Table of contents

• Report on the Yamaha R6 Cup 2016 Hard, educational, awesome
• 1st lesson: humility
• Solid basic fitness is enough, driving experience counts
• The anger should tear it …
• Near-departures non-stop
• Training in the field
• “The machine hit me in the back”
• Driving consciously with racing intelligence for the first time
• And further?
• Statement of costs

Felix Wiessmann

13th pictures

photographie-andreas-weinand.de

1/13
The 2016 season of the Yamaha R6 Dunlop Cup in Hockenheim came to an end with noise and smoke.

photographie-andreas-weinand.de

2/13
PS was right in the middle of it the whole time instead of just being there. It was tough, it was educational, and it was awesome!

Munchinger

3/13
To prepare, we went on the cross-country course. “Don’t be told!” In racing in particular, it would be wise to listen to the advice of really experienced drivers in order to avoid unnecessary mistakes.

Munchinger

4/13
Motocross effectively teaches you to deal with unstable driving conditions. A great school and the best training.

Felix Wiessmann

5/13
Yamaha R6 Cup 2016 final in Hockenheim.

Felix Wiessmann

6/13
After the free practice sessions, the penny seemed to have fallen with P15 at Hockenheim. Thank you for your support, Marco (l.) And Andre (r.).

Munchinger

7/13
In the evening in the Schuller Racing team tent. The table is set, the hut full. Favorite saying: To a nice event!

photographie-andreas-weinand.de

8/13
The tension rises shortly before the start. The umbrella girl is my little sister. Can you accept, right??!

Felix Wiessmann

9/13
Daniel Rubin (# 74) grabbed pole position and drove away championship leaders Kosiniak (# 15) and Zellhofer (# 71) in the race. Zellhofer later fell over the front wheel.

photographie-andreas-weinand.de

10/13
With a lot of momentum out of the Sachs curve. But only in the right line – otherwise a highsider threatens.

Felix Wiessmann

11/13
Kneel in front of the audience. Patryk Kosiniak drove a clean race, made the championship perfect and was visibly lucky afterwards.

Felix Wiessmann

12/13
Double podium for the Rubin brothers. Dani (left) grabbed first place in front of Kosa (center) and brother Dominik (right).

photographie-andreas-weinand.de

13/13
The 2016 season of the Yamaha R6 Dunlop Cup in Hockenheim came to an end with noise and smoke.

Sports & scene

Motorsport

Report on the Yamaha R6 Cup 2016

Report on the Yamaha R6 Cup 2016
Hard, educational, awesome

Content of

The 2016 season of the Yamaha R6 Dunlop Cup in Hockenheim came to an end with noise and smoke. PS was right in the middle of it the whole time instead of just being there. It was tough, it was educational, and it was awesome!

Tobias Munchinger

01/30/2017

Late summer 2015: PS boss Uwe Seitz relies his youngest editor on the guest machine in the R6 Cup: “Go there and bring a story with you.” No problem, I thought to myself at the time. But it was quite a problem. In the oldest brand cup in the world and one of the most renowned management teams, there are no nasal drills around. They all know exactly what they’re doing and how racing works.

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At that point I only knew at which end of the handlebars you had to turn in order for the motorcycle to accelerate. I also knew how the knee on the floor works. But driving in the Yamaha R6 Cup and posing for photo stunts in the magazine are two different things that in the end have little in common. I couldn’t really imagine how fine the grid between the classifications “fast”, “really fast” and “damn fast” is on the racetrack. Hundreds of a second mean a few meters, seconds mean several worlds. Some highway bumpers think they can ride a motorcycle really well because their knee now and then caresses the ground. The truth is different: Measured against experienced and talented racers, these hotheads don’t have much more to offer than plaque.

1st lesson: humility

And already I got the first lesson rubbed on my face: humility. I finished second to last in my first professional race and I felt like shit. Well, some cracks overtook me during normal race training. But definitely not the whole field! In my own estimation, I always went full throttle, braked late and pulled up early. But it wasn’t like that. Data recording doesn’t lie. I closed the gas tentatively like a frightened girl, built in much too long roll phases before entering every corner and didn’t brake hard enough. Actually, I never wanted to touch the 600s again after the catastrophic weekend and forget about it as quickly as possible. After a period of reflection, I rejected this thought again. I love motorcycling and speed above all else. And giving up is generally something for washcloths! There was only one escape forwards: register for the Yamaha R6 Cup and learn, learn, learn.

above Yamaha In Germany I came into contact with my dealer Uli Schuller from Juchen. He didn’t just set up my R6 for me and make it fit again after taking soil samples. At all events he had an overview and a plan at hand. He provided me with advice and ideas for improvements, a place to sleep under the team tent and cold beer. I think that without someone like that, you hardly need to think about competing in the Yamaha Cup at all. You can’t pull off a one-man show here, it doesn’t work.

Solid basic fitness is enough, driving experience counts

Uli Schuller has been looking after drivers in the Yamaha R6 Cup since 2010 and knows exactly what it means to contest a season: “Don’t promise yourself too much, the first year is actually there for learning”. That sounded okay to me because I really wanted to learn. Afterwards I paid more attention to my physical fitness because I have fun with it anyway and I wanted to prepare myself somehow. At the end of March I was as fit as a gym shoe, but due to lack of time and money I wasn’t even sitting a meter on the Cup R6. A mistake, because a half marathon cannot replace driving experience. Now I think that you can almost tick off all the fitness stuff. A solid basic fitness is sufficient as long as you don’t necessarily want to compete in the Superbike World Championship. It all depends on the experience with the bike and your head. Everything else tends to matter.

Then came the opening training at the Lausitzring and the first race. My leather suit was not yet properly registered and felt stiff, the weather was freezing cold and I drove a miserable qualifying. I started from far behind, but was 23rd out of 33 starters in the race. Ex-Cuppie Marco Freyer saved my skin, so to speak, by adjusting the chassis of my bike just before the race so that I could go fast with it. The second run at the Nurburgring followed. Not a good qualifying again, but 21st place in the race. Slowly I understood the 600s better, and a higher basic speed set in. Close the throttle quickly, brake decisively, keep the roll phase low, hit the line, pull the throttle and don’t forget to breathe. Keep calm. The lap times were okay and I started to squint at the points from 15th place. I really wanted to get a point this season, that was my declared goal from that moment on.

The anger should tear it …

Before the next run in Zolder, I took my time off and drove over to Belgium to train. Until then, I didn’t know the route, but had heard that it was supposed to be tricky. It actually is, but the fun factor can easily keep up.

Of course, qualifying went wrong again. In the last few laps of the race, the right handlebar collapsed and I couldn’t push anymore, but it was 19th place anyway. At the second race in Zolder I wanted to finally break the curse of the messed up qualifying. The anger should therefore tear it, but it only tore me from the machine via highsider. Both the motorcycle and the driver put up with the crash.

The race that followed was difficult and it didn’t go very well for me. I felt like I was fighting a losing battle and in the end I crossed the finish line in 22nd place. Nothing went forward. The air was out. I drove home in a pretty bad mood. Regardless of whether the result is good or bad – it never only affects the driver, it always affects the whole team.

Near-departures non-stop

At the Schleizer Dreieck I ended up in 18th place minus the two guest starters. Schleiz was the highlight of the season for me in front of the crowded visitor stands. On the route surrounded by fields and meadows, rush hour traffic runs during the week. One courage passage alternates with the other. The race was spectacular. I had near-departures non-stop, but stayed seated. You can only get really fast if you have a good knowledge of the route, which I lacked as a newcomer. Nevertheless, I was satisfied with the result; I had endless fun in Schleiz!

It was already August and the two races in Assen were coming up. The Dutch GP course has some difficulties such as banked corners. At the entrance to the curve, the pace is much higher than you think possible. And the Stubben-Passage is very mean. You can drive it in two ways: pointed or narrow. Both variants puzzled me. After qualifying, I started from a not too bad 22nd place. As a qualifying failure, that was okay for me. Finally on course for points, but later in the race I sank my R6 spectacularly. At one of the fastest parts of the piste, the mean left before the last chicane on start / finish, I made a huge exit. The damage to the machine was immense, and only a week before the second run in Assen! After Ulis mechanic boys Frank, Mario and the boss himself practically did magic for three days, my bike was fit again. From then on I continued beating with a yellow painted machine.

The second race was still the biggest disaster of the whole season. I felt as sluggish as a sloth and didn’t want to bring the team back to work. I finished the race in 22nd place. It was a tough story and I didn’t think I could make any progress.

Training in the field

Almost a month and a half later: Hockenheim’s last chance. I would have liked to have trained there again beforehand, but the last opportunity to do so collided with the PS deadline. At least I tightened up my sports program weeks before the season finale. I still think it’s not crucial for racing, but it makes me feel good. I was fit again and my brain was freer. Why is it so damn hard to maintain a training high? In any case, I was as keen on driving as I haven’t had in the whole season and I was really looking forward to the Baden circuit. Before that, I installed a motocross training session on a KTM 350 SX-F. It slips constantly on loose ground and you learn a lot about vehicle control. I really like the 350 as a compromise between power and handling. Imagination or reality, after the motocross weekend I felt well prepared.

At first I hardly got the R6 into the corners in free practice, it just didn’t want to. I tried it with a lot of heart and a lot of full throttle and was rewarded with 15th place. So what! At the same time, it was pretty clear to me that I wouldn’t be able to hold onto this position through qualifying. In the meantime it was Marco Freyer again who turned the chassis of my R6 in the right direction so that the machine does more of what I want. Thanks a million, Marco!

“The machine hit me in the back”

I finished Q1 with 17th place and a fastest lap of 1.35.9 minutes on the short IDM course. My fastest lap at the guest start a year ago was a 1.37.3. That gave me hope, but I wasn’t really satisfied. And with that the looseness was gone again. I knew that I was driving an unfavorable line at the beginning of the Sachskurve and wanted to get another half a second here in the second qualifying. In fact, for the first time in the season we were wasteful with the tires and put on a new rear rubber during the second qualification, which the top ten drivers actually do at every event. They need a lot more material. I got by with 16 rear tires for the season; according to Dunlop specialist Ralf Christmann, the front drivers needed up to 24 tires.

It was clear to me that I was pretty much at my personal limit in terms of lap times. But it would be the last race of the season and if I see even a small chance I’m always ready to put a few coals in the fire. At the exit of the Sachskurve, I unfortunately lost my grip on the rear wheel in Q2, and I put down a picture-perfect highsider. High and far, as eyewitnesses later reported. The machine hit me in the back, but luckily it drifted sideways. This time the departure hurt! For several seconds I paused in a prayer position in the direction of the stand and tried to breathe. Then my control center reported: everything is okay, get up! Fortunately, the damage to the motorcycle was as little as it was after the Highsider in Zolder. But now it was only starting position 21 again. I cursed inside, and it was pretty wild.

Driving consciously with racing intelligence for the first time

Meanwhile, my mechanic Andre rotated very unobtrusively in the background and put the R6 back in top condition. I sat in the camping chair and stared at the tent wall. Meanwhile, several guests including my family arrived. My Swabian grandmother offered me a sausage sandwich less than twenty minutes before the start of the race. I said: “Grandma, if I eat this now, I’ll throw up in my helmet.” And she said, unconvinced: “Moinsch?”

One place went up in the race. The gap between positions 19 and 18 could no longer be filled with a gap of about a second. I got closer, but then lost ground again. For the first time in the entire season, I deliberately drove with something like “racing intelligence”. I decided to simply take 20th place with me and close the corner entrances so as not to give the drivers behind me a chance to overtake. Finally the flagman waved the black and white checkered flag. The 2016 season was over!

What I didn’t notice in the meantime: something dramatic happened at the top of the table. Title candidate Marc Zellhofer crashed over the front wheel on lap nine, and Patryk Kosiniak made second place enough for the championship. Victory in the race went to the superbly driving Daniel Rubin. Brother Dominik also made it onto the podium with third place. Congratulations, Patryk, Dani and Domi!

And further?

Now the question arises of how to proceed. The Yamaha Cup will celebrate its 40th anniversary next year. There will be a new model of the ingenious R6 that can be driven for another two years. Dunlop is still available as a competent tire partner and is supplying the Cup with an update of the D211 GP-Racer that has been used so far. The D212 GP-Racer will have a new carcass structure and a completely new rubber compound, which should keep the lap times tumbling.

And the PS editor? I’m trying to be there again. 2016 was one of the best adventures of my life so far. It almost screams for a sequel!

Statement of costs

A Yamaha Cup season using the example of PS editor Tobi

Cup package 1	Motorcycle, all conversion parts, lubricant package, complete rider equipment, all nominal and Entry fees	17,790 euros
Lintel parts and repair costs	Small parts (complete fairing, footrests, Handlebar stubs, levers, seals, screws, etc.) 4,353.62 euros, working time 2,590 euros (approx 35 hours at EUR 74 each), crankshaft 1,086.41 Euro, cooler Euro 645.53, front wheel Euro 616.73	9,292.29 euros
tire	15 front tires (119 euros / each) and 16 rear tires (173 euros / each)	4,553 euros
Fuel	280 liters	around 370 euros
Wear parts	Five liters of oil Yamalube 10W-40 (51.17 euros), a Oil filter (10.76 euros), a set of original front brake pads (102.18 euros)	164.11 euros
Additional costs	Race training at the Zolder Motorsport School (five turns 140 euros), Schleiz environmental flat rate (15 euro)	155 euros
total cost		32,324, 40 euros

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