Defending champion Andreas Kofler Supersport his fourth race in the IDM Supersport at the Öhlins IDM round at the Nürburgring. The Austrian thereby extended his lead in the championship standings. His main rival in the title race, Dirk Geiger, now trails by 24 points.
Andy Kofler (Yamalube Motorsport Kofler) got off to a lightning-fast start from pole position, as he almost always does. Marcel Brenner initially defended his second-place position but was overtaken by Dirk Geiger (MCA Racing) on the very first lap. The 23-year-old is determined to bring the title to the Honda camp. Taking an immense risk, he tried to prevent Kofler from running solo in the lead. The change in asphalt at the entrance to the Querspange proved to be a tricky maneuver. But Geiger’s plan worked.
By halftime, it was clear that something decisive was about to happen. Kofler straightened out his Yamaha earlier after exiting the corner. The lean angles weren’t quite as extreme anymore. Signs of tire degradation were also becoming more apparent on Geiger’s Honda. He seemed to enter the final corner faster, but Kofler came out of it faster. On the third-to-last lap, the German overtook the Austrian, but then had to fend off several daring challenges.
Thanks to the skirmish between Kofler and Geiger, Daniel Blin (AF Racing), who was trailing behind, closed the gap on them. He nearly managed to get involved in the battle for the lead. Earlier, in the all-Ducati battle, the Pole had defeated Swiss rider Marcel Brenner (MotoLife), who won at Assen two weeks ago. Luca de Vleeschauwer (Track and Trades Wixx Racing), who would like to move up to the Superbike class next year, also showed Brenner the rear of his Ducati at one point. Štěpán Zuda charged forward on his Eder-Yamaha from 12th on the grid to ninth place.
Shortly before the end of the 16-lap race, Kofler made the decisive move that put him back in the lead, ahead of Geiger. At the finish line, he had a big grin on his face. “I really enjoyed the race. Since I couldn’t open up a gap on Dirk, I had to adapt my racing strategy to the situation. We also had a few close calls.” Geiger was certain: “Andy took a gamble,” and immediately followed up with a challenge: “We’ll beat you guys tomorrow.”
The podium had an international flavor today, featuring three motorcycle brands and riders from three countries. It doesn't get any better than that.
Peter Feigl, Triumph rookie Valentino Herrlich, Luca Göttlicher, and Till Belczykowski—the only MV Agusta rider—did not finish the race.
IDM Supersport, Race 1
1. Andreas KOFLER (AUT), Yamaha
2. Dirk GEIGER (DEU), Honda
3. Daniel BLIN (POL), Ducati
4. Luca DE VLEESCHAUWER (BEL), Ducati
5. Marcel BRENNER (CHE), Ducati
6. Marvin SIEBDRATH (DEU), Yamaha
7. Lennox LEHMANN (GER), Yamaha
8. Julius Caesar RÖRIG (GER), Honda
9. Štěpán ZUDA (CZE), Yamaha
10.Filip FEIGL (CZE), Triumph
11.Ruben BIJMAN (NED), Honda
12. Dylan CZARKOWSKI (NLD), Yamaha
13. Richard IRMSCHER (DEU), Honda
14. Marvin KREIMES (DEU), Ducati
15. Thomas EDER (DEU), Ducati
