Heerlen - At the Red Bull Ring, Milan Merckelbagh managed to score well during the sixth competition of the Internationale Deutsche Motorradmeisterschaft (IDM). The student finished tenth and ninth in the races on the circuit near Zeltweg. With the participation of two guest drivers, Milan managed to score eighth and seventh place for points. After all, the guest drivers do not collect points for the championship! With this performance, the Limburger rises to ninth place in the standings of the Supersport championship. Patrick Hobelsberger, last season's champion, won both races. Max Enderlein finished fifth in both races but is now certain of the title!
Qualification:
The circuit in Austria suits the driver from Heerlen well and he finished ninth in the free practice sessions. In qualifying, Milan managed to improve his best time by 0.7 seconds. The competition managed to get a full seconds or more off their time, forcing the Yamaha rider to settle for twelfth place on the grid.
Racing:
The first race Milan starts well and the IXS-supported driver quickly climbs up to eighth place. He manages to hold on to this for a long time, but there is pressure from the pursuers. The battle is fierce and the tension is palpable on the pit wall. Everything is pulled out to hold on to eighth place, but in the final lap Milan goes big. The pursuers immediately seize their chance, which means that two places are lost. The Hertrampf MO Yamaha Racing driver should therefore be satisfied with a tenth place.
When the starting light for the second race goes out, Milan is once again well off his starting position. Also now he grabs the eighth place just behind Enderlein who at that time has the best papers to secure the title. With six laps to go, a colleague makes a mistake and the race management stops the race. There will be a restart followed by the six laps to be driven! Milan takes off when the start lights go out and he dives into the first corner in fourth place. The first corner is tight and because Milan is on the inside, he enters the next straight with less speed. Then two places are lost. Sixth place seems to be for the friendly student but in the final phase the clutch starts to slip. This is due to the two starts at the start of this race. The result is that three more places are lost and Milan therefore crosses the finish line in ninth.
Next time:
The grand final of the IDM will be held later this month. The last race of the season is traditionally on the Hockenheim circuit on September 24-25. Milan hopes to be able to rise one or maybe two places in the final standings there.
Results IDM #6; Zeltweg, A:
Race 1
1. Patrick Hobelsberger A Yamaha
2. Melvin van der Voort NL Yamaha
3. Twan Smits NL Yamaha
4. Jan-Ole Jahning D Yamaha
5. Andrea Kofler A Kawasaki
10. Milan Merckelbagh NL Yamaha
Race 2
1. Patrick Hobelsberger A Yamaha
2. Twan Smits NL Yamaha
3. Melvin van der Voort NL Yamaha
4. Andrea Kofler A Kawasaki
5. Luca De Vleeschauwer B Kawasaki
9. Milan Merckelbagh NL Yamaha
IDM SuperSport standings:
1. Max Enderlein D Yamaha 238
2. Luca De Vleeschauwer B Kawasaki 173
3. Andrea Kofler A Kawasaki 167
4. Melvin van der Voort NL Yamaha 158
5. Twan Smits NL Yamaha 138
9. Milan Merckelbagh NL Yamaha 87
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