From the ADAC Northern Europe to the motorbike world championship

• Introducing three famous teams from the 2017 ADAC NEC
• Kiefer Racing and Dynavolt Intact GP compete in Moto2 and in the ADAC NEC
• Freudenberg Racing – school for world championship riders

Munich: A highlight of the season is fast approaching for the ADAC Northern Europe Cup riders when the young talents are set to contest the German GoPro Motorbike Grand Prix at the Sachsenring on the weekend of 30th June - 2nd July under the banner of the MotoGP world championship. The ADAC's junior racing series for the Moto3 class is intended to serve as a stepping stone to the motorcycle world championship and enable young riders to enjoy an international career.

With the assistance of MotoGP™ rights holder, Dorna Sports, two young talents from the ADAC NEC will be given the chance to contest the FIM Moto3™ Junior World Championship on Spanish racetracks at Aragon and Valencia. Some 30 entrants are registered as regular riders in the ADAC Northern Europe Cup, several of whom also line up for internationally famous teams. Kiefer Racing and Dynavolt Intact GP will be contesting both the ADAC NEC and the Moto2 World Championship this weekend.

Kiefer Racing: Moto2 and ADAC NEC

Team Principal Stefan Kiefer, who has been on the scene for many years along with his brother Jochen Kiefer, tells us a little bit about his story: “We've been involved with motorcycle racing for a long time. I myself rode a motorcycle for a couple of years before setting up our motorbike business, and then at some point, we decided that we would also like to get into racing. However, we soon agreed that we didn't want to do it with established riders, but with newcomers, and that was how our team got started in 1996 in Germany.”

“We contested our first year in GP racing in 2003. We've been in GP motorbike racing for almost 15 years now and have already taken two world championship titles, in 2011 with Stefan Bradl and in 2015 with Danny Kent. We've had other great years apart from that. We're with Dominique Aegerter in Moto2 this year,” said Kiefer before adding: “At the same time, about three years ago, we thought to ourselves that something ought to be done for German junior riders. Before whingeing about it all the time, we decided to take action and promote young riders ourselves.”

“So, we entered the 2016 ADAC NEC with four riders and took the title with Dirk Geiger in the Standard class at our first attempt. We've even added to the squad for this year and now have six competitors. I hope we can defend our title in the Standard class and can keep up in the GP category as far as possible.” Kevin and Leon Orgis, plus Toni Erhard, Mate Laczko and Sasha de Vits line up for the famous team apart from Geiger.

“If from among the riders that we have at the moment someone should emerge, who deserves to be promoted, then I can say with 100% certainty that we'll try to help him as best we can, and that if we get the chance to make him part of our grand prix team, then we'll do it, for sure,” promised the Team Principal.

Kiefer is well aware of the ADAC NEC's significance: “As far as I'm concerned, the ADAC NEC is an extremely important series which was badly needed before. I think that the guys should practise on racing bikes as soon as possible, on these production racing machines here. You can see that it's now become the norm. Well over 20 riders entered last year, and there are almost 30 this year. Sometimes, there might even be more with the odd guest entrant here and there. So, this is the right way to go about creating a good class in Northern Europe and to seeing young talent on their way into the world championship.”

Team RAS Intact GP: From the Sachsenring to the ADAC NEC

Team Racing Academy Sachsenring Intact GP has an unambiguous name. Team manager Dirk Reissmann explains how it came into being: “This project was launched at the end of last year. We thought about how we might help Marvin (Siebdrath) and Paul (Fröde) and how to finance them. We contacted Jürgen Lingg and Stefan Keckeisen from Intact and very quickly reached agreement. Now we are contesting the season together and over the next few years, will continue to train junior riders, who may one day compete at grand prix level. "

“The rider's potential and the championship itself have developed strongly in the ADAC NEC since the first year,” remarked Reissmann, who was already keeping a close eye on the series in 2016. “The guys have an ideal platform here that they can use to prepare for their career. I see a lot of potential in this class which is also affordable for parents.”

The outfit from Saxony in eastern Germany also have a strong connection with Moto2 racing team Dynavolt Intact GP, for whom Sandro Cortese and Marcel Schrötter are lining up in the world championship during 2017. “After competing with Matthias Meggle in 2016, Jürgen Lingke and Stefan Keckeisen also see potential in the ADAC NEC, and I'm certain that they're keeping a close eye on our riders so that they can train their juniors here. I think that this cooperation is very sensible and is also a good fit in the final analysis.”

Freudenberg Racing Team: GP wild cards, junior world championship and German young talents

At the same time, Freudenberg Racing Team can also look back on a long success story. Team owner Michael Freudenberg told us: “Our outfit has been in existence since 1997, so we're celebrating a special anniversary this year. I personally rode a motorbike for 20 years before setting up the company, and then we got started with the team, initially with 250cc machines in the German championship and then we gradually continued to expand.”

“We've entered the grand prix on a wild card almost 30 times. Our best result was eighth place with Luca Grünwald a few years ago. Of course, there's a lot of talk in Germany about the next generation, and it's the main focus of our work. We've produced seven or eight riders, who've gone on to contest the world championship, starting with Dirk Heidolf and going through to Karel Hanika last year,” continued the team owner.

Freudenberg Racing are fielding three riders in the ADAC Northern Europe Cup during 2017. Tim Georgi, Whalid Khan Soppe and Jan-Ole Jähnig all line up in the GP class. “We made a move into the Junior World Championship with Tim Georgi last year where he's steadily improved and has grown. He practically plays with the motorbike these days, so I'm certain that what the rider experiences makes a difference to him and that he can draw on his full potential again this year.”

“Walid Khan Soppe is new to our team and also competes in the Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup. He is using the ADAC Northern Europe Cup to gain more experience and to rack up the kilometres,” said Freudenberg. “Working with Jan-Ole Jähnig is also great. He moved up to the ADAC NEC this year as the championship runner-up of the ADAC Junior Cup powered by KTM and has shown great potential from the outset. He's very willing to learn.”

Freudenberg also appreciates the ADAC NEC's significance for junior riders. He is particularly pleased that MotoGP promoter Dorna Sports SL is paying special attention to the ADAC NEC this season and will support the best riders at the end of the season with two guest starts in the Junior World Championship. “I think it's great that Dorna and the ADAC have agreed to really cooperate, because that's exactly what will enable our riders to progress even further, because they're unable to cover financial outlay on this scale on their own,” he said in conclusion.