Toprak Razgatlioglu edged the Ducati contigent to win incident-filled Emilia-Romagna WSBK 2025 Race 1 at the iconic Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli.
The ROKiT BMW Motorrad rider claimed victory after a fiercely contested battle, further cementing his legacy in WorldSBK history by surpassing Alvaro Bautista for the second-most career wins in the series, claiming his 64th victory in the process.
The race unfolded with drama, strategic brilliance, and a series of incidents that shaped the final outcome, reflecting the unpredictable nature of top-tier motorcycle racing.
From the outset, the anticipation was palpable as the grid lined up under the Italian sun.
Nicolo Bulega who had set a blistering pace in Superpole and originally qualified fastest was relegated to fourth on the grid due to a three-place penalty for impeding Danilo Petrucci during the session. Andrea Iannone received a similar penalty, pushing him back to tenth.
The reshuffle handed pole position to Toprak Razgatlioglu with Sam Lowes joining the front row and Bulega forced to fight his way forward from the second row.
As the lights went out, Razgatlioglu seized the holeshot but the opening lap was anything but straightforward after he ran wide at turn one, dropping to fourth place almost immediately.
Full Misano WorldSBK 2025 Race 1 Results
This allowed Axel Bassani to briefly take the lead, only for Bulega to assert himself and pass Bassani at turn 11, claiming the top position. Meanwhile, Razgatlioglu quickly regained composure and overtook Andrea Locatelli at turn 12 to move into third.
However, the Emilia-Romagna WSBK 2025 Race 1 would later suffer the first major incident on lap two when Bassani, after his promising start, crashed out at turn six, promoting Razgatlioglu to second and reshuffling the order behind the leaders.
Dominique Aegerter and Bahattin Sofuoglu were also involved in a crash at turn eight, resulting in both riders retiring from the race and Aegerter sustaining injuries that ruled him out for the remainder of the weekend.
Remy Gardner, Andrea Iannone, and Michael van der Mark also fell victim to the demanding Misano World Circuit, each crashing out before the halfway point. Van der Mark’s crash at turn 10 was his fourth of the weekend, yet he managed to remount and continue albeit out of contention for points.
At the front, the focus shifted to the duel between Razgatlioglu and Bulega. With Bassani out, the Turkish rider set his sights on the Ducati ahead.
On lap five, Bulega ran wide at turn nine opening the door for Razgatlioglu to reclaim the lead. From that point, the two engaged in a tactical battle, exchanging fastest laps and maintaining a relentless pace that quickly distanced them from the rest of the field.
By lap seven, the leading duo had established a gap of over six seconds to the chasing pack, underscoring their dominance and the intensity of their rivalry.
Meanwhile, Danilo Petrucci who started from eighth on the grid methodically worked his way forward, overtaking Alex Lowes at turn eight on lap five to secure third place. Petrucci’s consistency and racecraft allowed him to fend off persistent challenges from Lowes who remained within striking distance throughout the race.
Andrea Locatelli, after losing ground early on, settled into fifth, unable to match the leading quartet’s pace but maintaining a solid buffer over the riders behind him.
Sam Lowes delivered a strong performance to finish sixth, narrowly beating Alvaro Bautista who endured a difficult race. Bautista, starting from 11th, struggled with several run-ons and mistakes which hampered his progress and relegated him to seventh at the flag.
Despite his troubles, Bautista managed to salvage valuable points, finishing ahead of Yari Montella, Iker Lecuona, and Scott Redding, who rounded out the top ten.
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