BMW: ‘Expectation from Van Der Mark is to follow Toprak over the line’

Former teammates at Yamaha for one season, Van Der Mark finished just five points behind Razgatlioglu.

Van Der Mark then moved to BMW while Razgatlioglu went on to win the world championship the very next season, becoming the first rider to beat Jonathan Rea to the crown since he became a Kawasaki rider in 2015. 

• Redding: ‘To not achieve a podium last year upset me a lot’ 
• BMW: Addition of Razgatlioglu has not made ‘the pressure higher than ever’

And although injuries have heavily impacted Van Der Mark’s time at BMW, Muir expects the Dutchman to be a force in 2024.

Speaking to WorldSBK.com at the official BMW launch, Muir said: “When you look back at it, Mikey has missed probably 2.5 seasons with the injuries he’s sustained. 

“I think it’s a massive boost for him to remain in our team. We know he’s worked with Toprak in the past. 

“The expectation from Mikey is that he wants to be following Toprak over the line, I think he seriously believes he can be right there.”

When BMW signed Razgatlioglu from Yamaha last season, it was unclear which rider between Van Der Mark and Scott Redding would lose their factory seat.

After months of speculation, it was Redding who lost out and Muir has since claimed that Van Der Mark deserves a spot alongside Razgatlioglu, despite missing a lot of races last year.

“I think he fully deserves his place in the team,” continued Muir. “Of course, it’s contract year for him, so he really knows he has to deliver. 

“Hopefully he has a good pre-season, he can put those injuries behind him. I see no reason why Michael can’t be right up there in the top six of the championship.”