Freudenberg KTM looks back: “From then on, we didn’t stand a chance”

The older Superbike fans amongst us will still remember the 600cc and 1000cc Superstock series that once ran alongside the Superbike and Supersport World Championships. The 600cc class was discontinued after the 2015 season – the last champion was two-time Superbike World Champion Toprak Razgatlioglu; the 1000cc category was axed in 2018, with Markus Reiterberger as champion.

The Supersport 300 World Championship was established in 2017 as a junior series within the production-based World Championship; from the second season onwards, KTM was represented by Team Freudenberg. This series has since disappeared too, and with it the Austrian manufacturer and the Saxon team. Entry into the World Championship is now possible via the Sportbike World Championship.

“The Sportbike class is definitely the right move,” said Carsten Freudenberg in a one-to-one interview with SPEEDWEEK.com editor-in-chief Ivo Schützbach. “The age limit in national championships has been raised, and putting an 18-year-old on a 300cc bike is no longer appropriate. These motorbikes are no longer suitable for a 16-year-old in the IDM either. In terms of costs, however, it has also been a significant step up, and that’s detrimental to youth development.”

As KTM does not have a suitable sports bike in its range, Freudenberg is competing in the Euro Moto with Triumph. A return to the World Championship paddock is conceivable next year, but then in the Supersport category. The KTM 990 RC R intended for this purpose is currently under development. We’ll then also have to deal with the complex balance regulations.

“We’re familiar with this from our first season in the 300cc World Championship. KTM did the best job back then, and after we won the first races at Aragon and Assen, we were penalised,” recalls the team boss. “We’d worked so hard with KTM over the winter, and as a reward we were restricted by 1,000 rpm and had to fit 8 kg of ballast – from that point on, we had absolutely no chance. They really did everything in their power to restrict us back then.”