Toprak Razgatlioglu receives WorldSBK gift from Yamaha ahead of MotoGP switch
Toprak Razgatlioglu has taken delivery of his first WorldSBK title-winning bike from Yamaha.
The bike with which Toprak Razgatlioglu won the 2021 WorldSBK title has been gifted to the MotoGP-bound Turkish rider.
Razgatlioglu won out in 2021 in arguably the greatest title battle in WorldSBK history against Jonathan Rea, the two riders going head-to-head for almost the entire season, a season which contained some of the most memorable battles the series has seen between the two.
Razgatlioglu’s victory in that 2021 season marked a real change of the guard in World Superbike as he dethroned the aforementioned Rea, who entered the 2021 season having won six titles in succession between 2015 and 2020. That 2020 title also proved to be the last for the Kawasaki ZX-10RR, which in 2025 was replaced by the Kawasaki-engined Bimota KB998.
The YZF-R1 that Razgatlioglu used to defeat Rea and Kawasaki has remained in the possession of Yamaha since the title was clinched at the 2021 finale at the Mandalika International Street Circuit, which hosted its first FIM World Championship-level event on that occasion.
Now, though, the bike has been delivered to Razgatlioglu, by now, of course, a BMW rider – at least until the end of the 2025 season.
“I’ve been waiting for my first championship bike for three years,” Toprak Razgatlioglu wrote on Instagram, “and finally, [it’s] at home.
“I’m grateful to Yamaha for making it an unforgettable memory.”
Razgatlioglu, of course, will return to Yamaha in 2026 as a MotoGP rider inside the Pramac Yamaha team alongside Jack Miller.
The Turkish rider is aiming to begin his MotoGP career as a three-time World Superbike Champion, and enters this weekend’s (10–12 October) Estoril Round 36 points clear of Ducati’s Nicolo Bulega.
Alex joined the Crash.net team in August of 2024 having covered consumer and racing motorcycle news at Visordown for two years.
