Toprak Razgatlioglu’s Brazilian MotoGP weekend began with the high of direct Qualifying 2 access in mixed Friday conditions but ended with a lowly 17th in the grand prix.

The reigning WorldSBK champion cited ongoing rear grip issues with Yamaha’s V4 as his main limitation, finishing 30 seconds behind race winner Marco Bezzecchi.

However, Pramac team director Gino Borsoi believes progress has been made at the front of the bike, allowing Razgatlioglu to be more aggressive on corner entry at Goiania.

The Turkish rider will now carry that set-up direction into this weekend’s round at COTA.

“For Toprak, it will be another important step in his learning process, as he doesn‘t have much experience at this circuit,” Borsoi said. “It will be our responsibility as a team to support him in finding the right set-up.

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“In Brazil, we believe we identified a first positive direction that helped him be more aggressive on corner entry and more confident in moving the bike, and we‘re aiming to continue working along that line.

“Hopefully, we can start to see the first concrete results of this progress already this weekend.”

Razgatlioglu confirmed: “In Brazil we found some positive direction, particularly on corner entry, and I want to build on that and keep improving.

“My goal is to keep progressing, session by session, and do my best for the team.”

Razgatlioglu’s only previous experience at COTA dates back to the Red Bull Rookies Cup in 2013.

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“It‘s another important weekend for me because everything is still new in MotoGP, and especially here at COTA,” he said.

“I have some experience from the Rookies Cup, but riding here with a MotoGP bike is a completely different challenge.”

Team-mate Jack Miller, who crashed out on lap two in Brazil, enjoyed his best result of last season at COTA with fifth place on the previous inline Yamaha.

“I really like this track, even though it‘s not traditionally the most favourable one for Yamaha,” Miller said.

“I‘ve always felt good riding here. Looking back to last year, we had a very strong result – I felt competitive from the start and got a great launch in the race, which allowed me to run with the front group.

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“It was a tough battle all race long, especially on the straights where I was losing a bit, but I was able to make it back under braking and stay in the fight.

“It would be great to put ourselves in that position again this weekend, to battle until the end and create some more good memories here.”

Free practice for the 2026 United States MotoGP begins on Friday.

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