MotoGP rookie Toprak Razgatlioglu surprises himself…

Former World Superbike Championship star Toprak Razgatlioglu admitted that he was “surprised” to finish third in practice for the Brazilian Grand Prix.

Making just his second appearance as a MotoGP rider, Razgatlioglu excelled in tricky weather conditions at Goiania to log the third-quickest time on Friday, ending up just three tenths off pacesetter Johann Zarco.

The result secured the Pramac rider a direct passage into Q2, guaranteeing him a place on the first four rows of the grid for Sunday’s grand prix.

It marks a significant step forward for the Turkish rider, who qualified 21st - only ahead of Gresini stand-in Michele Pirro - on his MotoGP debut in Thailand three weeks ago.

The three-time WSBK champion said he was elated to demonstrate his speed at Goiania, but stressed the importance of staying grounded for the rest of the weekend.

“When I did the lap time, I came back to the box and I saw that I'm in the top three. I was also surprised, but I was smiling,” he said.

“I'm not doing a crazy celebration because I'm just focused on tomorrow and this is only Friday.

“We did a very good job. Now we are in Q2, which is good, but the important thing is qualifying and also the race. I'm just focused on this.

He added: “I'm really enjoying it, because normally I'm very fast in these conditions, also in the superbike [championship], we did a very good job.”

Toprak Razgatlioglu, Pramac Racing (Photo by: Gold and Goose Photography / LAT Images / via Getty Images)

While the 2026 season kicked off at Buriram, where all riders had accumulated plenty of mileage during pre-season testing, MotoGP’s return to Brazil after two decades has left riders in uncharted territory.

Intermittent rain on Friday complicated matters, with the entire field yet to ride on a completely dry or fully wet Goiania track.

Razgatlioglu said that he is still not feeling at home with Yamaha’s new V4-powered M1, suggesting his performance was more down to the conditions than comfort on the bike.

“I think it's the biggest difference, the new track for everyone,” he said. “We adapted very quickly, but we are always strong in mixed conditions. But we will see the full wet and dry, this is the important one.

Razgatlioglu was always going to face a tough start to life in MotoGP following his high-profile move from WSBK, but Yamaha’s lack of competitiveness has multiplied the challenge.

On Friday, however, both he and Yamaha’s star rider Fabio Quartararo were able to make the most of the track conditions to secure direct entries into Q2.

Pramac team director Gino Borsoi was particularly impressed by how quickly Razgatlioglu was able to adapt to the conditions despite his lack of wet-weather experience on a MotoGP bike.

“For sure, everybody knows the massive talent that he has, and with this condition it is even more impressive because he doesn’t know how to ride the bike in rain conditions,” Borsoi said during the official MotoGP feed.

“It is actually the first time for him to understand a bit more how to use the [wet] tyre, how to use the electronics.

“Also, on the other side, it seems that Yamaha improved a lot in rain conditions compared to last year. All these things help us to make a good balance for Toprak. He has talent. Nobody has experience on this track. So, maybe compared to the other track, we have a bit more advantage."

Additional reporting by Gerald Dirnbeck