Head-to-head battle for the coveted ESR title; Olivier Lupberger withdraws

Ten of the twelve races in the first season of the European Series Road Racing (ESR) have now been completed. When the Superbike riders meet for the final round in Hořice this coming weekend, Fedrik Matthys holds the upper hand. The BMW rider, who leads the championship with 212 points, has scored the maximum points on four occasions, as well as four second-place finishes and two third-place finishes. A third and a fourth-place finish would be enough for the Belgian to remain at the top of the final standings.

In second place in the provisional standings is his ‘Hoffman by MRP’ team-mate Laurent Hoffmann. Although the 2025 IRRC Superbike runner-up faces an almost insurmountable 22-point deficit to make up following two zero-point finishes at the North West 200, the Belgian BMW rider – who has secured maximum points on six occasions – has not given up hope: “The title battle between Fedrik and me isn’t over yet. I’m totally motivated and ready to achieve a strong result at Hořice!”

Yamaha rider Anssi Koski need not worry about his top-three position in the championship. Trailing Matthys by 76 points going into the final round, the Finn can neither challenge for the title nor does he need to fear being overtaken by the fourth-placed Swede, Rasmus Lindström (Yamaha) – who, for his part, has his Czech team-mate Jakub Sprojcar right on his tail – catching up with him.

Der Schweizer Olivier Lupberger kann am ESR-Finale nicht teilnehmen

Foto: Thomas Neidhardt

Alongside Sweden’s Pontus Roestlinger (Honda) and France’s Stephane Bednarek (Yamaha), another regular rider will be missing from the final round. In the closing race at Imatra, Olivier Lupberger was rammed by a rival after the start and hurled into the barriers. “I’ve broken my hand and several fingers multiple times and injured my shoulder,” the Swiss rider told SPEEDWEEK.COM. As a result, he had to sit out the races at Chimay 14 days ago.

Although he was desperate to compete in the Czech Tourist Trophy on the 5.150-kilometre road circuit in Hořice in order to secure sixth place after all, the Yamaha rider decided against surgery. “The doctor wanted to operate and fix the fractures with pins, but we agreed on a special plaster cast instead.” As the healing process is taking longer than hoped, he had to stay at home with a heavy heart.

ESR Superbike standings (after 10 of 12 races)

1. Fedrik Matthys (B), BMW, 212 points. 2. Laurent Hoffmann (B), BMW, 190. 3. Anssi Koski (FIN), Yamaha, 136. 4. Rasmus Lindström (S), Yamaha, 99. 5. Jakub Sprojcar (CZ), Yamaha, 84. 6. Jean-Pierre Polet (B), BMW, 67. 7. Olivier Lupberger (CH), Yamaha, 55. 8. Rob van Eijs (NL), BMW, 47. 9. Pontus Roestlinger (S), Honda, 44. 10. Amalric Blanc (F), 26. 11. Damien de Reys (B), BMW, 17.