FIM Sidecar: Schlosser Turns the Tide – Pole Position

In the second qualifying session of the FIM Sidecar World Championship in Most, Markus Schlosser and Luca Schmidt (Team Schlosser/LCR Yamaha) turned the tables once again. The Swiss rider and his German co-pilot made a statement on the final lap with a time of 1:40.309 minutes, securing pole position for the upcoming races. After finishing third in the first qualifying session, the duo thus took a strong step forward—despite deliberate tire management. In Q2, they took their time before even hitting the track.

Payne and Christie are on standby

Harry Payne and Kevin Rousseau (Steinhausen Racing / ARS Yamaha) also held off on lapping at first to conserve their tires. Like Sam and Tom Christie (Hannafin/LCR Yamaha), they stayed in the pit lane for a long time. Payne ultimately completed only two laps and continued to rely on his best time from Q1 (1:40.359). The Christie brothers managed to complete one more lap, but were also unable to improve their times.

Despite their conservative strategy, neither team could be caught. Payne and Rousseau will therefore start from second place, right next to Schlosser and Schmidt. Sam and Tom Christie round out the front row in third place. The gaps are incredibly tight: just 0.104 seconds separate the top three teams.

Finns are making great strides

Paul Leglise and Marjorie Cescutti (521 Competition/LCR Yamaha) held onto their fourth-place finish from Q1. Rupert Archer and Ondrej Sedlacek (Hannafin/LCR Yamaha) were also unable to improve their time and will start from fifth place. The Finns Joni and Tero Manninen (Manninen Sidecar Racing/LCR Yamaha), on the other hand, made a leap forward: They improved their time and moved up to sixth place—as a result, Kevin Cable and Charlie Richardson (L&W Racing/LCR Yamaha) slipped back to seventh place, followed by Markus Venus and Thomas Hofer.

Wiggert Kranenburg and Jermaine van Middegaal (Flying Dutchmen/LCR Yamaha) also improved their times. With a gain of just under a second, they will start from ninth position.

The first race starts this Saturday at 2:45 p.m. and will be broadcast live on www.idm.de/live for all viewers at home.

FIM Sidecar World Championship Results, Qualifying 1+2