Toprak Razgatlioglu, after his good performance in WSBK last season, was in the pools to get on a MotoGP Yamaha M1 in 2023.
However, RNF MotoGP Racing’s decision to end its ties with Yamaha and become a satellite team to Aprilia for 2023, left the Japanese manufacturer with two factory bikes for the entire grid and no room for Razgatlioglu.
The possibility that Toprak had options to make the jump to MotoGP coincided in space-time with a drought of victories in WSBK. Although the 25-year-old driver was able to finish on the podium in practically all the races, at no time did he manage to overtake Alvaro Bautista and Jonathan Rea, his direct rivals in the fight for the title.
It wasn’t until he completed a test on the M1 MotoGP machine – at that point the door to signing was firmly closed – that he managed to get into a good rhythm. But, from then on, the Turk added a hat- trick at Donington Park, with which he got back into the general battle.
At the end of last month he took two more victories at the Most circuit in the Czech Republic and now heads into the second half of the season with a three-way fight for the drivers’ title.
Bautista believes that the rumors and negotiations about Toprak ‘s entry into MotoGP could have had a psychological impact on the Yamaha rider, but he assures that, now that he has returned to focus on the WSBK, he will be a difficult rival to beat.
“I think the first circuits of the season didn’t benefit him too much,” he said. “But I also think, I don’t know if it’s true or not, that all the rumors of his possible MotoGP departure in 2023 and the possibility of going or not, were a distraction for him.
“Even if he thinks he wasn’t thinking about it, it’s something you have in mind”
“Now he no longer has that possibility [of going to MotoGP], he has psyched himself up that he has to be focused on this year and push.”
“It is true that last year he was very fast at Donington and won two races, so it is a track that he likes, but I think now he will be more focused and stronger.”
Yamaha WSBK team manager Paul Denning disagreed with suggestions that Razgatlioglu was underperforming in the first third of the season, insisting that he had actually made a step forward. compared to last year.
“Everyone says that Toprak has had a difficult start to the year,” Denning told the German edition of Motorsport.com. “Okay, it’s always better to win every race, but it’s not really the case.
“When you look at the results in Aragon, Assen or Estoril, and compare them to a year ago, you see that the times are much faster. In fact, our race results are better than last year.”
“Okay, it would have been nice to win two races at Estoril [this year], where he did that great braking in the Superpole Race, and Álvaro in the feature race passed him just before the flag, but it is what it is.”
“But in terms of performance, we have been much stronger than last year for the whole season, but their two rivals [Bautista and Rea] have also improved and done an incredible job.”
“I am impressed by the step forward that Jonathan and Kawasaki have made this year, especially with the evolution of the bike.”
“Alvaro has some advantages, and he’s using all the tools he has very, very well. And emotionally, he seems calmer than in the past.”
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