2024 WorldSuperbike Champion, Toprak Razgatlioglu won FIM Superbike World Championship Race One Saturday at Autodromo Internacional do Algarve, in Portugal. Razgatlioglu started from pole position rode his ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team M1000RR. to just 0.067- second margin of victory in the 20-lap race.
Rookie sensation, Nicolo Bulega was the runner-up on his Aruba.It Racing – Ducati Panigale V4R and just held off Andrea Locatelli, who rode his Pata Maxus Yamaha YZF R1 to third.
Danilo Petrucci crossed the finish line fourth on his Barni Spark Racing Ducati Ducati Panigale V4R.
American Garrett Gerloff went from 16th on the grid to 12th at the finish on his Kawasaki ZX-10RR.
More, from a press release issued by Dorna:
Toprak takes victory holding off Bulega as the rivals lock horns in all-time battle at Portimao. Razgatlioglu and Bulega were feeling nostalgic as they reenacted last year’s Championship duel in a dramatic Race 1 in Portimao
MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship action burst back onto the track on Saturday, Race 1 bringing with it the possibility of claiming the first points of the Pirelli Portuguese Round. Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) claimed the holeshot, however after Toprak Razgatlioglu (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) recuperated his positions from his poor start to the race; what followed was the best duel between the two since the Italian rider joined WorldSBK last year. Bulega and Razgatlioglu clashed head-to-head for P1 across most of the race; changing positions nine times. The dogfight culminated with Bulega overtaking Toprak in the straight of Lap 19, before Toprak slipped back in front at Turn 3. From there, Toprak held on to finish P1 by a mere 0.067s over the Italian sophomore.
TOPRAK VS BULEGA IN RACE 1: Title rivals duel it out from Lap 7 to the chequered flag, nine overtakes in the battle
Polesitter Razgatlioglu bundled his start to the race, falling back several positions to P7, however he quickly found himself back behind Bulega by Lap 4. What followed was the most sustained battle yet seen between the two in WorldSBK. Neither rider backed down as they stayed close behind one another from Lap 4 until Toprak claimed P1 in Lap 19, where he was able to hold off Bulega’s final assaults. The defending Riders’ Champion now sits behind Buelga in second in the Championship standings, Bulega’s 82 points to Toprak’s 45. Toprak’s 58th win puts him just one win behind four-time World Champion Carl Fogarty; the sixth win for BMW at Portimao, the first time the German manufacturer has hit that number of wins on any track.
LOCATELLI P3, VIERGE P5: Strong results for Yamaha and Honda
Andrea Locatelli (Pata Maxus Yamaha) secured a podium finish by holding off Danilo Petrucci (Barni Spark Racing Team) for P3. For his part, Petrucci was once again metronomically consistent, finishing the race where he started in P4 after regaining the position from Sam Lowes (ELF Marc VDS Racing Team) on Lap 9, with ‘Petrux’ finishing as top Independent rider. Xavi Vierge (Honda HRC) started from P6 on the grid, doing well to hold off other riders, finishing P5, securing the best result for Honda of the season so far. Michael van der Mark’s (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) P6 finish is a step in the right direction after a wayward weekend in Australia, a testament to the progress he and his BMW team seem to have made with their new BMW M1000 RR.
IANNONE RECOVERS TO P7 FROM P16 START: Bassani P9, lone Bimota to finish
Andrea Iannone (Team Pata Go Eleven) was able to cobble together a P7 finish, the product of a tough climb up the grid after his disappointing Tissot Superpole session result which saw him start back in P16 after three-place grid penalty. Dominique Aegerter (GYTR GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Team) finished P8, as he and his team will have much to be proud of in Race 1. Axel Bassani (bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team) who finished P9, was the only Bimota rider to see the chequered flag after teammate Alex Lowes crashed out of the race on Lap 10 after a high-speed crash at Turn 1.
TAKING HOME POINTS: Lecuona returns with P11, Sofuoglu best rookie
Remy Gardner (GYTR GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Team) tied his best result of the season so far as he finished P10 in Race 1. Xavi Lecuona’s (Honda HRC) first point-scoring race of the season was a solid return to action in P11 after missing time with injury in the offseason then later the Australian Round. Garrett Gerloff (Kawasaki WorldSBK Team) continues to adapt to his new green machine and finished P12. Bahattin Sofuoglu (Yamaha Motoxracing WorldSBK Team) finished P13 to score points for the second time in his WorldSBK rookie season, with Tarran Mackenzie finishing P14, just 0.729s behind Sofuoglu. Tito Rabat (Motoxracing WorldSBK Team) claimed the final point-scoring position, finishing P15 just over half a second behind Mackenzie. Ryan Vickers was racing through an elbow injury he picked up in FP3, narrowly missing out on points as he finished P16. Bringing up the rear of the riders who finished the race, Yamaha replacement rider Jason O’Halloran (Pata Maxus Yamaha) finished in P17.
BAUTISTA AND REDDING CRASH OUT IN LAP 1: Lowes brothers DNF
Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) and Scott Redding (MGM BONOVO Racing) collided at Turn 4 on the opening lap, as the incident ended the day for both riders and is being investigated by the FIM WorldSBK Stewards. Sam Lowes (ELF Marc VDS Racing Team) followed Locatelli’s trailblazing start at lights out, clinging to his tail to take an early P3, however the British rider saw his race end prematurely after a Turn 11 crash during Lap 8. WorldSBK Rookies Yari Montella (Barni Spark Racing Team) and Zaqhwan Zaidi (PETRONAS MIE Honda Racing Team) both crashed out of the race. Montella’s strong string of performances were abruptly ended by his Lap 3, Turn 5 crash, and Zaidi’s Lap 11, Turn 8 crash prevented him from being able to fight for his first career WorldSBK points.
The top six from the WorldSBK Race 1: Full results here!
1. Toprak Razgatlioglu (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team)
2. Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) +0.067s
3. Andrea Locatelli (Pata Maxus Yamaha) +7.855s
4. Danilo Petrucci (Barni Spark Racing Team) +8.991s
5. Xavi Vierge (Honda HRC) +15.475s
6. Michael van der Mark (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) +17.830s
Fastest lap: Toprak Razgatlioglu, BMW – 1’40.351s
Catch the rest of the WorldSBK action tomorrow live at 11:00 (UTC +1) or on demand with the WorldSBK VideoPass!