1,830 metres of stony forest track, steep slopes, deep furrows – the Bielsteiner Waldkurs owned by MSC Drabenderhöhe-Bielstein really has the lot. So for the high-powered field of 160 riders from 21 different countries, it wasn´t only the intense level of competition they needed to worry about but also the demands of this circuit in North Rhine-Westphalia. One competitor who rose to the challenge in qualifying was World Championship star Jeremy Seewer (21, Team Suzuki World MX2). The Swiss rider used the opportunity presented by the four-week break in the Grand Prix season to return to the ADAC MX Masters – the series in which he first made a name for himself. "I still know a lot of the riders here, and it´s great to meet up with them all again," said the 21-year-old Suzuki man who has set himself the target of a Top Three finish in Sunday´s motos. "I enjoy being part of the Masters, but just as in the World Championship, the opposition is very strong. You should never underestimate your opponents."
ADAC MX Masters championship leader Dennis Ullrich (22, KTM Sarholz Racing Team) put in a convincing performance, qualifying in second place, although he had clearly set out to win the heat in order to ensure the best possible start in Sunday´s race: "If conditions are challenging, I feel better and more capable of putting in a strong performance. They were certainly here in abundance this afternoon. The track is slippery and difficult to negotiate. I went flat out but had to be careful not to approach the whole session too aggressively. I think this was a very good tactic that will hopefully work out right for me on Sunday." Ulle, as he is known to his fans, currently leads the championship table ahead of Finland´s Harri Kullas (25, KTM Sarholz Racing Team) and Denmark´s Thomas Kjer Olsen (19, Bodo Schmidt Motorsport, Husqvarna). Third best in qualifying was Arminas Jasikonis from Lithuania (18, Monster Energy Kawasaki Elf Team Pfeil).
ADAC MX Youngster Cup
In the first qualifying group on Saturday, it initially looked as if Nathan Renkens (18, Belgium, Falcon Motorsports) would set the fastest time in the ADAC MX Youngster Cup for the fourth time in a row. However, Bas Vaessen (18, Netherlands, Team Suzuki World MX2) then upped the tempo in Group Two to post a fastest time of 02:07.138 minutes. The 2012 ADAC MX Junior Cup winner therefore gets first pick of a place at the gate for Sunday´s race, a result with which he was visibly delighted: "When I was still competing in the Junior class on my 85cc bike, it was always the greatest thing for me to watch the Youngsters out there on the track. And now I find myself competing with the front-runners. That feels good – especially as this is a track I thrive on. It´s a lot of fun." Third fastest was Czech rider Martin Krc (20, Sturm Racing Team, KTM).
Celebrity visitors at the ADAC MX Masters
Combining motocross with a career in modelling – the two main interests of Germany´s Next Top Model finalist Taynara Wolf (19) could hardly be more of a contrast. The blonde half-Brazilian from Stadtlohn in North Rhine-Westphalia has been riding a motorbike since childhood and regards this particular extreme sport as ideal training for the catwalk. In the ADAC MX Masters too, she has often demonstrated prowess on the bike. As the 19-year-old will be appearing in a demo training session with Dennis Ullrich on Sunday, she decided to do a bit of prior practice after the official qualifying: "With all the travelling around for modelling jobs, I obviously don´t get as much chance now to do motocross, so the brief training run gave me a real adrenaline rush. It certainly got me wishing that I could compete in tomorrow´s races." Her former mentor Heidi Klum (42) was fascinated by Taynara´s unusual choice of sporting activity and described her passion as "cool".
Programme
MSC Drabenderhöhe-Bielstein first became an organiser club for the ADAC MX Masters last year. But having already hosted 26 Grand Prix events, they obviously already had a lot of expertise in staging a major event and pulling in the public. In addition to the action on the Bielsteiner Waldkurs circuit, there are plenty of attractions for visitors young and old. As usual, there is the ADAC Young Generation Suzuki quad track and the ADAC Unfallschutz bouncy castle, and on Saturday evening a big party in the marquee with a giant TV screen showing the European Championship match between Germany and Italy. On race day itself, there will be an autograph session at which fans can meet the top stars from the motocross scene. These will include Dennis Ullrich, his closest pursuer Harri Kullas, MX favourite Thomas Kjer Olsen and Germany´s Next Top Model finalist Taynara Wolf. The Zwei-Takt-Cup for two-stroke machines was also held in the context of the ADAC MX Masters weekend. It was contested by around 40 riders from the region.
The ADAC MX Masters enjoys the support of the following sponsors: Red Bull, 24MX, Suzuki, Maxxis, Motul, KTM, Honda, Husqvarna, Yamaha, Kawasaki, Goldfren, Allianz/Racing Policy, Ortema, Magura, Tsubaki, MEFO Sport, Leatt Brace, Opel, MOTOCROSS ENDURO - offroad magazine since 1971, Cross magazine, DirtBiker Magazine und MOTORRAD magazine.