BMW unveiled its team for the World Superbike Championship this Wednesday, with Toprak Razgatlioglu set to defend the title he dominantly won last year, breaking victory records in the process.
The Turkish rider will wear the #1, a number he admitted to the championship’s official site he is not particularly fond of: ‘Yes, when I’m using the number 1 I feel a little bit of pressure. Normally I don’t like the number 1, but I use it for BMW, because this is really a big team work; finally we got the title, we are the world champion. But the number 1 looks nice on the BMW. I hope we keep it at the end of the year. This is important for me’.
The title is a strong goal for Razgatlioglu in 2025. However, he also has additional goals this season, particularly winning races he couldn’t last year:
– Last year I was not thinking about any target, but I did an incredible job throughout the year. But this year I’m just thinking about Phillip Island and some races that I didn’t win – I need to win now! But especially the Phillip Island race, I’ll want to try to win there. This is really important for me. But we’ll see. Everyone’s very strong, everyone’s working hard. This is my biggest target, and I hope we get the title again, because who rides for the title hopes getting the title again.