Toprak Razgatlioglu (TUR), the new addition to the BMW Motorrad Motorsport WorldSBK factory rider lineup, achieved his first podium finish with the BMW M 1000 RR during his debut weekend on the bike. The ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team rider secured third position in the Superpole Race at the Phillip Island (AUS) season opener. However, a technical issue in the second main race prevented another success. His teammate Michael van der Mark (NED) and Garrett Gerloff (USA) from the Bonovo action BMW Racing Team both secured top ten results in both main races.
In the first main race on Saturday afternoon, conducted as a flag-to-flag race with a mandatory pit stop, the BMW riders gave a strong performance. All four BMW M 1000 RRs finished within the top ten. Razgatlioglu started from fifth place and crossed the finish line in fourth. Van der Mark advanced from 16th on the grid to seventh, Gerloff climbed from 14th to ninth, and Scott Redding (GBR / Bonovo action BMW Racing Team), starting 19th, finished in tenth. However, both Razgatlioglu and Redding received time penalties for leaving the pit lane a fraction of a second too early after their pit stops, resulting in each being demoted by one position.
The Superpole Race on Sunday morning brought the first podium of the season for the BMW M 1000 RR. Starting from fifth, Razgatlioglu immediately joined the battle for the lead. After ten laps, he finished the sprint race in the celebrated third position. Gerloff finished 13th, van der Mark 16th, and Redding 17th.
The second main race late on Sunday afternoon had to be postponed by over an hour due to a dirty track. Starting from third, Razgatlioglu once again fought in the leading group, but an engine issue ended his race after a few laps. Shortly after, the race was red–flagged due to an accident in another turn. After the re-start, eleven laps were completed without mandatory pit stops. Gerloff secured another solid result, finishing eighth, van der Mark was ninth, and Redding crossed the line in 17th.
The second round of the 2024 WorldSBK season will take place from 22nd to 24th March at Barcelona (ESP).
