The partnership has come to an end. At Valentino Herrlich’s request, he and Kawasaki Weber Racing have parted ways. The 16-year-old racer has not yet secured a new ride in the IDM Supersport series.
The name says it all. Valentino Herrlich practically had racing in his blood from the moment he was born. Starting out on pocket bikes, he worked his way up to the International German Motorcycle Championship. It was a difficult start in the country’s top racing series. The planned partnership between Team MotoLife and Valentino Herrlich hit a dead end just two months after signing the contract this winter. Now Herrlich has pulled the plug on Kawasaki. The desired results have not materialized so far. Scoring ten championship points in eight races is a meager haul. He will no longer be on the starting grid at Assen.
“We thought development would move faster,” says team boss Emil Weber, adding, “We didn’t meet the expectations of Valentino and his team.” Yet it had been made clear at the start of the year that, while the Kawasakis weren’t the fastest bikes at the moment, their potential could be developed.
Looking back, the original plan was to sign an experienced teammate to join Luca Göttlicher, who had already been signed, but Weber instead gave Herrlich, a second young rider, a chance. “Valentino is highly talented and gives it 120 percent.” However, he also had five crashes, which were factored into the budget.
Development of the Kawasaki Ninja ZX-6R is indeed moving at a snail's pace. Weber will now hand the abandoned motorcycle over to an experienced rider at the next IDM round at the Nürburgring, with the aim of moving the project forward. Göttlicher is expected to learn from him.
