It’s a sad habit for Swiss motorcycle fans this season. Tom Lüthi (34) does not appear on the TV screen at all or only for a few seconds because the former Moto2 podium guarantor is so far back in the field. And in the small Moto3 World Championship, Jason Dupasquier (19) regularly scores points, but he’s not yet a candidate for the podium.
But from the weekend of Pentecost, Swiss motorbike podium places are realistic again. In the Supersport World Cup! Super … what? Blick explains the alternative motorbike world championship, in which Randy Krummenacher (31) and Dominique Aegerter (30) start as hot podium and title contenders.
What is the Supersport World Cup?
This championship will be held with near-series 600 cc motorcycles. In other words, with motorcycles that can be bought from dealers, but are then tuned by the teams and made suitable for the race track. As in Grand Prix sport, the Supersport World Championship is Moto2 below MotoGP as well as the preliminary stage of the premier class: In the near-series championships, this is called Superbike World Championship (1000 cc motorcycles).
Where do you drive?
The Supersport World Championship is part of the Superbike World Championship calendar. The 2021 season includes 13 stations. In some cases, as with Jerez, Barcelona, Assen or as this weekend at the start of Aragon, GP slopes will also be used.
How does a weekend work?
In contrast to GP sport, there are always two races. One on Saturday. The second on Sunday. But only one qualification on Saturday morning: the result counts as the starting grid for both races. Training takes place on Friday.
What’s on TV?
The live rights are with Eurosport and ServusTV. On the opening weekend, Eurosport2 will show the Supersport races on Saturday (3.15 p.m.) and Sunday (1.00 p.m.). ServusTV only shows the premier class Superbike live from Aragon. At SRF this season, depending on the contractual options, live or news reporting will be checked if our drivers play a major role.
How strong are the Swiss?
Randy Krummenacher was already supersport world champion in 2019. In 2020 he retired after just one race. He thought his motorcycle was not compliant, and lawyers have been arguing ever since. Now the Zürcher Oberland is with a new racing team. Dominique Aegerter is brand new, like Randy a former Moto2 rider. But the Rohrbacher was so quick in the tests that, like Krummi, he is considered a candidate for the title. Aegerter: “I want to be on the podium in every race.” With Stephane Frossard (26) from Biel there is a third Swiss driver.