It’s the surprise of the off-season. Patrick “Pax” Hobelsberger, who finished fourth in the IDM Superbike series, is exploring new options. The 28-year-old Bavarian from Landau an der Isar will test the Skach Motors Kawasaki Racing bike this coming weekend in Misano. Will he make the switch to a different manufacturer?
Hobelsberger finished fourth overall last season on the GERT56 Superbike BMW, just one point behind his teammate Toni Finsterbusch. “If he likes our ZX-10RR, he’ll be riding for us next year,” announced Kawasaki team manager Oliver Skach. His team has been competing in Germany’s top road racing class for a year. Hobelsberger had been interested in a test for some time, but Skach wanted to wait until the season was over. The two have been in contact for several years. “I met Pax at a Christmas party in 2016; back then, he was still riding a Suzuki GSX-R 600 as a hobby,” reports Skach, continuing, “We’ve already discussed some key details for the upcoming season—where we stand and what we can expect.” Hobelsberger is eager to see what awaits him in Misano: “Depending on how it goes, I’ll decide together with Oliver Skach whether we’ll launch the project together.”
Regular rider “Spider-Martin” Vugrinec isn’t in Italy, but he’s been informed that he’ll be getting a fast teammate. As the 25-year-old Croatian himself says, this is an advantage because he can use him as a benchmark. There’s no question that Vugrinec will remain on the team. “We’re satisfied with his performance. We’ve always taken a step forward. 2024 was a year of development for all of us. The team and the rider learned from it when things didn’t work out right away. That’s a shoe we both have to put on, but we’ve done our homework,” Skach sums up matter-of-factly.
