SPB: Bijman Keeps Kitzbichler at Bay All the Way to the Finish Line

Ruben Bijman (Freudenberg RoRa Paligo Racing) turned his pole position at the Nürburgring into a victory. The Dutch rider prevailed over Tobias Kitzbichler (ViVa by Peuker & Streeb) in the first race of the EURO MOTO Sportbike series. A mere 0.045 seconds separated the two as they crossed the finish line. Championship leader Stepan Zuda (Freudenberg RoRa Paligo Racing) rounded out the podium in third place.

Zuda got off to the best start. The Czech driver entered the first lap in the lead, with Kitzbichler following ahead of Mika Siebdrath (Freudenberg RoRa Paligo Racing) and Bijman. It didn’t take long, however, for the pole-sitter to make his move. After just two laps, Bijman had worked his way up to second place, and one lap later he took the lead. From that point on, the Dutchman remained firmly in the lead. Kitzbichler settled into second place behind him, followed by Stepan Zuda.

But the victory was far from decided at that point. Kitzbichler stayed within striking distance the entire way and kept Bijman under intense pressure right up to the finish. Bijman, for his part, knew full well that someone was lurking behind him, waiting for his chance. “I could hear a motorcycle behind me the whole time, so I tried to brake as late as possible. That’s how I managed to stay in front and leave no room for an attack. In the end, it was enough, and I was able to win the race,” Bijman explained.

After 13 laps, Kitzbichler fell short by just 0.045 seconds, but was still pleased with his second-place finish. He also set the fastest lap of the race with a time of 1:31.127. “I’m really happy with the race. I struggled a bit with the front wheel, but overall it worked really well. After Thursday’s test day, we made some adjustments to the bike, and that’s paying off now,” said the Austrian.

Zuda takes home some important points

Zuda, however, made a conscious decision to avoid taking unnecessary risks. After his crash in Friday’s qualifying session, the race leader secured third place and earned another 16 points. At the finish line, he was 1.393 seconds behind Bijman.

“I’m completely satisfied with the points and third place. I wasn’t pushing to the limit today, but I had the feeling that I would have been there very quickly as soon as I pushed harder. I didn’t want to take that risk. The pace just wasn’t there today. Now we have to figure out why that was,” Zuda explained.

Behind them, Siebdrath drove a consistently strong race to finish fourth. Tom Kuil (RT Motorsports) rounded out the top five. The battle for the positions behind them was much closer. Alexander Weizel (Weizel Racing Team) secured sixth place, followed just one thousandth of a second behind by Julian van Kalkeren (SRTD Pearle Gebben). Jay Jay den Hoed (Team SWPN), Ty Henriksen (Nordic Vikings), and Kiyano Veijer (Dutch Talent Racing) rounded out the top ten.

Jakob Rosenthaler (RT Motorsports), on the other hand, didn’t have much luck. For the Austrian, the race was over after just the first lap following a crash. Magnus Kristoffersen (M58 Motorsport) also failed to see the checkered flag and had to retire after eight laps. He had just installed a new engine on Thursday evening. Guest rider Lucy Michel (TSL Racing) finished 14th on her Yamaha in her first EURO MOTO Sportbike race.

With this victory, Bijman is also gaining ground in the championship standings. While Zuda remains firmly in the lead with 202 points, Bijman has moved into second place with 165 points and is now five points ahead of Kitzbichler. Rosenthaler remains in fourth place with 130 points following his withdrawal.

The action continues with the second race on Sunday at noon. At 12:05 p.m., the lights will go out again and the sportbike class will open the throttle once more. You can watch the race for free via live stream at www.euromoto.racing/live/.

EURO MOTO Sportbike, Race 1