The Advent season at the Siebdraths’ home in Wildenfels was quite a hassle in 2009. The culprit was six-year-old Marvin. The youngster had set his heart on his own little motorcycle and wouldn’t let up. “I pestered my parents until I got my first pocket bike for Christmas,” recalls Marvin Siebdrath (16, Wildenfels, RT Motorsports by SKM-Kawasaki).
A good eleven years later, the talented rider from Saxony is among the best in the IDM Supersport 300 class. In early September, he celebrated his first race win in the junior class at his home track, the Sachsenring. Along with Lennox Lehmann, Siebdrath is the top German rider. The 16-year-old high school student is one of the figureheads of RT Motorsports by SKM-Kawasaki, the team led by Rob Vennegoor and Frank Krekeler.
Last year, Siebdrath—the team’s fifth rider—didn’t join the IDM until the third of seven races. “I got in touch with the team through Troy Beinlich, who raced here last year,” says the 16-year-old Kawasaki rider. Despite missing a total of four races, he still managed to break into the top ten in the championship and secured tenth place, right behind Beinlich.
He’s still thrilled with his highly professional team: “Everything’s just right, the atmosphere is great, and everyone looks out for you,” Siebdrath gushes. His grandfather Gert is accompanying him from his family. “My father is so busy with work this year that he can’t be here,” says the Wildenfelser native.
Marvin Siebdrath switched teams mid-season after dropping out of the European Talent Cup (ETC). Following a season with the Prüstel Team in 2018, the Saxon rider moved to a Spanish team. But things weren’t going well there. So he decided to switch to the IDM Supersport 300. “The bike is better suited for riders who, like me, are a bit taller,” says the 5’10” young rider, adding, “It’s pretty forgiving.” When he leans flat against the tank on the Kawasaki Ninja 400 on the straights, he sits right on top of the seat. “No problem—a few others do that too.”
This year, the competition in the IDM junior class has become even more intense. “I actually expected it to be a little easier this year,” says the young rider from Saxony.
“But on the contrary, it’s actually become much tougher.”
He isn't focusing on his overall standing. "I just take it one race at a time," says Siebdarth. A spot in the top five should hopefully come out of it in the end.
He doesn't yet have a plan for his career next year. But Marvin Siebdrath already has his sights set on his career goal: "I want to become a physics and physical education teacher."