The International German Motorcycle Championship (IDM) kicked off the second half of the season with the race weekend in Spielberg. It is already becoming clear in the Supersport 300 class that the battle for the championship title could turn into a neck-and-neck duel.
Just three points separate riders Inigo Iglesias (Füsport – RT Motorsports by SKM – Kawasaki) and Walid Khan (Freudenberg KTM-Paligo Racing) in the overall standings ahead of the race in Spielberg. After four thrilling race weekends, they dominate the junior class. Walid Khan currently leads the standings with 134 points, closely followed by Iglesias with 131. Third place is currently held by KTM rider Dustin Schneider. However, the IDM rookie is already 29 points behind the leader—a gap that is not impossible to close, but will be difficult to make up with only six races remaining.
What makes the showdown between the two favorites, Khan and Iglesias, so special is that for both of them, the IDM title would be a surefire ticket back to the World Championship.
Walid Khan competed in the Supersport 300 World Championship as early as 2018. The highlight of his season was a second-place finish at the Autodrom Most. He finished the season in twelfth place, with more than four times as many points as his teammate Tom Edwards. Nevertheless, for financial reasons, he was unable to continue his World Championship campaign in 2019. He took a break in 2019 and 2020. The following year, he returned to racing under the Freudenberg banner in the IDM, where he immediately finished third overall with three wins.
Last weekend, thanks to a wild card, the Dutch rider got a taste of World Championship racing again after several years and was able to prove his skills. Although he crashed in the first race, he managed to finish in the top 10 in the second race, despite the chaotic weather conditions. In the battle for the IDM title, he wants to seize his chance and take a different approach: “I’m trying to stay calm and take it one practice session at a time, one qualifying session at a time, and one race at a time. No further,” the 23-year-old explains his approach for the final three race weekends. He continues: “Inigo and I are on the same level in terms of performance, so in the races it comes down to who makes the better decisions tactically and intuitively,” Khan describes his perspective. He also wants to avoid unnecessary crashes as much as possible.
Just like Khan, Inigo Iglesias is also well-versed in the international motorsports scene. He competed in the World Championship for a total of three seasons, from 2020 to 2022. His best result came in 2021, when he finished seventh in the overall standings. In the past two World Championship seasons, he competed for the SMW Racing team, which, however, withdrew from the championship for financial reasons.
This is the 23-year-old’s first season in the IDM, and he has quickly settled in. “The IDM is extremely professional, and the level of competition is very high. It feels similar to the World Championship,” said the Spaniard from Valencia. In the battle for the championship title, Iglesias is focusing on his own performance and power. “My focus is on racing at the front in every race so I can be satisfied. When I feel good, I can make the most of my strengths and push beyond my limits,” said the Kawasaki rider. He aims to score as many points as possible in every race. However, he doesn’t want to take excessive risks, as that can quickly backfire.
All in all, both drivers are on a similar level, both in terms of their performance and their speed, as well as their ambition and their ultimate goal. In a direct comparison, however, Walid Khan has two subtle advantages: With Assen and Hockenheim, there are still two circuits left that Khan is familiar with and where he feels right at home, while Hockenheim is new to Iglesias. On top of that, Khan has the backing of his teammates Dustin Schneider, Philipp Tonn, Dirk Geiger, and Lennox Lehmann, while Iglesias often has to hold his own at the front on his own.
The next three race weekends promise to be absolutely thrilling, and it remains to be seen how the upcoming races will unfold. Walid Khan and Inigo Iglesias are undoubtedly the favorites to win the title, but their closest rivals, Dustin Schneider and Lennox Lehmann, should not be underestimated. Both drivers could still get in on the title race and thus create some exciting twists and turns in the championship.