The celebration knows no bounds: Melvin van der Voort (15, NLD, Team SWPN) is carried on the shoulders of his team after his victory in the first race. The young Dutch Yamaha rider wins the thrilling season-opener after twelve laps with a lead of 7.914 seconds.
Through the eighth lap, van der Voort puts up a spirited fight against Harry Khouri (16, AUS, Benjan Racing Team) on a Kawasaki. The lead changes hands several times between the two young riders. But on the eighth lap, Khouri’s front wheel locks up and the Australian crashes. Melvin van der Voort capitalizes on the situation and pulls away from the pack. Behind him are Ruben Bijman (16, NLD, Pearle Gebben Racing) on a Yamaha, Luca de Vleeschauwer (18, BEL, RT-Motorsports by SKM-Kawasaki) on a Kawasaki, and Lennox Lehmann (14, Dresden, Freudenberg SWC WorldSSP Academy) on a KTM.
Starting from eighth on the grid, Lehmann manages to catch up to the chasing pack. On the final lap, he even has a chance to secure a podium finish. But in the end, last year’s ADAC Junior Cup champion has to settle for sixth place. “On the final lap, another rider pushed me wide and I made a mistake,” says Lehmann self-critically, adding, “In the end, the curb saved me.” The top German finisher is Marvin Siebdrath (16, Wildenfels, RT-Motorsports by SKM-Kawasaki).
Rick Dunnik (18, NLD, Zuwi-HDRacing) on a Yamaha caused a sensation. Due to unauthorized test rides, he had to start from the back row. With just a few laps to go, a podium finish was still within his reach. “But my tires were wearing down badly, and I couldn’t accelerate fully out of the corners anymore,” Dunnik explained. As a result, he had to settle for fourth place.
Behind the dominant race winner Melvin van der Vaart, Ruben Bijman and Luca de Vleeschauwer secured their first IDM podium of the season in a nail-biting finale. “I’ve been strong all weekend and was able to set fast times right from the first practice session,” says the 15-year-old Yamaha rider. “With such a big lead, I tried to take some of the pressure off and not make any mistakes.”
Update (7:21 p.m.): Ruben Bijman has been handed a one-second time penalty for exceeding the track limits. As a result, Luca de Vleeschauwer and Rick Dunnik each move up one spot. This gives Melvin van der Voort an 8.004-second lead over second-place de Vleeschauwer. Due to the penalty, Bijman drops back to fourth place.
The second race will start tomorrow (August 16) at 2:15 p.m.
IDM Supersport 300, 1. Rennen
Ergebnis (NEU)
Distanz: 12 Runden (4,555 Kilometer) = 54,66 km
1. Melvin van der Voort (NLD, Team SWPN), Yamaha, 22:40,799 Min. (144,603 km/h)
2. Luca de Vleeschauwer (BEL, RT-Motorsports by SKM-Kawasaki), Kawasaki, + 8,004 Sek.
3. Rick Dunnik (NLD, Zuwi-HDRacing), Yamaha, + 8,051 Sek.
4. Ruben Bijman (NLD, Pearle Gebben Racing), Yamaha, +8,914 Sek.
5. Marvin Siebdrath (Wildenfels, RT-Motorsports by SKM-Kawasaki), Kawasaki, + 9,222 Sek.
6. Lennox Lehmann (Dresden, Freudenberg SMC WorldSSP Academy), KTM, + 9,257 Sek.
Fastest lap: Van der Vaart in 1:52.072 (146.317 km/h)