Toprak Razgatlioglu won the World Superbike Superpole Race Sunday morning at Autodrom Most, in The Czech Republic. Riding his ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team M1000RR, the 2024 WorldSuperbike Champion won the 10-lap race by 1.917 seconds.
Nicolo Bulega was the runner-up on his Aruba.it Racing Ducati Panigale V4R, and Danilo Petrucci was third on his Barni Spark Racing Ducati Panigale V4R.
Sam Lowes finished the race fourth on his ELF Marc VDS Racing Team Ducati Panigale V4R and Bulega’s teammate, Alvaro Bautista crossed the finish line fifth.
American Garrett Gerloff finished 12th on his Kawasaki ZX-10RR.
More, from a press release issued by Dorna:
Razgatlioglu battles Bulega for Superpole Race victory as ‘El Turco’ matches Bautista for all-time wins.Toprak Razgatlioglu recorded his 63rd WorldSBK win to draw level with rival Alvaro Bautista in second place for all-time victories, after fending off Nicolo Bulega’s challenges in the Superpole Race
The final day of race action at Autodrom Most’s Motul Czech Round is off to the races as the MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship’s Tissot Superpole Race featured Toprak Razgatlioglu (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) atop the podium. He was followed into the rostrum by Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) in P2 for his second P2 of the weekend so far. Danilo Petrucci (Barni Spark Racing Team) took P3 for his second consecutive third-place finish at Most this weekend.
Two for two for ‘El Turco’: With his Race win, Razgatlioglu has tied Bautista for all-time WorldSBK race wins with 63 apiece
Bulega claimed the holeshot, passing Razgatlioglu into Turn 1, the pair trading overtakes throughout the first half of the race before Bulega ran through the shortcut instead of taking the Turn 1-2 chicane, being forced to give up a second and granting the #1 a cushion behind him. From there, Razgatlioglu sailed ahead and finished the race with more than a second and a half margin; it was his tenth win at Most, the first circuit he’s recorded double-digit wins at. Bulega still managed to take home P2, finishing four seconds ahead of Petrucci who earned P3.
SAM LOWES MISSES PODIUM BY SLIM MARGINS: Less than a hundredth of a second behind ‘Petrux’
Sam Lowes (ELF Marc VDS Racing Team) nearly finished top Independent ahead of Petrucci for what would have been his second WorldSBK podium, instead he took home a healthy P4. Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) again stacked up the overtakes after his Race 1 overtake frenzy, moving up from his P10 start to finish in P5, including passing Iker Lecuona (Honda HRC) on the final lap at Turn 20, the penultimate corner, as the #7 finished in sixth. Alex Lowes (bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team) was seventh after being in the fight for P5; just three tenths separated Bautista, Lecuona and Alex Lowes.
ALEX LOWES P7: Both Bimotas run in the top 8, Bassani penalised
Xavi Vierge (Honda HRC) pipped Andrea Locatelli (Pata Maxus Yamaha) by a mere 0.063s for P8 to secure a third-row start for Race 2, with Locatelli completing row three on the grid. Jonathan Rea (Pata Maxus Yamaha) made it back-to-back P10s for the second time in two races, a positive sign for the six-time Champion who is still recovering from his Phillip Island injury. Axel Bassani (bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team) had been running in the top eight but he was given a double Long Lap Penalty for a jump start, with ‘El Bocia’ classified in 18th.
The top nine from the WorldSBK Superpole Race: Full results here!
1. Toprak Razgatlioglu (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team)
2. Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) +1.917s
3. Danilo Petrucci (Barni Spark Racing Team) +5.943s
4. Sam Lowes (ELF Marc VDS Racing Team) +6.033s
5. Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) +7.700s
6. Iker Lecuona (Honda HRC) +7.888s
7. Alex Lowes (bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team) 8.093s
8. Xavi Vierge (Honda HRC) +10.850s
9. Andrea Locatelli (Pata Maxus Yamaha) +10.913s
Fastest lap: Toprak Razgatlioglu (Yamaha) – 1’30.201s – new lap record
Tune in this afternoon at 14:00 (Local Time, UTC+2) for the final WorldSBK race of the weekend! Stream it live with the WorldSBK VideoPass! Now 30% off!