Debut of new ADAC Northern Europe Cup in Silverstone, England

• First race weekend of 2016 under banner of British Superbike Championship
• Top-class German riders in well-known world championship junior teams
• British Moto3 class bumps field up to 48 riders

Munich: The winter break will be over for motorcycling in a few days' time when the inaugural season of the new ADAC Northern Europe Cup gets under way in Silverstone. 27 riders who have signed up to the series will line up on standard or GP class Moto3 bikes during the MCE British Superbike event to be held at the 5.901-km grand prix circuit from April 8th to 10th. Two races of the new junior series will be held at the season opener.

21 ADAC Northern Europe Cup riders have enrolled in the standard class and will line up on standard Honda NSF250 machines. Six riders will compete for top honours in the GP class. Two riders will race KTM RC250GP bikes, one rider a KTM RC250R and three others will utilise Honda NSF250 GP machines.

Well-known German riders and teams

Competitors in the British HEL Performance British Motostar Moto3 GP class will join 27 regular ADAC NEC riders on the grid, so that the field will number 48 in total. There will be eleven German riders, including the reigning champion of the ADAC Junior Cup powered by KTM, Dirk Geiger, among the ADAC Northern Europe Cup competitors.

The ADAC Junior Motor Racing Personality of 2015 will partner Toni Erhard and Kevin and Leon Orgis in Team Kiefer Racing. Dynavolt Intact GP Junior Team with Matthias Meggle and Freudenberg Racing Team's Tim Georgi will be tough opposition for the top teams.

Philipp Freitag (FKoch Rennsport&Hannes Allwardt) has already had one more year's Moto3 experience than most of his fellow competitors. "I'm looking forward to contesting my first race since September 2015 at long last. I'd not ridden in ages prior to testing in Cartagena and can hardly wait to get started," said the German rider from Buchholz, full of anticipation.

Freitag feels good about the upcoming races after an intensive week of testing, but he's not ridden in Silverstone before. "Still, I know all about the great atmosphere in the British Superbike Championship." The German rider is preparing for the race with a map of the circuit layout, onboard videos and video games. "I find the track very interesting. I especially like the more fluid passages. Fitness is obviously important for preparation. I've been working continuously on it since the end of last year," added Freitag.

Strong opposition from all over Europe

However, there will also be strong international opposition. Czech rider Oliver König comes with a lot of experience on his Honda NSF250. "I've never raced at Silverstone before, but I've been working hard on fitness and will use Playstation to try and drum the track into my head prior to the event," said König.

Just like Freitag, the Czech rider is more than ready to get the first race of the season under way. "The winter was very long, but I'm really excited about getting back on my bike. That's what I'm most looking forward to, but also, I can't wait to get to grips with the new circuit and to finally be back racing, for sure," he concluded.

Four female competitors from Germany, Denmark and Sweden will also face the challenges of this popular class alongside the male riders. Marie Mende is one of them. Like her fellow male competitors, the young German has never ridden in Silverstone before. "Still, I was there at the Superbike World Championship back in 2013. I've been trying to memorise the circuit layout, using Playstation and video," she told us.

Two races at opener

The race weekend will kick off with a 30-minute free practice session at 11:10 am on Friday, April 8th. On Friday afternoon at 4:10 pm, the ADAC NEC riders will contest their first quali which will also last 30 minutes before the second qualifying session on Saturday morning gets under way at 9:30 am to determine the starting grid.

The first race of the season which will be held over ten laps will start at 3:30 pm on Saturday afternoon, April 9th. Riders will subsequently cover ten laps in a short warm-up session at 9:55 pm on Sunday in order to prepare for the second race which will be staged at 2:55 pm on Sunday, April 10th.

2016 ADAC Northern Europe Cup schedule

08/04 – 10/04 Silverstone, GB BSB / 2 races
15/04 – 17/04 Assen, NED WorldSBK
29/04 – 01/05 Lausitzring Superbike*IDM
15/07 – 17/07 Sachsenring MotoGP
26/08 – 28/08 Oschersleben, Endurance World Championship / 2 races
23/09 – 25/09 Hockenheim, Superbike*IDM
30/09 – 02/10 Assen, NED BSB / 2 races

Entrants to the 2016 ADAC Northern Europe Cup

(Entry number/name/country/class)

3 Toni Erhard GER Standard
4 Dirk Geiger GER Standard
11 Lotte Uhre DEN Standard
15 Oliver Lind Jensen DEN Standard
17 Anna Adbring SWE Standard
19 Sasha de Vits BEL Standard
21 Matthias Meggle GER Standard
22 Marie Mende GER Standard
29 Sven Grevink NED Standard
33 Rick Dunnik NED Standard
36 Sander Kroeze NED Standard
43 Simon Jespersen DEN Standard
44 Kevin Orgis GER Standard
45 Leon Orgis GER Standard
47 Phillip Hole DEN Standard
49 Philipp Freitag GER Standard
52 Oliver König CZE Standard
54 Lukas Falck DEN Standard
57 Manou Antweiler GER Standard
79 Leon Czichos GER Standard
91 Patrick Eckert GER Standard
7 Tim Georgi GER GP
13 Maximilian Kofler AUT GP
25 Johanna Innerfors SWE GP
28 Dennis Koopman NED GP
50 Jason Dupasquier SUI GP
61 Ernst Dubbink NED GP