Razgatlıoğlu Soars to Pole, as Torrential Rain sees Race 1 at Mandalika Postponed

20-11-2021

Razgatlıoğlu Soars to Pole, as Torrential Rain sees Race 1 at Mandalika Postponed

Pata Yamaha with Brixx WorldSBK’s Toprak Razgatlıoğlu will start tomorrow’s FIM Superbike World Championship races from the front of the grid, after a terrific Superpole performance saw him go fastest at the Mandalika International Street Circuit by 0.324s over title rival Jonathan Rea.

With today’s race cancelled due to heavy rain, the new Sunday schedule sees two feature length contests. Razgatlıoğlu holds a 30-point advantage over Rea, meaning the Turkish rider has the possibility of sealing the title in tomorrow’s opener, should he finish within five points of the Kawasaki rider.

Teammate Andrea Locatelli also enjoyed a strong qualifying performance, with the Italian rookie set to line up on the second row from fifth. The 2021 rookie is in a battle with Ducati’s Michael Ruben Rinaldi for fourth in the standings, with his fellow countryman set to start down in 14th.

After a Warm Up at 09:00 (GMT+8), the first points of the weekend are on offer in Race 1 at 11:00, with the final race of the 2021 WorldSBK season set to get underway at 15:00.

For Superpole results, click here.

Toprak Razgatlıoğlu: Superpole - P1 (1’32.877)

Pata Yamaha with Brixx WorldSBK

Today, we didn’t have a good start, because in FP3 we had a shifting problem and I could only set two lap times. For the qualifying, the bike is fixed and I could set some fast laps, also the track record. I like this circuit, and every session for me better grip and better feeling. Just before the race we had a lot of rain, crazy rain, the first time I see this in Indonesia, so race cancelled. Tomorrow we don’t know what the weather conditions will be, but we will see and I will try to fight for win in last two races. I’m still just looking at the races and not focusing on the championship side.

Andrea Locatelli: Superpole – P5 (1’33.588)

Pata Yamaha with Brixx WorldSBK

So, in the end our second day is not so bad for the qualifying, because we improve a lot in FP3. I have more feeling with the bike here today and unfortunately we don't race today with the conditions, but I think we are still ready for the race. We will see tomorrow, but for sure we try to make a step forward. If we have dry conditions, we try to improve a little bit more tomorrow morning during the Warm Up. I'm happy because in the end, we are starting P5, it’s not so bad for us and the feeling after Argentina is coming again. Now we need to prepare for tomorrow’s races, but for sure, we can try to finish the season with the best result.

Paul Denning – Team Principal

Pata Yamaha with Brixx WorldSBK

It's such a such a pity that Race 1 has had to be cancelled today. I guess it is monsoon season in Indonesia and the risk was always there. So maybe the race can be a slightly different time in the future due to this. Despite some technical setbacks in FP3 Toprak was dominant again in Superpole, with an incredible lap in the 32s, backed up by a super job by Loka to be fifth. We’ll start from those positions in both the races tomorrow and just focus on doing our best as always. On behalf of Yamaha and the team I’d like to apologise to all the Indonesian fans who are so enthusiastic and waited so long today for a race. I hope they can come back tomorrow and be entertained. Semakin di Depan!