Miguel Oliveira shares why he’s ‘at ease’ with Toprak Razgatlioglu taking his MotoGP ride at Pramac

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Miguel Oliveira will ride for BMW in the World Superbike Championship in 2026, after Yamaha released him from Pramac’s MotoGP rider line-up to get Toprak Razgatlioglu.

Oliveira found himself becoming another piece of the sliding doors moments of Razgatlioglu leaving BMW and the WSBK paddock to move to MotoGP with Pramac on a factory Yamaha contract. The Portuguese star’s eventual availability tempted BMW to sign him this October.

Razgatlioglu signed a two-year works deal with Yamaha in July to join Pramac from the 2026 MotoGP season, which immediately put Oliveira and Jack Miller at risk. While Miller did not have a contract for 2026 at the time, Yamaha had included a release clause in Oliveira’s deal.

Both Miller and Oliveira joined Pramac in the 2025 MotoGP season after signing works deals for Yamaha. But while Miller signed a new deal for 2026 in September, Yamaha took up their option to release Oliveira as the lowest-scoring rider in their ranks over the first half of 2025.

Miguel Oliveira is ‘at ease’ with Toprak Razgatlioglu replacing him as an injury gave Yamaha the chance to

Oliveira needed to hit the 2025 summer break having outscored at least one of Miller, Fabio Quartararo and Alex Rins to prevent Yamaha having the option to terminate his contract for 2026. But the 30-year-old only had six points after round 12/22, to sit 25th in the standings.

READ MORE: Everything to know about Miguel Oliveira from net worth to wife

Quartararo had scored 102 points, Miller had 52, Rins had 42 and Yamaha test rider Augusto Fernandez had six points across 12 rounds. But Oliveira is now “at ease” with Yamaha using their release clause to clear Razgatlioglu’s path, as he was unlikely to achieve enough points.

While Quartararo, Miller and Rins featured in all 22 rounds during the 2025 MotoGP season, Oliveira only contested 19. Gresini rookie Fermin Aldeguer took Oliveira out in the Sprint at the Argentina GP in round two, and he had to sit out the following three rounds as a result.

Oliveira told Sports Television: “The results hadn’t been there. That’s why it put me at ease, because I know it’s something that was very much out of my control.

“In the sense that when a rider is asked to score more points than the others, having fewer races, knowing that the other three riders are scoring four, three, two [or] one point per Grand Prix, it makes it very difficult to recover.”

Miguel Oliveira shares what’s ‘scary’ about replacing Toprak Razgatioglu in World Superbikes

Oliveira will now replace Razgatlioglu at BMW in the World Superbike Championship in 2026 alongside fellow MotoGP exile, Danilo Petrucci. BMW hired Petrucci in August, having opted to also replace Michael van der Mark in an all-new line-up after Razgatlioglu decided to quit.

READ MORE: Everything to know about Toprak Razgatlioglu from net worth to nickname

Razgatlioglu leaves Oliveira big shoes to fill at BMW, having won the WSBK title in 2024 and 2025 after taking the BMW M1000RR to limits that no other rider could reach. Razgatlioglu was the only rider to win a race on the BMW in 2025, as he secured 21 wins from 36 races.

Van der Mark did not earn a single podium in 2025, either, despite Razgatlioglu standing on the rostrum 31 times. So, Oliveira admits that replacing Razgatlioglu at BMW from 2026 is a “scary” challenge, but it is one that he accepts while also adapting to a new championship.

He added: “I know that I am transitioning from one of the most competitive championships in the world to another equally competitive championship, but with different motorcycles. That’s why I know that I may have the skills to win in the first year.

“But I have many new things to adapt to. First is the motorcycle, the motorcycle needs to be understood where it really matters in all of its performance. Whether it’s Toprak that makes such a difference, whether it’s the bike, or is it a teammate who is so far away from him?

“So, there are several things that I, myself, am curious to understand. I will understand it soon. On the other hand, it is a change that’s always scary. All the changes are scary. But they make me very motivated and excited to start competing.”