Perfect weekend for dominant Razgatlioglu at Donington Park
Toprak Razgatlioglu (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) dominated the UK Round of WorldSBK at Donington Park, securing pole position, three victories, and three fastest laps.
Razgatlioglu extends his championship lead to 41 points over Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati), with Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) another 14 points behind.
Tissot Superpole Race Highlights:
Bulega took the hole-shot and led the first two laps before Razgatlioglu overtook him at Turn 11.
Razgatlioglu steadily increased his lead, winning by just under five seconds ahead of Bulega.
Starting from the middle of the third row, Jonathan Rea (Pata Prometeon Yamaha) moved into third on the opening lap. With riders battling behind him, Rea created a gap and secured his first Yamaha podium after 14 races.
Scott Redding (Bonovo Action BMW) recovered from a technical failure in Race 1 to claim his first top-five finish of the season, finishing fourth. He ran in the top six throughout and passed Andrea Locatelli (Pata Prometeon Yamaha) and Sam Lowes (ELF Marc VDS Racing Team) to secure fourth place.
Race 2 Highlights:
Bautista crashed on his way to the grid for Race 2, but the Ducati team managed to repair his bike in time. Despite a strong start, he dropped from his sixth position on the grid but recovered to finish fifth.
Razgatlioglu led all 23 laps of Race 2, claiming his seventh consecutive victory. This win marked his ninth for BMW, tying Marco Melandri’s record as the most successful rider for the German manufacturer.
Bulega was Razgatlioglu’s closest competitor throughout the race, maintaining a two-second lead over the chasing pack for much of the race, securing his eighth second-place finish of the season.
Alex Lowes (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) was the top British rider again, finishing third after an early battle with Redding.
Key Points:
- Pole position: Toprak Razgatlioglu (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) 1’24.629s
- Race 1 winner: Toprak Razgatlioglu
- Tissot Superpole winner: Toprak Razgatlioglu
- Race 2 winner: Toprak Razgatlioglu
- Race fastest lap: Toprak Razgatlioglu – 1’25.597s – new lap record
P1 | Toprak Razgatlioglu | ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team
“I’m feeling incredible. My goal coming here was to win all three races, and we achieved that. I’m strong, but my bike was also exceptional at this circuit, and the team improved the bike each day. I want to thank everyone because I’m really happy with how this weekend went. We’ll see what happens in the next race, but even though there are many races to go, we can aim for the World Championship title.”
P2 | Nicolo Bulega | Aruba.it Racing – Ducati
“I’m really happy because we improved the bike from yesterday. I worked a lot with my team in the garage, and we found some improvements. The feeling on the bike was better, and we had a great Superpole Race this morning. I started really well, but then Toprak overtook me. When he did, I focused on my race because he was very fast this weekend. In Race 2, I realized that if I could follow Toprak in the first laps, I could open a gap to the riders behind. Alex was very fast at the end and pushed until the last lap. It’s very difficult to keep your concentration and stay on the bike until the last corner, but I’m really happy to have another podium.”
P3 | Alex Lowes | Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK
“I’m delighted. I was on the limit for the whole race. I didn’t make the best start, so I had to attack from the first lap to pass Johnny and Alvaro, and then I managed to pass Scott. I hoped that Nicolo would come back to me a bit, but his pace was relentless. I was at my limit to stay in third and couldn’t do any more. I wanted to try for second, but I wasn’t fast enough. I did a good job this weekend, and the team did a fantastic job. I really enjoyed the weekend. To have two podiums at my home round is a dream come true with everybody here.”
WorldSBK Race 2 Results
1. Toprak Razgatlioglu (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team)
2. Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) +8.062s
3. Alex Lowes (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) +10.026s
4. Scott Redding (Bonovo Action BMW) +12.275s
5. Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) +13.476s
6. Danilo Petrucci (Barni Spark Racing Team) +15.562s
Fastest lap: Toprak Razgatlioglu (BMW) – 1’25.597s – new lap record
WorldSBK Tissot Superpole Race Results
1. Toprak Razgatlioglu (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team)
2. Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) +4.826s
3. Jonathan Rea (Pata Prometeon Yamaha) +6.526s
Championship Standings
1. Toprak Razgatlioglu (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) 241 points
2. Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) 200 points
3. Nicolo Bulega (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) 186 points
WSSP Sunday UK Round
Huertas wins again and extends his championship lead to 25 points
Key Points:
A red flag due to a crash involving four riders—Keankum, McPhee, Fuligni, and Toms—at Turn 9 shortened the duration of Race 2 for the WorldSSP grid.
The 12-lap race was led by Yari Montella (Barni Spark Racing Team), with Adrian Huertas (Aruba.it Racing WorldSSP Team) and Jorge Navarro (Orelac Racing Verdnatura) chasing him.
The race was decided on the last lap when Montella exceeded track limits at Turn 9. Running over the paint resulted in a one-place penalty, leaving the Italian rider disappointed with a second-place finish. This result left him 25 points behind Huertas in the championship standings.
The top three riders separated themselves from the chasing pack, with Stefano Manzi (Pata Yamaha Ten Kate Racing) running in fourth position throughout the race, finishing three seconds behind the podium.
A race-long battle for fifth position unfolded among Tom Booth-Amos (PTR Triumph), Valentin Debise (Evan Bros. WorldSSP Yamaha Team), and Nikki Tuuli (EAB Racing Team). Debise, aiming for his fourth consecutive top-five finish, attacked Booth-Amos at the final corner but ran wide, dropping to eighth. Booth-Amos secured his career-best finish in fifth position, ahead of Tuuli.
Key Results:
- Pole position: Adrian Huertas (Aruba.it Racing WorldSSP Team)
- Race 1 winner: Adrian Huertas
- Race 2 winner: Adrian Huertas
- Race fastest lap: Yari Montella (Barni Spark Racing Team) 1’28.637s
P1 | Adrian Huertas | Aruba.it Racing WorldSSP Team
“This was another perfect weekend. We worked very hard with the team and had an incredible pace. Although we made some mistakes in this race and need to improve on shorter races after a red flag, our pace was strong. By the end, I was catching up with Yari, which is really positive because we’re very strong in long-distance races. He was very fast today, and I want to congratulate him. I’m really happy with the victory.”
WorldSSP Race 2 Results
1. Adrian Huertas (Aruba.it Racing WorldSSP Team)
2. Yari Montella (Barni Spark Racing Team) +0.461s
3. Jorge Navarro (Orelac Racing VerdNatura) +3.316s
4. Stefano Manzi (Pata Yamaha Ten Kate Racing) +6.392s
5. Thomas Booth-Amos (PTR Triumph) +10.086s
6. Niki Tuuli (EAB Racing Team) +10.723s
Fastest Lap: Yari Montella, 1’28.637s
Championship Standings
1. Adrian Huertas (Aruba.it Racing WorldSSP Team) 186 points
2. Yari Montella (Barni Spark Racing Team) 161 points
3. Stefano Manzi (Pata Yamaha Ten Kate Racing) 141 point
WorldSBK returns for the Czech Round at the Autodrom Most from the 19th to 21st of July.
Official WorldSBK Press Release
