28 degrees, a bright blue sky and superb motocross action. All the signs were already there on Saturday for a terrific ADAC MX Masters weekend in the Austrian town of Ried im Innkreis as qualifying practice got under way. A total of 220 riders from more than 25 nations pitted their skills against one another - including a number of world champion riders. "The participation of these top world-class riders and other leading riders raises the profile of Europe's most popular motocross racing series to an even higher level from what was already a very high standard. I think it's fantastic that such riders use their breaks from the world championship to participate in the Masters. That speaks volumes for the whole event, "said ADAC Motorcycle Advisor Dieter Junge with reference to the world class field of riders.
In the Masters class, the French motocross stars took the top honours in qualifying. Grégory Aranda (Sturm Racing Team Kawasaki) was first with a best time of 01:52:988, securing best position for himself at the starting gate for race day ahead of Marcus Schiffer (Team Suzuki Waldmann) and fellow Frenchman Sébastien Pourcel (KTM Sarholz Racing Team). "My excellent lap times gave me an extra boost. Now I just have to see tomorrow that I get off to the best of starts to give myself a good chance of winning. At the moment, I feel dog tired and just want to get in the little paddling pool that we've installed in our team truck," said the 24-year-old Frenchman with a chuckle. However, Austrian local rider Pascal Rauchenecker (Cofain Racing KTM) was quite upset with his eighth place overall in qualifying. He had indeed been a bit ahead of all the other drivers in free practice but was unable ultimately to win through in a similar fashion in the quali: "My riding was appalling and that annoys me down to the ground," said the 21-year-old.
ADAC MX Youngster Cup
In the ADAC MX Youngster Cup, Armenias Jasikonis from Lithuania (Steel Mustang Racing, KTM) and Dutchman Calvin Vlaanderen (KTM Bodo Schmidt Motorsports) showed that that they can be among the front-runners here just as they had been previously at the first race weekend in Fürstlich Drehna. The Lithuanian finished first in qualifying and was visibly pleased with his performance: "The track was very much to my liking. On Sunday, I intend to make it into the top three again, for sure. I've been training very hard over the past few months and have made great strides in my development. So, achieving such good results really spurs me on," said the 16-year-old proudly. Vlaanderen, who had already had a good showing in free practice with a best time was also visibly relaxed and said: "I spend quite a lot of time in South Africa, so on hot days like these, I have a distinct advantage over the other riders." Polish rider Tomasz Wysocki (KTM Fahrer) was the third best in qualifying.
ADAC MX Junior Cup
As previously in Fürstlich Drehna, the Finn Kim Savaste (KTM Red Bull Factory) raced away from all the others. In qualifying, he went into the lead by a full two seconds to secure pole position for race day. "I always spend the winter in Spain with my family, so I'm used to the heat and can therefore cope better than the other drivers. Today was a perfect day for me," said the 14-year-old happily. Jeremy Sydow (ADAC Sachsen, KTM) was the second best rider. His secret of success: "As it was so incredibly hot, I came into the pits whenever I got chance and quickly freshened myself up. That gave me an extra boost of energy and helped me tremendously." Italy's Gianluca Facchetti (Rockstar Energy Suzuki Europe) won through in third place. The 14-year-old was completely exhausted after training and so decided to finish the day relaxing.
In addition to the qualifying session, an ADAC Sports Foundation seminar took place on Saturday for the young guns. As part of the ADAC Motorsport training programme, sports scientist and performance diagnostician Stephan Nüsser gave a lecture on physical and mental fitness and answered questions from riders and parents about competition, diet, and exercise regimes. "We think it is very important to give the juniors more basic knowledge and to support them in their development," said Nüsser.
Programme
Apart from staging the motocross events, the ADAC MX Masters also has a varied programme for families and motorcycle enthusiasts. A spectacular show event, the traditional Ried Long Jump Competition, took place on the evening after the qualifying session. Local rider Pascal Rauchenecker wanted to try to break his own record once again and jump even further than 66.8 metres.
Children and teenagers under 15 years old are admitted for free on Saturday and Sunday and can use the ADAC Young Generation Suzuki Quad track and the ADAC insurance company's bouncy castle. A day ticket on race day for adults costs 18 euros and gives admission to a fan zone with a collection of motocross stalls.
On Sunday, there is also the traditional autograph session at the ADAC Truck with top riders from the racing series. The two local riders Pascal Rauchenecker (Cofain Racing, KTM) and Matthias Walkner (Schruf Racing, KTM) and the ADAC MX Masters Champion Dennis Ullrich (KTM Sarholz Racing Team), Frenchman Sébastien Pourcel (KTM Sarholz Racing Team) plus Swiss rider Jeremy Seewer (Rockstar Energy Suzuki Europe) are on hand from 12.15 until 12.45 to answer fans' questions.