BMW: ‘The target is a least a win, but I imagine we’ll see several podiums’

Despite very good tests in Jerez and Portimao, BMW have cooled expectations ahead of the new WorldSBK campaign.

New signee Toprak Razgatlioglu has been as good as expected during pre-season testing, as he topped the Portimao test ahead of Nicolo Bulega. 

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Other BMW riders such as Michael Van Der Mark and Garrett Gerloff have also been strong, while Scott Redding ended the Jerez test third.

But BMW Motorrad Motorsport Director, Marc Bongers, says podiums should be the aim before thinking of ‘at least a win’.

“We’ve built on the package from last year,” said Bongers. “Some minor changes in all areas really; chassis, electronics, aerodynamics. Just minor updates but to complete the package and it’s a pleasure to see that Toprak didn’t seem to take a lot of time to adapt.

“Since we could carry the setup from Jerez to Portimao and it immediately works, we are convinced we have a good base package.

“We need to get back to the podium. We had several in 2022 but a hard year in 2023. The target is at least a win, but I would imagine that we’ll see several podiums.”

With regard to testing and providing their riders with a package that they can all be competitive with, Bongers feels the changes made have helped in that area.

“Very happy with how testing has gone. We’ve shown some good times in both time attacks and long runs.

“Toprak has been at the top of the list. I’m happy that we could bring the pace we had in Jerez and copy past here.

“I’m confident. It’s good to see where we’re at against our competitors.

“Garrett showed the way [last year] and showed the potential of the package.

“Michael wasn’t entirely fit. Scott was struggling with other issues but I’m happy to see Michael fit here.

“We build on what Garrett and the package did last year.”