A single race in the IDM Superbike has had such a dramatic impact on the title race that everything is still up for grabs heading into the grand finale at Hockenheim in September. Florian Alt’s (Holzhauer Racing Promotion) crash at the TT Circuit in Assen and a brilliant weekend by double winner Ilya Mikhalchik (BCC ALPHA VAN ZON BMW RACING) have shifted the balance of power. And the GERT56 team is getting stronger and stronger.
He should have sealed the deal, but instead of celebrating an early title win, the heavy favorite Florian Alt—riding the red Honda with the number “66”—was lying on the ground. He crashed because he had to swerve to avoid Balint Kovacs, who was already down. It was a fatal mistake: Alt had finished on the podium in every race he’d started. But at the decisive moment, he didn’t make it to the finish line. Even if his lead is still comfortable: Now Alt has to worry about the title. He doesn’t have it in the bag yet.
Toni Finsterbusch (GERT56) had taken the lead at the start of the race and was battling it out with Bastien Mackels (Team SWPN). Following the reverse grid—which Alt later criticized—it was initially the other riders who put on the show. Leandro Mercado (Kawasaki Weber Motos Racing) and Hannes Soomer (Enos Enemat Motorsport) were among them. Alt, who had to start from seventh position as the third-place finisher in the first race due to the reverse grid rule, was initially boxed in and crashed out of the race while trying to move up. Finsterbusch crashed shortly thereafter while in the lead.
Mercado made his presence felt at the front. He hadn’t had much luck with the Kawasaki in the first race, but now things were really starting to click for the Argentine. It didn’t take long, however, before Ilya Mikhalchik finally fought his way to the front. The Ukrainian was the man of the weekend and unstoppable. He claimed his fifth victory of the season.
But the fact that Jan-Ole Jähnig from the GERT56 team was able to break through and emerged in second place behind Mikhalchik on the tenth lap was the icing on the cake. In his rookie season, the rookie snatched the win from Soomer and Mercado! Finally, Patrick Hobelsberger (GERT56), who had been slowly closing in, also approached the lead. While Mikhalchik was out of reach, they battled it out behind the Ukrainian.
In the end, it was Hobelsberger and Jähnig who celebrated a one-two finish for the GERT56 team. Hobelsberger had originally thought Toni Finsterbusch would be the one to achieve this, but today Jähnig surpassed himself and, finishing third in the race, secured his first podium finish in Germany’s top motorcycle racing class. “If someone had told me that at the start of the season, I would have replied, ‘You’re drunk, man,’” he said, clearly thrilled.
So what does all this mean for the championship? The situation has completely changed. Alt continues to lead the overall standings with 197 points. However, he is no longer followed by Soomer, but by Mikhalchik, who has surged ahead thanks to his one-two finish and is now just 36 points behind. The season finale at Hockenheim is shaping up to be a nail-biter.
IDM Superbike, Round 2
1. Ilya MIKHALCHIK (UKR), BMW
2. Patrick HOBELSBERGER (GER), BMW
3. Jan-Ole JÄHNIG (GER), BMW
4. Leandro MERCADO (ARG), Kawasaki
5. Hannes SOOMER (EST), Honda
6. Bastien MACKELS (BEL), Yamaha
7. Vladimir LEONOV (UAE), Yamaha
8. Colin VELTHUIZEN (NLD), BMW
9. Pepijn BIJSTERBOSCH (NLD), BMW
10. Philipp STEINMAYR (AUT), BMW