Even though guest riders Markus Schlosser and Marcel Fries aren’t competing for points in the IDM, Sunday afternoon’s second race at the Lausitzring was at least a battle for pride against seven-time world champion Tim Reeves and his co-driver Kevin Rousseau. Despite Reeves spreading out and fighting tooth and nail to defend his lead after the start, Schlosser/Fries prevailed in the end and secured a one-two finish. Slightly sweaty, Schlosser said in the parc fermé: “Because of the uneven track conditions, it takes a lot of energy to drive fast here.” That made them all the more satisfied with the one-two finish. The Swiss duo had come to the Lausitzring primarily for testing purposes ahead of the World Championship.
This weekend, Tim Reeves had to contend not only with Schlosser, but also with himself. The Brit had sustained a hand injury a week earlier in an accident during a hill climb. “I’m not quite back to full strength yet and my hand lacks power, but we can be satisfied with this weekend and are now preparing for the next races,” said Reeves. In three weeks, the experienced sidecar team will head to the Isle of Man for the Sidecar TT.
This weekend wasn't without its challenges for Josef Sattler and Luca Schmidt either. Schmidt, the 18-year-old co-driver, has been struggling for several months with arm fatigue, a condition known in the motorcycle racing world as "arm pump." The pair leave the Lausitzring with two third-place finishes and 32 points in the overall standings.
Max Zimmermann and Ronja Mahl finished in fourth place once again. Lennard Göttlich and Uwe Neubert secured a sensational fifth-place finish. The two had to start the second race from the very back of the pack because they finished last in the sprint race due to a driving error.
IDM Sidecar, Race 2
- SCHLOSSER/FRIES (CZE/CZE)
- REEVES/ROUSSEAU (GBR/FRA)
- SATTLER/SCHMIDT (GER/GER)
- ZIMMERMANN/MAHL (GER/GER)
- GÖTTLICH/NEUBERT
- PÄRM/LIPSTOK (EST/EST)
- RUTZ/HOFER (CHE/CHE)
- KIMESWENGER/SEDLACEK (AUSTRIA/CZECH REPUBLIC)
- KRANENBURG/KARTHEINER (Netherlands/Germany)