The reigning WorldSBK Champion fuelled the silly season rumour mill with a cryptic social media post
Will Toprak Razgatlioğlu be a MotoGP™ rider in 2023? It’s a question that everyone is eager to know the answer to. And the reigning WorldSBK Champion fuelled the silly season rumour mill with a cryptic social media post recently.
After his performances on Yamaha’s R1 superbike – which ultimately saw the Turk beat Jonathan Rea to the 2021 title – interest in Razgatlioğlu’s services in the Grand Prix paddock spiked last season. Following the ongoings inside Yamaha that saw Valentino Rossi announce his retirement and Maverick Viñales moving to Aprilia Racing mid-season, the Iwata factory were in need of at least one rider to fill a seat. Razgatlioğlu was understandably a leading candidate.
However, the Turk and his team decided to turn down a move to MotoGP™ for the 2022 campaign. Razgatlioğlu wanted to fully focus on becoming a World Champion in WorldSBK, something he achieved when he and Rea went head-to-head at the brand-new Pertamina Mandalika Circuit in Indonesia.
Having been crowned a World Champion in WorldSBK, Razgatlioğlu now seems more than open to a move into MotoGP™. Every onlooker is in awe of what the 25-year-old can do on a motorcycle, with his aggressive, mind-blowing riding style incomparable to most. Only eight-time World Champion Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team) comes close to the current crop of world-class riders on show in terms of riding style.
As we know, silly season starts incredibly early in MotoGP™. Most riders have contracts that are finishing at the end of 2022, and every factory will be in negotiations with riders about who will be filling which seats in 2023 and beyond before a wheel is turned in anger. Seemingly, Razgatlioğlu is a rider that is now in the equation for a MotoGP™ seat next year. Unless he fancied winding us all up, of course.
The next question, if true, is who does Razgatlioğlu sign for? Yamaha, given that’s where he rides in WorldSBK, would surely be in pole position. But would Razgatlioğlu sign for a non-factory outfit? The murmurings last year suggested not. Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP have already signed Franco Morbidelli until the end of 2023, and alongside the Italian is current World Champion Fabio Quartararo – no space at the inn then, surely? Unless – like Andrea Dovizioso (WithU Yamaha RNF MotoGP Team) – Yamaha fancy luring Razgatlioğlu in with a full factory deal in their Independent Team, or Quartararo unexpectedly leaves Yamaha for whatever reason.
With the talent and excitement Razgatlioğlu possesses, you have to think every factory will be wanting to speak to him about a ride. Ducati, Honda, Suzuki, KTM and Aprilia already boast mega line-ups, but when someone like Razgatlioğlu becomes available, it would be a mistake to just let it pass you by without trying to do something about it.
If previous years are anything to go by, it probably won’t be too long before we know Razgatlioğlu’s whereabouts for 2023. – www.motogp.com
