Toprak Razgatlioglu decided to take a new direction in his career in the 2024 World Superbike Championship, moving to BMW. During this year, he had the possibility of joining MotoGP with Yamaha, but even after testing the bike, it became clear that this step would not be possible in the upcoming season.
Yamaha’s team director in WSBK, Andrea Dosoli, explained that the Turkish rider was already seeking a new professional challenge and MotoGP could have been what he was looking for, but he chose to leave the manufacturer when he found out there was no place for him: ‘Even before the Jerez test with MotoGP, Toprak was looking for a new challenge and MotoGP could have been exactly that. But when he realized that the transition would not be possible immediately, he looked for something else. All great athletes are always looking for a new challenge‘.
The manager showed understanding with Razgatlioglu, who in his words showed good potential in the MotoGP bike test: ‘For me, in the test he showed all his talent, I have no doubt that he could have done well there as well. But when he realized he wouldn’t have a place in MotoGP immediately, he looked for other challenges and that is normal in the life of all athletes. I would say we have one here, and that is [Jonathan] Rea‘.
