At the time they considered it a leap in the dark, with the belief that he had looked more at the economic part of the offer than at the technical part, but Toprak Razgatliglu seems truly intent on silencing everyone, because he is immediately impressing on the BMW M 1000 RR.
The Turkish rider was in fact the fastest on the second day of the Portimao World Superbike tests, setting a new record for the category on the Algarve track with a time of 1'39″189. But it is also the consistency with which he managed to turn when he tried to do a long run which scared the competition, who are now convinced that the former world champion could be a candidate for victory right from the first round at Phillip Island.
“Fantastic day and great work. I wasn't focused on the lap time but on the race pace. After this test we will race and we will need a good setup for the race. We are 99% ready to race. The feeling is good and every day we are continuing to improve the bike”, Toprak told the official SBK website at the end of the day.
Photo by: BMW AG
Toprak Razgatlioglu, BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team
“Today I did a 1'39″8 with the SC0, doing it three or four times. With the SCX I did a 1'39″2 which is an incredible lap time and I'm really surprised. Thanks to Bonovo, who we asked for a qualifying tire with which we improved by a tenth. We used a different swingarm for a short bike and put on the SCQ but the bike wheelies a lot. I wasn't able to do a 1'38″ but we can do it next time!”, he continued.
He too then underlined the great work done from a race perspective: “I did a 15-lap race simulation and set two lap times with the SC0 in 1'39″. It looks like we are ready to race but we are still learning and we need time. We are improving every day but overall I'm happy. We'll see at Phillip Island as it will be completely different, like the grip.”
“After Jerez we further improved the bike and tried different parts, and in the end we found the setup. I feel like the bike is mine. In the corners we are not 100%, but we are close. The team is very happy and the motivation is now very high; I'm also happy with Michael (van der Mark), who did an excellent job today. Over the course of the season we will work together and bring home excellent results. We need time to adapt the bike”, he concluded.
Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images
Toprak Razgatlioglu, BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team
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