Qwhen Toprak sets himself a goal he hardly misses it. I remember that in 2018, the year of his debut in Superbike when he raced with Puccetti’s Kawasaki, at Donington he told me: “Here I go to the podium”.
I thought he wanted to shoot it big, but he finished Race 2 in second place, behind Tom Sykes and ahead of world champion Jonathan Rea.
When I interviewed him on Thursday he announced that his goal at Misano is to win all three races.
This is why when he showed up in the press room after Race 1 he made his debut by saying: “The first one is gone. In the first laps I was able to push hard – continued the BMW rider – but soon the front dropped and the bike became more difficult to ride. A problem that my opponents also had. At that point I concentrated on the race pace, trying to keep everything under control. I saw that my advantage over Bulega and Bautista remained at two seconds and therefore I didn’t risk anything and just controlled the race.
Are you satisfied?
“In general I am very happy. The first one went, but I want to win all three here in Misano. It won’t be easy because it’s very hot and there’s little grip. The two official Ducati riders are really tough opponents and I am convinced that they will improve tomorrow and therefore if I want to win I will have to do it too.”
Do you think Bulega will be a difficult opponent to beat in the sprint race tomorrow?
“Of course, but I will be able to fit a softer tire on the front and therefore I will be able to ride better than I was able to do today, especially in some corners, where it wasn’t easy with the SC2. It will be a good race because everyone will give their all, but I will too.”
You’re first in the rankings…
“I’m also surprised to be so far ahead in the standings, also because in Australia I collected a zero due to a technical problem. At the moment, however, I’m not thinking about the championship, but I’m focusing on every single race. Our package is already good but we need to improve it further. I need something more if we want to win the championship. I like the bike and I feel good with the team, but the championship is still long”
Do you think the M1000RR is now competitive on all tracks?
“We don’t know yet, but I can tell you that tracks that I really like like Donington are coming up and so I’m optimistic for the next races”
