After a stellar championship-winning campaign last time out, the Pata Yamaha with Brixx WorldSBK team are returning in 2022 looking to defend their title with Toprak Razgatlıoğlu, while Andrea Locatelli remains and is targeting race wins in his second season.
The Yamaha WorldSBK project is operated in direct partnership between Yamaha Motor Europe and Crescent Racing. This collaboration presents a dynamic racing team with highly-experienced engineering staff to extract the best of Yamaha’s proven racing pedigree and winning machinery.
Since the Japanese manufacturer’s highly-anticipated return to WorldSBK in 2016, Yamaha has made no secret of its aim to add to its impressive history within the premier production superbike series – which includes the 2009 title-winning and record-breaking year with Ben Spies along with many other highlights.
From 2017, the Pata Yamaha WorldSBK Official Team became regular podium contenders – recording six podiums and showing incredible improvement throughout the season. This upward trajectory continued the following year when the team celebrated its first win with a spectacular double victory at Donington Park in May 2018. By the end of that season, the team had scored three wins and 12 podiums.
In 2019, the Yamaha R1 took to the podium no less than 17 times including one emphatic win in Jerez, Spain. Then teammates Alex Lowes and Michael van der Mark finished the championship in close third and fourth respectively.
In 2020, exciting youngster Razgatlıoğlu joined the squad and scored a win on debut at Phillip Island. He went onto finish fourth in the standings, one place ahead of van der Mark, with Pata Yamaha taking 17 podiums, including four victories.
2021 went down as one of the greatest seasons on record, with Razgatlıoğlu battling Jonathan Rea for the championship. It went down to the final round, with Toprak taking the title, having won 13 races and 29 podiums. 2020 World Supersport Champion Andrea Locatelli also joined the team in 2021 and enjoyed a sensational rookie season, finishing fourth in the standings after scoring four podiums. Pata Yamaha with Brixx WorldSBK won the teams' title and Yamaha took the manufacturers' championship, resulting in the Triple Crown.
In 2022, the Pata Yamaha with Brixx WorldSBK team were once again in championship contention with Razgatlıoğlu. Their Turkish rider scored 14 victories but just missed out on the title, finishing second in the final standings. Alongside Locatelli, the two riders combined for 31 podiums, and both will remain with the team for a championship challenge in 2023.
