The tricks of superbikers Schrötter, Smits and Orgis in the heat of Most

Following his victory at Brno, Marcel Schrötter is now the main challenger to defending champion Lukas Tulovic. Behind Markus Reiterberger – who was third in the standings ahead of the Most races – Yamaha rider Twan Smits and BMW rider Kevin Orgis are also determined not to relinquish their places in the top five under any circumstances. But with temperatures expected to exceed 30 degrees in Most this weekend – when most people would be lucky to drag themselves down to the lake for a swim – the Superbike riders are set to face a real challenge. Time to find out how competitive athletes view the situation.

Marcel Schrötter: “Thailand or Suzuka are warmer”

“Relatively normal,” says the former World Championship rider, describing his plans for the Most weekend, before adding with a knowing grin: “The tricks remain a secret.” When it comes to tyre management, Schrötter is keeping his cards close to his chest. “So far, it’s been an issue in every race.” In the days leading up to his departure for Most, the thermometer in Schrötter’s Bavarian home region also showed temperatures above 30 degrees. So a few extra kilometres on the bike were a welcome opportunity to warm up properly for the trip to Most. “If you’re fit, that shouldn’t be a problem,” he says, looking ahead to the coming days in Most. “Even though it’s tough, of course. But I’ve raced in very different events that were significantly warmer and longer – be it Suzuka or, for example, Moto2 in Thailand or similar races.”

Twan Smits

Foto: Smits

Twan Smits: “I’m not worried”

“Not really – for me, everything’s business as usual,” explains the Yamaha rider from the Netherlands. “The most important thing, of course, is to drink enough between sessions and try to keep a cool head. Otherwise, I’m not changing my approach much. On Friday we’ll see just how severe the tyre wear is here. It’ll be crucial to manage the tyres well over the entire race distance. So far this season, that’s been one of our weaknesses, and I expect it’ll be a challenge here as well. However, after Brno we’ve figured out a few things that will hopefully help us keep the tyres going for longer.”

Kevin Orgis

Foto: Thorsten Horn

Kevin Orgis: “It’ll be interesting when it comes to the tyres”

“As well as the usual HIIT and endurance training, I’ve been doing more heat training and sauna sessions to prepare specifically for these conditions,” he adds. “I feel well prepared and, to be honest, I’m not overly concerned about either my fitness or the heat.”

“To stay fit in high temperatures, the only thing that helps is training in similar conditions to get your body used to them,” explains the BMW rider. “But as you can’t ride a motorbike all the time – you tend to go for a run or a cycle instead – it ultimately comes down to how well each rider can adapt to the heat.”

“When it comes to tyres, it could get interesting,” he believes. “Pirelli have only allowed us to use the SC0, and not the SCX as usual, because Most causes particularly high tyre wear. When you add the high temperatures to that, it becomes extremely important to look after your tyres during the race so that you can still attack in the final laps. During the race weekend itself, you can try to keep the stints in practice a bit shorter to spare both your body and the equipment for the gruelling races.”