IDM Sidecar: Reeves and Rousseau Continue Unstoppable Run

There's no stopping Tim Reeves and Kevin Rousseau. On Saturday afternoon, the pair won the IDM Sidecar sprint race for the fourth time, continuing their charge toward the championship title.

Reeves and Rousseau (Bonovo Action Team/Adolf RS F1) started the race from pole position and held onto their lead, but Tom and Ben Birchall (Birchall Racing, LCR) were right on the heels of the eight-time world champion. From the very start, the brothers made it clear to Reeves that they had their sights set on victory and stayed right on his tail. On lap three, Birchall made his move and passed Reeves, only to be countered by Reeves on the very same lap. Time and again, the Birchall brothers tried to find an opening to pass in the neck-and-neck race, but Reeves and Rousseau held their ground tenaciously. Then, at the start of the sixth lap, it happened: Birchall’s brakes had overheated, causing him to approach the first corner too fast and run wide. He barely managed to keep the sidecar on the track. But the battle for victory was lost. They finished the race in second place.
Tim Reeves, who introduced the Birchall brothers to the IDM and invited them to participate as guest starters in Spielberg, said afterward: “I enjoyed competing against the two of them again and am looking forward to another exciting race on Sunday.” Reeves and Birchall have known each other for years from the World Championship and also raced against each other this year at the Isle of Man TT, where the Birchalls emerged victorious for the eleventh time. Despite the brake problems, Ben Birchall was satisfied with today’s performance “This is our first time here at the Red Bull Ring, and we’re just getting to know the track. We’re looking forward to tomorrow’s race,” said the Brit.

Pekka Päivärinta and Ilse de Haas (LCR) won the battle for third place on the podium. They engaged in thrilling duels with Josef Sattler and Luca Schmidt (Bonovo Action Team/Adolf RS F1). Despite running on worn tires, they were able to hold their own against the 2021 IDM champions.

There was also a duel between Peter Kimeswenger (MRSC Gunskirchen SRT/LCR Yamaha) and Max (Team Zimmermann/Adolf RS), though Zimmermann/Mahl came up short. They finished in sixth place.

Lennard Göttlich and Uwe Neubert (Bonovo Action Team/Adolf RS F1) struggled with technical problems in the sprint race, which had already surfaced during practice. Despite repairs carried out overnight, the sidecar didn't run smoothly. They finished ninth.

The second race of the IDM Sidecar series starts on Sunday at 4:30 p.m. and can be watched live at www.idm.de/live.

IDM Sidecar, Sprint Race