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What results would Toprak Razgatlioglu achieve in MotoGP? Everyone will have asked themselves this question at least once, after seeing the successes he has achieved in World Superbike, or the fiery battles he initiated in 2022-2023 with fellow riders Jonathan Rea and Alvaro Bautista. The prospect of seeing a character with Toprak's talent, charisma and unique riding style in the MotoGP premier class lineup is undoubtedly one that fascinates. But would the BMW rider be able to be as effective in MotoGP as he is among the production-based championship bikes? It's perfectly possible for Randy Mamola, who spoke on the question in an interview granted to colleagues at Motorsport-Total.com.
"Certainly Superbike requires a different riding style. Pirelli tires are very different from MotoGP tires. Then you have to consider how an SBK works, what the chassis imposes on the rider, and so on," noted the motorcycle racing legend, who, however, has no doubts about the 28-year-old's talents: "Could Toprak adapt to a MotoGP? Why not? He has tremendous talent."
Supporting the former U.S. rider's argument is the same resume of Razgatlioglu, who has been able to win the World Championship on as many as two of the three bikes he has ridden so far in his Superbike career.
"To go from a Kawasaki to a Yamaha and then to a BMW, which had never won anything before, and then to win so impressively, shows that Toprak operates at a different level. It's not that he won because the other manufacturers are struggling," Mamola pointed out.
This is precisely why the 65-year-old believes the two-time world champion deserves a chance to prove he can adapt to the category. And not just a brief taste of MotoGP. "You have to give him a real chance. It's not fair to give him only two days of testing and expect him to understand the character of the bike and tires these days, " he concluded.
Words that bring to mind the two-day test with the Yamaha M1 held by Toprak in April 2023. The Turk's second test on the Japanese MotoGP bike, which instead of opening the doors of MotoGP to him, decreed the end of his relationship with the Iwata-based manufacturer. It appeared very unwilling to accommodate the demands of the Superbike champion.
