Newly crowned two-time WorldSBK champion Toprak Razgatlioglu declared that his 2024 season is the “best season of my career.”
Thanks to a second-placed finish, the Turkish rider wrapped up the title after Race 1 at Jerez with two races to spare.
He admitted that it took longer than expected to hit the ground running with BMW, but once he got to grips with the German bike, he set unprecedented records, most notably a 13 race win streak.
The championship went to the finale in Jerez after he had a severe crash in practice at Magny-Cours, as championship rival Nicolo Bulega closed in on his championship lead due to his absence.
“The form is from the beginning of the season was not easy because the first race especially in Australia, I did not do a good job because of tyres had a big drop [which] destroyed the tyre.
“But when we come to Europe, we started winning, but the 13 wins in a row is amazing, and finally we are the world champion. But, especially after the big injury, we come back very strong and finally we get the title.
“This is amazing for me, and I think this is the best year in my career. But we will see in the future; maybe next year we will do much better.”
“The 2021 title I was fighting on all corners, but now I have a little bit faster engine but still, the bike is not 100%. We are trying to improve the bike.
“For tomorrow, we improve the bike because it’s spinning a lot, not good acceleration, but anyway, I’m just enjoying, and because we are world champion, I don’t care [about] this. Tomorrow, I just want [to have] mega fun.”
Toprak Razgatlioglu joins an exclusive list following 2024 title success
The 28-year-old becomes the third rider to win championships with two manufacturers, after Troy Corser and James Toseland.
Razgatlioglu delivered BMW its first two-wheeled championship in his first season with the Bavarian brand – a transfer that generated significant interest in the paddock, given BMW’s previous lack of success in the series.
“I’m really happy, finally we did it and we are the world champion. This team is amazing because everyone was pushing hard, and you know, when I signed with BMW, everyone was talking about me, you know, saying, ‘Is his career finished?’
“I am genuinely happy because this race is very important for me, and the race isn’t finished because I see the last ten laps and I say, ‘We are ten Laps, you know, there are many Laps [left to go.]
“But finally, you know, I finish the race second position because I lose a lot and I say ‘Ok, I see the gap [is] a lot and second position is good, save [the tyres], better to finish today.
“But now they understand now I think, I’m very happy, I win the championship with two different brands [Yamaha and BMW] and we look to the future and I’m very happy so thank you very much.”
