FIM-Europe Pro Stock Bike

Karl-Heinz Weikum would, like Ledström, be a seemingly surprising winner in the two-wheeled ranks, but the German has been spending a fair bit of the folding stuff over recent months and blew his PB away (detect a theme in this report yet?) in qualifying third with a 7.154. Dropping back into the 7.2s throughout eliminations saw Weikum move past class rookie Kenneth Holmberg (in as an alternate for a no-showing Kenneth Vik) and Fredrik Fredlund at the semifinal stage. In the final, Weikum cut a 0.013 light and held on to the startline advantage with a 7.211 despite opponent Ulf Ögge’s quicker 7.196.

Ögge was surprisingly upbeat after defeat in the final, caused by a tardy 0.106s RT, but will take solace from his raceday performance with a pair of 7.1s in the semi-final and the final, although the confusion over his first round win over Elvira Karlsson when Karlsson broke before staging and Ögge getting no time and apparently no green light thanks to startline snafu caused a period of tension post-run. The performance of Kalle Lyrén (low qualifier with a 7.098) and potential in the mounts of Vik (new Sovereign Star Suzuki setup), Fredlund (with Karen Stoffer’s quick motor in the frame for this year), Karlsson and Gert Jan-Laseur (both into the 7.1s for the first time) suggests that, although the season will be very brief for the bikes, it will be a real bunfight in the Pro Stock ranks.

Remaining FIA/FIM-Europe European Championship rounds
July 4th – July 7th FHRA Nitro Nationals, Alastaro, Finland
August 9th – 11th NitrolympX, Hockenheim, Germany
August 22rd – 25th Swedish Internationals II, Tierp Arena, Sweden (FIA only)
September 5th – 8th FIA European Finals, Santa Pod Raceway, England