6 Things We Learned From Portugal WorldSBK Round

Round seven of the 2024 WorldSBK championship is officially in the books, with BMW rider Toprak Razgatlioglu stealing another march on his rivals in the fight for the world title. Heading into the weekend with ten consecutive race wins, spanning back to the final race of the Dutch round in Assen, beating the Turkish star proved too difficult for his rivals.

Toprak Razgatlioglu makes history

While Razgatlioglu was expected to break Alvaro Bautista’s record of 11-straight wins given his form in 2024, and also because of his record around Portimao, his latest hat-trick of wins didn’t come easy as he fended off Bautista by less than a second in race one.

A dominant performance in the ten-lap Superpole race resulted in another victory and the all-time record for consecutive wins, before narrowly beating Nicolo Bulega across the line for his 13th win. Making his last win of the weekend even more spectacular was the fact Razgatlioglu was forced to overcome a broken wing on the front end of his BMW 1000 RR.

Alvaro Bautista sees faint title hopes go up in smoke

After losing more and more ground in recent rounds, Bautista would have been hoping for a change of fortune at Portimao, not only in the hope of fighting back in the championship battle, but also because team-mate Bulega has out-performed the two-time champion on multiple occasions.

A very strong showing in race one set up a potential battle between Bautista and Razgatlioglu for Sunday’s double-header, however, that proved to be hope more than reality. If you thought Bautista had a chance of winning the title, you must think again, I’m afraid. Only sixth in the Superpole race, Bautista then crashed out of contention in race two when he fell at turn five when trying to make a pass on Razgatlioglu at turn five.

Alex Lowes continues best season in WorldSBK

A double podium at Portimao once again highlighted the strengths of Alex Lowes and Kawasaki as a duo in 2024. Just ten points back from Bautista in the battle for third in the championship, it’s clear that Lowes has exceeded expectations this season.

Part of the lead battle earlier on in race two, Lowes was in no mood to play the role of a back-up singer to the likes of Razgatlioglu or Bautista, as he charged into the lead with an overtake on Michael Van Der Mark, who did the same moments prior. But then came contact with Razgatlioglu, who rode into the rear of the Kawasaki rider, losing his front winglet as a result. Lowes was unfazed and battled through like the seasoned vet he is.

Will the real Jonathan Rea please stand up

Yes, that’s right, to use the words of Eminem, we’re still waiting for the real Jonathan Rea to stand up on the Yamaha. Before divulging into his weekend, however, it should be pointed out that Rea’s P15 in race one was heavily impacted by a quickshifter issue.

Putting that behind him on Sunday, Rea was unable to deliver the type of result expected in the Superpole race, finishing a disappointing tenth place. Things improved in race two as he went up the order and claimed sixth, one-tenth behind Danilo Petrucci. But with Portimao a happy hunting ground for much of his career, Rea’s tough season ultimately continued.

Garrett Gerloff back with a bang

Without a top-five all-season, Gerloff’s new WorldSBK deal with Puccetti Kawasaki for 2025 was somewhat of a surprise given his form. But that was all changed in Portugal as the American came to life in race one, finishing fourth, less than five seconds from the win.

If you’re hoping that this performance can be the start of the American dream for Gerloff in WorldSBK, I’m sorry to tell you that’s unlikely, however, the former MotoAmerica rider has the talent and the tools to be fighting at the front. Time will tell if this was a one-off performance, or if he will begin to wrack up big-time results.

What has happened to Yamaha? 

As mentioned above, Rea finished off the weekend with a solid recovery to sixth place, but my word, the rest of Yamaha’s contingent had it rough. Dominique Aegerter was improved compared to previous rounds, but that still didn’t result in anything better than an eighth-place finish.

Yes, Razgatlioglu was the difference maker for Yamaha in recent seasons, but other riders have produced good results at times, especially this season in the form of Remy Gardner and Andrea Locatelli.

However, both riders were non-factors at Portimao and struggled mightily. A blip I hear you ask? Yamaha will certainly be hoping that’s the case but it’s also become clear that BMW (at least with Razgatlioglu), Ducati and Kawasaki with Alex Lowes, are one-step ahead of the Japanese brand at this moment in time.