The IDM summer break is over. Last weekend, the International German Motorcycle Championship returned to the racetrack. At the TT Circuit Assen, the results of the races have completely reshuffled the standings in the individual classes heading into the final stretch of the season.
IDM Superbike: Tulovic takes the lead in the standings
In the Netherlands, Lukas Tulovic (Triple M Racing Ducati Frankfurt) took the overall lead from previous leader Florian Alt (Holzhauer Racing Promotion) in the first Superbike race and further extended his lead in the second race. In addition, the 25-year-old German managed to outpace the experienced Superbike World Championship 12th-place finisher Dominique Aegerter, who had taken over the Yamaha of injured SWPN regular Jan Mohr for the weekend and was racing impressively fast around the track.
“Anyone who ever gets to experience riding a motorcycle like that, flying like that, floating like that—being in another world—I’m happy for them. I wish everyone could feel, just once in their life, the way I felt out there in the race. I just enjoyed it. Phenomenal,” Tulo said, clearly overwhelmed. For the Ducati rider, this was perhaps a very important weekend in his career. He makes no secret of his desire to race in the Superbike World Championship next year. He’s come a big step closer to the IDM Superbike title in Assen, but the matter isn’t settled yet. Honda’s star rider Florian Alt is 15 points behind, but there are still 100 points up for grabs until the end of the season. Alt didn’t make it onto the podium at the TT Circuit; instead, he had to settle for fourth place, letting Argentine Leandro Mercado (Masteroil Alpha Van Zon BMW) and his teammate Bálint Kovács take the podium spots ahead of him.
IDM Supersport: First victory for Switzerland's Marcel Brenner
In the IDM Supersport class, defending champion Andreas Kofler (Yamalube Motorsport Kofler) and Swiss rider Marcel Brenner (MotoLife) split the wins. In the first race, a group of five riders battled it out among themselves. When the leading Honda favorite, Dirk Geiger (MCA Racing), made a costly mistake on the final lap, his rivals closed in. The German himself saw only one way to avoid crashing. He plowed through the final chicane. It was clear: race officials would not tolerate this move. Geiger received a 0.5-second penalty. That dropped the Mannheim native back to third place. The winner was Kofler. He had seized the moment: “I saw that four riders were all going for the same spot. I just went for it, and it worked.”
After Domi Aegerter secured his first victory in the IDM Superbike class, fellow Swiss rider Marcel Brenner followed suit in the second race of the IDM Supersport class. The race was cut short due to rain. Brenner could hardly believe his luck at achieving his first-ever victory. Kofler and Luca de Vleeschauwer (Track and Trades Wixx Racing) rounded out the podium. Or: two Ducatis and a Yamaha. Or: a Swiss rider, an Austrian, and a Belgian. Title favorite Geiger offered his congratulations but was less than pleased with how Sunday had turned out, as he—the defending champion Kofler’s biggest rival—had lost further ground in the overall standings.
IDM Sportbike: Two New Winners and Harsh Penalties
Things were moving fast in the IDM Sportbike class. Five-time winner Oliver Svendsen of the Triumph Germany Racing Team was walking around the paddock wearing a brace. He had been riding at an event in Denmark and had crashed. The result: a broken left tibia and fibula. Consequently, the 21-year-old was there as a spectator. The first race ended with a Suzuki victory by Dutch guest rider Kas Beekmans. Iñigo Iglesias (Wematik Racing by RT Motorsport) still earned full points in the championship by finishing second, as guest riders are not included in the standings.
In theory, Iglesias would have been awarded another 25 points in the second race, but penalties were handed out after the fact. Eight of the 16 riders had failed to turn on their rain lights. Each of them was moved back three places. Korbinian Brandl (AK Racing Team) benefited from this. It was his first-ever podium finish. At the same time, it was the first victory for an Aprilia RS 660 in the Sportbike class. In the overall standings, Iglesias has closed the gap. It remains exciting: The Spaniard now has exactly as many points as his longtime rival Svendsen in the championship standings.
Road races with a twist
The FIM Sidecar World Championship has a new leader in Harry Payne and Kevin Rousseau, as the Steinhausen team won both races. The previous championship leader, Markus Schlosser of Switzerland, and his German passenger, Luca Schmidt, struggled with electronic issues on their sidecar, managed to limit the damage with two fourth-place finishes, and slipped to third place. The standings are so tight that the British brothers Sam Christie and Tom Christie also overtook Schlosser.
With two additional cup series on the supporting program, the IDM in Assen had even more attractions to offer. “I think it was a very successful event. The variety of brands at the top of the individual championship classes creates a special sense of excitement. There were more fans in the stands than ever before,” summarizes series manager Normann Broy. The action continues in just two weeks. From September 5–7, 2025, the IDM will make a guest appearance at the legendary Nürburgring.
