Table of contents
- IDM preview 2018 The season can start
- Superbikes: now with standard tires
- Supersport 600: Favorite Kevin True
- Supersport 300: with room for improvement
- Sidecar: the mixed class
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IDM preview 2018
IDM preview 2018
The season can start
There was tension even before the first race, but now it’s here, the International German Motorcycle Championship 2018. The IDM starts the season with the MOTORRAD action team as the new promoter, with standard Pirelli tires in the three solo grade classes the sidecar and three branded cups.
Markus Schocker
April 20, 2018
Initially, all those involved agreed on only one thing: No, the IDM must not die. Germany’s motorcycle racing without a national road championship? Unthinkable. So the telephone wires glowed, there was extensive negotiation and finally an agreement was reached between the DMSB as the responsible association, the manufacturers organized in the IVM (Industrieverband Motorrad Deutschland e.V.) and the Motor Presse Stuttgart. She offered to take on the role of IDM promoter with her MOTORRAD action team.
At the beginning of February the redeeming news: It was agreed that Motor Presse Stuttgart, which also publishes the magazines MOTORRAD and PS, as the new promoter, will henceforth bear the economic risk. With KTM, the Stuttgart-based company was even able to bring another brand into the IDM manufacturer pool (BMW, Honda, Kawasaki, Suzuki, Yamaha), although the KTM commitment is (still) limited to the 300 class. With Pirelli as tire sponsor, the new promoter is going the same way as the Superbike World Championship, the British Superbike Championship BSB and Formula 1.
You can find all information about classes, races and results at www.idm.de.
BMW
The new BMW Boxer Cup replaces the discontinued Yamaha R6 Cup.
Nothing stands in the way of the 2018 season. Great news, especially for the teams and drivers of the IDM, who will compete in four classes in 2018 (Superbike, Supersport 600, Supersport 300, Sidecar), but also for the drivers of the Suzuki GSX-R-Cup brands, Twin Cup and BMW Boxer Cup 2.0. The latter is a new addition and replaces the Yamaha R6 Cup, which unfortunately was discontinued after 40 years.
Seven series, each with free practice sessions, qualifying sessions and two races per weekend: IDM fans can look forward to a pick-packed program. All of this for a moderate 35 euros, that’s how much the two-day ticket, including the paddock, pit walk and test drives of the manufacturers involved, costs. Racing you can touch.
The calendar was slightly revised. Nurburgring is out, but the Lausitzring is being added. As in the previous year, the IDM is making two guest appearances in the Benelux (Zolder, Assen) as well as in Oschersleben, Hockenheim and on the rustic street circuit in Schleiz. In addition, the superbikes will appear outside the IDM at the Speedweek in Oschersleben at the beginning of June. For the next few years the new IDM promoter, the MOTORRAD action team, intends to increase the calendar to seven, possibly even eight races. MOTORRAD action team leader Matthias Schroter: “Most would like the IDM, the Salzburgring would be an option, and we would also like to drive to the Sachsenring one day.”
But that is a long way off. The 2018 season is just around the corner, it starts on the last weekend in April in Oschersleben; here all seven racing classes individually.
Superbikes: now with standard tires
Eisele
Fast lady: Lucy Glockner.
The decision at the beginning of March that uniform tires from Pirelli will be used in the IDM 2018 posed problems for the previous Dunlop top teams Wilbers-BMW and MGM Yamaha – they had already extended their Dunlop contracts. Nevertheless, both teams will also be there in 2018.
MGM team boss Michael Galinski lost two top pilots with runner-up Florian Alt and the Belgian Bastien Mackels, but is likely to have found an adequate replacement in the Dutchman Danny de Boer (previously Van Zon-Remeha-BMW).
In 2018, Wilbers-BMW relied on Bastien Mackels’ driving skills. According to team boss Benny Wilbers, Mackels already drove a tenth of a second faster with the Pirellis during tests in Valencia than Markus Reiterberger, who was also present, who was promoted to the Superstock 1000 European Championship after his superior IDM title in 2017 – with the aim of the Superbike World Championship 2019. With Schnock-Kawasaki remains the third previous Dunlop team of the IDM. The team around technician Roman Raschle also trusts the fast Lucy Glockner, who made people sit up and take notice several times last year. “We’ll go even better,” promises team principal Rainer Schnock, who expects his driver to “top five”, especially since Kawasaki has promised more support for the coming season.
While the Holzhauer team with its Czech driver Jan Halbich is holding up the Honda flags and is hoping for a leap forward from the new kit electronics, the Suzuki-Hertrampf team is only bringing one motorcycle to the start for Dominic Schmitter. After the disappointing 2017 season with Schmitters ranked twelfth overall, team boss Denis Hertrampf is hoping for better results thanks to the new Yoshimura electronics, as all tires have the same.
Toni Finsterbusch, who last competed in the Superstock EM for three years, is taking over the motorcycle from Luca Grunwald, who has switched to the Supersport 300 World Championship, for the Suzuki Team Mayer.
And the master team from the previous year? Alpha Racing-Van Zon-BMW will drive with Markus Reiterberger and Jan Buhn in the future in the Superstock-1000-EM, Danny de Boer was lost to MGM-Yamaha, and the young Arnaud Friedrich changes to the endurance world championship. Team boss Werner Daemen is now relying on two switchers from the Superstock 1000 EM: the Ukrainian Ilya Mikhalchik and the Schleizer Julian Puffe. In addition, the third driver is Suzuki GSX R Cup winner Christof Hofer. Alpha Racing-Van Zon will hardly have a run-through to the title, as in 2017 with Markus Reiterberger, individual race victories should be the highest of emotions. The superbike comeback of the Swiss Kawasaki team boss Emil Weber, who has a top rider in 2016 IDM third, Mathieu Gines from France, is eagerly awaited.
Conclusion: Dominator Reiterberger is no longer there, and the Pirelli standard tires ensure equal opportunities – the fans can look forward to an exciting fight for the title.
Supersport 600: Favorite Kevin True
IDM
Kevin Wahr is the favorite in the SSP 600.
The 600s are experiencing an upswing in terms of the number of participants. IDM series manager Norman Broy recently had 29 entries, and “there will be pilots added”. This is due to the stock sport rating, which was introduced to catch the pilots from the Yamaha R6 Cup. Supersport 600 and Superstock 600: one field, two separate ratings. Whereby the super athletes will mostly blow ahead.
The 2017 champion Thomas Gradinger has said goodbye to the World Cup. With this, Kevin Wahr takes on the role of favorite again. Last year’s runner-up and his Romero Yamaha team struggled to find the season budget of around 90,000 euros because Yamaha is reducing its support.
The previous superbiker Koen Zeelen is new to the supersport field. The Dutchman is also a candidate for the title, as is his compatriot Vasco van der Valk and Racing Team Freudenberg driver Max Enderlein. Marc Buchner and Chris Stange are contenders for race wins.
Supersport 300: with room for improvement
Dino Eisele
The SSP 300 field is also well equipped.
As much as the 300 class is booming internationally and the 2017 World Cup already featured impressive fields in the first year of its existence, there is sadness in Germany. With Max Schmidt (ADAC Junior Cup overall winner 2017), Toni Erhard, Jan-Ole Jahnig, Maximilian Kappler and Micky Winkler, there were only five German registrations recently. And this despite the fact that KTM is now also committed to the 300 class and is offering a suitable motorcycle with the RC 390. The Yamaha monotony has come to an end, especially since two Kawasaki Ninja 300s and a Honda CBR 500R are on the entry list.
The IDM organizer MOTORRAD action team is confident that there will still be a decent field of 300, especially since the Dutch Yamaha R3 Cup will also compete in the 300 races this year. In contrast to 2017, there should be a common rating for both countries, the necessary adjustment of the control units has been made. The IDM organization hopes that the Dutch will be present at all six IDM races, so far the Dutch parliamentary group is still planning without the Lausitzring and Schleiz.
It is gratifying that, with last year’s winners Jan-Ole Jahnig and Maximilian Kappler, two fast German 300cc pilots made it into the World Cup. Both will continue to drive there for the Freudenberg Racing Team, which has switched from Yamaha to KTM, and will also compete in the IDM as far as the deadline allows.
Sidecar: the mixed class
Kretzer
Andre Kretzer (LCR-Suzuki) is also traded as a title contender.
The reigning titleholders Markus Schlosser and Thomas Hofer are taking a year off. Bennie Streuer, IDM runner-up in 2017, is the favorite. Sattler / Neubert could also have a say in the awarding of the title. Josef Sattler, who defeated Schlosser at the 2017 finale in Hockenheim, has swapped his LCR BMW for an Adolf RS team. Andre Kretzer (LCR-Suzuki) is the third in the league of title contenders, he has a new man on board with Bjorn Bosch.
Sidecar sport, as bold as it may be, is also a sport for women. In 2018, for example, Denise Werth, Anna Burkard and the Dutch woman Miranda Louwes are three women as co-drivers. Perhaps a fourth lady will join: Ilse de Haas, partner of Bennie Streuer and so far in the boat with the British Colin Nicholson, is considering starting as a pilot in the IDM.
Robert Werth, the new chairman of the IGG (Interest Group Gespannrennen e.V.), expects 18 teams. Twelve of them from Germany and Switzerland as well as six from the Netherlands, with whose federation we will continue to cooperate in 2018. F1-sidecars and 1000 cc engines will continue to be used. The IDM is thus going a different way than the Sidecar World Cup, in which only 600 teams are entitled to points.
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