Marco Bezzecchi
Honda’s Luca Marini does not have high hopes for new Pramac Yamaha rider Toprak Razgatlioglu in his rookie MotoGP season, as 2026 is likely to be a “transition” year.
Razgatlioglu made his MotoGP debut for Pramac in last Sunday’s Thailand Grand Prix, which he finished in P17 as the third of the four Yamaha riders in the race. Only Pramac teammate Jack Miller in P18 finished behind the 29-year-old racing the V4 Yamaha YZR-M1 in Buriram.
Yamaha have finally lured Razgatlioglu away from the World Superbike Championship, after handing the Turkish star a two-year factory MotoGP contract to ride for their satellite team Pramac. Razgatlioglu left the production bike series straight after lifting his third WSBK title.
Yet Marini believes Razgatlioglu might have to wait until the 2027 MotoGP season to have a chance of being competitive in the prototype class. MotoGP will overhaul the rulebook next year with 850cc engines, further aerodynamic restrictions and a ban on ride height devices.
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Luca Marini thinks Toprak Razgatlioglu may have to wait until Pirelli arrives in MotoGP to ‘have fun’
Neil Hodgson has noticed that Razgatlioglu did not look comfortable on Yamaha’s bike after pre-season testing and his first race weekend as a MotoGP rider in Thailand. Razgatlioglu is having to adapt to a very different riding position, plus different tyres and Yamaha’s new V4.
READ MORE: Everything to know about Toprak Razgatlioglu from net worth to nickname
Marini believes Pirelli replacing Michelin as MotoGP’s sole tyre provider in 2027 can play to Razgatlioglu’s advantage. The 29-year-old has experience with Pirellis after his eight years in WSBK, but he switched to MotoGP without any previous racing experience using Michelins.
“He did very well to come [to MotoGP],” Marini said, via quotes by GPOne. “In Superbike, he showed impressive strength, winning in spectacular fashion.
“This year will be a transition – MotoGP is very different. With next year’s tyre change, he could become competitive again and have fun.”
Toprak Razgatlioglu’s MotoGP debut in Thailand showed encouraging signs for 2026
Has Toprak Razgatlioglu made a mistake moving to MotoGP in 2026?
Marini’s claim that Razgatlioglu might need to wait until the 2027 regulations to have fun in MotoGP follows comments from the Pramac racer himself during testing in Sepang that he was getting “a bit angry”, as he struggled to adapt to Yamaha’s M1 after moving from WSBK.
Yamaha managing director Paolo Pavesio was pleased with Razgatlioglu’s MotoGP debut in Thailand last week, though, as he finished the Grand Prix not too far from works stars Fabio Quartararo and Alex Rins. Quartararo was the top Yamaha rider in Buriram, but only in P14.
Razgatlioglu finished 8.371 seconds behind Quartararo and 6.239s shy of Rins in P15, while Miller finished 8.654s behind his Pramac teammate. Miller slumped to P18 in Buriram after suffering excessive rear tyre wear during the race, which also affected Razgatlioglu’s debut.
The Sprint Race in Buriram would have offered Razgatlioglu the most encouragement from his debut that 2026 can still be a positive year as he adapts to the Yamaha M1. Razgatlioglu was fighting to be the top Yamaha in the Buriram Sprint but he crashed with two laps to go.
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