Last weekend, Luca Grünwald secured the fourth podium finish for the Kiefer Racing Team, which is new to the IDM Superbike 1000 series. The team celebrated a third-place finish after the second race. In the standings, the Bavarian rider remained in fourth place overall. A faulty gear sensor in the first race prevented him from moving up to third place.
The race for the top spot is tight ahead of the IDM premier class finale, set for September 24–26 in Hockenheim. Leader Ilya Mikhalchik is all but assured of his third championship title. He leads the standings with 165 points, ahead of Valentin Debise (125, Kawasaki). Third is Florian Alt (112), fourth is Luca Grünwald (111), fifth is Bastien Mackels (109, Yamaha), and sixth is Vladimir Leonov (106, Yamaha).
Two brilliant victories in Styria have propelled Florian Alt on the BMW M 1000 RR from tenth to third place. His brand colleague Grünwald had also set his sights on third place on the previous BMW model, the S 1000 RR, but in the first race, the gear sensor on his motorcycle failed, and he could manage no better than 12th place, earning him four championship points.
Team manager Jochen Kiefer explains the problem: “If this sensor is faulty, the gears can no longer be shifted smoothly; instead, the rider has to use the clutch to do so. As a result, the engine braking system also stops working properly. The motorcycle’s electronics are significantly disrupted.” As a result, Grünwald had to focus not only on the battle for position but also on the changed clutch operation. “Finishing in 12th place was a very good performance,” said Kiefer.
A lot can still happen in the overall championship standings at Hockenheim. Grünwald still has a chance to finish as runner-up.