Emilia-Romagna WorldSBK Race 1 “not easy” for Toprak Razgatlioglu, win “very important”

Toprak Razgatlioglu says his Emilia-Romagna WorldSBK Race 1 win over Nicolo Bulega was “very important” as the title battle between the two continues.

Razgatlioglu’s win brought him to within 26 points of the Italian in the World Superbike Championship standings, but the Turkish rider said he was struggling with a number of limitations in the closing stages.

“It wasn’t an easy race, every lap I was pushing so hard,” Toprak Razgatlioglu told WorldSBK.com after Race 1 at Misano.

“I knew Bulega and the Ducatis would be very strong at this track.

“In hot conditions, it wasn’t easy to ride the bike for anyone. I just managed it.

“In the last laps, I felt chatter and vibrations a lot.

“I was just focused on winning the race, it was very important for me.”

Razgatlioglu said his lap one run-on at turn eight, which saw him drop from the lead to fourth, was a result of an engine brake issue.

“On the first lap, I made a mistake because we still had an engine brake problem,” he said.

“I came back quickly.

“I just followed Bulega because he was pushing so hard in the first laps.

“When I passed him, I was riding easier because I was alone.

“He was pushing hard, and the gap was very small. Every lap, I was pushing and he's also trying to follow me.”

The win marked Razgatlioglu’s 64th in WorldSBK, a milestone for the BMW rider who moved clear of Alvaro Bautista for second on the all-time wins list, behind only Jonathan Rea on 119.

Razgatlioglu was pleased about this, but made it clear that a third title is his priority for 2025.

“This is very good for me,” he said.

“After signing for next year in MotoGP, I’m really happy, but I’m just focused on my job.

“This weekend is very important for me because we’re still fighting for the title in WorldSBK.

“This round is very important for me; we won the first race, but we have two more races. These are also very important.”