Here we go again. The first decisive race of the International German Motorcycle Championship (IDM) in Assen took place today, Friday. That’s because, on the very first day of the event, the fastest twelve riders in the IDM Superbike class qualify for Superpole 2 during a half-hour “Superpole Pre-Practice,” where the top starting positions in the premier class will be decided tomorrow. Florian Alt (Holzhauer Racing Promotion) on the Honda Fireblade proved to be the fastest rider of the day, earning direct entry into SP2.
Florian Alt, riding the CBR 1000 RR-R, is currently the only serious contender capable of breaking through the BMW pack. Of the twelve fastest riders in the Superpole pre-practice session at the TT Circuit, nine were riding BMWs. The “baby of the group” was the sensation: Colin Velthuizen, the 20-year-old RR SOCIA RACING junior who hadn’t exactly set the world on fire in the top class so far, sensationally clocked the second-fastest time behind Alt today. He believes that the races two weeks ago at Jack’s Race Day on the TT Circuit might have played into his hands. Not much, but at least something.
Argentine rider Leandro Mercado, on the Weber-Kawasaki, slipped into sixth place, breaking up the BMW pack. Yamaha rider Rob Hartog finished exactly twelfth on his home track in the Netherlands. Lorenzo Zanetti, still hampered by a broken collarbone, missed the cut by just under four hundredths of a second on his Triple-M Ducati following his return to racing, but he wasn’t too upset. “I’m taking it in stride,” he commented. He still had some pain, but that was to be expected, the Italian noted.
Superpole Pre-Practice Results
1. Florian ALT (GER), Honda
2. Colin VELTHUIZEN (NED), BMW
3. Ilya MIKHALCHIK (UKR), BMW
4. Jan-Ole JÄHNIG (GER), BMW
5. Hannes SOOMER (EST), BMW
6. Leandro MERCADO (ARG), Kawasaki
7. Bálint KOVÁCS (HUN), BMW
8. Toni FINSTERBUSCH (GER), BMW
9. Philipp STEINMAYR (AUS)
10. Milan MERCKELBAGH (NED), BMW
11. Jan MOHR (AUS), BMW
12. Rob HARTOG (NED), Yamaha