The Turkish March to the title by Razgatlioglu
Following in mentor Sofuoglu’s footsteps.

At 18 years, eight months and four days of age, Toprak Razgatlioglu has become the 2015 FIM European Superstock 600 Champion. The young star from Alanya, a beach resort city on the southern coast of Turkey, crossed the line in third place at the end of the sixth race of the season at Misano, and that result proved to be enough for him to clinch a well deserved title with two races still to go in the season.

Son of famous Turkish motorcycle stuntman Arif “One-wheel Arif” Razgatlioglu (Tek Teker Arif), Toprak started racing at the age of eight. After considerable success in many two-wheeled racing disciplines at national level, in 2011 Toprak was encouraged to race abroad by friend and mentor Kenan Sofuoglu – who started managing his career – in order to compete in the German Yamaha R6 Cup. It was the same move Kenan himself had made in 2002…

Two years later, it was time for Razgatlioglu to take it to the next level by joining the Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup. Despite his size disadvantage – Toprak was too tall for the 250cc KTM machinery – he managed to score a sensational win in race 1 at the Sachsenring in 2014.

By the end of the same year, Sofuoglu secured him a ride for the season finale of the FIM Europe Superstock 600 Championship in Magny-Cours, claiming Toprak would ‘surprise everybody’. Indeed he did, as Razgatlioglu won the race in great fashion on a privateer ZX-6R Kawasaki machine.

Carrying the momentum into the 2015 season, and now with Puccetti Racing Kawasaki (the same squad as Kenan’s), Razgatlioglu proved to be simply unstoppable. Not only he did he win both races in the season-opening double-header at MotorLand Aragón, but he was also victorious in Assen, Imola and Portimao: five wins out of five encounters in the season and six victories in a row, a new record for the series. This successful string of results put Razgatlioglu in prime position to clinch the ultimate prize at Misano.

Never before had a rider shown this type of dominance in the series. What more has Razgatlioglu in store for Turkish fans and many others across the globe? Is this the beginning of a new legacy? Only time will tell. The talent is there and so is the fierce determination to succeed.

Biography

Date of birth: 16th October 1996
Place of birth: Sakarya, Turkey
First STK600 Race: Magny-Cours, 2014
First STK600 pole position: Assen, 2015
First STK600 podium finish: Magny-Cours, 2014
First STK600 victory: Magny-Cours, 2014
STK600 race starts: 7
STK600 race wins: 6
STK600 Podium finishes: 7

International motorcycle racing career

2013: Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup – 10th position, 99 points, 2 podium finishes
2014: Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup – 6th position, 123 points, 1 win, 2 podium finishes
2014: FIM Europe Superstock 600 Championship – 1 race, 1 win on Kawasaki
2015: FIM Europe Superstock 600 Championship – Champion on Kawasaki, 5 wins out of 6 races

More, from a press release issue by San Carlo Team Italia:

Superstock 600 – Double top-5 for San Carlo Team Italia at Misano

2015 FIM Europe Superstock 600 European Championship

Riviera di Rimini Round
Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli
June 19-20, 2015

Superstock 600 – Double top-5 for San Carlo Team Italia at Misano

Rinaldi (4th) and Tucci (5th) fight on top of the European Championship.

In the big day of Toprak Razgatlioglu (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing), who has become European Champion with two races of advance, the riders of San Carlo Team Italia fight on top of the category in the third to last seasonal round at the Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli. At the end of a race that was very combative for all the thirteen laps planned, Michael Ruben Rinaldi finishes fourth and really close to the podium, preceding Andrea Tucci, fifth and at times the fastest rider on track.

Started very well from the third place of the grid, Rinaldi with the Kawasaki Ninja ZX-6R #21 was the one who led the group in the first turn. Since that moment, the rider from Romagna started an engaging duel with Razgatlioglu, and he was able to get the leadership back at the “Variante del Parco” with an amazing overtake during the seventh lap out of a total of thirteen laps. Leading the front group of five riders, “Mike” was attacked on the last lap by Federico Caricasulo (rider involved in the project #madeinCIV and at his first seasonal victory) at the “Quercia” turn, and he was just fourth on the finish line at only 84/1000 from the new European champion Razgatliuoglu. Andrea Tucci finished fifth behind his teammate, thanks to a great comeback after a difficult start (he was seventh at the start of the race), with a constant pace in 1’40” he was very close to the podium too, and he confirmed his speed potential.

For San Carlo Team Italia STK600 the next round is on 18th and 19th September at Jerez de la Frontera (Spain), second to last round of the 2015 European Superstock600 championship.

Michael Ruben Rinaldi (San Carlo Team Italia – Kawasaki ZX-6R #21) 4th

“Till the last lap it was an excellent weekend, the grade would be a 10. With the team we worked very well and the bike was perfect, we only missed finishing this great work. On the last lap I chose the wrong strategy: I was the first one and I closed all the ways too early, I would have had to wait since behind me there was not only Toprak ( Razgatlioglu) but also other two riders. I lost some time at every overtake immediately, and I found myself from the first to the fourth place in few time. I am disappointed by how the race finished, but we still have the satisfaction for the work done by the team that allowed us to be again on top of the class. After the summer break, we will improve at Jerez.“

Andrea Tucci (San Carlo Team Italia – Kawasaki ZX-6R #44) 5th

“I can’t be satisfied. I started well, I was fourth or fifth in the first parts of the race, but because of a contact I found myself behind, fighting in the second group. When I was able to escape from the other riders, it was already too late, with just 13 laps there was nothing to do. At the end I was 1″ faster than the first four riders, and on the last lap I rode in 1’40″1 that is almost the time of the pole position. On my behalf there’s a lot of regret, because I had the potential to fight for the victory, but because of that bad start, we weren’t able to get the result that we deserved.“

Stefano Cruciani (Sports Manager – San Carlo Team Italia STK600)

“As in the previous races, we got less than our real potential. Today we could have fought for the victory with both our riders, but these are the races. Rinaldi was in front for almost the whole race, only on the last lap he passed from the first to the fourth place. Obviously it left a sour taste, without any doubt Michael will learn from what happened to improve further. Talking about Andrea, his race was compromised on the first laps, when we lost contact with the front group: his pace was impressive, he could have won. We will try to improve in the last two races, but we want to congratulate with Toprak Razgatlioglu for the conquest of the 2015 European title. He has increased the level of the championship and has been able, race after race, to manage every situation. Our Michael and Andrea are at the same level of speed potential, and for this reason we are working for realising more in race and for proving again the worth of our team and their uncontested talent.”