The season opener at the Sachsenring was a complete disaster for EURO MOTO Superbike rider Patrick Hobelsberger. He left early. Things are expected to go better in Brno this coming weekend.
His face alternated between a deep red and a sickly pallor. Patrick “Pax” Hobelsberger had looked better before. At the season opener at the Sachsenring three weeks ago, the 2023 Superbike third-place finisher had been completely thrown off track by a severe infection. As a result, Hobelsberger was nowhere near scoring points on his favorite track. Two years ago, he had secured a victory at the German motorcycle mecca. But now the 29-year-old finished last in the first race. He had already completely fallen apart in Superpole. What was going on?
“The week before the season opener at the Sachsenring, we were testing in Brno, but we left a day earlier than planned. I got sick from one day to the next. Things didn’t get much better in the week leading up to the season opener, and I was still struggling with a fever, a cold, and occasional dizziness,” Hobelsberger reports. In Saxony, the Bavarian rider started the first practice sessions with the base setup on the Honda CBR 1000 RR-R. “The bike worked great,” he noted, “but I didn’t.” Hobelsberger felt like he’d been run over by a bus. During his tests at the Pannoniaring shortly before, he had beaten the established lap record of 1:24 by three-tenths of a second. It now stands at 1:49.4. Such peak performances were out of the question at the Sachsenring. Instead, things only went downhill for Pax. After the first race, he called it quits and went home.
Brno is supposed to be the turning point. Hobelsberger still isn't fully fit, and he hasn't ridden his race bike either. But that doesn't necessarily mean anything.
