Max Niedermaier: “After Berlin, I saw that something was happening” / Ice Speedway GP

After the weekend in Inzell, Max Niedermaier was able to reach the world title, even if Martin Haarahiltunen traveled to the Netherlands with a two-point lead. On the first day of the race in Heerenveen, Niedermaier did his best to enter the final with an unblemished high, but had to fight his way through the field after a poor start.

Already after the first day of the race, Niedermaier emphasized that reaching the final on Sunday will not be a guaranteed success. When he flew off the track into the barriers in the 16th race of the second day of racing, his hopes also faded. Haarahiltunen managed to reach the final despite a crash on the second day of the race. In the end, the Swede became the ice road world champion for the third time in a row.

Niedermaier reviewed the 2024 World Cup for SPEEDWEEK.com: “Inzell, on the second day, was not the best, but it was the way it was,” said the Bavarian. . If I had finished second there, I could have been world champion. But that’s the way it is, Martin could have driven better that day, that’s the race. I’m glad that nothing broke, but it’s a shame about the crash because it wasn’t needed. I was ready to lead and I wanted to slow down a bit. We had put on a new tire and it fell back, that was the problem.”

However, the Bavarian did not look sad after the medal awards in Heerenveen. The initial opinion on the World Cup medal was also consistent. “In the first few hours, many people congratulated me,” reports Niedermaier, “there were people watching in our community and at a friend’s house at the workshop. People who don’t normally follow the game were also interested, and that of course makes me very happy. That’s great support and it was also great that you can follow the race live from the FIM.”

But what is the secret of Niedermaier’s success in the most successful season of his career, which he concluded with European Championship bronze and World Championship silver? Niedermaier: “Last year in Berlin I won the race after not running for almost two years. Before that I had only two days of training and participated in the German championship and then I won the race the next day. Somehow the button clicked and I realized that something is still possible and I carried that momentum into this season.”

There was extensive preparation for 2024, which laid the foundation for a successful season. Niedermaier: “The Inn-Isar Racing Team took me, for which I am very grateful. I was able to participate in the Swedish league and I was also supported by my family and especially my wife Franziska, who enabled me to practice the sport and to be able to leave home and participate in the preparations in Sweden. I had great support throughout the year from the Inn-Isar Racing Team and apart from the Sanok race, Katrin Weidinger was also there as a physio throughout the race, which was invaluable. I also have to thank all the supporters, sponsors and customers who supported us throughout the season.”

Before starting the World Championships, Niedermaier participated in the European Championships in Sanok, which was successfully completed with bronze, but Bavaria did not take the last risk in this race. “It was a good practice for me because I wanted to come to Inzell healthy and without falling, because for us Bayern is a complete home race and the fact that I won on Saturday was definitely good because it looked like everyone else in the stadium. The stadium knew, ” said Niedermaier, who also hopes that soon there will be another ice speed race in Germany.

“It would be great if there was something in Berlin again and there was another Grand Prix. But we’ll see at what time. This World Cup was more exciting than it has been in a long time and Martin is the world champion he deserves because he drove consistently well, ” concluded Vice World Champion Max Niedermaier.