Razgatlioglu signs new WorldSBK deal, 'maybe' think MotoGP in the future

Toprak Razgatlioglu can be removed from the list of potential 2022 Yamaha MotoGP candidates after signing a new two-year contract extension which will see him 'spearhead Yamaha's assault on the FIM Superbike World Championship until the end of 2023'.

The Turkish star, managed by five-time WSS champion Kenan Sofuoglu, took two wins for Kawasaki during a rookie 2019 WorldSBK campaign before switching to Pata Yamaha, where he has added another four race victories.

Razgatlioglu is presently second in the world championship standings behind Jonathan Rea with podiums in the last six rounds heading into Donington Park this weekend.

Such form had seen the 24-year-old linked with a Yamaha MotoGP seat, but he has now chosen to remain in WorldSBK for the immediate future.

“Yamaha has become like my family and I’m really happy to be signing for another two years," he said. "I think we’ve improved the bike a lot since I joined for the 2020 season, so it was an easy decision for me to make.

"We are fighting for the championship this year, we’re very close to the top and I have the best people around me in the Pata Yamaha with Brixx team pit box to help me achieve my goals. I like the WorldSBK paddock, and I’m happy racing here.

"Maybe MotoGP is something I will think about in the future, but for now I am focused completely on getting the job done here in WorldSBK.

"Thank you to everyone who has worked to make this happen and now I look forward to the future together with Yamaha.”

Razgatlioglu's fellow R1 WorldSBK rider Garrett Gerloff replaced the injured Franco Morbidelli at last weekend's Dutch MotoGP and remains a contender for a 2022 M1 place, with Maverick Vinales' leaving the official Yamaha MotoGP team and Valentino Rossi's future uncertain at Petronas.