Toprak Razgatlioglu extends World Championship lead with another hat-trick

Balaton Park. Toprak Razgatlioglu (TUR) dominated the premiere of the FIM Superbike World Championship (WorldSBK) at the brand-new Balaton Park Circuit in Hungary. Just like at Misano (ITA) and Donington Park (GBR), ‘El Turco’ was unstoppable on his BMW M 1000 RR from the ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team at Lake Balaton. He secured pole position and won all three races – often with a commanding lead and with the fastest lap each time. His victory in the Superpole Race on Sunday morning was historic as it marked the 1000th race in WorldSBK history. In the riders’ championship, Razgatlioglu extended his lead from four to 26 points. In the manufacturers’ standings, BMW, currently in second, reduced the gap to leader Ducati to just 16 points.

His teammate Michael van der Mark (NED) finished 12th in the first main race. In the Superpole Race under changing conditions, he was unlucky in the tyre lottery and ended up 15th. He was 16th in the second main race. Van der Mark is travelling directly from Hungary to Japan, where he will compete in next weekend’s Suzuka 8 Hours, the third round of the 2025 FIM Endurance World Championship (FIM EWC), with the BMW Motorrad World Endurance Team. WorldSBK now heads into the summer break, with round nine of the season scheduled for the first weekend of September at Magny-Cours (FRA).

Reactions after the Balaton Park Circuit round.

Sven Blusch, Head of BMW Motorrad Motorsport: “It was a truly historic weekend for BMW Motorrad Motorsport. Celebrating a win in the 1000th WorldSBK race with Toprak at the debut of the new Balaton Park Circuit, achieving another triple victory, and extending the championship lead – this is simply fantastic for us. Huge thanks to the entire team on site, the crews in Munich and Berlin, and all BMW employees and fans who supported us. We’re on track and already looking forward to Magny-Cours. We’ll also use the summer break to intensively support Michael van der Mark and bring him back into the top ten. But first, our full focus together is now on the Suzuka 8 Hours, where we’re already heading. We are confident that Mickey, with his experience as a four-time winner of that race, will be a great asset to our FIM EWC team.”

Christian Gonschor, Technical Director BMW Motorrad Motorsport: “It was a wonderful weekend – not only because of our success, but also because of the great atmosphere here. It was fantastic to race in Hungary again after such a long time. Great people, a great track, and excellent infrastructure: we really enjoyed it. The circuit suited Toprak well; there’s a lot of stop-and-go, which plays to his strengths and those of the bike. His skill, combined with the strengths of our BMW M 1000 RR in braking and acceleration, created a perfect combination. We celebrated another triple win, and the championship battle remains tight. It’s also important that we made significant progress in the manufacturers’ standings and are just 16 points behind now. We’re very happy and looking forward to a short but intense summer break, to come back all-in at Magny-Cours.”

Toprak Razgatlioglu, ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team: “For me, it has been an amazing weekend. That was a new track for everyone and we started the weekend strongly on Friday. I quickly adapted to the circuit and we did a very good job. I am very happy for that! The Superpole Race was a little bit difficult because there were many wet patches, we had just one dry line and some corners were also still wet. But we did a very good job, no mistake, I was just riding and focused on the pace. That race was very important for me because I had won the 800th and the 900th and now also the 1000th WorldSBK race so this was a very special race for me to win. I am not focused on the championship, I just focus in every race to win it. The next races will be at Magny-Cours. Last year I did not ride there, and I am looking forward to go there. I will try to get another hat-trick there. Like Portugal, this is one of my favourite tracks. We need to win there, in France, and at Estoril, as I think that Ducati will be very strong at Aragón and Jerez. Now we have a longer break and I will enjoy some holiday but I also need to work a lot. We have increased our lead in the championship but everything is possible in the races so we need to try to get as many wins as possible.”

Michael van der Mark, ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team: “I was looking forward to racing here in Hungary as it is always exciting to enter uncharted territory and it’s fun to learn new circuits. Race one was pretty solid and that made me confident for Sunday. Unfortunately, the unpredictable weather in the Superpole Race made the tyre choice a real gamble. We opted for intermediates, but could see during the race that everyone who made the same choice seemed to struggle. In race two, I unfortunately had a small crash that dropped me to the back of the field but it’s time to put that Sunday behind me. I am on my way now to Suzuka, to a race that I really love. I will give my very best to help BMW Motorrad Motorsport and the BMW Motorrad World Endurance Team to achieve their big goal: to win the Suzuka 8 Hours as the first European manufacturer.”

Facts and figures.

Superpole.

Air temperature: 27°, track temperature: 37°, humidity: 56%, conditions: dry.

* New all-time lap record

Race 1.

Air temperature: 32°, track temperature: 41°, humidity: 45%, conditions: dry, laps: 20 (after red flag).

Fastest race lap: Toprak Razgatlioglu, lap 7, 1:39.732 (new record)

Superpole Race.

Air temperature: 21°, track temperature: 27°, humidity: 83%, conditions: wet, laps: 10.

Fastest race lap: Toprak Razgatlioglu, lap 9, 1:40.649

Race 2.

Air temperature: 22°, track temperature: 30°, humidity: 79%, conditions: dry, laps: 21.

Fastest race lap: Toprak Razgatlioglu, lap 7, 1:39.384 (new record)

Current riders’ classification (R08/12, after 24 of 36 races).

Current manufacturers’ classification (R08/12, after 24 of 36 races).

Posted on Sunday, July 27th, 2025 by Michael Le Pard