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Türkiye’s most successful motorcycle racer has confirmed his ambitions for the next stage of his career.
Three time World Superbike champion Toprak Razgatlioglu will enter MotoGP from the 2026 season and says his goal goes beyond participation. Speaking to Türkiye Daily after being named Athlete of the Year, Razgatlioglu said he wants to compete to win in the sport’s top category and represent his country at the highest level.
Razgatlioglu has dominated the World Superbike Championship, winning titles in 2021, 2024, and 2025. After seven seasons in the series, he will now move to MotoGP, widely regarded as the pinnacle of motorcycle racing.
“MotoGP is a very different and very difficult category,” Razgatlioglu said. “We always want the maximum. We dream of a world championship. But we do not know when or how that will come. We signed up after careful career planning. We are not going there just to race. Our character is about winning.”
Razgatlioglu noted that his move to MotoGP also carries a national dimension. “Our biggest goal is to raise our flag here as well and make our country proud,” he said. “This flag will not come down.”
Razgatlioglu described his first season in MotoGP as a period of adaptation. He said results may be limited at the start due to the technical and competitive differences between Superbike and MotoGP.
“The first year will be a learning year,” he said. “We may be far from the podium at first. Everything is different. I believe 2027 will be very different for me. Our first goal is to become the best rider of our team and our brand. After that, we will show our difference.”
He will race in MotoGP with Prima Pramac Yamaha and will use number 7 during his debut season. The number change comes because his long used number 54 is already in use on the MotoGP grid.
Razgatlioglu has already tested the Yamaha YZR-M1 at the Valencia Test ahead of his MotoGP debut season. The test focused on increasing Razgatlioglu’s riding time on the Yamaha YZR-M1 as he adapts to MotoGP machinery, tires, and working methods ahead of his full time move to the series in 2026.
Former world champion and Turkish national team captain Kenan Sofuoglu said Toprak Razgatlioglu’s move to MotoGP was the result of long term planning rather than a sudden decision. He said Razgatlioglu’s career had been shaped step by step over many years, with MotoGP set as a target well in advance.
Sofuoglu said he began working with Razgatlioglu from a young age and described his development as carefully managed. “He already had exceptional talent,” he said. “The achievements Toprak has reached have made a strong impact around the world. I also had my own career, but the level he has reached today is truly something to be proud of. I do not see myself as his coach. I see myself as his older brother.”
He said his role has focused on mental support rather than race tactics. “We do not talk tactics,” Sofuoglu said. “Toprak manages that himself. I help more on the mental side.”
Sofuoglu added that Razgatlioglu’s dominance in World Superbike made the transition inevitable. He said the MotoGP paddock had been waiting for his decision and that the timing was right, adding that he expects Razgatlioglu to first establish himself as the strongest rider for his manufacturer before setting higher goals.
Toprak Razgatlioglu is one of the most accomplished motorcycle racers in the history of Türkiye and a three time world champion in Superbike racing. He made his debut in the World Superbike Championship in 2018 and quickly established himself as a front runner.
His breakthrough came in 2021, when he won his first World Superbike title with Yamaha. That season ended Jonathan Rea’s long championship dominance and made Razgatlioglu the first Turkish rider to win a World Superbike world title.
In 2024, Razgatlioglu made a widely discussed switch from Yamaha to BMW. Despite skepticism within the paddock, he delivered one of the most dominant seasons in the series’ history, including a record run of 13 consecutive race wins. He defended his title in 2025, sealing his third world championship at the season finale in Jerez with 21 race victories and 616 points.
Across his World Superbike career, Razgatlioglu won world titles with two different manufacturers, Yamaha and BMW, placing him among a small group of riders to achieve that milestone. His results established him as one of the leading figures of the modern Superbike era.
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