Australia’s Damian Cudlin was forced to surrender his lead in the 2010 IDM Supersport Championship after a turbulent race in Nurburgring on the weekend.

Heading into the round with a 5 point championship lead, courtesy of 3 consecutive podium finishes and a dominating win at Lausitzring, Cudlin felt confident ahead of the Nurburgring round however the weekend proved to be disappointing in comparison to his previous outings with a lack lustre qualifying followed by a frustrating race.

In the opening qualifying session, Cudlin slotted onto the front row, however some engine issues forced the Aussie down the order in the second qualifying session, leaving him in 7th position on the grid.

The MRC Austria Team worked tirelessly to solve the issues for Sunday’s 20 lap race and broke through in Warm Up where Cudlin posted the 2nd fastest time. As the ever looming clouds erupted, the race was officially declared ‘wet’ as the 50 strong Supersport field took their places on the grid.

As the lights went out, Cudlin got away with the leading group and began working his way forward when Steven Michels tried a desperate move and crashed into the side of Cudlin’s Yamaha R6, sending him to the gravel trap and Michels to the medical centre. As Cudlin rejoined the race he immediately discovered his foot peg had broken in the carnage and was forced to continue “one legged”.

A crash at the end of the main straight brought out the red flag and the race was stopped on the 5^th lap. The race was declared to be a “two part race” and the restart was reduced to 17 laps with the winner determined on combined times of both races.

Although handicapped in the first outing, Cudlin had still managed to work his way to 5^th however had lost valuable time on the leading trio. As the rider’s returned to the pits, a fuming Cudlin tried to regain his focus and prepare for his second outing as the MRC Team worked on the damage to his machine.

In the restart Cudlin immediately made his presence felt at the front, first making his way into 2^nd before briefly taking the lead with 5 laps to run. However on combined time the deficit was too great and Cudlin realised his chances of winning were just too small. As they began their final lap, Cudlin misunderstood the team’s pit signals and reduced his speed as he settled for what he thought was a safe 2^nd however the looming threat of Knobloch and Gunter laid right behind him and suddenly saw their chance to pounce. Entering the final chicane Knobloch made an aggressive pass on a surprised Cudlin, forcing the Aussie into the gravel for a 2^nd time. Holding onto the machine by the skin of his teeth, Cudlin crossed the line in 4^th place, visibly unhappy.

“The whole weekend’s been a bit of a disaster really and today was no different.” Cudlin said bluntly after the race. “On the first lap I got T-Boned by a Bone Head and it sent me into the gravel and busted my foot rest. I kept going but I was relieved when the race was red flagged as my leg felt like it was about to drop off. The guys repaired my bike for the 2^nd part of the race and in this leg I felt more comfortable. I worked my way to the front before Ranseder stepped it up a bit at the end. I knew I couldn’t beat him on combined time anyway so I decided to settle for 2^nd, only the 10 second lead I thought I had on 3^rd was actually the deficit to Ranseder on combined time. I slowed a bit on the last lap then got pushed out of the way by Knobloch in the last chicane and into the gravel again. I’m really disappointed with 4^th but it’s better than a DNF I guess. I hope we can get back on top at Sachsenring, and have a dry race for a change!”

Cudlin now trails Knobloch in the standings by 2 points in the hotly contested championship. The next round of the IDM series will be held at Sachsenring on the 19/20^th of June.