As Toprak departs Loca extends
Hot on the heels of Toprak Razgatlioglu announcing his split with Yamaha to join BMW, his current Yamaha team-mate Andrea Locatelli has signed on to remain with Yamaha until the end of the 2025 season.
Andrea Locatelli
“My objective was to continue with Yamaha, so I’m very happy to have signed for another two years. One of the best things about Yamaha is the people who believe in me, starting with Eric de Seynes, Paolo Pavesio and Andrea Dosoli, but also Riccardo Tisci and all the engineers and technicians who work so hard to give me the best bike possible. The same is true of the team. Since I arrived in WorldSBK I have enjoyed incredible support from Paul Denning and Andrew Pitt, and everyone involved in the project. All together we have achieved some good results but, more importantly, we have walked side-by-side on a path that has allowed me to feel more and more confident. We still have room for improvement in many areas, but I truly believe that with such a good relationship we will grow stronger together. If consistency is key as they say, then I think that with this extension we’ve laid the groundwork for a bright future.”
The 26-year-old is currently third in the WorldSBK championship standings, and a podium finisher five times already this season.
Locatelli first rode for Yamaha back in 2020 when he switched from Moto2 to WorldSSP. An incredible debut season saw the Bergamasco dominate, winning 12 of the 14 races on his way to being crowned FIM Supersport World Champion, with a record breaking 333 points.
The reward for Locatelli was promotion to the WorldSBK class for 2021 where he was quick to make his mark in the official Pata Yamaha WorldSBK Team. “Loka” finished an impressive fourth in the championship in his rookie season, during which he also played a vital role in securing both the Team and Manufacturer World Championship Titles.
A more difficult but consistent second season in 2022 saw Loka slip one place to fifth in the championship, but the Italian came out fighting in 2023. Podium finishes at each of the four rounds so far this season sees him currently lying third in the standings with a 33-point advantage over fourth placed Jonathan Rea.
Andrea Dosoli – Road Racing Manager, Yamaha Motor Europe
“Our journey with Andrea started in 2020 when he dominated WorldSSP aboard our R6, but his performance in 2021 when we moved him up to WorldSBK was equally impressive, finishing the season fourth and as rookie of the year. We have seen Andrea mature as a rider, continually progressing to the point where he is now one of the strongest in the series. He has shown himself to be capable of making informed technical decisions during testing, while his determination in the short races is matched by his intelligent management of the longer feature races. These are all good signs, and this is what convinced us that, together, we can make further steps and secure even better results in the future. On behalf of Yamaha, but also from me personally, I would like to thank Andrea for the trust he has shown in us.”
