What happened yesterday no longer matters. In the second qualifying session at the IDM season opener at the Lausitzring, Andres Nussbaum set a lap time of 1:49.276, eclipsing all previous records.
The Swiss rider and his compatriot Manuel Hirschi shot up from third place to pole position in the IDM Sidecar class—and they did it in a 1000cc sidecar. “That’ll make IGG boss Robert Werth happy,” Hirschi grinned, admitting that at first he didn’t even realize what was happening to him because it was his first pole position. “In any case, we did everything right for Robert.” The IDM continues to feature 1000cc sidecars, even though 600cc engines have long been mandatory in the World Championship. And, of all things, a 1000cc machine is now at the very front of the starting grid. The next one, ridden by John Smits and Gunter Verbrugge, follows right behind in second place.
Seven-time world champions Tim Reeves and Mark Wilkes, riding the 600cc Adolf RS Yamaha sidecar, had to concede defeat to the two teams in the second qualifying session. Yesterday, he had been the fastest.
A 1000cc sidecar team also appeared behind the British duo. Mike Roscher and Anna Burkard noted: “Yesterday we were just cruising, but today we really went for it.”
However, the engine displacement classes are scored separately. This means that Markus Schlosser and Marcel Fries, despite posting the fifth-fastest time in the overall practice standings, are still considered second behind Reeves in the 600cc class.