Jonathan Rea believes Toprak Razgatlioglu’s MotoGP transition is as much a mental battle as it is a technical one. The pair have a history of facing each other back in World Superbikes, but their paths have diverged since then.
Rea has only made two appearances in MotoGP, while Razgatlioglu has taken on the full-time switch. He picked up his first championship point last weekend in the United States.
Razgatlioglu caught the attention of Fabio Quartararo by outperforming him on pure pace and is also ahead of Jack Miller in both qualifying and race results so far this year.
Jonathan Rea highlights the importance of mental strength for Toprak Razgatlioglu’s MotoGP transition
Rea spoke with GPOne about Toprak’s switch from Superbike to MotoGP, saying it’ll require a lot of mental adjustment to stay sharp and handle the change in pace.
Razgatlioglu isn’t in title contention just yet. The main issue seems to be that he’s riding a bike that can’t keep up with most of the competition on track.
When he first jumped onto the M1, Razgatlioglu found it tough to even look at the timing screens. This is a rider who was used to battling at the front, but now has had to recalibrate his expectations. Even a top-15 finish is seen as a solid result these days.
“I hope Yamaha finds the right path, because even Fabio, one of the most talented, is struggling. When you’re a rookie and have to learn new circuits, with all the expectations on your shoulders, it’s very difficult.”
“Miller said that there are two different styles at Yamaha: Fabio and Toprak. Razgatlioglu, after testing the bike, realised that it’s not that simple.”
“It takes time, but the most important thing is for the rider to feel comfortable and have confidence in the bike. If he can tailor it to his needs, he can become one of the best at Yamaha.”
Toprak Razgatlioglu’s crash count already matching last year’s total
By the time the 2026 season had just started, Razgatlioglu had already matched his crash total from all of 2025. While that might look concerning at first glance, it actually reflects just how reliable he was in WSBK, where he went down only twice all year.
He attributed his Sprint Race crash in Thailand to technical issues rather than a rider mistake. Plus, he stayed upright throughout pre-season testing and is still getting up to speed near the back of the grid.
Given his past consistency, there’s little reason to expect that a couple of early crashes will turn into a larger trend now that he’s in MotoGP.
Razgatlioglu has made it clear from the start that 2027 is where his focus lies. He expects a season to adapt before moving back onto Pirelli tyres with Yamaha aiming for a much stronger bike by then.
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