Early title defense for BMW Motorrad in the IDM

The strong performances of the BMW Motorrad HP RaceSupport-backed teams secure the Manufacturers’ title – Markus Reiterberger extends the lead in the Riders’ rankings and also convinces in World Superbikes.


Hohenstein-Ernstthal/Munich. BMW Motorrad has won the Manufacturers’ crown in the International German Motorcycle Championship (IDM) for the third consecutive year. At last weekend’s sixth round at German Sachsenring, BMW celebrated the defense of the Manufacturers’ title in the fiercely competitive IDM Superbike category. At Sachsenring, BMW extended its lead in the Manufacturers’ rankings to 197 points, meaning it can no longer be overtaken, regardless of the results at the remaining two race weekends of the 2013 season. In the Riders’ classifications of the Superbike and the Superstock classes, BMW also has firmly set its sights on winning the title. Many of the BMW Teams contesting in the series count on the direct backing of the specialists of BMW Motorrad HP RaceSupport.



In the Riders’ championship, Markus Reiterberger (GER) from the VanZon Remeha BMW Team extended his overall lead by claiming two more podium finishes with his BMW S 1000 RR. The 19-year-old, who is contesting his first full season in the series, finished second in the first of Sunday’s races at Sachsenring, crossing the line only 0.168 seconds behind winner Martin Bauer (GER / Ducati). Reiterberger was fighting for the victory until the very last lap but then decided not to take any unnecessary risks as it only was Bauer’s first IDM race of the season and in regards of the championship, he is no direct rival. In race two, Reiterberger climbed on the podium again, finishing third behind World Superbike regular Max Neukirchner (GER / Ducati), who started with a wildcard, and Bauer.



One week before the IDM round at Sachsenring, Reiterberger impressed at his debut in the Superbike World Championship. Due to his strong performances in the IDM, his VanZon Remeha BMW Team organized a wildcard entry at the German round of the world series at Nürburgring. The team worked cooperatively with BMW Motorrad HP RaceSupport, like in the IDM. After the practice sessions, Reiterberger only very narrowly missed Superpole with his BMW S 1000 RR and qualified 17th on the grid. In both races he showed strong performances against the established regular riders of the World Championship. He achieved13th and 12th places respectively, thus claiming his first ever World Championship points on his debut.



Afterwards, Reiterberger and his team successfully switched their focus back to the IDM. There, the three top spots of the Riders’ ranking of the Superbike category are occupied by BMW riders. After his podium finishes at Sachsenring, Reiterberger now leads with 214 points. His team-mate Erwan Nigon (FRA) is second with 148 points, followed by Damian Cudlin (AUS / RAC Racing) with 146 points. In the Manufacturers’ classification, the battle for the title is already decided. BMW leads with 473 points, 197 points ahead of its closest rival. In the Superstock category, Bastien Mackels (BEL) of the VanZon alpha Technik BMW by Herpigny Team extended his lead too. He finished the Sachsenring races in first and second places of the Superstock class with his BMW S 1000 RR and now leads the rankings with 266 points, nine more than his closest rival.



“Congratulations and a big ‘Thank you’ to all the BMW teams and riders who secured the third consecutive Manufacturers’ title for BMW with their strong performances”, said Berthold Hauser, General Manager BMW Motorrad HP RaceSupport. “To celebrate this success with two more rounds to go is the icing on the cake and proves how competitive the combination of BMW teams and riders, the BMW bikes and the backing of our specialists is. We already have achieved one of our season goals, now for sure we will do everything to also achieve the other goals: to defend the Riders’ title in the IDM Superbike, too, and to also win the Superstock category. There are still two more rounds with a total of four races ahead of us and we know that in this fiercely contested championship anything can happen, but we will continue the hard and focused work with our teams in order to be best prepared for these races. I also want to congratulate Markus Reiterberger and his team for the successful debut in World Superbikes. In the field of established riders ‘Reiti’ showed an impressive performance and it is by no means self-evident that a young rider scores his first points already at his debut. Well done!”