Hockenheim: Lukas Tulovic (Ducati) sets Superbike fastest time on Friday

It’s all down to the wire. The battle between Lukas Tulovic and Marcel Schrötter will decide on Sunday who becomes the Euro Moto Superbike champion. On Friday, the defending champion and current overall leader already gave the first indication of where things are heading.

Free Practice 1: Ducati takes the lead

Last year, the Hungarian Bálint Kovás secured pole position at the IDM finale at the Hockenheimring on his BMW with a time of 1:25.533. It was his only – and, to date, last – fastest practice time. This year, he had been unable to raise the budget for a full Euro Moto season. However, he reappeared at the finale as a guest rider, though he didn’t get very far. He crashed after just one lap. His best time from the previous year was beaten as early as the first few laps in 2026. Yet further proof that the Euro Moto Superbike series has really picked up the pace this year. Lukas Tulovic, who had started from the second row of the grid the previous year, had set the provisional fastest time in the first free practice session with a lap of 1:25.505 minutes. Just a tenth of a second behind him was Marcel Schrötter, who would be only too happy to throw a spanner in the works for Tulovic in the title race. The top ten Superbike riders were all within a second of each other.

Markus Reiterberger bleibt dran

Foto: Felix Wiessmann

Free Practice 2: Reiterberger steps it up

The second practice session also began with a crash. This time it was Leon Orgis who hit the ground and had to pay a visit to the medical centre. Meanwhile, the new EWC World Champion Markus Reiterberger had warmed up and set the pace with a time of 1:25.201. But Lukas Tulovic was keen to underline his title credentials with a time of 1:25.048. Whilst the Euro Moto riders were enjoying themselves at the Hockenheimring, one was missing. Yamaha rider Twan Smits had pulled out of the series early and was instead competing in the Superbike World Championship in Italy, finishing 20th in the first free practice session at Cremona. Marcel Schrötter struggled in the midday session, toiling to set times in the mid-1.25s. With four minutes to go, Reiterberger was the first rider to break the 1.25 barrier, taking the lead with a time of 1.24.773 minutes – two tenths faster than Tulovic and three tenths faster than Jan-Ole Jähnig. Schrötter also managed a fast lap in the closing stages, which saw him move past Jähnig into third place. In the final metres, Florian Alt also joined the leading group via radio, but no one was able to challenge Reiterberger’s time.

Pre-practice: Tulovic steps it up a notch

In the late afternoon, the Superbike riders took to the track for the final practice session of the day. “It wasn’t too bad for a start,” said Reiterberger, assessing his time from midday, “but we need to keep pushing.” Leon Orgis was absent from the battle to qualify for Superpole 2. He himself had emerged unscathed from the crash, but there wasn’t enough time to get his BMW back on track. After three laps, Tulovic and Florian Alt had also broken the 1.25-minute barrier for the first time and occupied first and second places, separated by a tenth of a second. With a time of 1.25.100 minutes, Reiterberger was in third place. Marcel Schrötter and Jan-Ole Jähnig let the first ten minutes pass without doing anything before taking to the track. Jähnig then conjured up a time of 1.24.727 minutes on his very second lap and closed the gap on Tulovic to just 0.052 minutes. The top eleven of the 14 riders were all within one second of each other.

Jan-Ole Jähnig gibt Kontra

Foto: Felix Wiessmann

With eight minutes to go, just one tenth of a second separated the top four: Tulovic, Jähnig, Reiterberger and Alt. Schrötter struggled in fifth place with a time of 1:25.053. However, even the leading quartet were unable to consistently produce 1:24-minute times. In the final minutes, there were no further earth-shattering changes to the times. Tulovic, Jähnig, Reiterberger, Alt, Schrötter and Toni Finsterbusch qualified directly for Superpole 2.