Donington Park. After a successful weekend at Misano (ITA) with a historic hat-trick by Toprak Razgatlioglu (TUR), BMW Motorrad Motorsport now heads to Great Britain. The fifth round of the FIM Superbike World Championship 2024 (WorldSBK) will be held in Donington Park (GBR) this upcoming weekend (12th to 14th July). Razgatlioglu arrives at Donington Park as the World championship leader. In the four events so far this season, he has secured six victories and three additional podium finishes, leading the standings with a 21-point advantage.
Donington Park is a double home game for the BMW Motorrad Motorsport WorldSBK family. Firstly, for the British ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team with riders Razgatlioglu and Michael van der Mark (NED). Secondly, for Scott Redding (GBR), who, along with teammate Garrett Gerloff (USA), races for the German Bonovo action BMW Racing Team.
The race weekend in Great Britain marks the first half of a WorldSBK double-header for BMW Motorrad Motorsport. Just one week later, the sixth round of the season is scheduled to take place at Most, Czech Republic.
Quotes ahead of the Donington Park round.
Marc Bongers, Sporting Director BMW Motorrad Motorsport: “The Misano hat-trick will, of course, never be forgotten, and we want to carry this momentum to Donington Park and then a week later to Most. At Donington Park, we have already celebrated important successes in the history of BMW Motorrad Motorsport in the WorldSBK, and accordingly, we are confident that our strong package will perform well there also this year. Strong results in Donington Park will then give us further tailwind for the races in Most. The goal is clear: to defend the lead in the Riders’ World Championship and, with a strong team performance, to advance further in the Manufacturers’ World Championship. We are looking forward to the double-header with two weekends full of racing action.”
Garrett Gerloff (#31 BMW M 1000 RR, Bonovo action BMW Racing Team): “I’m really looking forward to Donington. I remember having a strong race last year, I felt strong there and that the bike was working well. So this year, I’m really looking forward to getting back there and trying to do the best I can for myself and for my team.”
Toprak Razgatlioglu (#54 BMW M 1000 RR, ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team): “I’m really happy to return to Donington because this circuit is my favourite track. I am very positive. Last year, I was fighting a lot with the Ducatis but this year it is completely different because now I ride the BMW and the bike is stronger on the straight and in the corners. I am also getting adapted to it now; we still are not at 100 percent but we are getting better every race weekend. Especially the recent wins at Misano showed that I am getting stronger, but now we will see how it will be at Donington. I never say a lot before the race. I just say that it is my favourite circuit, I will just try to do my best again like I did at Misano, and I hope that we will win again. Usually, I’m very strong on this circuit but we will see how it will be with the BMW M 1000 RR as it will be the first time that I ride it there. In general, my feeling is positive, the team keeps working hard and doesn’t stop, I am working every day, I go to the gym and I go to the track, I’m riding the bicycle, I’m pushing in training every day. I am fully ready for the race weekend.”
Scott Redding (#45 BMW M 1000 RR, Bonovo action BMW Racing Team): “Donington is obviously an amazing race weekend for me to go to. I have a lot of friends and family there, the circuit itself is amazing and there’s a lot of history. The circuit also has so much character, fast corners down Craner Curves, slow downhill braking into Melbourne Hairpin. I love the atmosphere of racing around Donington Park. Hopefully the weather is amazing because it makes such a brighter weekend for the people on the banks and the riders on the track. I am really looking forward to it. I feel that at Misano we made a good step with the bike. I couldn’t show with results but the feeling that we achieved was good so I’m hoping I can express that in results at Donington Park. I feel more confident now, more stable with the bike so I’m really looking forward to it. I can’t wait to get there, see everybody and have a great weekend all together.”
Michael van der Mark (#60 BMW M 1000 RR, ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team): “It’s always nice to go back to Donington. It’s a track where I have a lot of good memories and it’s a shame I haven’t been there the last couple of years so I’m looking forward to getting back there. I think, as we have shown in the previous round, that the bike is very good and that we are ready to fight for the top positions again. I hope that this weekend on my side everything falls into places because we have been showing the pace but have not been lucky in the last couple of rounds. I am very motivated and I have a lot of confidence to to very well at Donington Park during the home round of the team.”