Toprak Razgatlioglu (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team), a two-time title winner in the MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship, will move to MotoGP next season after signing a contract with Prima Pramac Racing to race their Yamaha M1 machines. ‘El Turco’ will once again be a Yamaha rider, having won the 2021 WorldSBK title with the Japanese brand and getting his first taste of MotoGP machinery after that, before his shock move to BMW for 2024 where he won the second of his two titles in WorldSBK.

TOPRAK’S RISE THROUGH THE PADDOCK: STK600 Champion, STK1000 runner-up

Razgatlioglu made a name for himself in 2014 when he made a one-off appearance in STK600 at Magny-Cours, winning the race. He returned for 2015 and dominated the season, winning five races and standing on the rostrum in all seven races, as he claimed the title before earning a move to STK1000 for 2016. He was fifth in his second season before finishing as runner-up in 2017 with three wins and five podiums in eight races; he was beaten to the title by Michael Rinaldi. However, he had still done enough to secure a ride in WorldSBK with Kawasaki Puccetti Racing, who he raced for in STK1000.

FIRST TWO SEASONS IN WORLD SUPERBIKE: podiums in his first year, wins in his second

‘El Turco’ wasted no time in getting up to speed on the Kawasaki ZX-10RR, taking his first podium at Donington Park with P2 and his second in Argentina with P3. He finished that season ninth in the standings before improving to fifth in 2019 – when he claimed his first two wins at Magny-Cours, taking P1 in Race 1 and the Tissot Superpole Race from 16^th on the grid. In total, he finished with 13 rostrums in his second season, before making the move to Yamaha for 2020.

SUCCESS AT YAMAHA: winning his first race in blue, taking the 2021 title

It didn’t take long for the Turkish superstar to be up to speed on the Yamaha R1 in 2020, winning his first race in blue at Phillip Island – a circuit that isn’t his strongest – while he ended the year with two more wins at Estoril. In 2021, he upped his game in terms of consistency, winning 13 races out of 37 and taking a remarkable 29 podiums as he beat six-time Champion Jonathan Rea (Pata Maxus Yamaha), then riding for the Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK, and Scott Redding (MGM BONOVO Racing), a Ducati factory rider at the time, to the title. More wins in 2022 than 2021 followed – 14 compared to 13 – as he relinquished his crown to Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing - Ducati), before he finished second again in 2023. Following his 2021 success, Razgatlioglu got a couple of runs on the Yamaha MotoGP machine, first at Aragon in 2022 and then at Jerez in 2023.

THE BOMBSHELL MOVE: moving from the R1 to the M 1000 RR

Eyebrows were raised when it was announced Razgatlioglu would join BMW for 2024, but it was a move that paid off. He broke the record for consecutive wins, with 13, on his way to the title – his second and BMW’s first – despite missing two rounds through injury. 18 wins and 27 podiums in his 30 races made it a record-breaking campaign for the #1, who is in search of a second consecutive crown. Ahead of the Pirelli Emilia-Romagna Round, Razgatlioglu has six wins and 11 podiums in 15 races, sitting second in the Championship standings behind Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing - Ducati).

THE NEXT CHALLENGE: a MotoGP switch awaits

Razgatlioglu will leave WorldSBK at the end of the 2025 season and move to MotoGP as he links up with the Prima Pramac Racing squad with the Yamaha M1 machine. He leaves WorldSBK as the rider with the joint-second most wins (63), the second-most podiums (264), 11^th-most race starts (237), sixth-most poles (20) and fourth-most fastest laps (53). In terms of wins and podiums, Razgatlioglu is only beaten by Rea, while only three riders have more than two titles in WorldSBK: Rea (6), Carl Fogarty (4) and Troy Bayliss (3).

RAZGATLIOGLU SAYS: “For me personally, winning the title again would be the perfect way to say farewell to WorldSBK”

Discussing his move, the #1 said: “It has always been my dream to race in MotoGP, and I’m very excited that this dream is now coming true. Saying goodbye to BMW Motorrad Motorsport won’t be easy, though. I’m very grateful for the time we’ve had together. From the very first test, I felt at home here, and as a team, we’ve achieved great things. It’s not just the victories and the title that I’ll never forget, but also the intense and meticulous teamwork that brought the project to the top. And it’s not over yet. We still have seven race weekends ahead of us this season, and we’ll continue our journey together. We’ll give everything to add more success to what we’ve already accomplished – with the big goal of bringing the world title back to Munich. For me personally, winning the title again would be the perfect way to say farewell to WorldSBK.”

BMW’S VERDICT: “It’s no secret that we would have loved to keep Toprak in the BMW Motorrad Motorsport family and extend his contract”

Sven Blusch, Head of BMW Motorrad Motorsport, added: “It’s no secret that we would have loved to keep Toprak in the BMW Motorrad Motorsport family and extend his contract, which ends after this season. But he now has the opportunity to fulfil his dream of racing in MotoGP in 2026, and we understand that he wants to seize that chance. We will always look back fondly on our successful partnership, our historic championship win, and many other great moments. We are very grateful to Toprak for everything he has contributed to our WorldSBK project. But it’s not yet time to say goodbye. More than half of the 2025 WorldSBK season still lies ahead, and we have a clear goal that we will continue to work hard toward. Our joint focus for the rest of this season is the mission to successfully defend the world title.”

YAMAHA SAYS: “We are thrilled to welcome Toprak back into the Yamaha family”

Managing Director at Yamaha Motor Racing, Paolo Pavesio, said of Razgatlioglu’s move: "We are thrilled to welcome Toprak back into the Yamaha family. Toprak, the most victorious Yamaha rider of all time in WorldSBK, has proven to be an exceptional talent, securing the WorldSBK title twice, which is no mean feat. His transition to MotoGP is both a 'homecoming' and an exciting new challenge that's been set up with the clear goal of progressive growth over time. His fighting spirit and determination are a perfect fit for both the Prima Pramac Yamaha MotoGP Team and Yamaha's bold MotoGP strategy, so we believe 2026 is the right time to make the move that many fans have been waiting for."

Re-live Razgatlioglu’s record-breaking 2024 title with ‘The Greatest Stunt’ HERE, his 2021 title success with ‘The Final Stunt’ documentary HERE, and watch his 2025 title quest play out using the WorldSBK VideoPass – now 30% off!