As Motorsport.com reports, reigning World Superbike champion Toprak Razgatlioglu nearly parked his machine in the pits during the Austrian Grand Prix after hitting a brutal new low in his debut MotoGP campaign. The transition to prototype bikes and Michelin rubber was always going to demand everything from him, but an uncompetitive package has turned the season into a relentless struggle. Things reached a desperate state at Spielberg, where Michelin brought a stiffer rear carcass to handle high loads.
That tyre change only magnified an already disastrous weekend. Qualifying saw Toprak Razgatlioglu languishing two seconds off the pace, leaving him to start dead last in 22nd position on the grid. He ultimately crawled home in 20th place, finishing more than 46s behind race winner Pedro Acosta.
I hope we will find something, and we start really strong next year, because we need to start strong, because we need motivation.
From the opening laps, the machine offered zero traction. "I am very shocked because at the beginning, in the first five laps, I was not feeling any grip; I just felt the bike spinning," he said. The sheer lack of drive made him question the point of continuing at all. "I'm also sometimes thinking about coming back to the box, but I'm just respecting Yamaha by continuing to ride, because the pace is a disaster. I'm just trying to finish the race, but I'm not enjoying. I think it is the same with all Yamahas."
It marks only the second time he has felt such complete despair on a motorcycle, comparing the ordeal to a past nightmare in Thailand. Yamaha is currently enduring a punishing slump in MotoGP, hindered further by a switch to a new V4 motor. Departing Yamaha rider Fabio Quartararo has likewise criticized the lack of tangible development throughout the year.
Despite the misery, the garage remains united in its gloom and its graft. Toprak Razgatlioglu noted that the entire squad shares his heartbreak over the current results, though he believes the factory is throwing everything at the upcoming 2027 regulations. "I'm sad, but the whole team is sad, not only me, because everyone is trying their best," he said. "I hope we will find something, and we start really strong next year, because we need to start strong, because we need motivation."
