Toprak Razgatlioglu: “I hope to fight for the win, I am only looking at Jonny”

Despite Bautista winning 98% of the races so far this season, Razgatlioglu, who is the only other rider to have won a WorldSBK race in 2023, believes Rea could be his main threat this weekend.

Limited experience around Imola is one of the reasons why Bautista could be set for a tougher weekend, however, he did win twice at Donington Park which was traditionally seen as a bogey round for the Ducati rider. 

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Not dismissing Bautista from winning, Razgatlioglu said this about his expectations this weekend: "I’m very excited to come back to Imola. I remember 2019, I have good memories here as I took a podium. 

"In 2015, I had a big fight with Caricasulo in Stock 600! My goal is to fight for the win again. Jonny is normally very strong here. 

"I hope we are fighting with him; I am only looking at Jonny. Also, I think Alvaro will improve this year as the bike has changed a lot. He will be very strong here. 

"I hope it can be a good weekend to recover some points. This year, I’ll try to win in a long race. I hope we fight for the win."

Rea knows all ‘the tricks’ around Imola as he searches for first WorldSBK win this year

Imola is one of Rea’s best circuits despite it not being on the calendar for several seasons, and while 2023 has been a down year for the six-time world champion so far, ruling the Kawasaki rider out of contention would be a mistake.

Keen to have his best weekend of the season, Rea said: "I’m really excited to be back here! It always brings back fond memories; I have had some great races here. It’s a unique part of the world to race in a park, with the undulations and it’s steeped in history. 

"Our track record here has been quite good too. My favourite sector at Imola… it’s hard to give just one! The most iconic part is the drop down from Piratella into Acque Minerali, and then the jump out of there. 

"It’s so difficult to master but when you get as close to perfect as possible, it’s an amazing feeling. 

"You accelerate out of there, uphill and it’s really hard, fighting with the bike. Imola is about having a bike that is easy to ride but that stops very well; we’re stopping really hard in three or four areas of the track. 

"We know we can be stronger here than the first part of the year, to fight for podiums is the minimum we can aim for. 

"I know a few tricks of the trade round here. It’s hard to know whether to go back to our 2019 setting or our current setup."