These just in:

WSBK Press:

Toprak Razgatlioglu (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) has secured the 2025 MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship, sealing his third career title and second with BMW before his anticipated move to MotoGP in 2026.

The Turkish star wrapped up the Championship in Jerez with 616 points, 21 wins, 31 podiums and 6 pole positions, ending just 13 points clear of Ducati’s Nicolo Bulega.

This triumph adds another chapter to Razgatlioglu’s remarkable career. After claiming his first WorldSBK crown with Yamaha in 2021 and delivering BMW’s historic maiden title in 2024, the 28-year-old has now confirmed himself as one of the Championship’s true greats with a third crown in 2025.

Toprak Razgatlioglu (ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team):
“I’m really happy because we achieved our target — to win the World Championship with BMW. This season was not easy; at the beginning we were not very strong, but race by race we improved together. The team worked so hard, always trying to give me a better bike, and finally we made it. Today in Race 1 I crashed at Turn 5, but I stayed calm and focused on Race 2. I just wanted to finish and take the title. I didn’t push too hard or ride aggressively — I knew I only needed to be smart. This is my last season in WorldSBK and my last race with BMW, so to take the title before moving to MotoGP is a perfect ending. I’m really proud of what we did together.”

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Honda


Vierge and Lecuona round out the 2025 season with one of the strongest Sundays for Honda HRC

Today’s races at Spain’s Jerez Circuit brought the 2025 WorldSBK season to a positive and emotional close for the Honda HRC team and its riders, Xavi Vierge and Iker Lecuona.

A hard-fought and impressive fourth place for Vierge in the Superpole Race not only marked the team’s strongest result of the year, but also crowned a weekend in which his consistent performances saw him climb to seventh in the overall standings — Honda’s best WorldSBK result since 2020. Iker Lecuona gave his all in every session and wrapped up the season with two top ten finishes.

After a final warm-up, the factory team turned its attentions to the Superpole race. Having qualified eighth, Vierge was straight up into fifth with his CBR1000RR-R. Passing Lowes for fourth on lap two, the home rider was lapping faster than Iannone, in third. Hunting down the Italian through the central part of this short sprint, Xavi continued to demonstrate strong pace all the way to the line, just missing out on a podium finish to secure fourth. This impressive performance represents the best race result of the season for Vierge, and for the Honda HRC team as a whole.

Lecuona, fifteenth on the grid, quickly moved up to eleventh. Soon getting into a strong rhythm, Iker progressed to tenth and pushed to close in on Bassani immediately ahead. Passing the Italian on lap seven, and van der Mark on the last lap, Lecuona did well to conclude P8.

Thanks to their strong Superpole race results, Vierge and Lecuona were promoted to second and third row on the grid for Race 2. Vierge made a lightning start to place second through the opening corners. Battling Locatelli and Razgatlioglu in the initial stages, Xavi dropped to fifth but remained hot on the heels of those ahead. Getting back in front of the Italian before being passed again in the final stages, the Honda HRC rider did well to defend fifth, holding this position all the way to the line to secure those crucial 11 points needed to clinch seventh in the championship.

Lecuona slipped back a little off the start line but was quick to react and able to climb back to seventh by lap four. Working hard to maintain a consistently fast pace, the Spaniard’s pace dropped a little in the final stages, which meant that he completed this final race of the year in ninth position.

As the 2025 WorldSBK season draws to a close, so does the Honda factory journey for Vierge and Lecuona. Xavi rounds out the year in seventh position in the championship standings, having collected 185 points along the way. This positioning is the best result for Honda in SBK since 2020. Teammate Iker closes thirteenth, with a tally of 103.

The Honda HRC team once again thanks both Xavi and Iker for their commitment, hard work and positive attitude over the last four years and wishes the two riders the very best for the future.

Xavi Vierge 97
SPRC: P4 - Race2: P5 Final Championship Standing: P7

“I think it’s been a very strong weekend to finish this chapter. When we arrived at this final round, we knew that the best way to end the season was to try and finish seventh in the championship. We also knew it would be difficult — but in the end, we achieved it. Of course, finishing seventh isn’t anyone’s main goal, but being realistic and knowing how much we’ve been struggling, to end the season in that position is actually a very good result for us. I felt I was able to show my true speed in every session, and I was in the mix for the podium in every race. It’s true that I struggled a lot with tyre life, especially over the last two or three laps, which meant I couldn’t quite fight for top three, but we were really close today. We also finished a few seconds closer to the front. Anyway, I want to say a big thank you to the team for these four years of hard work. Everyone involved has always given their all — myself included — but especially once we knew that our paths would separate at the end of the season. There are two kinds of people: those who roll off and those who keep pushing even harder. I think we showed that we fall into the second group. We kept at it, we achieved better results, and until the very last lap of the very last race, we gave everything. I’ll keep that with me. It’s been a pleasure to be a Honda HRC factory rider and a pleasure to work with this team. I wish them all the very best for the future.”

Iker Lecuona 7
SPRC: P8 - Race2: P9 Final Championship Standing: P13

“Considering the situation, I’m really happy with how the year has ended, and with how these four years have come to a close. Today was a good day overall — P8 in the Superpole Race, where we recovered a lot of time compared to the group, and then P9 in Race 2, fighting until the end for that position against some strong riders. At the beginning I felt fast, but halfway through the race my right arm became really tired and I started to risk losing the front. I knew Mackenzie was right behind me, so I said to myself, ‘OK, let him go,’ because if we started to fight, the chasing riders would have caught us quicker. So I let him pass and tried to follow him for five or six laps, but in the last four laps I was really struggling with the front and with both arms. I just couldn’t manage the position anymore. My main target today was to finish a clean weekend without mistakes or crashes — to complete this final race and to be able to make it back to the garage to say “thank you” to everyone. I also wanted to have a bit of fun, do a burnout and say goodbye to the whole team and all the guys. So, a big thank you to Honda HRC for these four years together.”

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Bimota




Lowes Finishes Debut BbKRT Season In Sixth Place Overall



Alex Lowes finished the final round of the year with a sixth place in Race Two and in overall sixth position in the championship table. His BbKRT team-mate Axel Bassani confirmed his top ten ranking in the points table after the two races on Sunday at Jerez.

As the third straight day of warm and dry conditions arrived for riders and spectators to enjoy, the final races of the year got underway at the Circuito de Jerez - Angel Nieto, on Sunday 19 October.

Alex lined up for the ten-lap sprint race in third position, with Axel in 13th place on the grid.

The opening Sunday race saw Lowes involved in a fight for the off-podium positions from the start, eventually finishing in a strong fifth place. Axel just missed out on a championship point in that contest by finishing tenth.

In the final race of the weekend - and of the season - Lowes was again inside the fight for the top few places through all 20 laps. He ended up in sixth place, having been in fifth place for the first five laps.

Having already confirmed his final sixth place in the Rider’s Championship rankings in the first season on the new bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team KB998 Rimini machine, Lowes’ combined race finishes at Jerez of sixth, fifth and then sixth again provided a positive finish to what has been a strong debut season for all involved inside the BbKRT squad.

Bassani was tenth in Race Two, scoring six more championship points to underline his top-ten credentials on the new WorldSBK machine.

Lowes’ personal season total of 218 points took him to his top six ranking, while Bassani scored 140 points on his way to his tenth place overall.

The 2026 season gets underway at Phillip Island in late February, but the first full on-track preparations will begin at Jerez in two days’ time, with private tests being held between 21-22 October.

Alex Lowes, stated: “I am quite happy with our day’s work and I thought I rode the bike really well today. We tried some things and probably missed a little bit of feeling in the second half of the race. We had a solid final weekend, but not an easy one in the hot conditions. Overall I am happy, certainly, with the second part of the season. In the first year of a new project, the effort, passion and motivation from everybody in the team has been fantastic. I am proud to be part of this project in our first year against other manufacturers and teams who have years of experience. I think we have to be really happy. I am grateful for the job that has been done, it is impressive. From the mechanical side, the KB998 Rimini is a new bike and we have not had any problems. This shows you what a good job the engineers and mechanics have done. I am proud of them. Now, as always in racing, now we will analyse, reflect and try to improve during the winter to try to be stronger next year.”

Axel Bassani, stated: “Today has been quite good and we were always in the top ten. We were consistent and always fighting with some top riders. It was quite a good season because everything was new for us, but we were always there, fighting for a good position. We finished inside the top ten in the Rider’s Championship so this was really positive for a new bike and a new project. The bike never stopped during the season, which is very important because we can believe in the bike, and we can always arrive at the finish line. I am happy for everybody in the team, for myself and all the mechanics - they have done an incredible job. Thank you to everyone. We will keep working for the future.”

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Yamaha



Starting from ninth on the grid this morning, Locatelli made progress in the latter stages of the Superpole Race to finish P6 and secure a better start for the final race of the season. From the second row of the grid, he was able to climb to third position by Lap 3, holding off a charge from Xavi Vierge and Alvaro Bautista until Lap 9. Yamaha’s Italian star did not have an answer to Bautista’s pace in order to defend the final podium position, but enjoyed a spectacular wheel-to-wheel fight with his future 2026 teammate Vierge until the final corner.
It was an emotional farewell to the team and to WorldSBK for Jonathan Rea, who unfortunately closed his illustrious career by watching the final race of the season in the Pata Maxus Yamaha pit box, sitting alongside his wife Tatia and sons, Jake and Tyler, following a high-speed crash in the Superpole Race.

The six-time WorldSBK Champion was ruled unfit for Race 2, with an injury to his right knee, having crashed in Turn 3 at the start of the 10-Lap sprint this morning – regrettably taking GYTR GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Team rider Remy Gardner down with him. It was not the way the team, Yamaha or Rea himself hoped to finish his incredible WorldSBK story, but he takes with him the deepest admiration and respect from every single member of the paddock.

Pata Maxus Yamaha will return to Circuito de Jerez this coming week for the first test of 2026, taking place on Tuesday, 21 October.
 
Andrea Locatelli – SPRC: P6 / Race 2: P4

“Let me say first of all, thanks to all of my big family here in the Pata Maxus Yamaha team especially all my crew that are working so hard all season. We celebrated Race 2, the last race of the year with special colours and it was an honour to be part of celebrating the 70th birthday of Yamaha. I rode with this livery in Suzuka and was able to get a good result there, and we finished the season with another good result – unfortunately not on the podium but close to the fight. We need to be proud of what we did during this year, we had one victory and were always trying to be in the fight for the podium. We need to continue to believe, work hard – try to increase my level and the level of the bike. I want to say again, “thank you” for all the support from everyone in Yamaha to make a step in performance and to keep going in this way. I feel good on my R1 and now I have a lot of experience with this package, so we will try to give it our all on the next one! We have a long time and hard work to do during the winter to prepare for 2026, but it was an excellent season for me and I know we can do more! Let’s see for the next one and wish us luck!”


Jonathan Rea – SPRC: DNF / Race 2: DNS

“Completely not the way I wanted to end this chapter, both in WorldSBK and with Yamaha, but looking back it was honestly a really nice project and a great team of people to be with – I want to thank everybody for all of their hard work and a huge “good luck” for the future. Really grateful for this opportunity to ride for an amazing bunch of guys, but you can’t write the end of your own story and if anything, this weekend has cemented my decision to walk away from the sport. I hope I’ll be remembered as someone who gave everything right until the last lap. A huge thanks to all the World Superbike community, all the fans, my fans and all our sponsors for being here on the journey. I’ve had a great ride and I’ll see you on the other side.”


Paul Denning – Team Principal, Pata Maxus Yamaha:

“Jerez threw us a lot of unexpected challenges this weekend, of course the main ones being JR’s accident in Race 1 yesterday followed by the first lap Superpole collision and huge crash with Remy today. To finish his career watching Race 2 in the pit box isn’t the way we or Jonathan would have ever imagined Jerez would go – but it does not diminish in any sense at all the brilliance of his career, everything that he’s achieved and indeed how much we’ve benefited from Jonathan Rea being part of our Pata Maxus Yamaha and Crescent “family”. He’ll be having dinner tonight with Tatia, Jake and Tyler, having a glass of wine and being able to enjoy the first steps of his new life. Here’s to you, JR! On the other side of the garage, we finished the weekend in a very positive way with Andrea. He and the team have honestly struggled a bit with the feeling and confidence all weekend, but the guys worked late into the night yesterday to analyse and improve the package yesterday. Today, Loka was able to come out fighting and especially in Race 2, ride to his full potential – holding third for a good portion of the race and enjoying an incredible fight with his 2026 teammate Xavi Vierge for fourth position. Thank you to everybody involved in the Yamaha WorldSBK project for this year, fourth in the championship and close to the podium positions was a quite positive result and we’re determined to take a significant step forward next season.”


****************BMW:

Jerez de la Frontera. Mission title defense accomplished: Toprak Razgatlioglu (TUR) is once again the World Champion in the FIM Superbike World Championship (WorldSBK) for 2025! With third place in the second main race of the dramatic season finale in Jerez de la Frontera (ESP), ‘El Turco’ secured the crown. This marks his second consecutive World Championship title as a BMW Motorrad Motorsport factory rider with the BMW M 1000 RR of the ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team – and the third WorldSBK title of his career (2021, 2024, 2025).

After his outstanding championship win in 2024, Razgatlioglu entered the 2025 season as the clear favourite. However, following a winter testing phase during which the BMW M 1000 RR had to be adapted at short notice due to regulation changes, the season started off more challenging than expected. Despite scoring a hat-trick at the second round in Portimão (POR), there were also setbacks, and Razgatlioglu found himself in the role of the chaser behind Ducati rider Nicolò Bulega (ITA).

But by mid-season in June, ‘El Turco’, BMW Motorrad Motorsport, and the ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team turned the tide. In Misano (ITA), Donington Park (GBR), the new Balaton Park Circuit (HUN), and Magny-Cours (FRA), he won every race – achieving four consecutive hat-tricks and taking the championship lead. He then celebrated his first-ever victory at MotorLand Aragón (ESP), equaling his own record from 2024 of 13 consecutive wins. After further victories and podium finishes, he ultimately secured the 2025 title with 616 points – 13 points ahead of Bulega.

Teammate Michael van der Mark (NED) wrapped up his final weekend as a WorldSBK rider with more strong Top 10 finishes. After five years with the ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team (2021–2025), he will remain part of the BMW Motorrad Motorsport family. Already on Tuesday in Jerez de la Frontera, he will be back on the BMW M 1000 RR, working with the BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Test Team to prepare for the 2026 WorldSBK season.

Markus Flasch, CEO of BMW Motorrad: “Congratulations to Toprak and the entire team! This season, everyone has shown what true champions are made of. The first races weren’t easy, but for everyone – especially for Toprak – the attitude was clear: stand up, straighten your crown, and keep going. And what a way they kept going! The winning streak that began in Misano was simply breathtaking. Even on the nerve-racking final Sunday here in Jerez, after the unfortunate retirement in the Superpole Race through no fault of his own, everyone stayed completely focused and prepared everything perfectly so that Toprak could seal the deal in race two. The reward is Toprak’s well-deserved second World Championship title on our BMW M 1000 RR. We are incredibly proud of him and of everyone in the team, in Munich and Berlin, whose hard work made this achievement possible.”

Toprak Razgatlioglu, ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team: “I am very happy and smiling. To get the title was very important for me. This was my last year with BMW and in the Superbike Paddock. It is a great gift to BMW before I leave for MotoGP. In the end we are World Champions. At the beginning of the season, we were not so strong but we improved with every race. Thanks to the entire team and BMW for all this hard work. It is not me being the World Champion, it is us. Looking back onto this final weekend: Everything went very well yesterday especially and today I came to the track more relaxed. I just needed to finish the Superpole Race within the top seven but we crashed in turn five. I know this is racing and everybody wants to pass. It is that he (Nicolò Bulega) just hit me and I crashed. After that I just stayed calm and focused on race two because I needed to do a good job there. I just focused on achieving the best possible position. I started the race not pushing too hard but I worked my way to the front step by step and in the end, we were on the podium. To be World Champion again is a great feeling and I want to thank everyone who was part of this journey.”

Sven Blusch, Head of BMW Motorrad Motorsport: “I am very happy – and speechless. It is such a great day. I think that after the Superpole Race, we all aged by ten years. The job the team did was amazing. The bike was pretty damaged and to work under that pressure to get it ready for race two was incredible. Everybody stayed calm, and I think this was in the end the key for us to win the title. The second title in a row – we are happy for Toprak, for the team, for BMW Motorrad. Toprak wrote history for BMW. It was wild ride together and we are sad that it’s over but we will cheer for him next year. And we are also so thankful for everything that Mickey has done for us. We had difficult years, also with injuries but he was always loyal to us. And he has played an important part in winning these two title in both years. We are really looking forward to continue working with him. What we are going to do, we will announce soon. But for now – we are going to have a big party tonight, and from tomorrow on we fully focus on the 2026 WorldSBK season with Danilo Petrucci and Miguel Oliveira.”

Christian Gonschor, Technical Director BMW Motorrad Motorsport: “I can‘t describe how I feel because it was an incredible day. A few hours with a lot of emotions, ups and downs, everything happened. But at the end for sure to see Toprak back on the podium, celebrating the second world championship for us, for BMW, makes me very proud and the whole project, the whole team, everybody involved. So it’s a fantastic day to complete a fantastic. At the end the key for any success in sport is always focus and teamwork. We listened to the riders, we looked into our package and tried to be focused to learn from the situation when we were not fast enough to beat our competitors. And with the focus of the riders, of the crew and all our technicians in Munich, we managed to turn the page. Thank you to Toprak, who is an incredible person on and off the track, thank you to Mickey, who did so much for us since he joined in 2021, and thank you to the entire team! A very personal thank-you also goes to my wife Katherina and my kids, who are always a source of support for me.”

Shaun Muir, Team Principal ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team: “My feelings are really tough to put into words. We woke up feeling super, super positive, but as we always know anything can happen in racing and it actually did in the sprint race. I’ve just got to put my hands together and praise the good work the guys did. The entire team stayed focused. In the end Toprak is a three-times World Champion, and two times with BMW. I am absolutely over the moon, proud as you can be, of everyone involved and the lot of hard work everybody did.

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Ducati


The 2025 WorldSBK season ends with an exciting Sunday for the Aruba.it Racing-Ducati team.

Nicolò Bulega is unbeatable at the Pirelli Spanish Round weekend, winning his fifth consecutive race of the season. However, the race for the world title comes to an end at the chequered flag of Race 2 when Razgatlioglu (BMW) finishes in third place.
Alvaro Bautista finished the 2025 WorldSBK season in third place after an exciting Sunday with two second places in SPR and Race 2.

Stefano Cecconi (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati Team Principal)
"The conclusion of this season was inspiring for several reasons. A critical cycle has come to an end with Álvaro, who, together with us, in addition to two world titles, has become the most successful Ducati rider ever in WorldSBK; he will always have a special place in our hearts! We missed out on the riders' title by just a few points, despite Nicolò's fantastic season, who, in his first two years in this championship, has shown he has what it takes to be a champion. We are also thrilled to have made a major contribution to the manufacturer's title won by Ducati. A heartfelt thank you to all the people who make up this fantastic team and to everyone who works at Borgo Panigale. We are already ready for the next challenge".

Nicolò Bulega (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati #11)
"We had a good season, although honestly, I think some technical issues may have affected us. I always fought until the last lap, and I am proud of what we did with the team. I congratulate Toprak because the winner is always right".

Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati #19)
"These are emotional moments. We ended my last weekend with the Aruba.it Racing – Ducati team, my second family, on a high note. I feel I can still be very competitive, and I want to prove it. I thank my team: fantastic work".