After narrowly missing out on the European Superstock 1000 Championship this season, Toprak Razgatlioglu will move up the ranks with the Kawasaki Pucetti Racing team, making the step into the World Superbike Championship for 2018 following his impressive season with the ZX-10RR.
With the added confidence of knowing the team, the young Turkish riders talent has shone through this season, winning three races in 2017 he missed out on the title by eight points.
Fans will now be treated to his stunningly loose style on board the ZX-10RR in the WorldSBK class, as the 21 year old will have the opportunity of battling against Jonathan Rea and Chaz Davies.
Razgatlioglu is understandably delighted about the news: “2017 was really a good season and unfortunately we missed the STK1000 title after the injury in France for very few points.”
“If I could run to Magny Cours, I would definitely have had more to fight. I’m happy to go to Superbike next year! I am now in different seasons with the team Puccetti, I know the team, its professionalism and therefore I know that I will have everything I need to learn the new bike and soon to fight for good results. I thank Manuel and Kawasaki for this opportunity and I cannot wait for the end of the month test at Jerez to get back on track. “
Manuel Puccetti, team principal adds: “In 2018 we will continue to deploy one bike in the Superbike Championship. This year, but also in the past, Toprak proved to be a talented pilot and we are confident that he is ready to make this move to the top category in the world.”
“Our first season as a customer team was positive and the experience we first acquired with Randy, then with Anthony and top riders like Haslam and Guintoli surely served us to be ready to face the better next year.”
“The new regulation could allow us to reduce the gap between our bikes and officers, so we are confident that in the 2018 season we will have all the means to allow Toprak to learn this bike early and be competitive.”