Sportbike: Regulations debacle – ERC applies for an interim injunction

‘Now we’re in a right mess’ would also have been a fitting headline. Now it will take time and patience to get the smallest series in Euro Moto back on track. Following the two Euro Moto Sportbike races at Oschersleben, protests were lodged against the ERC Kawasaki team riders Jules Bercot (F) and Sasha de Vits (B) by two different teams. Both protests were upheld; the riders were subsequently disqualified and their points from Race 2 were stripped.

Protests upheld – ERC riders disqualified

However, this is by no means the end of the story; in fact, it is only just beginning. “We did not lodge the protest,” emphasises one of the complainants, “because we have anything against the team, against Kawasaki or the two riders personally.” The dispute stems from the two different sets of regulations. The IDM Sportbike, now known as Euro Moto, had already been on offer the previous year, with regulations modelled on the British Championship. There was no World Championship class at that time.

Since this year, the Sportbike class has also been a World Championship class, with its own set of regulations. However, these regulations allow for less than the BSB variant, meaning that, as a rule, the motorbikes are also slower. The Euro Moto promoter did not want to commit to either variant and allowed both sets of regulations. This was to avoid imposing further costs on its existing customers as a result of the change and to avoid standing in the way of its own desire for cross-participation between World Championship and Euro Moto teams. Incidentally, this has not materialised to date.

When the ERC Kawasaki team first appeared at the Sachsenring using the World Championship variant, it quickly became clear that, even with a top rider like Oliver Svendsen, podium finishes and trophies were out of the question. The team withdrew, Lothar Kraus shut himself away in his workshop, and the team reappeared at Oschersleben. Sasha de Vits and Jules Bercot both finished on the podium.

Debate over regulations flares up

The protest, which has now been upheld, states that the motorcycles were not run with the regulation-compliant mapping of the Mectronik electronics. But the story doesn’t end there. Jürgen Höpker-Seibert of Kawasaki Germany can shed further light on the matter. This is because the ERC team did not enter the race with the intention of cheating using the modified mapping – which delivers around 10 PS – but with the promoter’s blessing.

Following the Sachsenring races, discussions took place between the team, technician Kraus, Kawasaki representative Höpker-Seibert, the then Euro Moto manager Normann Broy and his technical adviser Karsten Bartschat – although the latter does not have the same authority as the technical commissioners trained and seconded by the DMSB.

“The manufacturer Mectronik offered us an electronic mapping,” explains Höpker-Seibert, “This mapping may only be installed by Mectronik staff and, as a security measure to prevent unauthorised distribution, is tracked using a unique number.”

Promoter approved its use

The promoter approved the use of this mapping and included it in the Eligible List, which is regularly updated, expanded or reduced across all classes as part of the Balance of Performance. This list is publicly available, including to competitors. The protest was upheld, as the regulations contain a clause stipulating that only parts – including electronics and their mapping – which are freely accessible to all participants may be used.

‘The map provided by Mectronik,’ adds the Mectronik manufacturer, ‘will not be used in the World Championship. The map is a custom map that has been created to close the performance gap with the National/International or BSB regulations. Approval of the map is the responsibility of the respective racing series.”

The matter is now proceeding through the legal channels. Team ERC has lodged an appeal against the protest ruling, meaning the case is back with the DMSB, this time before the Court of Appeal.

A clear statement from Team ERTC Kawasaki

Team ERC from Karlsruhe has also commented on the incident: “Firstly, we would like to emphasise that at no point did our team intend to gain an unfair sporting advantage over the competition. All technical measures and decisions were taken in the run-up to the race weekend in close consultation with Kawasaki, Mectronik and the organiser and promoter, Euro Moto. In our view, a key point is being overlooked in the current discussion: for the Euro Moto Sportbike class, authority over the so-called Balance of Performance (BoP) lies with the promoter. At the same time, there is no provision in the currently valid regulations stipulating that every technical solution approved under the BoP must be freely available on the market or obtainable by every participant. Whilst such a rule exists in other classes, it is not included in the regulations for the Sportbike class.

Prior to the race weekend at Oschersleben, our team was granted explicit approval to use the control unit and the corresponding mapping. This approval followed a considerable amount of technical work and time invested, which we undertook jointly with Mectronik. The programming and tuning of the electronics were carried out with full transparency towards the relevant authorities. Furthermore, we also identify several breaches of the regulations in the conduct of the technical inspection. It is our understanding that technical objections may only be raised within the designated parc fermé time limits. Furthermore, under the applicable regulations, technical inspections must be carried out by duly qualified and authorised DMSB technicians. We note that this was not the case.

It is also noteworthy that, during the technical assessment, a vehicle data set from the FIM Checker tool was apparently used which referred to a Kawasaki ZX-4RR rather than the model actually used, the Kawasaki ZX-6R 636. There is photographic evidence of this. In our view, this is therefore by no means a case of deliberate rule-breaking, but rather a matter of differing interpretations of a complex set of regulations, which is further complicated by the varying responsibilities between the organiser, the promoter, the electronics supplier and the DMSB.

The ERC Kawasaki team naturally respects the work of the officials and the sports disciplinary body. At the same time, we are convinced that we acted transparently and to the best of our knowledge in the run-up to the event. For this reason, we have lodged an appeal against the decision and are applying for an interim injunction.”