Lukas Tulovic out on the track with freshly reprogrammed Ducati electronics

Lukas Tulovic is well on his way to retaining the IDM Superbike title he won last year in the renamed Euro Moto series. This is no easy feat, which once again confirms the old racing adage that whilst it is relatively straightforward to win a title, it proves far more difficult to repeat this feat the following year. Some riders are even so superstitious that they refuse to wear the number 1 after winning a title. Such things are alien to Tulovic, however, and his Ducati has been adorned with the number 1 since the start of this season.

After a few days’ rest – Marvin Fritz had taken over his Sky role again last weekend – the Ducati rider arrived at the Nürburgring, well-rested, for the penultimate race weekend of the year. Before the action got underway, he first set the record straight on a few theories that had been circulating on social media following the second race at Assen. On the TT Circuit, his Ducati had slowed down in the final metres, allowing Marcel Schrötter to overtake Tulovic behind the winner, Twan Smits, and relegate Tulovic to third place. Some speculated that this slip-up had been deliberately staged by Tulovic in order to incur fewer performance points – which determine whether concession parts or rev limits are granted or withdrawn.

No freebies on offer

“I would never give away championship points,” replied Tulovic, shaking his head. “It was a minor technical fault that I caused myself through a riding error on my part. No big deal.”

After Tulovic – and, at the same time, his team-mate Lorenzo Zanetti – had 500 rpm cut from their Ducati V4R as part of the Balance of Performance regulations shortly before the Assen race, the team owned by Matthias Moser found itself in a bit of a bit of a pickle. As the Ducati’s electronics couldn’t be adjusted at the click of a mouse, as with last year’s model, the team had to resort to a few tricks in the set-up to stay within the specified limits. The holidays at the Ducati factory in Bologna have now ended, and the two control units have been sent back to Italy. The crucial parcel arrived just in time for the start of the Nürburgring weekend. “Now I can ride normally again,” said Tulovic, who had always been keeping one eye on the rev counter whilst riding at Assen.

There’s no need to beat about the bush here.

Lukas Tulovic

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After all, provided he does well in the first race of the Euro Moto Superbike series, he could clinch the title early on Sunday afternoon. But doing the maths isn’t his thing. “We can cut to the chase,” he said when asked about his plans. “I want to win every race and all of us in the team want to clinch the title. There’s no need to beat about the bush.”

Lukas Tulovic was happy to take part in Thursday’s test day at the Nürburgring. “It made sense,” he said. “I’d been to a Ducati event as an instructor once before, but that was purely a track day and I was on a production bike on the full-length circuit. So the test day came at just the right time.”