Friday’s action for the MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship has concluded with Toprak Razgatlioglu (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) becoming the rider to beat on Friday, after setting a sensational pace throughout the day to end Friday 0.222s clear of the field. However, the #54’s day was not without drama, pulling off an unbelievable save at Turn 12 during Free Practice 2.

Razgatlioglu was instantly fast on Friday morning, ending FP1 at the top of the timesheets, and was instantly into the low 1:26 bracket. The #54’s times consistently dropped, entering FP2 with added confidence. The early stages of FP2 were briefly led by teammate Michael van der Mark (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) before Razgatlioglu went fastest two minutes later – later setting a 1’26.013.

Razgatlioglu used all of his body to save a front-end crash at Goddards after riding on the limit. The #54 discussed the moment: “The final corner, I’m very happy because it’s a nice video for my career! Nice memories and also, every lap, I’m waiting there for this problem. The last corner is very famous at Donington. Every lap, when I enter, I’m always riding on the limit there but this time I lost the front and almost crashed. I picked up the bike, this is good, it is Marquez-style. In general, it was a very good day for me. I know every lap, at the last corner, is very difficult. It’s a bit bumpy and easy to lose the front tyre.”

Throughout the day Razgatlioglu completed 34 laps in total and was the fastest rider in sectors 2,3 and 4. This allowed him to produce a consistent 1:26 pace during his final run on Friday and is already beginning to look like a key contender during the races this weekend.

Discussing his feeling heading into this weekend and what is allowing him to set blisteringly quick times, Razgatlioglu said: “Before coming here, I was feeling very positive. I remember last year I lost some corners and sectors due to the bike setup. I love the engine brake, but the BMW’s engine brake is crazy! I love it. I understand again that I’m riding and enjoying it a lot. The engine brake’s working, the bike is easy to stop and turn and in the last sector, we’re very strong.”

However, the #54 still believes there is work to do before he is fully comfortable around the technical Donington Park circuit: “I’m not feeling 100% at the final two corners, but we’ll try to improve there. In the last part, I need a little bit of lock. It looks like I am losing a bit in some areas, but this is the feeling. We’re strong in all sectors but the feeling is that I am still losing in some areas.”

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