Pole position, three more wins, and new records: Toprak Razgatlioglu dominates at Donington Park [Photo Gallery]
Toprak Razgatlioglu (TUR) from the ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team continued his impressive performance on the BMW M 1000 RR at the fifth round of the 2024 FIM Superbike World Championship (WorldSBK).
Following a perfect weekend at Misano (ITA), ‘El Turco’ was again the benchmark at Donington Park (GBR). Starting from pole position, he won all three races in Great Britain, each with a significant lead, and set several new lap records.
With nine wins to his name this season now, including seven consecutive victories, Razgatlioglu extended his lead in the rider’s championship to 41 points. In the Manufacturer’s Championship, BMW reduced the gap to leader Ducati to just six points. Scott Redding (GBR) from the Bonovo action BMW Racing Team also had a strong weekend, starting from third place and finishing fourth in two races at his home round.
After setting the fastest times in Friday’s practice sessions, Razgatlioglu set a new all-time lap record in Saturday morning’s Superpole qualification. He was over half a second faster than the rest of the field, securing his third pole position of the season. The first race turned into a showcase performance. Razgatlioglu pulled away from the field right from the start, extending his lead with each lap, setting a new lap record, and finishing more than eleven seconds ahead after 23 laps. The next win followed in the Superpole race on Sunday morning. Although Razgatlioglu fell to second place at the start, he regained the lead by the third lap. He pulled away from the field again, beat his previous day’s lap record, and won with a near five-second lead after ten laps. The second main race on Sunday afternoon was the final challenge. Razgatlioglu again pulled away from the start, set another new lap record, and finished eight seconds ahead as the winner.
Local hero Redding also shone at his home race. Already strong in practice, he secured the third start position in Superpole. In the first race, he held second place for a long time and fought for the podium before a technical issue forced him to retire a few laps before the end. In the Superpole Race, Redding seized his next opportunity. After a hectic start, he was in sixth place, and with determined manoeuvres, he fought his way forward. With a fourth-place finish, he and his team had cause to celebrate. In the second main race, he confirmed his strong performance and again finished in an excellent fourth place.
Michael van der Mark (NED) from the ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team secured a place on the second row with sixth place in Superpole. In the first race, he lost positions at the start and finished ninth. In the Superpole race and the second main race, van der Mark finished twelfth. Garrett Gerloff (USA) from the Bonovo action BMW Racing Team started the weekend from 12th place. He finished the first race in 14th place, the same position he achieved in the Superpole race. In the second main race, he finished 13th.
Also present at Donington Park were other members of the BMW Motorrad Motorsport family, including BMW Motorrad factory rider Sylvain Guintoli (FRA), the 2014 Superbike World Champion, who presented Razgatlioglu with the winner’s trophy after the Superpole race, and Davey Todd (GBR), who won the Superstock race and the prestigious Senior TT on the Isle of Man with the BMW M 1000 RR in June.
The WorldSBK continues without a break. The sixth event of the season is scheduled for next weekend (19th to 21st July) at Most, Czech Republic.
Reactions after the Donington Park round.
Marc Bongers, Sporting Director BMW Motorrad Motorsport
“It was an amazing weekend. The second consecutive triple, with pole position and lap records, is just fantastic. I‘m still a bit lost for words. I think I need to sleep on it before I can truly grasp it. It was also great to see Scott up there, proving that not just one BMW M 1000 RR can compete at the front. This shows that the whole package is good. It was unfortunate for Mickey and Garrett. They didn’t get into the rhythm we had expected but we’ll keep working on it so that they can also fight for the top spots. Overall, it’s wonderful to be heading home with a case full of trophies. Before the weekend, I told the guys in the office to make some extra space in our cabinet just in case we brought back more trophies. That it turned out to be so many is a dream come true. At the start of the season, we couldn’t have imagined this. The goal back then was to win multiple times but now, leaving with over a 40-point lead in the championship changes the target of course. The new goal is clearly the world championship. We just need to stay focused, keep everything stable, and make sure we don’t make any mistakes but I’m optimistic, things can continue like this, and I’m already looking forward to Most. Our package now works on every track, so we don’t need to make many adjustments. I expect that we can be at the front at Most right away, especially since this is a special track for our package and our rider.”
Toprak Razgatlioglu, ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team (SP: 1 / R01: 1 / SP Race: 1 / R02: 1)
“I am feeling incredible now because before I came here, I had the target to get three wins, as this is my favourite track, and finally we did that here. This is team work and the team is working really hard. We improved the bike every session. I am strong but my BMW M 1000 RR was also working incredibly on this circuit. With my BMW I am really stronger here. The bike is working, easy stopping, easy turning. The grip is not 100 percent but the bike is helping me to show my potential. We are happy, because at Misano we had three wins and we repeated that here. Now I hope that we will also win at Most because I love the track there. Thanks to everyone, I am really happy today. Now we will see how the next round will go but we are coming closer to the world championship title step by step. Let’s wait, there are many more races to go.”
Scott Redding, Bonovo action BMW Racing Team (SP: 3 / R01: DNF / SP Race: 4 / R02: 4)
“It has been good. I am a little bit upset with my start in the Superpole race because I cost myself a podium. I had the pace to be there but the Superpole race is quick and the start is important but it was like it was and I managed to come through which was good. Then in race two I knew it was going to be hard, I was also using the SC-0 tyre that didn’t feel so good yesterday. I felt better with the tyre so I was able to ride in a better way and this was good for me mentally to gain confidence with the package and to feel comfortable and relaxed on the bike more. This weekend has been good for me and for the team. Everyone has been working really hard, from the Bonovo action BMW Racing Team, from BMW Motorrad Motorsport, and it’s nice when you can put something together and give back a little bit. I wanted it too hard to have the podium but a step at the time and I hope next time we can make two steps more. For Most, if I have the feeling like this weekend as a start, I would like to be fighting again in the top five there. It’s a track that I like and a track I go well so a podium, without being greedy, is something I want to achieve. We just need to perfect the bike a little bit and it will allow me to do that.”
Michael van der Mark, ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team (SP: 6 / R01: 9 / SP Race: 12 / R02: 12)
“For today, we changed quite a lot on the bike compared to yesterday and this morning, I was feeling alright so we were ready for the race. In the Superpole race, I had an okay start but I just did not have the right pace to fight with the other guys. It was a shame to lose the sixth position on the grid for race two, but anyway, starting from 11th, I had a good start but on the first laps I was a bit in trouble with the other riders. Then I had an okay pace but I wasn’t fast enough. It was hard to fight with other riders, I could not really catch the group in front of me. In the end, I had a nice battle but fighting for P11 is not where we want to be. We need to find out why I don’t have the right speed at the moment. Let’s analyse and be ready for the next weekend at Most.”
Garrett Gerloff, Bonovo action BMW Racing Team (SP: 11 / R01: 14 / SP Race: 14 / R02: 13)
“For sure, this weekend has been a tough one. I came here with high expectations and the results we have seen here have shown what the bike is capable of. Congrats to Toprak to his wins and to Scott on his strong results, but for whatever reason we could not bring it together for me. We worked hard and tried a lot but the field is so close that even with a really strong pace and good feeling in qualifying I had to settle with 12th on the grid. From there, it is not easy to get strong race results. I am disappointed because more would have been possible. But we keep our heads down, regroup and get ready for Most, where the goal is to turn the page.”
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