The Superbike season is now over and Jonas Folger can take stock of these two wildcards made in Barcelona and Estoril. But the German pilot does not intend to stop there…
In Catalonia, the German driver finished 12th, 10th and 11th. In Portugal, he crossed the finish line in all three races in 11th, 13th and 11th positions. Not really enough to shake up the world of Superbike for the former MotoGP rider who puts this down to a strange collaboration between Yamaha and the MGM team with which he won the German IDM championship.
Speaking on Speedweek. com, Ivo Schützbach reports some mysterious comments from the 27-year-old pilot: “The collaboration with Yamaha was there, but not as we had imagined it. Of course we had support, but when it came to the last tenths of a second, there was always something that was not clear. »
“There was a collaboration, but it didn't happen the way I had imagined, if I'm honest. I don't need to say more." he said in another media.
As moreover, the firm with three tuning forks has finalized its 2021 teams without integrating “Folgas”, it no longer has reason to hope for support, and even less a motorcycle, from Japan.
“I rode with Yamaha for Galinski (Michael Galinski, MGM team boss), not for Yamaha. We have to be clear, we got the bike thanks to Galinski and our sponsor (Bonovo Action). At this point I have to admit that it wasn't easy for us with the Yamaha factory team rental bike. I always felt comfortable with Yamaha, even in circumstances that were not in my favor. Unfortunately, in sport, some things are politically regulated. »
As a result, Jonas Folger is now turning to BMW and is not hiding it.
“I am not afraid to say that we are negotiating with BMW. It brings a breath of fresh air. Who knows what purpose this change of scenery will serve? We want to be able to say it as soon as possible, we will do it one way or another. Then there will be peace and quiet, and we can relax and not have to stress all winter about how things are going to be. The BMW is a good option, it goes in this direction. Yamaha has its riders and BMW is interested in this project. This can be a good thing if it works well. Over the next few weeks we will develop a plan to make this a clean affair. »
BMW Motorsport director Marc Bongers therefore seems interested in a satellite team fielding a German driver alongside Tom Sykes and Michael van der Mark.
