Tom Lüthi scandal: the end of a glorious era

Tom Lüthi scandal: the end of a glorious era

It was not a question of if, but only of when the scandal would break out. The end of the collaboration with his German team has already been announced seven races before the end of the season. Next season Tom Lüthi will lead in the team of the Spanish Edu Perales. Barcelona 2020 marks the end of an era.

It’s been a long, long time. On June 15, 2003, a 17-year-old Emmentaler sensationally raced to second place behind Dani Pedrosa at the Catalan GP in Barcelona in the 125cc race. It is the first podium for a Swiss since Jacques Cornu finished third in the Belgian GP on September 17, 1989. It is the beginning of a glorious era. Tom Lüthi will be one of the best motorcycle riders in the world for the next 17 years, he will be world champion (125cc) in 2005 and athlete of the year ahead of Roger Federer (!). To date he has achieved 65 podiums (17 victories). Our motorcycle racing is experiencing a renaissance. Dominique Aegerter also reached the world elite and won the German GP (2014).

Now we are back in Barcelona on September 25, 2020. By the same route. And this glorious era is coming to an end. Where it started, so to speak. The long and burning dissatisfaction in the team of the German battery manufacturer Dynavolt has led to the premature announcement of the divorce: at the end of the season, Tom Lüthi will leave this team and join Edu Perales’. He now drives the remaining seven races of the season in divorce, so to speak. This early point in time can show how deep the crack is.

What went wrong?

In February, Tom Lüthi’s manager and friend Daniel Epp announced that verbal agreements had long been reached to extend the collaboration. It is only a question of whether it will be extended for one or two years, until 2021 or 2022.

What went wrong? How can it be that a pilot dominates the first tests and then no longer even approaches a podium and no longer measures the residue at the top in thousandths of a second but in whole seconds? Daniel Epp says, “We will probably only know the answer in two or three years.” It’s a diplomatically clever claim for protection. So that you are not forced to do an analysis now. Its pilot has to stay with the Germans until the end of the season. Reciprocal accusations don’t help.

So what went wrong? The answer is just one phrase: technical incompetence. The technicians of the Jürgen Lingg team this season, unlike the first year of cooperation (2019), no longer managed to fine-tune the “machine from hell”. The only thing that will continue to run smoothly in 2020 is the communications department, which celebrates great collaboration, high level of motivation, and continuous technical advancement weekend after weekend. To the point of ridiculousness.

The experience is worth a lot

Or does it depend on Tom Lüthi? He turned 34 on September 9. The new generation, the “young savages”, doing everything in their power to rise to the “premier class” as quickly as possible and driving like there is no day after, are worrying the Emmentaler. But with the experience of more than 250 races, you can still largely make up for the “handicap” of reason. But in a sport on the edge of the “death zone”, the blink of an eye decides between victory and defeat.

Tom Lüthi remains the winner and podium rider. But everything has to be fine. For the highly sensitive “asphalt cowboy” this includes not only the technical infrastructure but also the “warmth of the nest” in the team. And it no longer has it. Already in 2018 he failed due to team disputes in the only trip to the “premier category”. Now that the split has been announced, the weather could relax a bit. After the first day of training, Tom Lüthi is in ninth place.

And in 2021 in the team of Edu Perales, where he will replace Remy Gardner (22). The son of former world champion Wayne Gardner, currently 12th (Lüthi 9th) in the general classification of the Moto2 World Championship, passes to KTM. Perales has been in business for 20 years. His team is underrated in the paddock. Because Spanish has internalized an art: learning to complain without suffering. His high-tech workshop in Sabadell, 30 kilometers from Barcelona, ​​belongs to the Technical Champions. The technical infrastructure is impeccable and the team leader takes care of his drivers until they give up. Tom Lüthi will find the warmth he needs here.

But even with the Spanish, Tom Lüthi doesn’t get anything for free. Your new crew chief has a motto: “The driver has to know what he needs and then he gets what he needs from us. But then you have to do something about it. “

Lüthi must bring money, but still not starve

Will Tom Lüthi be able to claim victory and podium again in 2021? Yes, if all is well. And if you can cope with the new situation. He no longer belongs to the privileged caste of drivers paid by the team. Now you have to contribute money to the team budget for the first time. But his friend and coach Daniel Epp still raises more money from sponsors than he has to pay the new team. Tom Lüthi won’t have to go hungry in 2021 either.

But an era is coming to an end. Tom Lüthi is the last of his kind in this age. Dominique Aegerter only wins with battery bikes, Jesko Raffin trembles to continue his career after a viral illness, Randy Krummenacher left his team in line at the superbike scene.

Our last hopes for the next few years rest on Jason Dupasquier (19), who has yet to score a point in the Moto3 World Championship, and Noah Dettwiler (15), who is looking for an entry into the GP circuit through the “Rookies Cup” entry category. .

Can these two usher in a new era as glorious as the one now drawing to a close? Only the gods know. But they don’t say.