Victory and podium for BMW M 1000 RR in WorldSBK and FIM EWC: A successful weekend for BMW Motorrad Motorsport in Assen and Le Mans!

Assen / Le Mans. Two world championship events with the BMW M 1000 RR in one weekend – and many celebrations at BMW Motorrad Motorsport in a real “Super Weekend”. During the third round of the 2024 FIM Superbike World Championship (WorldSBK) in Assen (NED), Toprak Razgatlioglu (TUR) and the ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team celebrated a superb victory in the second main race on Sunday after finishing second on Saturday. In the FIM World Endurance Championship, the BMW Motorrad World Endurance Team started the 2024 season with second place at the 24 Heures Motos du Mans (FRA).

WorldSBK in Assen.

During the WorldSBK event in Assen, Toprak Razgatlioglu he was on course to win the first major race on Saturday. In a dramatic turnaround, starting third, he was close to taking the lead when the race was interrupted by a red flag, finishing on the second step of the podium. Sunday morning’s tough Superpole race did not discourage him. Razgatlioglu finished ninth and had to start the second race of the afternoon in this position. However, ” The Turk » charged through the pack and took the lead for the first time on lap eight. In the final laps, he took first place, giving him his third victory with the BMW M 1000 RR after the success in Barcelona (ESP). After Assen, it ranks second in the championship standings.

FIM EWC at Le Mans.

The famous 24 Heures Motos du Mans marked the opening round of the 2024 FIM EWC BMW Motorrad World Endurance Team, led by Team Manager Werner Daemen
(BEL), started the new season strong with the #37 BMW M 1000 RR. Three pilots, Markus Reiterberger (GER), Ilya Mikhalchik (UKR) and Sylvain Guintoli (FRA), took the second step of the podium. The trio started from fifth place in this marathon in two hours. Thanks to the good performance of the drivers and the excellent work of the team in the pits, the #37 quickly climbed the podium and was already in second place on Saturday after a few hours of racing. The team maintained this position until the end on Sunday afternoon.

Comments after the race weekend.

Marc Bongers, director of BMW Motorrad Motorsport: “I am very satisfied, it was a great weekend. Of course, I could only follow Le Mans partially from Assen, but I watched it until one o’clock in the morning on Saturday evening and from 6 o’clock in the morning on Sunday. It is good that the BMW Motorrad World Endurance Team got second place. We also had some luck and problems in the other teams, but that’s also part of the 24 hour race. After finishing third last year and second this year, you can imagine the goal for next year. It was a good start to the 2024 FIM EWC.

Here in Assen it was my home race and a big event for me personally. Many fans, including many Turkish fans, created a wonderful atmosphere. On Saturday we were disappointed not to win the first main race, as we were very close to it, but it showed that we were on the way to getting there. The Superpole race was a little disappointing; All four BMWs had tire problems, resulting in eighth to eleventh places, but we managed to enter the second main race. It was a big fight at the front, with seven or eight bikes a second, with Toprak and Mickey in the middle. Finally, we celebrated another victory with Toprak and now we are in the leading group of the championship. Mickey’s sixth place is also very good, although unfortunately he was relegated. We have seen that the bike performs well, and not only with Toprak, although it has a small amount. We take this good news with us.”

Toprak Razgatlioglu, ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team (SP : 3 / R01 : 2 / SP Race : 9 / R02 : 1) : ” I’m very happy. We did a great job this weekend, especially in the second race. It wasn’t easy to get the win, but I pushed hard every lap. Everyone worked hard this weekend and we finally won in the second race. It’s my victory first in Assen in the Superbike category, and also the first win here for BMW, so I’m very happy. The fact that I started from 9th position was not very important, because if you are very fast it is not a problem. The only problem was that after the first corner Alex Lowes almost crashed and I closed my throat. After that, I tried to pass all the drivers step by step. I felt confident and had a very good pace, especially after ten laps. When the rain came, I closed the throttle because I didn’t want to take any risk.
I was content to follow Alvaro Bautista who has more experience than me. Then I started pushing again. I wanted to win this weekend and I did. »

Werner Daemen, director of the BMW Motorrad World Endurance Team: “I am proud that we have finished in second place. The three drivers did a fantastic job. No one fell, we had a problem at night when it was very cold, but all three riders coped with the conditions and I am very proud. They gave everything all week, they worked well together and we had a great team atmosphere. We showed that we are a strong team and I think this second place is just the beginning of a good season. I am 100% sure that we can fight for victory at Spa, Suzuka and Le Castellet.«

Sylvain Guintoli, BMW Motorrad Endurance World Team (2nd place 24 Heures Motos): “It was a good weekend. In the end we finished second and we have to be happy about that. We learned a lot and it was my first experience in the BMW Motorrad Endurance Team with Markus and Ilya. It was a good experience. It’s a bit of a shame that we didn’t win because we wanted to bring the victory home, but I’m sure that all the experience gained this weekend and this race, which was very difficult, will help us improve in the future. . It’s a good foundation for the rest of the season.«

Markus Reiterberger, BMW Motorrad Endurance World Team (2nd place 24 Heures Motos) : “We are very satisfied with this second place. Of course we would have liked to win, but in such a long and difficult race, with many incidents, accidents and mistakes, we did well. We had a good pace, and especially at night we were very fast even though it was very cold. It was very difficult because of the cold and difficult conditions. Thanks to the team and my teammates who gave everything.
I believe we showed that we can be contenders for the world championship. We also know when we need to make adjustments to improve further. Overall, it was a successful weekend and second place at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. »

Ilya Mikhalchik, BMW Motorrad World Endurance Team (Second Motorcycle Hours): “I am very happy with this result. The race was very difficult, especially during the night relays when it was almost zero degrees outside. It was a little cold to ride the bike and the conditions were difficult, but despite this our bike performed very well, the tires worked well and everything was fine. We were fighting for the podium and finally we got second place, which makes us happy. Thanks to the whole team who worked all night and especially to my teammates who were very fast and worked hard in all the rounds, regardless of the conditions. »