Kenan Sofuoğlu

Kenan Sofuoğlu (born August 25, 1984 in Kuzuluk, Akyazı) is a Turkish former professional motorcycle racer, who won the highest number of Supersport World Championship titles – five, in 2007, 2010, 2012, 2015 and 2016.

Kenan Sofuoğlu
Sofuoğlu in 2007
NationalityTurkish
Born (1984-08-25) August 25, 1984
Kuzuluk, Akyazı, Sakarya Province, Turkey
Motorcycle racing career statistics
Moto2 World Championship
Active years2010–2011
ManufacturersHonda
Championships0
2011 championship position17th (59 pts)
Starts Wins Podiums Poles F. laps Points
16 0 1 0 0 70
Superbike World Championship
Active years2008
ManufacturersHonda
Championships0
2008 championship position18th (54 pts)
Starts Wins Podiums Poles F. laps Points
23 0 0 0 0 54
Supersport World Championship
Active years2003, 2006–2010, 2012–2018
ManufacturersYamaha, Honda, Kawasaki
Championships5 (2007, 2010, 2012, 2015, 2016)
2018 championship position31st (3 pts)
Starts Wins Podiums Poles F. laps Points
123 43 84 34 30 2,017

He became an elected politician in June 2018,[1] soon after he announced his retirement from racing in May 2018.[2] He made a brief comeback appearance at the Imola, Italy, World Championship event on 13 May where he qualified in third place but entered the pit lane immediately after the sighting lap, choosing to withdraw from the race.[3]

He suffered injuries in a crash at Phillip Island, Australia, earlier in 2018, exacerbating his previous pelvis fracture from a crash during practice at Magny-Cours, France, on 30 September 2017,[2] which initially appeared to have ended participation in the 2017 season.[4] After a period of only five weeks, he returned to participate in the last meeting at Qatar,[5] finishing the race in third place and totalling enough points to finish second in the championship.

Sofuoğlu also competed in Moto2 for the Technomag-CIP team, having made his debut at the end of 2010 and remained with the team for the 2011 season.[6] He previously won the Supersport World Championship with Ten Kate Honda in 2007 and 2010. He raced in the World Superbike Championship for Ten Kate in 2008, but with limited success.

Racing for Kawasaki in 2012, Sofuoğlu claimed his third Supersport World Championship at the Portuguese Grand Prix, in the penultimate race.[7]

As a five-time champion, Sofuoglu is the most successful rider to have competed in the Supersport World Championship and holds many records in the class.[8]

Career

Supersport & Superbike World Championship

After winning Class B of the Turkish Supersport Championship in 2000 and the German Yamaha R6 Cup in 2002, Sofuoğlu moved into the European Superstock Championship, finishing second and third in two seasons. Subsequently, Sofuoğlu entered the Supersport World Championship full-time in 2006 after three races in 2003. Sofuoğlu dominated the 2007 season, winning five of the first eight races, and broke the record for the most wins in one season. These included a two-lap charge from sixth to first at Monza, and a win on his first ever visit to Donington Park, in the wet. He also won at Losail, Spain and Assen, Netherlands. He clinched the championship with three races to go, by finishing second at Brands Hatch, becoming Turkey's first major motorsport world champion.[9]

Sofuoğlu then signed with Ten Kate Honda for three more years. For 2008 he rode a 3rd Ten Kate Honda CBR1000RR in World Superbikes, as part of a junior team. He was not successful, and returned to Supersport with the team for 2009. This time the team struggled to match Cal Crutchlow's Yamaha and the Parkalgar Honda of Eugene Laverty, leaving Sofuoğlu to fight for third in the standings. He opened 2010 with a succession of podium finishes, leaving him in a 3-way championship battle with Laverty and Motocard Kawasaki's Joan Lascorz. He eventually claimed the title, finishing on the podium in every race.

For 2013, as the world champion, Sofuoğlu had the option of riding for the Italian Pedercini Team but he opted to join the Indian Mahi Team owned by Mahendra Singh Dhoni.[10]

Moto2 World Championship

Towards the end of the 2010 season Sofuoğlu appeared in Moto2 at the Portuguese Grand Prix, with the Technomag-CIP team, replacing Shoya Tomizawa, who had died in an incident at Misano. Sofuoğlu was fourth fastest in practice, which put him on the front row after qualifying was rained out. The race marked his first ever dry laps on the bike, but he led for the majority of the race before finishing the race in fifth despite having to try to adjust the handlebars of the bike while racing.[11] Sofuoğlu remained with the team in 2011, riding one of the team's Suters.[6] His best finish was 2nd place at Assen.

Injuries

During training for the 2017 Supersport World Championship in early February, Sofuoğlu broke a finger bone. He had to undergo two operations. Just before the first round of the championship in Australia, he performed a two-day test, but was not ready to race because of pain when braking, and decided not to start. He flew back home to undergo another operation, and stated that he would miss the opening two rounds, but would be present again in Spain, the third round of the championship.[12]

On September 30, Sofuoğlu broke his pelvis in three places after a crash during the Superpole session of a championship race in France.[13] The same day, he was flown to Istanbul, Turkey for medical care by air ambulance. His doctor stated that Sofuğlu can be discharged from the hospital in 5–6 weeks if everything goes right.[14] Sofuoğlu confirmed the recovery period as 12 weeks.[15]

After a period of only five weeks he returned to participate in the last meeting at Qatar,[5] finishing the race in third place and totalling points for second place the championship.

Sofuoglu announced his retirement from racing on the build-up to the fifth round of the 2018 season at Imola after sustaining another injury at Phillip Island. This is in addition to a crash at Magny-Cours in the previous year, when he suffered a hip injury.

Career statistics

Supersport World Championship

Races by year

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year Bike 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 Pos Pts
2003 Yamaha SPA
16		 AUS JPN ITA GER
Ret		 GBR SMR GBR NED ITA FRA
Ret		 NC 0
2006 Honda QAT
3		 AUS
Ret		 SPA
Ret		 ITA
5		 EUR
20		 SMR
8		 CZE
3		 GBR
3		 NED
1		 GER
1		 ITA
2		 FRA
2		 3rd 157
2007 Honda QAT
1		 AUS
2		 EUR
1		 SPA
1		 NED
1		 ITA
1		 GBR
Ret		 SMR
3		 CZE
1		 GBR
2		 GER
2		 ITA
1		 FRA
1		 1st 276
2008 Honda QAT AUS SPA NED ITA GER SMR CZE GBR EUR ITA FRA POR
1		 19th 25
2009 Honda AUS
1		 QAT
4		 SPA
3		 NED
5		 ITA
9		 RSA
5		 USA
1		 SMR
Ret		 GBR
4		 CZE
9		 GER
Ret		 ITA
1		 FRA
3		 POR
2		 3rd 189
2010 Honda AUS
3		 POR
1		 SPA
2		 NED
3		 ITA
2		 RSA
2		 USA
1		 SMR
3		 CZE
1		 GBR
2		 GER
2		 ITA
2		 FRA
2		 1st 263
2012 Kawasaki AUS
1		 ITA
DSQ		 NED
2		 ITA
3		 EUR
2		 SMR
1		 SPA
5		 CZE
2		 GBR
5		 RUS
1		 GER
1		 POR
2		 FRA
4		 1st 218
2013 Kawasaki AUS
1		 SPA
Ret		 NED
2		 ITA
Ret		 GBR
2		 POR
3		 ITA
1		 RUS
C		 GBR
1		 GER
Ret		 TUR
1		 FRA
1		 SPA
2		 2nd 201
2014 Kawasaki AUS
Ret		 SPA
1		 NED
Ret		 ITA
Ret		 GBR
4		 MAL
3		 SMR
4		 POR
3		 SPA
13		 FRA
Ret		 QAT
8		 8th 94
2015 Kawasaki AUS
6		 THA
2		 SPA
1		 NED
1		 ITA
1		 GBR
1		 POR
2		 SMR
11		 MAL
4		 SPA
1		 FRA
2		 QAT
2		 1st 233
2016 Kawasaki AUS
Ret		 THA
2		 SPA
1		 NED
3		 ITA
1		 MAL
6		 GBR
1		 ITA
1		 GER
1		 FRA
Ret		 SPA
1		 QAT
2		 1st 216
2017 Kawasaki AUS THA SPA
Ret		 NED
1		 ITA
1		 GBR
1		 ITA
1		 GER
2		 POR
1		 FRA
DNS		 SPA
 QAT
3		 2nd 161
2018 Kawasaki AUS
13		 THA
 SPA
 NED
 ITA
Ret		 GBR
 CZE
 ITA
 POR
 FRA
 ARG
 QAT
 31st 3

Superbike World Championship

By season
Season Motorcycle Team Number Race Win Podium Pole FLap Pts Plcd WCh
2008 Honda CBR1000RR Hannspree Ten Kate Honda Jr. 54 23 0 0 0 0 54 18th 0
Total 23 0 0 0 0 54 0

Races by year

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position, races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year Bike 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 Pos Pts
R1 R2 R1 R2 R1 R2 R1 R2 R1 R2 R1 R2 R1 R2 R1 R2 R1 R2 R1 R2 R1 R2 R1 R2 R1 R2 R1 R2
2008 Honda QAT
12		 QAT
10		 AUS
14		 AUS
11		 ESP
12		 ESP
15		 NED
12		 NED
19		 ITA
DNS		 ITA
DNS		 USA
12		 USA
14		 GER
Ret		 GER
21		 SMR
18		 SMR
Ret		 CZE
10		 CZE
10		 GBR
13		 GBR
17		 EUR
Ret		 EUR
DNS		 ITA
Ret		 ITA
Ret		 FRA
9		 FRA
19		 POR POR 18th 54

Grand Prix motorcycle racing

By season
Season Class Motorcycle Type Team Number Races Win Podium Pole Pts Plcd
2010 Moto2 Suter Suter MMX TechnoMag-CIP 54 2 0 0 0 11 29th
2011 Moto2 Suter Suter MMXI TechnoMag-CIP 54 14 0 1 0 59 17th
Total 16 0 1 0 70

By class
Class Seasons 1st GP 1st Pod 1st Win Race Win Podiums Pole FLap Pts WChmp
Moto2 2010–2011 2010 Portugal 2011 Netherlands 16 0 1 0 0 70 0
Total 2010–2011 16 0 1 0 0 70 0

Races by year

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position, races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year Class Bike 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 Pos Pts
2010 Moto2 Suter QAT SPA FRA ITA GBR NED CAT GER CZE IND RSM ARA JPN MAL AUS POR
5		 VAL
Ret		 29th 11
2011 Moto2 Suter QAT
18		 SPA
16		 POR
Ret		 FRA
26		 CAT
Ret		 GBR
8		 NED
2		 ITA
10		 GER
11		 CZE
10		 IND
DNS		 RSM ARA JPN
19		 AUS
6		 MAL
12		 VAL
20		 17th 59

Politics

Sofuoğlu was elected in June 2018 as a Justice and Development Party (AK Party) parliamentarian for the Sakarya Province.[1]

On 4 July 2018, the Turkish parliament's opening day for the 2018–2019 season, Sofuoğlu arrived driving a Lamborghini Aventador car, which he parked in a space reserved for an opposition deputy.[16] This drew criticism about the "luxury car" but Sofuoğlu, also the owner of two Mercedes SUVs, a Ferrari, and a Fiat 124, responded that the critics have taken aim at him because of his AKP party affiliation and the car was only an excuse.[17] Sofuoğlu has stated he gives his elected deputy's salary to charity.[18]

Personal life

Sofuoğlu is the third child of İrfan Basri Sofuoğlu and his wife Nurhayat.[19] He has one sister and two brothers. His father is a motorcycle repairman with his own garage. Two of Sofuoğlu's brothers, who were also local motorcycle racers, have died in accidents. Sofuoğlu's eldest brother Bahattin, himself a domestic Turkish motorcycling champion, died in a traffic accident in 2002. His next eldest brother Sinan died during a race training incident at the İzmit Körfez Circuit in May 2008.[20]

Sofuoğlu speaks German, French and English in addition to Turkish.[21] Sofuoğlu is a practising Muslim, who observes the daytime fasting of Ramadan. His bike number 54 stems from his home town's (Sakarya Province in Turkey) license plate number. He has noted that his riding style uses too much upper-body effort, causing him to tire on the bike.

On September 3, 2014, he married Julia Looman, after a two-year engagement. After the wedding ceremony in his hometown Sakarya, the couple flew to Barcelona, Spain.[22]

On March 14, 2015, Kenan Sofuoğlu became father of a son named Hamza, who was born in the Netherlands. On May 2, 2015 the infant suffered a brain bleed during a family holiday in Alanya. He was transferred to Istanbul, and underwent surgery.[23] Hamza died on July 25, 2015, aged four months, and was buried in the family grave at Akyazı, Sakarya..[24]

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See also

References
  1. Colorful figures from athletes to actors win seats in Parliament Daily Sabah, June 26 2018. Retrieved August 27 2018
  2. Supersport legend Sofuoglu to retire after Imola www.motorsport.com 7 May, 2018. Retrieved 13 May 2018
  3. Sofuoglu pulls out of farewell Supersport race www.motorsport.com 7 May, 2018. Retrieved 13 May 2018
  4. Magny-Cours WorldSBK: Sofuoglu confirms crash is season-ending Bike Sport News, 1 October 2017. Retrieved 2 October 2017
  5. Mahias on top, Sofuoglu set for second medical assessment before FP3 crash.net, 2 November 2017. Retrieved 3 November 2017
  6. "Kenan Sofuoglu chooses Technomag for 2011". crash.net. Crash Media Group. November 6, 2010. Retrieved November 6, 2010.
  7. "Turkish rider Sofuoğlu crowned 2012 champ". Sundaays Zaman. Archived from the original on September 24, 2012. Retrieved September 23, 2012.
  8. Paddock Talk, 4 October 2015. Retrieved 2 October 2017
  9. "Turkish Press Review". World Bulletin. CM Bilişim & Capitol Medya. August 6, 2007. Retrieved November 6, 2010.
  10. "Dhoni's humility touching: Sofuoglu". The times of India. March 30, 2013.
  11. Beer, Matt (October 31, 2010). "Bradl wins, Sofuoglu stars in Moto2". autosport.com. Haymarket Publications. Retrieved November 6, 2010.
  12. "Kenan Sofuoglu out of opening two rounds due to injury". SBK Motul. February 21, 2017. Retrieved October 2, 2017.
  13. "Sofuoglu declared unfit in France". SBK Motul. September 30, 2017. Retrieved October 2, 2017.
  14. "Kenan Sofuoğlu'nun sağlık durumu hakkında açıklama". NTV (in Turkish). October 1, 2017. Retrieved October 2, 2017.
  15. Sofuoglu begins rehabilitation following crash in France worldsbk.com, 30 September 2017. Retrieved 2 October 2017
  16. "AKP deputy arrives at parliament with Lamborghini". Ahval. London. July 4, 2018. Retrieved September 7, 2018.
  17. "Kenan Sofuoğlu Meclis'e Lamborghini ile gitti" [Kenan Sofuoglu went to the Parliament with a Lamborghini]. Hürriyet (in Turkish). July 4, 2018. Retrieved September 7, 2018.
  18. "Kenan Sofuoğlu Lamborghini eleştirilerine yanıt verdi" [Kenan Sofuoğlu responds to Lamborghini criticism]. Cumhuriyet (in Turkish). July 7, 2018. Retrieved September 7, 2018.
  19. Zabcı, Faruk (October 4, 2010). "Kenan'dan büyük başarı". Hürriyet (in Turkish). Retrieved October 7, 2010.
  20. Ntvmsnbc.com related news(in Turkish)
  21. KENAN SOFUOGLU
  22. "Kenan Sofuoğlu ve Julia Looman evlendi (3 Eylül 2014)". Hürriyet (in Turkish). September 4, 2014. Retrieved September 4, 2014.
  23. "Kenan Sofuoğlu evlat üzüntüsüyle İtalya'ya gitti". Hürriyet (in Turkish). May 8, 2015. Retrieved July 30, 2015.
  24. "Kenan Sofuoğlu'nun oğlu Hamza toprağa verildi". NTV Turkey (in Turkish). July 26, 2015. Retrieved July 30, 2015.
Sporting positions
Preceded by
Sébastien Charpentier		 World Supersport Champion
2007		 Succeeded by
Andrew Pitt
Preceded by
Cal Crutchlow		 World Supersport Champion
2010		 Succeeded by
Chaz Davies
Preceded by
Chaz Davies		 World Supersport Champion
2012		 Succeeded by
Sam Lowes
Preceded by
Michael van der Mark		 World Supersport Champion
2015–2016		 Succeeded by
Lucas Mahias
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