worked this weekend; I was never on the pace for the podium.”

Michael van der Mark (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team): “I think we had a good summer break, plus just starting the weekend fresh and getting things out of my head”

The Dutchman was fighting in the top five again, and he said: “I think we had a good summer break and a very good test at Aragon, plus just starting the weekend fresh and getting things out of my head for the future was nice. It all came together. We didn’t change a lot on the bike this weekend, it just felt good straight out of the box. In Race 1, I was overexcited about fighting at the front again and made a stupid mistake. At one point, I was smelling the podium, but I had to stay safe, and I finished in P5. It gives a lot of confidence to me and the whole team. Everything’s falling in place again.”

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