Markus Reiterberger: A slippery ride, a wreck and a trophy in Oschersleben

Markus Reiterberger, who had secured a magnificent podium finish for BMW alongside his team-mates at the World Endurance Championship race in Suzuka, Japan, took it easy ahead of the trip to Oschersleben. “I spent a few days on holiday with my little family,” he revealed ahead of the first practice session at the Motorsport Arena. “I worked in my workshop and carried on with the building of our house.” The Bavarian gave it his all in the practice sessions and Superpole 2, but wasn’t entirely happy at the end of Saturday. “Fifth place – definitely not where I wanted to be this weekend,” he said of his starting position. “But my Masteroil-alpha-Van Zon-BMW team and I will continue to give it our all to finish Sunday’s races on the podium, though we’re well aware it won’t be easy.”

Slipped on Smits’ oil

The first race ended in a spectacular crash for the Euro Moto Superbike riders after just a few laps. Yamaha rider Twan Smits, who was running in second place, suffered an engine failure, and the riders in his slipstream – including Markus Reiterberger – crashed one after the other. Fortunately, nobody was injured in the crash, but the damage was extensive. Reiterberger’s BMW had taken a severe beating after being hurled several metres through the air and over the crash barriers towards the embankment. The mechanics threw their hands up in horror at the sight of the flying BMW. Team boss Werner Daemen was also relieved that everyone had escaped unscathed. “We do have the ‘one-bike rule’ in Euro Moto,” he explained. “We’ll see if we can sort it out, but the rider’s safety comes first.”

I’m grateful.

Markus Reiterberger

The mechanics had less than three hours; it took a while before the BMW could be recovered using a forklift truck, so they could strip it down to its bare bones and rebuild it from scratch. Then, ten minutes before Race 2, came the relief for Reiterberger. His BMW was back in the pit lane, ready to race. “It was important that I came out of it unscathed,” he assured us. “But my motorbike was a complete write-off. When they towed the bike away, I didn’t think it would work out.” Without a proper functional test and with a brand-new fairing, he headed to the start.

A flurry of activity in the BMW pit

And what can one say? Reiterberger put his trust in his mechanics’ work, set off at full throttle, and together they were able to celebrate second place. Even after the warm-up, it was clear that the BMW was finally performing to Reiterberger’s liking again. “I have to thank my mechanics,” were his first words after crossing the finish line. “I adjusted a few levers and off we went. It felt just like the old moped. The leathers weren’t quite as comfortable. I couldn’t use the rear brake, but that didn’t matter. I was able to give a little something back to the team with second place. For today, second place was a good result after that rubbish first race. It was lovely to be back in Oschersleben again, and with so many spectators. I’m grateful.”

Markus Reiterberger

Foto: Thorsten Horn