Victor Steeman | An Appreciation
Gordon Ritchie | October 13, 2022
On Saturday, October 8, 22-year old Dutch WorldSSP300 rider Victor Steeman (MTM Kawasaki) crashed in the middle of the leading pack during the opening FIM Supersport 300 World Championship race at the series finale in Portimao.
Victor Steeman at Barcelona WorldSBK. Photo Courtesy of the FIM
He suffered polytrauma and serious head injuries and, despite the quick first response from the medial team onsite and then being flown to Faro Hospital by helicopter, Steeman succumbed to his injuries on Tuesday, October 11.
Steeman had been, arithmetically, still in contention for the 2022 WorldSSP300 championship, having won four races in 2022. He had set a new record for pole positions in this class at Portimao, with six in all.
After starting his career in his native Netherlands, Steeman joined the Rookies Cup in 2016, remained there in 2017, before competing strongly in the IDMSSP300, WorldSSP300 and Dutch SSP300 classes in 2018 and 2019.
A year of racing in the IDM WorldSSP Championship in 2020 gained him a KTM ride in the 2021 WorldSSP300 series, taking his first race win and pole position that season. This year, as part of the MTM Kawasaki WorldSSP3000 team, Victor was one of the few riders in this category of racing who could break clear of the field in some races. He came through from 16th on the grid at Most to win the second race by almost three seconds. In Barcelona-Catalunya, starting from pole, he was over five seconds ahead of his nearest challenger in winning race two.
The whole motorcycling world mourns the loss of Victor Steeman, and offers support to his family and friends at this difficult time.
