BREAKING: Toprak Razgatlioglu joins BMW

Toprak Razgatlioglu will join BMW Motorrad for the 2024 season.

After announcing his departure from Yamaha, Toprak Razgatlioglu will switch to the German manufacturer, BMW. The 2021 WorldSBK champion will join the ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team for 2024, racing the M1000RR.

It is currently unknown who Toprak Razgatlioglu’s teammate will be for next season at the ROKiT BMW team. This season the German manufacturer had German rider, Michael van der Mark and Brit, Scott Redding.

BMW will be Toprak Razgatlioglu’s third manufacturer that he will race within the WorldSBK class. First joined Puccetti Kawasaki in 2018 before moving to Yamaha in 2020 and would race for them for four years.

In his time in the WorldSBK championship, Razgatlioglu has won 33 races and taken a total of 93 podiums in his successful career. The highlight of his career came in 2021 when the Turkish rider would take his first World title.

When speaking about next season, Toprak said he felt that he needed a “new challenge”. He also admitted that there was an opportunity in MotoGP but did not feel a connection with the bike. Yamaha offered Razgatlioglu a contract extension for next season but was turned down by Toprak and his manager, Sofuoglu.

BMW Motorrad Motorsport Director, Marc Bongers, said: “Toprak is undoubtedly one of the best riders in the field at the moment, which he not only proved by winning the 2021 World Championship title. 

“But he’s not just a fast motorcycle racer, he’s also a great personality off the track. We are convinced that Toprak will settle into the BMW Motorrad Motorsport family very quickly. We are looking forward to our collaboration and to our future together.”

Head of BMW Motorrad, Dr Markus Schramm, added: “Welcome to the BMW Motorrad Motorsport family, Toprak Razgatlioglu. We are delighted to welcome him to our WorldSBK factory squad from next season on. 

“I am very proud that Toprak has opted to join BMW Motorrad. This is a forward-looking step for our project and a strong commitment of BMW Motorrad Motorsport in World Superbike.”

Image credit: worldsbk.com