The eighth round of the 2024 FIM Superbike World Championship at Magny-Cours, France, took a grim turn as ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK rider Toprak Razgatlioglu was forced to sit out the remainder of the weekend following a brutal crash in Free Practice 2. Razgatlioglu, who has been a dominant force on the grid this season, was declared unfit to continue after being rushed to Moulin hospital for medical checks.

While crashes are an unfortunate reality in motorsports, what’s unforgivable is the inadequate track safety that contributed to Razgatlioglu’s injury. Air-fence technology in 2024 is state-of-the-art and globally accessible—yet the crash barrier that Razgatlioglu collided with was a crude relic that had no business being present at a modern WorldSBK race track.

This is not just an accident—it’s negligence. The fact that such an outdated barrier was allowed to remain at an FIM/DORNA sanctioned event is an appalling failure in safety standards, and heads should roll. There is no excuse for this level of carelessness when the technology exists to prevent injuries like this. Who is responsible for this lapse? The list is long and damning: Dorna, FIM, Dorna WSBK, and the Magny-Cours racetrack management are all complicit in this failure.

BMW Motorrad Motorsport’s Head Sven Blusch echoed the team's immediate concern, saying, “The entire BMW Motorrad Motorsport family wishes Toprak a very speedy recovery. After his great success series, this is obviously a setback, but health is the most important thing. We are looking forward to having him back at the race track as soon as possible.”

A setback, indeed, but one that was avoidable. Razgatlioglu’s crash isn’t just an unfortunate incident—it’s a wake-up call to a series and an organization that should know better. The Superbike community may eagerly await Toprak’s return, but it should also be demanding accountability. Because in 2024, no one should be crashing into antiquated barriers on a world championship track.

The focus may now be on Razgatlioglu’s recovery, but the real question is: will anyone take responsibility for ensuring something like this never happens again?

Who are complicit? Dorna. FIM. Dorna WSBK. Magny-Cours racetrack management.

From BMW:

Toprak Razgatlioglu to sit out the remainder of the Magny-Cours weekend.

Magny-Cours. ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK rider Toprak Razgatlioglu (TUR) has to sit out the remainder of the eighth round of the 2024 FIM Superbike World Championship (WorldSBK) at Magny-Cours (FRA). Following his heavy crash in Free Practice 2 and medical checks in Moulin hospital, he has been declared unfit by the WorldSBK medical team for the rest of the weekend.

“The entire BMW Motorrad Motorsport family wishes Toprak a very speedy recovery,” said Sven Blusch, Head of BMW Motorrad Motorsport. “After his great success series this is obviously a setback but health is the most important thing. We are looking forward to having him back at the race track as soon as possible.”