Former WorldSBK king and Suzuki MotoGP test rider Sylvain Guintoli reckons Toprak Razgatlioglu is the man to cause six-time champ Jonathan Rea some trouble in 2021 but says the Kawasaki rider is still the man.

Yamaha's Razgatlioglu currently leads the series after Rea's crash last time out and the pair have pulled a gap on Ducati's Scott Redding which is making the Englishman's life difficult.

 “It’s started really well, there’s loads of competition so this is nice to see. The races are always, or most of the time, a big fight. Really enjoy watching but it looks like Jonny again is going to be the man to beat. Really strong performances from JR," said Guintoli

"Really excited for the Championship. I think Jonathan is going to be hard to beat but it seems amazing to think that all this time he’s been winning and dominating. Such a strong rider, Jonathan ’s like a complete rider so very hard to beat on the long run of a championship. Sometimes, some races, he’s been challenged, but he always seems to understand his limits as well.

“Impressing me, yes. Toprak. It’s not surprising because already you could see he had it in him even when he went back on the Kawasaki. He had this fire inside him. He can challenge maybe but for the full Championship, I don’t know.

"In the wet conditions, Toprak is maybe not as fast as JR. He’s just committed to WorldSBK for another two years, so he really wants to go and challenge for the title. I hope he can give Jonathan  some trouble. This is good for us that watch the races.”