Michael van der Mark

2018 Brno WorldSBK Preview: What To Expect At Brno

By Steve English | Thu, 07/06/2018 - 21:14

Round seven of the 2018 WorldSBK season will see the paddock head for Brno in the Czech Republic. The fast and flowing circuit is a firm favorite with MotoGP riders and fans and is sure to be well received by the Superbike riders when they return to action in the hills and valleys for the first time since 2011. That season saw Marco Melandri do the double for Yamaha but will that past form matter this weekend?

Yamaha seek to maintain momentum

Yamaha will certainly hope that their previous form, three Brno victories, is a good indicator that the Japanese firm can expect a strong showing this weekend. At Donington Park, Michael van der Mark delivered the first victories for Yamaha since their return to WorldSBK, and the Dutchman's confidence will be high this weekend. After claiming the first ever Dutch wins in WorldSBK history his stock is higher than ever, and it couldn't have come at a better time with contracts set to be signed for 2018.

Donington WorldSBK - Hitting Your Mark

By Steve English | Wed, 30/05/2018 - 17:11

It was a case of double delight for Michael van der Mark at the UK Round of WorldSBK, and the Dutchman is only getting started

Last weekend's racing at Donington Park was exactly the shot in the arm that WorldSBK needed. A new rider on the top step of the podium, a new bike as the center of attention in Parc Ferme, and most importantly: Jonathan Rea being beaten in a straight up fight by Michael van der Mark.

Rea and Kawasaki have dominated the championship over the last three years and even for Yamaha's Van der Mark it was a surprise to finally break his duck in such style with a double.

2018 Donington Park WorldSBK Notes: What We Saw At Donington

By Steve English | Mon, 28/05/2018 - 10:33

Round 6 of the 2018 Superbike World Championship saw Michael van der Mark make history and Toprak Razgatlıoglu claim a first career podium. It was the shot in the arm the series needed, and after great racing across all four classes there is a renewed optimism within the paddock.

Double Dutch

Michael van der Mark made history by becoming the first ever Dutchman to win a WorldSBK race and the Yamaha rider followed it up by doing the double. It was a stunning weekend from the 25 year old and both race victories were emphatic. On Saturday he beat Jonathan Rea in a straight fight and on Sunday he rode a calm and collected race to claim a further 25 points and move into third in the standings. The 2014 WorldSSP champion has been one of the coming men of WorldSBK in recent years, but to get over the line with such style for a first victory was hugely impressive.

Turkish Delight

The talent of Toprak Razgatlıoglu has never been in doubt and on Sunday he showed exactly why by standing on the rostrum. Turkey may have lost their racing hero when Kenan Sofuoglu retired, but they didn't need to wait long for a replacement. Razgatlıoglu was superb in chasing down Alex Lowes and Jonathan Rea in the final quarter of the race and when he made moves he made them stick. It was a smart performance from a talented rider to watch out for in the second half of the season.

What's gone wrong at Ducati?

Two-Day Private WorldSBK Test Concludes At Brno

By David Emmett | Fri, 27/04/2018 - 15:51

A few days after a couple of entertaining races at Assen, a part of the WorldSBK paddock was back in action, this time at a private two-day test at the Brno circuit, which is set to return to the World Superbike calendar after an absence of five years. The weather was not entirely cooperative - a warm Wednesday was followed by a much cooler and overcast Thursday - but the teams present all managed to get important work done. 

At the test were the factory Aruba.it Ducati team, along with Barni Racing's Xavi Fores. The official Yamaha WorldSBK and WorldSSP teams were there, as was Randy Krummenacher on the Bardahl Even Bros Yamaha R6. The official KRT Kawasakis were also present, as was Triple M Racing's PJ Jacobsen on the Honda CBR1000RR. The Red Bull Honda WorldSBK team were not in Brno, having already had two days of private testing in Assen before the Aragon round.

2018 Assen WorldSBK Recap: It's All Double Dutch In WorldSBK

By Steve English | Mon, 23/04/2018 - 16:17

Making predictions for races in WorldSBK 2018 can be a fool's errand. The form book has been thrown out the window on a couple of occasions and that was certainly the case once again at the Assen TT Circuit.

The Magic is still there

Michael van der Mark may no longer go by the moniker of Magic Michael but there was definitely magic in the air at Assen. The Dutch star claimed a double podium at his home round and showed once again that he is a force to be reckoned with. Pressuring Jonathan Rea and beating Chaz Davies in a straight up fight in Race 1 was impressive, but his Race 2 performance shouldn't be underestimated. The pressure was on the 25 year old. A bumper crowd of over 62,000 turned up to cheer him on and VDM didn't disappoint.

His third place finish on Sunday was another example of being able to keep a cool head. Tom Sykes was clear from the field and for Van der Mark the goal became to stand on the rostrum. That meant beating the Ducatis of Xavi Fores and Chaz Davies. The Yamaha rider duly delivered and moved into fourth in the championship standings. Mission accomplished.

Michael van der Mark To Replace Jonas Folger At Valencia

By David Emmett | Sun, 05/11/2017 - 18:20

Michael van der Mark is to make a second appearance in MotoGP. The Dutchman is to step in once again to replace Jonas Folger in the Monster Tech 3 Yamaha team at Valencia. 

Though the announcement is not yet official, the Dutchman revealed he would be riding at Valencia in a Dutch-language interview for the WorldSBK website, and published by the Dutch website Racesport.nl. Recorded after the final round of WorldSBK at Qatar on Saturday, Van der Mark says, "It's great to be riding in MotoGP again next week in Valencia. It's a shame Jonas [Folger] is still ill, but I'm deeply honored that Hervé [Poncharal] has asked me once again to replace him. It shows that I did my best in Sepang."

2017 Sepang Friday MotoGP Round Up: A Phony War In Mixed Conditions

By David Emmett | Fri, 27/10/2017 - 21:48

If there is one thing clear from Friday at Sepang, it is that neither Andrea Dovizioso nor Marc Márquez believe the 2017 championship is done. The two men left in the title fight came out punching, chasing fast times just that little bit harder than the rest. Dovizioso topped both morning and afternoon sessions, blatant about his intentions to make a final bid for the championship. Márquez was a little slower in the mixed-but-drying conditions of FP1, but only half a second behind Dovizioso in a wet FP2. Márquez will give as hard as he gets.

The headline times are deceptive, though, as were the conditions. The morning session started with a track that would not dry fast enough – a persistent problem since the track was resurfaced, and an issue with drainage in certain sections of the track – and riders choosing to sit out the first third or so of FP1. Even once the riders took to the track in earnest, times were variable. It was only towards the end where track was dry enough to start to post quick times.

In the dry, Márquez focused on pace, putting in a single long run, while Andrea Dovizioso got on with setup work, ending FP1 at the top of the timesheets, just ahead of Alvaro Bautista. "I’m really happy about the lap time I did this morning," Dovizioso said. "It was quite fast but the conditions were strange. There was not a lot of rubber on the ground so it wasn’t normal. Anyway, this was the condition for the other riders. We did a good lap time. I was first."

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