Toprak Razgatlioglu's (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) character and presence in the paddock are hard to overstate. While you can almost always find a smile accompanying the Turkish star, don’t be deceived by his playful nature; at lights out, ‘El Turco’ shows race in and race out why he’s one of the most formidable riders the MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship has ever seen. In a special interview, the two-time World Champion discusses his move to MotoGP for next season, bouncing back from a tough start to 2025 and Magny-Cours, one of his favourite circuits but one he needs to bounce back at after a big crash last year ruled him out of the action.

THE FINAL CHAPTER: “My dream is to win this Championship again before moving to MotoGP… the WorldSBK paddock feels like my home”

Now riding in his eighth season in WorldSBK, the Turkish phenom has shot up the all-time rankings across the various categories, stamping ‘Razgatlioglu’ second in categories such as career wins, podiums and fastest laps. After the announcement of his departure to MotoGP for next season, ‘El Turco’ is aiming to leave WorldSBK as a three-time Champion but he needs to hold off Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing - Ducati) as this 2025 season comes down to the wire. This would put him level with Australia’s Troy Bayliss, one behind Carl Fogarty and three behind Jonathan Rea (Pata Maxus Yamaha).

On his objectives for what remains of his time left in WorldSBK, Razgatlioglu said: “My dream is to win this Championship again before moving to MotoGP. This would not be easy; we have come back from being behind, but I will continue to fight race by race. If I can continue winning races, winning the title again is possible, but I’m not focused on that. I’m focused on enjoying the races.”

He then spoke about his prospects in MotoGP: “Now I have a new dream, I will move to the MotoGP paddock, I hope I can also find some success there, some podiums and win the title there. It will not be easy, I know, I have big dreams there, but I still love this paddock. The WorldSBK paddock feels like my home; in career terms, it’s as though I was born here. We will have to see, maybe someday I will have to come back here.”

NIGHTMARE SEASON-OPENER: “At the start of the season, I couldn’t help but feel like this was not my bike; I was always saying this”

High on the success of their meteoric first season together, BMW homologated a new 2025 model of their bike, full of optimism that the upgraded setup and star riders could fight for a Manufacturers’ Championship and a Riders’ Championship. Their season, however, sputtered into action at Phillip Island. P2 in both the Tissot Superpole session and Race 1 were the highlights from a tricky visit Down Under. In the Tissot Superpole Race, Toprak fell to P13 as he appeared to have issues with his brakes, avoiding contact with his rivals. From there, things only soured as he finished Race 2 from the pits after more tech issues continued to plague him.

On his season-opening woes, Razgatlioglu said: “At the beginning of the season, we didn’t have a good start. I felt some technical problems at Phillip Island. I almost crashed in the Tissot Superpole Race because I couldn’t feel the brakes, and it sent me wide. I was lucky that I didn’t crash there because there were riders close by. Later, in Race 2, we had another technical problem and retired from the race. At the start of the season, I couldn’t help but feel like this was not my bike; I was always saying this. The 2024 season was incredible for me: the first year with BMW, winning the title, breaking many records, and the bike was working. When we started the 2025 season, however, the bike didn’t feel like it did last year. I was constantly thinking this, but I found that when I started to just focus on my job and forget about last year, I started to win races.”

FRENCH ROUND FLUENCY: “Magny-Cours is my favourite track. My first race in the WorldSBK paddock was here back in 2014, and I won the race”

Beyond just his staggering win tally at the French circuit, Magny-Cours holds special meaning for Razgatlioglu as he earned his first European Superstock 600 win there in his first race competing in the competition. It was also the circuit he took his first two WorldSBK victories at, from 16^th on the grid. With that in mind, currently sitting 26 points above Bulega, Magny-Cours gives ‘El Turco’ a tremendous opportunity to further entrench himself above the other riders in P1, while riding with caution as to not have a repeat of last season’s big crash in FP2. The crash saw him miss that French round and the subsequent round at Cremona.

On the French circuit, Razgatlioglu said: “Magny-Cours is my favourite track. My first race in the WorldSBK paddock was here back in 2014, and I won the race. It was incredible because I didn’t know the track, I was learning it during the weekend, and winning the race made it an incredible weekend for me. Last year, I crashed there; it was a big crash that prevented me from racing that weekend. I’m a little bit nervous. Maybe for this corner, I don’t need to push 100%; maybe I need to be a little slower there. In general, though, I still like the track; Magny-Cours is still my favourite circuit.

RESPECT AMONG RIVALS: Razgatlioglu speaks on ‘Bulegas’s progress

He followed up from Phillip Island well, landing a hat trick at Round 2 at his beloved Portimao. Bulega, however, has continued to give the Turkish rider fits. After capitalising early on the #1’s Phillip Island blues, Bulega earned a second hat-trick at Cremona, inching his lead farther away from the Turk. Since then, Razgatlioglu has wrestled back the Championship lead, but despite their rivalry, Toprak was quick to praise his Italian adversary.

On their Championship standing and the fight put up by rival Nicolo Bulega, Razgatlioglu said: “The team is working very hard, we’ve come back from second place, and we lead the Championship, but I’m not focusing on that. Bulega has improved a lot this year; he knows his bike’s potential. He is riding calmer, his pace is very good, better than last year. He’s also understanding better which tyres are better for him. Every race weekend, he’s very strong. If we weren’t fighting with him, he would be riding alone. If we continue how we are, it looks like the Championship will come down to Jerez, but this is motorsport; anything is possible, a technical problem, a crash, anything could happen to either of us.”

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