The second sidecar race of the Superside World Championship and IDM was a real battle. Not only were the sidecars put through their paces on the track, but the claws also came out.
Things also went smoothly for Tom and Ben Birchall (Wyckham Blackwell by Birchall/LCR Honda) in the second race. Aside from a shaky start—which caused them to lose the lead on the first lap to Harry Payne and his co-pilot Kevin Rousseau (Steinhausing Racing/ARS Yamaha)—they were able to quickly reclaim it, and the second race went off without a hitch for them. The British duo let their sidecar fly and ultimately won in front of a roaring crowd. “It was great to race in front of so many spectators and celebrate with them,” said Ben Birchall happily. The multiple world champion and his brother are leaving the Sachsenring with a full points haul.
Stephen Kershaw and Ryan Charlwood (Kershaw Racing/LCR Yamaha) finished in second place. They benefited early on from a scuffle between Harry Payne and the Birchall brothers and eventually settled in behind the leaders. However, Kershaw was unable to stop Ben Birchall from pulling away.
Sam and Tom Christie (Hannafin Racing/LCR Yamaha) rounded out the podium with a third-place finish, which they had to fight tooth and nail to reclaim from Payne on the eleventh lap. The pair fell back slightly from third place after the start but gradually clawed their way up to Payne’s rear. Payne had previously lost his second-place position to Kershaw and tried everything in his power to fend off another attack. But Christie held his ground and eventually left Payne/Rousseau behind. “We’re satisfied,” said Tom Christie after the race, “though we would have had the pace for second place today if we’d started better.” By the time of the pass on Payne, however, Kershaw/Charlwood had already pulled too far ahead, making them impossible for Christie to catch.
Reigning world champions Todd Ellis and Emmanuelle Clement (Team Ellis/Clement/LCR Yamaha) narrowly held off Ted and Vincent Peugeot (Seventy-Four Racing/LCR Yamaha) in the final meters to finish fourth. Harry Payne ultimately finished sixth after spinning out on lap 14. Tim Reeves and Mark Wilkes (Bonovo Action Team/ARS Yamaha) were again unable to keep up with the competition in the second race due to a lackluster engine and finished seventh, ahead of Bennie Streuer and Kevin Kölsch (Streuer Racing/ARS Yamaha).
In the IDM standings, the Peugeot brothers finished ahead of Josef Sattler and Luca Schmidt. Third place went to the young duo of Lennard Göttlich and Lukas Krieg (both riding for Bonovo Action Team/ARS Yamaha), who crossed the finish line in twelfth place.
English Version:
World Championship/IDM Sidecar: Fans Celebrate Birchall’s Double Victory
In the second sidecar race of the Superside World Championship and IDM, it was a true world-champion-level contest. Not only were the teams out on the track, but the competition was fierce.
For Tom and Ben Birchall (Wyckham Blackwell by Birchall/LCR Honda), things went well in the second race. Aside from a chaotic start that saw them lose the lead on the first lap to Harry Payne and his co-driver Kevin Rousseau (Steinhausing Racing/ARS Yamaha)—though they quickly regained it—the second race also went smoothly for them. The British duo kept their sidecar running and ended up winning in front of a raucous crowd of spectators. “It was great to race in front of so many spectators and celebrate with them,” said Ben Birchall joyfully. The multiple world champion and his brother leave the Sachsenring with full points.
Stephen Kershaw and Ryan Charlwood (Kershaw Racing/LCR Yamaha) finished second. They benefited from a scuffle between Harry Payne and the Birchall brothers in the early stages and eventually settled in behind the leaders. However, Kershaw was unable to stop Ben Birchall’s surge ahead.
Sam and Tom Christie (Hannafin Racing/LCR Yamaha) rounded out the podium with a third-place finish, which they had to wrestle back from Payne with some aggressive riding on the eleventh lap. The pair dropped back slightly from third after the start, but gradually clawed their way up to Payne’s rear. Payne had lost his second-place position to Kershaw earlier and tried to fend off another attack by any means necessary. But Christie held firm and eventually left Payne/Rousseau behind. “We are pleased,” said Tom Christie after the race, “however, we would have had the pace for second place today if we had started better.” Kershaw/Charlwood, however, were already too far ahead by the time they overtook Payne, making it impossible for Christie to catch them.
The reigning world champions Todd Ellis and Emmanuelle Clement (Team Ellis/Clement/LCR Yamaha) narrowly held off Ted and Vincent Peugeot (Seventy-Four Racing/LCR Yamaha) to finish fourth in the final meters. Harry Payne eventually finished sixth after spinning out on lap 14. Tim Reeves and Mark Wilkes (Bonovo Action Team/ARS Yamaha) were also unable to keep up with the competition in the second race due to an underpowered engine and finished seventh, ahead of Bennie Streuer and Kevin Kölsch (Streuer Racing/ARS Yamaha).
In the IDM standings, the Peugeot brothers finished ahead of Josef Sattler and Luca Schmidt. Third place went to the junior team of Lennard Göttlich and Lukas Krieg (both riding for the Bonovo Action Team/ARS Yamaha), who finished the race in twelfth place.
Sidecar World Championship, Race:
- Ben BIRCHALL/Tom BIRCHALL (GBR)
- Stephen KERSHAW/Ryan CHARLWOOD (GBR)
- Sam CHRISTIE/Tom CHRISTIE (GBR)
- Todd ELLIS/Emmanuelle CLEMENT (GBR/FRA)
- Ted PEUGEOT/Vincent PEUGEOT (FRA)
- Harry PAYNE/Kevin ROUSSEAU (GBR/FRA)
- Tim Reeves/Mark Wilkes (GBR)
- Bennie STREUER/Kevin KÖLSCH (NLD/GER)
- Josef SATTLER/Luca SCHMIDT (GER)
- Pekka PÄIVÄRINTA/Ilse DE HAAS (FIN/NLD)
IDM standings:
- Ted PEUGEOT/Vincent PEUGEOT (FRA)
- Josef SATTLER/Luca SCHMIDT (GER)
- Lennard GÖTTLICH/Lukas KRIEG (GER)
- Rupert ARCHER/Adam CHRISTIE (GBR)
- Janz REMSE/Manfred WECHSELBERGER (SLO/AUT)