A day of highs and lows at the third round of the DM65 in Reutlingen

On 14 May 2023, the third round of the German Youth Motocross Championship 65cc took place at the 1st RMC Reutlingen. I travelled there as the overall leader to collect as many points as possible, as I had injured my right foot in a heavy training crash during the week. But that wasn’t going to stop me from showing my willpower and title ambitions.

I quickly got used to the very grippy Reutlingen track in free practice, steadily improved my lap times and also set the fastest time.

Qualifying was scheduled for late in the morning, and here too I was able to set the fastest time right from the start and beat it again towards the end of the session. I therefore secured pole position for the third time in a row.

The track in Reutlingen was very demanding, but still very grippy and easy to ride.I was able to assert myself at the start of the first run and immediately take the lead. Unfortunately, I got a knock on my damaged foot in a rut on the first lap. I drove on in pain.

Shortly before the end of the race, I made a mistake in concentration at the exit of a bend, went off the track and crashed into a bush at the side of the track. Unfortunately, it took me over a minute and a half to free the bike under my own power. I fought my way up from 18th to 12th place in the last two laps. The effort was worth it, because I was able to score nine points.

It was a similar picture in the second race. I confidently won the start and gritted my teeth, because every point counts. I struggled to keep my foot still lap after lap, rode a large part of the course in a sitting position and shifted everything to my left leg. My efforts paid off, as I was able to pull away from the chasing pack over the course of the race and win the race by ten seconds.

We fought hard for fourth place in the daily standings, which we were really pleased with. I was able to extend my lead in the championship to 40 points thanks to the retirements of my rivals.

Conclusion: “Championships are won on the difficult days, I fought and it was worth it.”

A big thank you goes to my mum Nina, Beate Herrmann and Collin Dugmore for their treatment and support in the run-up to the race. Now it’s time to rest and recharge my batteries for the fourth round of the DM65 on Whitsunday in Schwedt.