Toprak Razgatlioglu makes Japan MotoGP breakthrough despite “many mistakes”

A 17th place finish might not suggest there were many positives to take, however, Toprak Razgatlioglu feels as though he’s made significant progress ahead of Sunday’s Japanese MotoGP. 

The Pramac Yamaha rider finished over 38 seconds off the win during the 12-lap sprint, and more than 16.5 seconds down on team-mate Jack Miller, who finished one place ahead of the Turkish rider.

This was after Razgatlioglu ran through the gravel late on at turn one, before admitting post-race that he’s been struggling all weekend with braking. 

“For me, today was strange,” said Razgatlioglu. “Yesterday I felt too much locking on the brakes and today we improved the first part, but on the second [part] we lost. 

“Yesterday, the second part, when I started to lean, I felt more engine brake and this morning I felt less engine brake. The bike was not stopping. 

“I did the qualifying like this but I could not stop the bike and I lose everywhere. 

“When you are not stopping you lose speed, and also acceleration. You lose everywhere. 

“In the race, finally, I was riding better. I’m asking too much of the electronics, but the electronics is the limit. I need to find the way to ride without mistakes. I’m just focused on this.”

Yamaha’s difficult season looks set to continue until the end of the year before the 850cc engine reset in 2027, which should offer a more level playing field.

But between now and then there’s plenty of improvements that can still be made by riders and teams, especially riders like Razgatlioglu, who is still adjusting to the MotoGP machinery after spending several years with production-based motorcycles. 

That was the case during today’s sprint at Motegi, with Razgatlioglu making a step that he believes could help during Sunday’s main race. 

Razgatlioglu said: “I learned something because now I understand it’s possible to manage the bike on the brakes. 

“It’s very difficult at this track. I lose the front in all braking areas because the bike is not stopping. 

“The long race is the most important,” Razgatlioglu continued. “I hope I’m riding much better because every time I’m riding day-by-day better, just today I was a little bit lost.

 “I’m also surprised by this because yesterday I started not so bad. 

“Normally, today, I need to improve more but I did not improve. I just made many mistakes this morning.”