Munich. The BMW racers continue their run of success in international and national championships. Their haul from the weekend: five wins and a total of 13 podiums. In the MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship (WorldSBK), Loris Baz (FRA) secured a front row grid position at Donington Park (GBR) and finished in the top ten in both races. At the same track, Markus Reiterberger (GER) celebrated his third win of the season in the FIM Superstock 1000 European Championship. Roberto Tamburini (ITA) finished on the podium for the fourth time in the fourth race of the season. The races in the Alpe Adria Road Racing Championship Superbike class (AARR SBK) at Poznan, Poland, ended with a win for Karel Hanika (CZE) and a podium for Christopher Kemmer (AUT). In the Superstock class (AARR STK) Michal Filla (CZE) won both races, with BMW riders securing the top four positions in race two. Reigning champion Carmelo Morales (ESP) finished in second place on the podium in the second race of the season in the Spanish Championship (RFME CEV). And at the season opener of the Canadian Superbike Championship (CSBK) at Shannonville (CAN), record champion Jordan Szoke, Ben Young and Matt McBride (all CAN) claimed the top three positions for BMW.
MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship at Donington Park, Great Britain.
Typical British weather welcomed the 2018 MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship (WorldSBK) riders and teams to the sixth round of the season at Donington Park (GBR) – with rain on Friday and Saturday. Loris Baz (FRA) of the Gulf Althea BMW Team was unfazed by the wet conditions. The Frenchman finished the first practice session in third place; he set the eighth fastest time overall on Friday, making it straight into the crucial Superpole 2. As the third-fastest in that qualifying session, he secured a position on the front row of the grid. Baz finished the two races in positions seven and ten.
Loris Baz: “In the wet, I had good feeling with my bike, which was behaving well. I’m pleased to have scored the first front row start for BMW in five years. I felt very confident with the qualifying tyre, and we have made good progress with the bike, but nevertheless the front row came as a pleasant surprise. I knew the race would be tougher; when you start from the front row you always hope you can fight for the podium but unfortunately that wasn’t possible. I still had some grip issues and, although I tried my best, I gradually lost ground, losing a few tenths each lap. Overall, P7 in race one was a very good result, considering how things went at Imola. Sunday was a very tough day. We tried a different tyre in warm-up, but we’d need to work more on the bike set-up to be able to use that tyre in the race, so I started the race with a different tyre again, but unfortunately I had no feeling with the front and too much chattering which meant I couldn’t go into the turns quickly. Tenth was all we could do. But overall we’ve definitely taken a step forward this weekend though and I hope we can continue in this vein in Brno.”
FIM Superstock 1000 European Championship at Donington Park, Great Britain.
Fourth race of the season in the FIM Superstock 1000 European Championship (STK1000) – and third win of the season for alpha Racing-Van-Zon-BMW Team’s Markus Reiterberger (GER) . The BMW S 1000 RR rider had another perfect weekend at Donington Park (GBR). Reiterberger secured pole position with a record time and set a new lap record in his dominant start-to-finish victory. Fellow BMW rider Roberto Tamburini (ITA / Berclaz Racing Team) continued his run of finishing on the podium in Great Britain and after three second places, he finished in third place on the podium this time. Jan Bühn (GER / alpha Racing-Van-Zon-BMW) and Eric Vionnet (SUI / MOTOS VIONNET) also finished in the top ten, in eighth and tenth place. Reiterberger’s win sees him extend his lead in the championship. With 86 points, he now has a ten-point lead over second-placed Tamburini.
Markus Reiterberger: “We modified the chassis slightly during warm-up to make the tyres last better over the distance. It worked perfectly. The motorcycle was well-balanced, easy and consistent to ride, and that was the key to success at Donington. It was a fantastic weekend; everyone in the team did an impeccable job. We were able to extend the lead in the championship to ten points again, and that is important. Now I’m looking forward to Brno – a really great track on which we will go on the attack again.”
Alpe Adria Road Racing Championship at Poznan, Poland.
The Alpe Adria Road Racing Championship (AARR) headed to Poznan in Poland for its second event of the 2018 season. Karel Hanika (CZE) in the Superbike class (AARR SBK) celebrated his first win of the year. The Mercury Racing Team rider won the second race on Sunday on his BMW S 1000 RR. Christopher Kemmer (AUT / Bertl K. Racing Team) joined him on the podium, finishing in third place. Hanika finished the first race in fourth place, with Kemmer finishing in sixth place.
In the Superstock class (AARR STK) BMW rider Michal Filla (CZE / BMW Sikora Motorsport) remains the dominant man. He won both races, getting the fastest race lap in each and celebrating his third and fourth wins of the season. In race one, his team-mate Bartlomiej Wiczynski (POL) finished second to clinch a one-two finish for BMW. Michal Šembera (CZE / TME racing team) finished fourth.
In the second race in the Superstock class, BMW riders claimed the top four positions. Behind Filla in second place was Arnaud Friedrich (GER / Team LRP Poland), third place on the podium went to Michal Prášek (CZE / Rohac and Fejta motoracing team). Wiczynski crossed the finish line in fourth place.
Spanish Championship at Barcelona, Spain.
The Spanish Championship (RFME CEV) held its second race of the 2018 season at the “Circuit de Catalunya” near Barcelona (ESP). Reigning champion Carmelo Morales (ESP), of the Graphenano EasyRace SBK Team, picked up more important points for ‘Mission Defend Title’. After his win at the opening race, BMW rider Morales finished in second place on the podium this time around.
Canadian Superbike Championship at Shannonville, Canada.
The 2018 season started in the Canadian Superbike Championship (CSBK) with the top three positions going to BMW riders. The field was led by record champion and defending champion Jordan Szoke (CAN), who continued his run of success and set the pace at the first race weekend of the new year at Shannonville (CAN). Szoke secured pole position on his BMW S 1000 RR in action for the Mopar Express Lane BMW Superbike team and won the race with a clear lead of 5.73 seconds. Second place on the podium went to BMW rider Ben Young (CAN / Ben Young Racing), and Matt McBride (CAN) rounded off the one-two-three finish in third place.
