In the IDM Supersport , the situation has completely changed following the retirement of title favorite Max Enderlein (Freudenberg Racing) at Assen. Although the Saxon won’t lose the championship lead thanks to his large points advantage, his rivals will close in on him more than he’d like. The lead could theoretically shrink to as few as seven points. For Marc Buchner (Buchner Motorsport), Daniel Rubin (Rubin Racing Team), and Kevin Wahr , the title is mathematically back within reach. But it won’t be easy.
The first qualifying session at the TT Circuit Assen presented its first challenges. Half the track was wet, and the other half was dry. Local rider Sander Kroeze completed just three laps on his Yamaha and set the fastest time of 1:44.723 min , ahead of Dennis Lippert (T.O.M. Racing powered by myMoto24.de), the absolute Supersport. Lippert has managed to climb to 5th place in the overall standings in his rookie season. Daniel Rubin was fourth fastest, Kevin Wahr sixth. But of all people, Marc Buchner—who has the best chance of preventing Enderlein from winning the title—couldn’t manage better than ninth place. “I’d love to end the weekend with podium finishes, but that seems very unlikely right now. The competition is very strong, and I’ll have to make sure I finish ahead of Daniel and Kevin first.”
Gabriel Noderer has entirely different concerns. The Bavarian Kawasaki hero, riding the Schnock Racing Team Motorex ZX-6R , had torn his cruciate ligament during a fitness workout before the Lausitzring race and crashed out of today’s free practice session after a highside. It was a blessing in disguise: he only bruised his right hand. Noderer can’t avoid knee surgery, but he can postpone it until the end of the season. Next Monday, he has to see Dr. Thore Zantop at the Sporthopaedicum Straubing. The specialist will then set the final surgery date.