Following his one-two finish at the Sachsenring, Ducati’s top rider, Lukas Tulovic, also won the first EURO MOTO Superbike race in Most. Three motorcycle brands were represented on the podium: Florian Alt for Honda and Marcel Schrötter for BMW.
The heat was almost unbearable. The asphalt temperature was reported to be 51 degrees Celsius. “When you’re riding in a pack, the engine immediately gets sweltered by the intense heat,” they said in the GERT56 pit. But that wasn’t the only problem. Just like last year, different Pirelli tires were issued in Most due to the hot temperatures. Experience with the D0922 standard tire is limited, and tuning the motorcycles proved difficult.
To avoid exposing the riders to the heat for too long, the quick-start procedure was implemented before the race. Seven minutes before the start, the pit lane was opened for one minute. Only one team member was present at the grid. No more checks on the motorcycle, no substitutions—everything happened very quickly. Superbike riders’ spokesperson Toni Finsterbusch had, after consultation, advocated for the Quick Start format, but not for shortening the race distance. So the race went the full 16 laps.
Twan Smits (Team Apreco), who had started from the front row on his Yamaha, kept Marcel Schrötter, pole-sitter Lukas Tulovic (Triple M Racing Ducati Frankfurt), and Florian Alt (Holzhauer Racing Promotion) at bay during the first lap. Tulo, who had struggled with technical issues on the Panigale V4R in Brno and finished only seventh in the first race, now faced a new challenge and had to get moving. He had traveled to Most with just a 5-point lead over Marcel Schrötter (GERT56 by RS Speedbikes). He now aggressively challenged Schrötter, throwing him off his rhythm. Schrötter even had to skip the chicane, but made sure to lose at least one second before returning to the track so as not to gain an advantage. That’s what the rules require.
In the fourth lap, Tulo went all out, squeezed past Smits, and took the lead. The Dutchman promptly lost momentum. Schrötter took immediate advantage of this and moved into second place. And then Flo Alt entered the fray, slipping in between them at the very end. With a flawless maneuver under the Orlen arch, the Honda rider passed Schrötter’s BMW on the penultimate lap. This was “Alt-Land,” and the North Rhine-Westphalian wasn’t about to let it slip away.
“When you get passed like that, it’s definitely tough,” said former Supersport World Championship rider Schrötter, expressing his frustration with the result. “But today, because of the heat, everything was different and took on a whole new dimension.” Alt, who had fought his way onto the podium from fifth on the grid, said afterward that he had set up the Honda reasonably well. “And it was one of the hottest races I’ve ever competed in.” He noted that while temperatures at the Endurance World Championship in Suzuka are similar, the humidity is different.
Tulo rode the Ducati Panigale V4R to his third win of the season with a lead of 1.235 seconds. “My start was a weakness I already had last year. But I knew I had the pace early in the race to move up. After the races in Brno four weeks ago, we were at rock bottom. Now everything is back on track.”
Toni Finsterbusch (GERT56) showed strong braking skills, working his way up from seventh to fourth place, but ultimately had to let Twan Smits pass him on the final lap. At Masteroil Alpha Van Zon BMW, team boss Werner Daemen—who is used to success—looked less than pleased with the results. His team had absolutely no chance of making the podium in today’s first race: Hannes Soomer in 6th, Markus Reiterberger in 7th, Milan Merckelbagh in 9th, Jan Mohr in 10th, and Soma Görbe crashed.
EURO MOTO Superbike, Race 1
1. Lukas TULOVIC (GER/Ducati)
2. Florian ALT (GER/Honda)
3. Marcel SCHRÖTTER (GER/BMW)
4. Twan SMITS (NED/Yamaha)
5. Toni FINSTERBUSCH (GER/BMW)
6. Hannes SOOMER (EST/BMW)
7. Markus REITERBERGER (GER/BMW)
8. Jan-Ole JÄHNIG (GER/BMW)
9. Milan MERCKELBAGH (NED/BMW)
10. Jan MOHR (AUT/BMW)
11. Lorenzo ZANETTI (ITA/Ducati)
12. Leon ORGIS (GER/BMW)
13. Marco FETZ (GER/BMW)
14. Christoph BEINLICH (GER/BMW)
15. Kevin ORGIS (GER/BMW)