Groß Dölln IV 2026 MEC

Our first endurance event of 2026, and the weather couldn’t have been better. Finally, T-shirts, shorts, blue skies and glorious sunshine. Spirits were high in the paddock. The first day is usually all about getting into the groove, but this time we rounded it off with two sprint races. The Rookies were up first.

Rookies

The front row was firmly in Danish hands, with Anders Berlin on pole ahead of Johann Frederick Heilmann. Tobias Witt started third alongside Steffen Andersen. Anders took the lead off the line, but Johann led at the end of the opening lap, with Tobias and Anders breathing down his neck. He made himself as wide as a bus, but Tobias found a way through on lap three and took the lead. With a clear track ahead, Tobias really got going, lapping in the 1:55s and rapidly extending his advantage. Johann defended for all he was worth, but Anders also managed to get past, and then his arms began to tire. On the final lap, he lost his podium place too, as a charging Steffen made short work of passing him. Tobias took a commanding win ahead of Anders and Steffen.

SBK

Tim Bruns had pole in Superbikes alongside Kenny Schulz, with Mister Koopmän and Rene Wickboldt on the second row. Tim took the lead off the line, and having qualified two seconds faster than Kenny, it looked as though he might have a straightforward race. But Kenny found his turbo button and closed the gap to Tim. Koopmän was struggling with his front tyre and couldn’t match the pace at the front. After just two laps, the top three already had a sizeable advantage over the chasing pack, led by Rene. Michael Sörensen had him in his sights, though, and snatched fourth halfway through the race. Things were getting really interesting at the front: Kenny was right on Tim’s rear wheel and made his move on lap five to take the lead. A 1:46.9 followed by a 1:47.0 allowed him to pull clear and secure the win. Tim finished second ahead of Koopmän, who had a lonely race in third.

After the podium ceremony, we enjoyed dinner together before heading out for a track walk. With the endurance race looming, the paddock soon fell quiet.

Saturday brought more glorious sunshine, and after the opening sessions, the paddock became increasingly busy. The endurance teams took up their positions in the pit lane, and the tension mounted. At 3 pm, it was time to get the four hours of Groß Dölln under way. The traditional Le Mans start is always a spectacle. A total of 41 teams took on the first endurance race of 2026. Just ten minutes in, one of the podium contenders was already out of the running: Tim Bruns put his CBR in the gravel, triggering the first safety car period. Strictly speaking, though, it was a safety bike. Jörg kept the field together on a bike specially fitted with a flashing beacon. Twenty minutes later, he was called into action again, before things settled down. With an hour to go, four riders put their bikes in the gravel within two minutes of one another, bringing out the safety bike one last time. There were no serious crashes, just excursions into the gravel, and all the riders were back for the podium ceremony that evening.

SBK

Thirteen teams lined up in the big-bike class. The 2025 champions, LOYE Racing, faced some serious competition. Krachpolnikoff were fired up and ready to go with their established line-up, while N.E.R.T. also had a strong pairing in Melf and Rico and wanted a say in the fight for victory. N.E.R.T. and Krachpolnikoff both made excellent starts, using the clear opening laps to build an immediate advantage. LOYE were quick, but the top two were never within striking distance. Team AAA flew the flag for Denmark and eventually took home fourth. Kluk und gutaussehend had bike trouble when Mü’s Kawasaki gave up, but switching to Mike’s Ducati allowed them to climb from eighth to fifth in the final half-hour. FUN Racing finished sixth and claimed the last trophies, narrowly ahead of our podcast team, Let’s Talk About Racing. With 40 minutes remaining, Krachpolnikoff led N.E.R.T. by just under a lap. Melf and Koopmän rode the final stint, but Koopmän’s tyres were past their best, and he was losing three seconds a lap to the ever-closing Melf. With half an hour to go, Melf took the lead, and Koopmän had no answer. N.E.R.T. claimed the top step of the podium with 123 laps completed.

SSP

Fifteen teams battled for victory in SSP. Tim Bruns’s early retirement put paid to TT Racing’s hopes of fighting for the win. Krachpolnikoff fielded an SSP team for the first time – and what a team it was. Kenny Schulz had already shown what he could do in the sprint race, and paired with Rico Spiel, the two were simply unbeatable. Leading a four-hour race from start to finish is quite an achievement. Cozy were also running well, but after two hours, their entry on the timing screens stopped moving. Frank Drebin Spezialeinheit consolidated second ahead of Denmark’s A-Holdet. Reigning champions Team goldene Ananas were back too, claiming fourth with 117 laps completed. Race Couple Racing finished on the same lap count, but a penalty for overtaking under yellow flags left them fifth. Sturzbier Performance took sixth, also on 117 laps. Radeberger Factory Racing were back for another MEC campaign in 2026 and had fitted extra-large tanks to their Gixxers, but an early crash for Pauli threw their plans into disarray. They still managed to salvage seventh.

FUN

The FUN class also had 13 teams, including several MEC stalwarts. MiMiMi Racing were keen to show everyone who was boss once again. Strong competition came from 890R Alliance, but a crash for Steven before the race had even begun seriously disrupted their four-hour strategy. Denmark had a strong contender in Unicorn Racing 2, while Gummipuppe Racing and RC Racing also wanted to get in on the action. In the end, it was incredibly close: all three leading teams completed 116 laps, but MiMiMi Racing proved unbeatable. Unicorn Racing 2 took second, just 13 seconds ahead of 890R Alliance. Despite struggling badly with fatigue, Gummipuppe finished fourth ahead of RC Racing. SERT Germany GmbH claimed the final trophies in sixth. PEMA Racing were also back for another crack at the MEC in 2026, but a string of technical niggles spoiled their race.

The finish was spectacular as always. The atmosphere at the end of the four hours is something special: burnouts, beer showers, cheering – everything a racer could wish for. All in all, everything went brilliantly, and the celebrations continued in style after the podium ceremony.

Whit Monday brought more perfect weather, but the paddock was noticeably more relaxed than the day before. Everyone made the most of the glorious conditions to enjoy a few more laps of the Driving Center, although the previous day’s exertions were still making themselves felt.
We had a fantastic time and would like to thank every rider, helper and supporter for a brilliant event.
The photos were taken by Ralf from Pixelrace – many thanks!
As always, you can find your lap times in your MotoMonster booking account and, of course, in our Pitboard app. You’ll also find the championship standings and the first team photos there.