
Berlin. About five weeks before the season opener at
Australian Phillip Island, BMW
Motorrad Motorsport presented the 2024 FIM Superbike World
Championship (WorldSBK) line-up to the public in Berlin (GER) on
Wednesday. The two teams, the ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team and
the Bonovo action BMW Racing Team, as well as the four BMW Motorrad
WorldSBK factory riders Toprak Razgatlioglu (TUR), Michael van der
Mark (NED), Scott Redding (GBR), and Garrett Gerloff (USA), unveiled
their BMW M 1000 RR superbikes for the WorldSBK 2024 for the first
time. The event took place at a special location, in the new BMW
Motorrad Welt at the BMW Motorrad Plant Berlin. This plant is the
heart of the BMW Motorrad production and the birthplace of the BMW M
1000 RR.
On Tuesday, Razgatlioglu, van der Mark, Redding, and Gerloff were
guests at the BMW Motorrad Plant, and during an exclusive autograph
session, the employees had the opportunity to personally meet their
racing colleagues from the BMW Motorrad family. On Wednesday, the four
BMW Motorrad WorldSBK factory riders gained closer insights into the
production of the bikes, including their racing machines, during a
tour of the plant.
The actual team presentation took place afterwards in BMW Motorrad
World, the new “Home of the Brand” in Berlin, opened in autumn 2023.
The official start of the 2024 WorldSBK occurred with the unveiling of
the BMW M 1000 RR superbikes, which Razgatlioglu, van der Mark,
Redding, and Gerloff will ride in the upcoming season with the ROKiT
BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team and the Bonovo action BMW Racing Team.
A special feature of the team presentation in Berlin was that in
addition to invited guests, fans also had the opportunity to witness
the event live on-site. Many of them seized the opportunity, secured
the coveted free tickets for the event, and could personally interact
with the four BMW Motorrad WorldSBK factory riders during the
subsequent autograph session.
In preparation for the 2024 season, BMW Motorrad Motorsport, the two
teams, and the riders will be back on the track soon. The next test
sessions will take place at Jerez de la Frontera, Spain, on January
24th and 25th. The first race weekend of the season is scheduled from
February 23rd to 25th at Phillip Island (AUS).
Quotes after the Team Presentation in Berlin.
Marc Bongers, BMW Motorrad Motorsport Director:
“First of all, I would like to thank everyone involved in the
organisation. It was an absolutely cool event here at BMW Motorrad
Welt. It was very nice to show the team managers and riders what we do
here in Berlin. We haven’t done this in this form before. The
atmosphere among all involved was fantastic, and that is also
extremely important for performance because we have this one team
mentality. The presentation itself in BMW Motorrad Welt was also very
successful. I am confident for the new season. We still need a few
tests; last year, we didn’t necessarily have the best conditions but
we have prepared a lot of things. Now there is not much time left
until Phillip Island. Although the first two events take place on
tracks that haven’t necessarily been our strong suit in the past, I am
still optimistic that we will have a good start, carry this positive
energy into the first races and through the entire season.”
Shaun Muir (Team Principal ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK
Team): “First of all it is an outstanding venue for such a
presentation. It think it really captures the spirit of what BMW
Motorrad are trying to achieve here so I am super proud to be part of
that. The tour around the plant was sensational. A big round of
applause to all the guys, everyone in the factory; they really
welcomed us. Moving on to the championship as such, I think it is
absolutely clear that the combination of Michael and Toprak brings
some special qualities. I think that is something we are really
looking forward to working with. Already we can see what Toprak
requires in terms of a package and a bike. It is a little bit
different, not an awful lot, we just need to steer in a slightly
different direction to give Toprak what he needs. And I say that in
terms of letting him amplify his strengths which is hard on the
brakes, corner entry, balance on the bike, something we know the BMW M
1000 RR can work well with. We want to put ourselves in a strong
position, we want to compete for the podium in Australia. Can we get a
podium? It’s a tough question, but Toprak’s personal aims are that he
thinks he can and we give him all the support to do that. Michael has
missed large parts of the past two seasons, and he does not
underestimate what he is up against but he is definitely up for that
challenge. I feel that Toprak can bring a lot of strengths out of
Michael. I am looking forward to seeing that because we saw how good
Michael can be when things go well. The bike is getting better, there
is a development team behind us. From where the project started in
2019 to where we are now is night and day. I hope we can take
advantage of that and get our rewards.”
Michael Galinski (Team Manager Bonovo action BMW Racing
Team): “The team presentation was truly impressive. Many
people attended, and it was very interesting at the BMW Motorrad plant
and in the BMW Motorrad Welt. It was my first time at the plant
itself, and it was fascinating to see the engine department and how
all the motorcycles are assembled. It was great to take a
behind-the-scenes look and also to present ourselves here as a team.
We are very happy with our rider duo. They are two real top riders.
Scott is the Vice World Champion, Garrett had a very strong second
half of the season last year. Our goal is to move further forward, and
with the BMW Motorrad family, this is certainly possible this season.
So much manpower has been added that we are really happy now. Of
course, we still need a bit of time, but we are confident that we will
move forward this year.”
Garrett Gerloff (#31 BMW M 1000 RR, Bonovo action BMW Racing
Team): “It has been exciting. There has been a really cool
energy here at Berlin. It’s great to be in Berlin, it’s really nice to
see all the amazing people that work here in the plant, that develop
and produce the BMW M 1000 RR that we race. So it’s really cool to
have the team presentation here. It has been really nice to see Scott,
Toprak and Michael and to get together after a couple of months of
holidays and seeing family and friends. I can tell that we are all
excited to get back on the track and to start testing again. In just
over a month we are going to be racing in Australia. Everything is
going to happen really fast from here on but I’ve been doing my part
to make sure that I am ready for the season and I am excited to get
started. I think we have a really good base now. I have one year
behind me with BMW Motorrad Motorsport and the Bonovo action BMW
Racing Team, so a lot of information and I think we can come up with
solutions faster than last year if we do have a problem. It is going
to be good to go the every track with a higher potential, and I think
it can be a really good season. My goal is to work on qualifying and
to be a bit better there and that can help me in the beginning of the
races and then at the end of the races, when I am strong, I think we
can make some real progress and be up front.”
Toprak Razgatlioglu (#54 BMW M 1000 RR, ROKiT BMW Motorrad
WorldSBK Team): “I am very happy to join the BMW Motorrad
family. When I arrived at Berlin on Monday and left the airport I was
really surprised because everyone spoke Turkish. Also at the plant,
there a so many Turkish employees. I am very happy for this. In
general, I am very positive. Especially today, there were a lot of
people and I understand that a lot of people like me. A lot of people
came here to see me, also many Turkish guys, and a lot of them came
from very far away. Everyone can’t wait for the season, and that also
goes for me. My focus is now on the season. I realized that the people
believe in me, but it is important that you believe in your bike. Many
people say that the BMW is not ready to fight for the championship but
I believe that my bike is ready to fight for wins and the
championship. We just need my setup, because my riding style is
complete different. When we have this, we can easily fight for the
win. Now I am just focusing on the test next week. It is really
important for me. I need to adapt to the bike and I believe that we
can fight for the podium and the wins this season. I am excited. I
signed with BMW but I am also a part of the family. This is something
I saw today again and it is great. I will give more than 100 percent,
I will try to win with BMW. Everyone is working hard and this is a
great extra motivation also for me. If we keep doing this, we will win
the World Championship.”
Scott Redding (#45 BMW M 1000 RR, Bonovo action BMW Racing
Team): “It’s good to come here to Berlin. To come into the
plant and to see how everything is made is always interesting, seeing
the people in action at their work is always good. It’s also very
interesting to see where the engines are built and how they do it, so
it’s really nice to be here and to witness how everything is made. A
launch is also always great, to unveil the colours of the bikes and
the suites, together with the team-mates and the teams. Speaking about
the coming season, for me it would be nice to have our bike to be more
consistently competitive which I think we can do. We’ve had some good
changes made and obviously Toprak is coming over. We also have a test
team which makes a big difference. I think we are going in the right
direction, which is important. It would be nice to stand on the podium
again this year and more frequently, and to try to make our bad
weekends not so bad and have a good, consistent year.”
Michael van der Mark (#60 BMW M 1000 RR, ROKiT BMW Motorrad
WorldSBK Team): “It’s nice to start the season, it’s great
to be here in Berlin. We all know that BMW is a big company but we got
a nice tour through the plant and I must say that it is really
impressive. It was also great to see where they prepare the race
engines and I am really ready to start the season. I can’t wait to go
testing again, I feel one hundred percent fit, I got a new teammate
that seems to be really fast – so I am looking forward to it. Like I
said, I am fit again, the bike is getting better and better, Toprak is
pushing the project even more and I think we want to win races and be
on the podium as soon as possible.”