Razgatlioglu fastest after two days of Aragon testing, outpacing Sam Lowes by over three tenths of a second
‘El Turco’ looked sharp in testing, finishing in front as some of the WorldSBK field took on Aragon in preparation for Round 9 at Magny-Cours
Four rounds remain in the 2025 MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship. After a month-long break without any races, some of the grid’s riders took to the track at Motorland Aragon to reacclimate themselves to the bike and refocus for the upcoming French Round, set to be held from September 5th to 7th. Rainy weather hampered riders on Monday, slowing down their times for most of the day until late in the session. Tuesday saw times improve, and, as has been a frequent occurrence this season, Toprak emerged with the fastest times across the two days.
DAY 1: Bulega tops timesheets, tailed by Toprak
The morning of Monday, August 25th saw the opening of the Aragon test; however, morning rainstorms made for an ignominious start to the event as few riders took to the track given the conditions. As the day progressed, the rain held until the afternoon, when more riders began to emerge on the track. Nicolo Bulega was the fastest on the opening day; his time of 1’48.829s was achieved on his 12th lap of 17, recorded on his 2025 Panigale V4 R setup. Behind him, Toprak Razgatlioglu clocked in 0.545s behind the Italian with a time of 1’49.374s after running 42 laps. Ducati Independent rider Sam Lowes (ELF Marc VDS Racing Team) was the third fastest on the day, 0.143s behind ‘El Turco’ on the back of his 1’49.517s time. 0.144s behind Lowes, Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing - Ducati) with 66, ran the third most laps behind Michael van der Mark (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) and Garrett Gerloff (Kawasaki WorldSBK Team), the Spaniard’s fastest time being 1’49.661s. Fifth fastest on the day, ‘Bulegas’ was featured again on the timesheet as he also ran a further 24 laps on Monday atop Ducati’s new 2026 bike, setting the fifth fastest time. The new bike aside, Xavi Vierge (Honda HRC) would have been the fifth-fastest, the Spanish Honda rider logging 65 laps, with his fastest lap a 1’50.046s.
DAY 2: Razgatlioglu blazes ahead as Lowes gives chase
Tuesday featured improved weather conditions in the morning, allowing riders to come out of the gate at a similar pace to that seen on Day 1 in the afternoon. The #1 finished the day fastest, his 1’48.598s time 0.358s faster than Sam Lowes. Nicolo Bulega was 0.549s slower than Toprak, his 1:49.147s time earning him P3 on the day. Finishing with the fourth-fastest time, Alvaro Bautista rode on Tuesday exclusively with the 2026 Ducati Panigale V4 R, his time clocking in at 1’49.443s. Just under three tenths of a second behind Bulega on the new bike, Xavi Vierge's time of 1’49.600s outpacing Alex Lowes's 1’49.682 (bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team) by 0.082s, earning the pair P4 and P5 respectively. Sergio Garcia made his debut at a WorldSBK event, riding for Honda HRC. His best time of 1’51.111s earned him P14, behind Michael van der Mark (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team).
WorldSSP: Alcoba leads pack on Monday, Vostatek fastest on Tuesday
Kawasaki’s lone representative on the WorldSSP grid, Jeremy Alcoba (Kawasaki WorldSSP Team) was fastest on Monday, his 1’55.039s time earning him bragging rights. His 1’55.039s time clocked in as 0.074s faster than Czech rider Ondrej Vostatek's (WRP Racing) time of 1’44.113s and 0.203s faster than German Rider Marcel Schroetter's (WRP Racing) time of 1’55.242s. Day 2 shook things up, as it was Vostatek who led Alcoba on the time sheets; the Czech rider’s time of 1’55.099s put him 0.082s faster around the track than Alcoba. Third fastest among WorldSSP riders on WorldSSP bikes, Corentin Perolari's (Honda Racing World Supersport) 1:55.227s pace saw him land just 0.046s behind Alcoba.
Now a step closer to being back up to speed after the summer break, catch the Championship next round at Magny-Cours, September 5th-7th! Tune in live or on demand with the WorldSBK VideoPass! Now 50% off!
