Not all winners make it to the World Championship. But for Andreas Kofler, the dream is becoming a reality. The two-time IDM champion from Austria will compete in the Supersport in 2026.
Five wins, six additional podium finishes, and a successful title defense on a Yamaha were the highlights of 21-year-old Andreas Kofler’s Supersport IDM Supersport season. Over the past two years, the younger of the Kofler racing brothers has made a strong impression in the class. Now comes the next step in his career. Together with Team Motorsport Kofler, he is moving up to the Supersport. So the environment is familiar. His race bike: the Yamaha R9. As a rookie in the WorldSSP Championship, he will compete in eleven of the twelve rounds. The newcomers will only be absent from the season opener in Australia.
Connections have helped
“The team’s long-term plan in partnership with Yamaha was to help young riders make the transition to the World Championship. Now we can take that step with Andreas, thanks in large part to the initiative of Wim Vermeulen, Andrea Dosoli, and Niccolo Canepa. They really championed our spot on the grid,” reveals team boss Klaus Kofler.
The young driver wants to make a name for himself in the World Championship as quickly as possible and says, “I know I can rely completely on the team around me, and that’s a major source of support for my rise to the top.”
First test yields positive results
Not only will some of the World Championship tracks be new to him, but so will his motorcycle. Instead of the Yamaha R6, on which Kofler won both IDM titles, he’ll now be riding the Yamaha R9. But as usual, he remains relaxed: “We’ve already tested the bike a bit, and I felt very comfortable right from the start. From that perspective, the transition shouldn’t be too big in terms of riding.” But he also knows: “Of course, the existing World Championship teams already have their experience from this season.”
The team will make its debut in Portimão at the end of March; for Kofler himself, this will be the fifth World Championship race of his career, having already competed in two races as a reserve driver in 2023 and even scored his first points in the Czech Republic.
