Jonathan Rea will take the place of Toprak Razgatlioglu at Pata Yamaha in the 2024 World Superbike season, succeeding a rider who had great success with the manufacturer and had a very unique riding style – particularly in approaching corners.
The British rider told La Gazzetta dello Sport that, after the tests, he already has an idea of why the Turkish rider is able to have the riding style he displayed: ‘The Yamaha seems like a simple bike to use in terms of electronics and setup, based on a very agile frame. And that’s why I can now understand why he was able to ride like that. I’m curious to see if I will be able to put my touch, my style, on the bike‘.
Still, Rea clarified that he doesn’t believe he has to radically change his riding style to be competitive with the YZF-R1: ‘Honestly, Yamaha is operating in a very wide window. We can see that [Andrea] Locatelli is fast, the same goes for [Remy] Gardner, [Dominique] Aegerter, and Toprak. All these riders have different styles. I just have to adapt the bike to myself, understand the qualities of the Yamaha. So it can help me. I’m curious to see what our potential is‘.
