The SKACH Motors Kawasaki Racing team is facing entirely new prospects. At Assen, the team experienced its first crash-free weekend in the IDM Superbike series. This coming weekend at the Nürburgring, they plan to go all out.
The fifth of seven rounds in the International German Motorcycle Championship (IDM) went off without a single crash for the new team in the top class. At the same time, regular rider Martin Vugrinec scored points in both races—something that had never happened before.
At the so-called “Cathedral of Speed” in the Netherlands, Team SKACH Motors Kawasaki Racing showed a clear upward trend. They finished 11th in the first race on a track that isn’t among Vugrinec’s favorites. However, the 25-year-old was later handed a penalty for making contact with another rider while battling in the final chicane. According to Vugrinec, it was a harmless contact. Race officials saw it differently.
Vugrinec served the double long-lap penalty right in the opening laps. That took care of the problem. After 15 laps around the 4.555-kilometer high-speed track, he crossed the finish line in 15th place. “Too bad,” summed up “Spider-Martin,” so named because of his fondness for spider webs, “without the penalty, it might have been enough for 11th place again.”
The Croatian, who lives in Bochum, is eager to get back on the track. Right after the Assen weekend, he headed back to his home country, worked as an instructor at the racetrack, and also made time for his own training. “And then I go to work, too, because I have to earn money for racing.” The Kawasaki rider was raised by his father, Ivica, to be down-to-earth and respectful.
Team manager Oliver Skach says that Vugrinec rode with a margin of safety at Assen to avoid crashing. “Of course, it’s not easy for a racer not to always push to the limit, but sometimes it’s an advantage. Martin has to think not only about the Kawasaki but also about himself, following the calf and shin fracture he suffered in April.” Overall, Skach sees progress at every race weekend: “I’m glad that everything has settled down. We drove home from Assen very satisfied and are heading to the penultimate IDM event at the Nürburgring full of hope. There, we’ll attack with 110 percent.” Former racer Skach runs a motorcycle shop in Dormagen. That’s just 100 kilometers from the foot of the Nürburgring.
