Toprak Razgatlioglu "not thinking about" Estoril WorldSBK title chance

Toprak Razgatlioglu’s title chance at the Estoril WorldSBK is so remote he’s not even thinking about it, he says.

The Turkish rider comes into the Estoril weekend on 10–12 October essentially needing Nicolo Bulega to have at least one non-scoring race for him to be crowned champion before the season finale in Jerez next week (17–19 October).

Bulega and Razgatlioglu have occupied the top-two positions in every World Superbike race they’ve both finished since the fourth round of the season at Cremona, with the exception of only the Superpole Race at Balaton where Bulega made an incorrect tyre choice and finished outside the top-10.

Yet Razgatlioglu would need to score 36 points more than Bulega over the course of this weekend’s three races in order to be crowned World Superbike Champion for the third time in Estoril.

The slenderness of his chances in Portugal means the BMW rider is essentially treating this weekend, the penultimate round of the 2025 season, as any of the previous 10 rounds.

“Everyone is talking about this,” Toprak Razgatlioglu said of his title chance in Estoril, speaking to WorldSBK.com.

“But everyone is just focused on Nicolo [Bulega] because this is motorsport, everything is possible. [But] also this is the same for me also, this situation – everyone is talking about Nicolo, but also for me it’s the same. 

“If I did a mistake or my bike failed, like the engine failed, it’s the same situation, but everyone is talking only about Bulega. 

“I know, okay, I have a gap to Nicolo, but I’m not thinking about this because I’m not waiting for him to crash or have some engine problem. I’m just focused on my job, I’m just fighting with him. 

“I make a battle and try to win the race – this is, for me, more clear. I’m just focused on this.

“Nico is always a fast rider, and we are fighting this year. 

“We will see this weekend in this track because he is also fast, and I’m trying to do my best. I think he’s trying to do his best, but we will see. 

“I hope we’re fighting and everyone again watches a nice race.”

Razgatlioglu admitted that he would arrive in Jerez “a little bit more calm” should he wrap the title up in Estoril, but said his real focus this weekend is on winning all three races – something he missed out on in 2024 when Bulega beat him in the Superpole Race.

“If we win, we are going to Jerez a little bit more calm, but we will see,” Razgatlioglu said.

“I’m just thinking about this weekend because I need to win again. 

“Last year I didn’t do a hattrick; this weekend my big goal is to do a hattrick this weekend.”

The 76-time WorldSBK race winner even indicated he’s a little haunted by the manner in which he lost the Superpole Race last year, with Bulega beating him on acceleration out of the final corner, almost in the same fashion Razgatlioglu was beaten by Alvaro Bautista in Race 2 in 2022.

“I never forget it,” Razgatlioglu said of the 2024 Superpole Race.

“I remember because from the last corner his acceleration was better than me because he used the qualifying tyre [SCQ] in that race, but I didn’t expect that in the last laps he would have more grip than me because I used a race tyre. 

“I was very surprised at the end of the race because I finished second. 

“But in the long races I rode alone, I made a gap. 

“But in the Superpole Race I was surprised, I never forget that because we almost finished together, a photo finish. 

“We will see this weekend. He is also trying more than 100 per cent, also I’m ready for that. I think it’s a very exciting weekend for everyone.”