Relph Ready to Tackle WorldSBK’s Historic Balaton Park Debut

Australia’s Tayla Relph is gearing up for Round 4 of the 2025 FIM Women’s Circuit Racing World Championship [WorldWCR] this weekend [25 - 27th July] at the brand-new Balaton Park Circuit in Hungary, as part of a milestone event for the MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship [WorldSBK].

This weekend marks a historic moment for global motorsport, with WorldSBK returning to Hungary for the first time in 35 years and celebrating its 1,000th race—a fitting stage for the next chapter in the growing Women’s World Championship.

After a determined ride to 7th place in Race 2 at Donington Park—despite nursing two fractured fingers and a scapholunate ligament injury in her right (braking) hand—Relph now enters Round 4 tied for 8th in the World Championship standings, with just seven points separating her from 5th place.

“Donington really tested my resilience, but to come away with a personal best lap and a 7th place finish while managing injuries gave me a huge confidence boost,” Relph said. “I know there’s still more in the tank, and Balaton is the perfect opportunity to take that next step forward.”

In preparation for this crucial mid-season round, Relph and the Full Throttle Racing Team completed a successful two-day test at Magny-Cours—home of Round 5 of the WorldWCR calendar. The brief turnaround between races didn’t slow progress, with Relph quickly on pace during testing and continuing to manage her injury recovery.

“Testing at Magny-Cours went well—we were up to speed quickly, and that gives us a good foundation as we shift focus to Balaton,” she said. “My hand is getting better each day, which is positive heading into what is definitely the hardest braking circuit on the calendar. Just like Donington, we’ll take each session as it comes and see how it holds up over the 12-lap races.”

Relph was one of the first riders to test at Balaton Park earlier in the year, giving her rare insight into the intricacies of the tight and technical 17-turn layout—an edge she hopes to leverage this weekend.

“It’s about as technical as it looks on paper. Between Turns 1 and 2, you’re hard on the brakes into second gear, and then it opens up into a fast, flowing section where you’re on the edge of the tyre for what feels like forever,” she explained. “It’s a very physically demanding track on the Yamaha R7.”

With back-to-back races from Donington Park to Balaton Park, momentum and points are critical at this stage of the season. A strong showing at Balaton Park could launch Relph into the Top 5 of the WorldWCR standings, as she continues to prove her place among the world’s best.

“There’s only seven points between me and fifth in the standings, so two good results here could really catapult us up the leaderboard,” she said. “That’s the goal—and we’re ready for it.”

WorldWCR riders will hit the Balaton Park Circuit for Free Practice and Superpole on Friday 26th July, before lining up for Race 1 on Saturday and Race 2 on Sunday, in what is expected to be a hot and highly physical weekend of racing.

Tayla Relph’s 2025 Statistics:

• Round 1, Assen: Superpole - 6th | Race 1 - 7th | Race 2 - 6th

• Round 2, Cremona: Superpole - 8th | Race 1 - 7th | Race 2 - 10th

• Round 3, Donington Park: Superpole - 8th | Race 1 - 13th - Race 2 - 7th

• Current WorldWCR Championship standing: 9th [tied with 8th place]