Michael van der Mark hits back at WorldSBK doubters: ‘I haven’t lost it’

BMW World Superbike rider Michael van der Mark says he “clearly” hasn’t lost his speed after claiming a double top five at the recent French round of the series.

The Dutch rider enjoyed a solid start to the campaign and was a regular top 10 visitor, before his results began to fade away from the Most round through to Balaton Park.

But there was a return to form for Michael van der Mark at Magny-Cours, as he guided his BMW to fifth in the sprint race and the second feature contest.

He praised his team for continuing to push him, while taking a jab at his doubters.

“I think a lot of people said I’d lost it. Clearly I didn’t,” he told WorldSBK.com.

“We worked very hard with the team. We had a lot of talks. We tested a lot. We had many ideas.

“And also a good reset during the summer break.

“That helped a lot and we see sometimes it’s very tough and it’s good to have a good team behind you because they push you, they keep working, and they always stayed calm.

“They believed in me and knew the speed was there as well.

“So, after today, I showed them again and also showed myself again.”

Van der Mark was around three seconds back from scoring a first podium of the season, but admits he didn’t have enough confidence in his bike to push for it in Race 2.

“I started to smell it but honestly I was struggling a little with the bike and I didn’t have the full confidence I was hoping for,” he added.

“So, I had to find a middle way and for sure I tried. But after the whole weekend, I really needed these points.”

Van der Mark won at Magny-Cours last year, and will be looking at the final rounds as an opportunity for bigger results after also getting to the podium at Jerez in 2024.