Razgatlioglu gets WorldSBK shot with Puccetti
The Kawasaki Puccetti Racing squad will field European Superstock 1000 runner–up Toprak Razgatlioglu in World Superbikes next season.
The Turkish rider – protege of five–time World Supersport champion Kenan Sofuoglu – has been long linked with a step up to WorldSBK in 2018 with Manuel Puccetti‘s team, and did nothing to dispel this after a successful test on the WorldSBK-spec ZX–10RR at Portimao in September in which he was third quickest.
Razgatlioglu tallied up three wins in 2017 in the STK1000 class, and missed out on the title by just eight points to Michael Ruben Rinaldi having been forced to miss the French round of the season due to injury.
The Turk is thrilled to step up to the Superbike class in 2018, and feels the familiarity of the Puccetti surrounding will allow him to challenge for strong results aboard the ZX–10RR in a short space of time.
“2017 was a really good season, and unfortunately we missed the STK1000 title after the injury in France for very few points,” he said.
“If I could run at Magny–Cours, I would definitely have had more to fight.
“I’m happy to go to Superbike next year. I am now in different seasons with the team Puccetti, I know the team, its professionalism, and therefore I know that I will have everything I need to learn the new bike and soon to fight for good results.
“I thank Manuel and Kawasaki for this opportunity, and I cannot wait for the end of the month test at Jerez to get get back on track.”
Team boss Puccetti confirms his outfit will only field Razgatlioglu in 2018, ending speculation of a return to WorldSBK with the team in 2018 for 2014 world champion Sylvain Guintoli – who replaced the injured Randy Krummenacher for the final two rounds.
“In 2018 we will continue to deploy one bike in the Superbike Championship,” said Puccetti.
“This year, but also in the past, Toprak proved to be a talented pilot and we are confident that he is ready to make this move to the top category in the world.
“Our first season as a customer team was positive and the experience we first acquired with Randy, then with Anthony (West) and top riders like (Leon) Haslam and Guintoli surely served us to be ready to face the better next year.
“The new regulation could allow us to reduce the gap between our bikes and officers, so we are confident that in the 2018 season we will have all the means to allow Toprak to learn this bike early and be competitive.”