WorldSBK: Podium at challenging season opener.

Phillip Island. The first races of the 2025 FIM Superbike World Championship (WorldSBK) are in the books. The Australian Phillip Island season opener turned out to be a rollercoaster of emotions for BMW Motorrad Motorsport and the ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team. On Saturday, defending World Champion Toprak Razgatlioglu (TUR) finished second in the first race of the year, securing a podium finish. However, Sunday proved to be a challenging day for ‘El Turco’ and his teammate Michael van der Mark (NED).

The team arrived in Australia after a demanding final phase of pre-season preparation. Due to a regulation change, the new BMW M 1000 RR, which had been developed for racing over the winter, had to be adapted. Additionally, Razgatlioglu sustained a finger injury in January. BMW Motorrad Motorsport and the ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team took advantage of WorldSBK’s two-day test on Monday and Tuesday before the race weekend to fine-tune the optimal set-up for the Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit. After a crash on Monday, Razgatlioglu sat out the remainder of the first day but returned to testing on Tuesday.

Following Friday’s free practice sessions, the action got serious on Saturday. Razgatlioglu marked his return to the front row with P2 in Superpole qualifying, while van der Mark secured seventh place. The two BMW factory riders were the only ones able to challenge a dominant line-up of Ducati riders in Superpole and the races. In the first of the two main races, which both featured a mandatory pit stop for a tyre change, Razgatlioglu remained among the front runners from the start and ultimately finished second, with only Nicolò Bulega (ITA / Ducati) ahead of him. Van der Mark worked his way into the top five but unfortunately crashed out.

Sunday kicked off with the short Superpole race, which saw a moment of drama in the first lap when Razgatlioglu nearly crashed and ran straight into the gravel. He rejoined at the back of the field and launched a comeback, making his way up to P13. Van der Mark initially surged to third place but later encountered issues, crossing the finish line in 14th. That meant the duo started the final main race from tenth and 12th on the grid. Razgatlioglu gained multiple positions in the opening laps, breaking into the top five before the pit stop. However, after changing tyres, he had to return to the pits again due to a technical issue, forcing him to retire from the race. The cause of the problem is still under investigation. Van der Mark fought hard, but P14 was the most he could achieve.

WorldSBK now returns to Europe, with the second round taking place on the last weekend of March in Portimão, Portugal. BMW Motorrad Motorsport will use the break to analyse the first races, continue working hard, and prepare for the long European leg of the season.

Reactions after the Phillip Island season opener.

Sven Blusch, Head of BMW Motorrad Motorsport: “When we arrived at Phillip Island it was clear that it would not be an easy weekend for us because we just missed testing time with all the obstacles we had over winter. With Toprak’s finger injury, he missed a lot of testing time, we had a lot of rainy days as well and there has been the concession topic so we came to Phillip Island still investigating the best direction for our set-up. I think on Saturday we showed potential but Sunday was definitely a tough day for us. It is something we will focus on now and we will get back stronger together at Portimão. We had a good test there so we are confident that we can have a better weekend. The most important thing is that we now have a couple of weeks at home to really go deep into the analysis, then we test again and I am sure we will come back stronger. We just have to find our sweet spot for the bike. This weekend showed that there is potential. Sometimes we found the right way and sometimes we were struggling. It is part of the game. From being the hunter to be being the hunted it was clear that it will not be easier than last year but we take on the challenge. We finished this first weekend not as we would have liked to, but now we are for sure looking forward to Portimão.”

Christian Gonschor, Technical Director BMW Motorrrad Motorsport: “It was a very intense week with many ups and downs, a mix of light and shadow. However, we learned a lot, which means we can now head to Portimão with plenty of valuable information. There, we will first test before the second round of the season takes place. During Monday and Tuesday’s Phillip Island test we gathered a lot of insights for the race weekend, learned a great deal about the bike, and I think Toprak’s Superpole time showed that the performance of the motorcycle is still there. This year, it is a bit more difficult to fully maximise it, but both riders delivered a strong performance in the first main race. Toprak’s podium was, of course, the highlight of the weekend, and Mickey had a very strong race pace until his high-speed crash, which he fortunately walked away from unharmed. That is what we take away from this weekend. The bike has the performance, and the areas where we still need to fine-tune the balance will now be worked on at home and during the test in Portimão.”

Toprak Razgatlioglu, ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team: “I am never very happy after the first races of the season which has been the case in the past years – the season opener is always strange. To get the podium in race one was not easy; thanks to my team as in every session they improved the bike. I felt a bit better on the bike in that race and we did a very good job. At the start of the Superpole race, I had a big problem and was lucky not to hit someone and to avoid a big crash. For race two we said it would be better to ride yesterday’s bike because I felt that we had been really improving and the grip was much better than before but during the race there was a problem and I could not continue. But I now only focus on the next race. Finally we are going to Europe and I’m just starting to fight with all the Ducatis because this is almost like a Ducati Cup. Nicolò Bulega was strong here last year, so I was not surprised that he was fast. Congratulations to him, he did a very good job and deserves it. I think that we will fight more this year. Álvaro Bautista is also strong, but this year, all Ducatis were in front. This is not normal and I hope that it will not continue like this. Now we have a long break of almost one month and we will work hard and try to come back stronger. We have a test at Portimão and these two test days are really important because we try to improve the bike. We are still not at hundred percent but I know that everyone is pushing hard.”

Michael van der Mark, ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team: “Honestly, this week has been a bit disappointing. We’ve been testing a lot, we tried a lot of things but we never really got a nice feeling with the bike. It has been very strange because we really tried everything. Then on Saturday, when the temperature was very high, I did a good lap in Superpole and managed to qualify in seventh position so that was positive. In race one, when we had very high temperatures, I was doing very well. I was enjoying it and the bike felt very good so I was confident but unfortunately I crashed out and for some reason on Sunday we did not have any good feeling at all. We have to find out why the bike felt so different on Sunday. Now we are going back to Europe, we have a two-day test at Portimão and it’s good that we can do a lot of testing there and make sure that we can do a lot better at Portimão.”

Facts and figures.

Superpole.

Air temperature: 33°, track temperature: 33°, humidity: 38%, conditions: dry.

Race 1.

Air temperature: 36°, track temperature: 40°, humidity: 32%, conditions: dry, laps: 20.

Fastest race lap: Nicolò Bulega, lap 2, 1:29.345

Superpole Race.

Air temperature: 22°, track temperature: 32°, humidity: 71%, conditions: dry, laps: 10.

Fastest race lap: Nicolò Bulega, lap 3, 1:28.914

Race 2.

Air temperature: 22°, track temperature: 36°, humidity: 58%, conditions: dry, laps: 20.

Fastest race lap: Álvaro Bautista, lap 11, 1:28.836

Current riders‘ classification (R01/12, after 3 of 36 races).

Current manufacturers’ classification (R01/12, after 3 of 36 races).