Toprak sees upward trend despite Aragon crash: “A positive weekend”

The result somewhat masks the progress made: Toprak Razgatlioglu was forced to retire from the Grand Prix at MotorLand Aragon following a crash at Turn 12. Prior to that, however, the Yamaha rider had worked his way into the points and looked significantly more competitive than he had recently at Silverstone and the Sachsenring.

Consequently, Razgatlioglu’s assessment was surprisingly positive despite the retirement. “It was a positive weekend for me,” said the 29-year-old. The start of the Grand Prix did not go to plan at first. Razgatlioglu lost positions but then fought his way back up the field. “The start to Sunday’s race didn’t go particularly well. But we managed to make up a few places. My feeling at the start wasn’t all that great. But I found my rhythm and got to grips with it better.”

The rookie struggles with front tyre wear

As the race progressed, however, the front tyre caused him increasing problems. His feel for the front deteriorated so much that Razgatlioglu could no longer maintain the pace he’d been setting previously. “The front tyre was wearing out. I found it difficult to maintain my race pace,” reported the Superbike World Champion. “I was veering off line in almost every corner because the bike wouldn’t turn in and the front wheel was locking up.”

Eventually, Razgatlioglu crashed whilst braking for Turn 12, three laps before the end of the race. “I wanted to maintain my lap times, but that was impossible because the bike wouldn’t slow down. Then I crashed.”

Razgatlioglu saw 11th or 12th place within reach

The crash was particularly frustrating because Razgatlioglu saw a chance of a solid Grand Prix result for the first time in a while. “If I hadn’t lost the feel for the front, I might have finished eleventh or twelfth. Before the front tyre started to wear out, the race was going really well. That ruined my race.”

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Nevertheless, the Yamaha rider did not want to view the weekend in a negative light. “We’ve learnt something again,” emphasised Razgatlioglu. Following the difficult performances at Silverstone and the Sachsenring, Aragon was at least a small step in the right direction. Whilst Razgatlioglu was well off the pace there, he was once again able to fight for points in the race at MotorLand.

Willkommen zum Rennen in Aragón

Foto: Gold & Goose

Jorge Martin

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Fans

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Marc Márquez

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Fermin Aldeguer

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Fermin Aldeguer, Alex Márquez, Franco Morbidelli, Fabio Di Giannantonio

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Start des Rennens

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Marco Bezzecchi

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Moreira und Bastianini

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Marc Márquez

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Pecco Bagnaia

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Alex Márquez

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Fabio Di Giannantonio

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Pedro Acosta

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Brad Binder

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Fermin Aldeguer

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Marc Márquez und Pedro Acosta

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Jorge Martin

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Marc Márquez gewinnt das Rennen

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Sieger Marc Márquez

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Pedro Acosta, Marc Márquez, Marco Bezzecchi

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Sieger Marc Márquez

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Willkommen zum Rennen in Aragón

© Gold & Goose

Qualifying, however, remains a major area for improvement. Razgatlioglu had already put himself in a difficult position on Saturday with a poor starting grid position. In Q1, only Aprilia stand-in rider Lorenzo Savadori was slower than the MotoGP rookie.

Physically, Sunday’s crash took its toll. Razgatlioglu cancelled his planned post-race media session because he was complaining of back pain. Instead of speaking to the journalists, the Turkish rider wanted to seek immediate treatment from his physiotherapist.

The outcome in Aragon was therefore mixed: the crash prevented him from scoring points, but after two difficult weekends, Razgatlioglu regained more confidence in his Yamaha. The next step must now be to translate this progress into a better starting position in qualifying.