BMW: Toprak asks for help at Assen – from the vd Mark / Superbike World Championship

You didn’t have to be an insider to see the good mood at the British BMW ROKiT team in Australia and Spain. This was ensured on the one hand by new signing Toprak Razgatlioglu’s impressive performance, but even more so by the calm interplay with his teammate Michael van der Mark. The good atmosphere between the two factory drivers is something that should not be ignored and also transferred to the respective employees.

When the 2024 World Championships get underway next weekend in Assen, Razgatlioglu is hoping to get more out of van der Mark than ever before. For the first time this season there was no preliminary test.

“It’s Mickey’s home race and maybe he can help me a little bit because it’s my first time driving a BMW there and he’s always strong there. Maybe he can help me with some lines and data. We always work together and I’m very happy,” said the 27-year-old earlier. “My goal is to fight for the podium again, but this is my first time there with the M1000RR. Maybe I’ll have a good feeling and fight for the win. Let’s wait for the race weekend. Since it’s Mickey’s home race, I hope we can be on the podium together. “

For van der Mark, who is from Gouda, Assen is not only his home race, but also the place where he crashed heavily in the second race a year ago and suffered a long-term leg injury.

“It’s great to come to Assen, to my home game,” the 31-year-old said. “And I think we’re getting there at the right time. We’ve had two good race weekends before and it’s always good to come to Assen with a lot of confidence. I’m looking forward to it. This weekend will be busy for me, a lot of friends and family will be there, but that’s good .It’s only once a year so I’ll be happy. I also think that now the base of the bike is very good and that we can be really competitive. So my goal for the weekend is to be on the podium in the race my house.”