On Day 2, the laptimes tumbled and the fastest lap of the day was an impressive six tenths quicker than the previous. That was put in by German rider Noel Malvin Willemson (NW Racing) as he stamped some authority on Sunday, and he was also half a second clear at the top – as Hosciuc had been the day before. The Romanian rider showed good speed again as well and was the man in second, laying down an early marker of consistency in the NTC.
Source: MotoGP.com – Read Full Article Here
PRA No. – 2020/18506
Campaign Number – SRAN 584
Date published – 31 Aug 2020
Supplier – PS Importers Pty Ltd
Traders who sold this product – Australian Triumph Dealers
Where the product was sold – Nationally
Dates available for sale – 1 December 2018 – 17 August 2020
217 affected motorcycles
Misrouted harness wiring may become damaged by the lower lug on main frame headstock when the handlebars are rotated.
Damaged wiring harness may cause the engine to stall, and increase the risk of injury and death of the rider or other road users in an accident.
Owners of affected vehicles will be contacted and asked to present their motorcycle to an authorised Triumph dealers to have recall work carried out free of charge. A new VIN label protector will be fitted to the motorcycle to prevent contact between the wiring and the headstock lug. Some motorcycles may also need a rework of the harness.
PRA No. – 2020/18491
Campaign Number – SRAN582
Date published – 30 Aug 2020
Supplier – PS Importers Pty Ltd
Traders who sold this product – Australian Triumph Dealers
Where the product was sold – Nationally
Dates available for sale – 2 March 2020 – 21 August 2020
74 affected motorcycles
The motorcycle’s rear reflex reflector may become loose or fall off.
If the reflector is missing, affected motorcycles may be less visible to drivers of other vehicles, which could increase the risk of a crash, resulting in injury or death of the rider.
Owners of affected motorcycles will be asked to contact Australian Triumph dealers to make an appointment to have the rear reflex reflector replaced free of charge.
Source: MCNews.com.au
In three of his four championship-winning seasons, Cameron Beaubier won eight races. Today, in just the ninth race of the season, Beaubier won his eighth HONOS Superbike race, this one coming in the MotoAmerica debut event at the Ridge Motorsports Park. The four-time and defending MotoAmerica Superbike Champion led from start to finish to win the 46th Superbike race of his career.
The race was restarted after a multi-rider crash on the opening lap that brought out the red flag, but after that it was clear sailing for Beaubier as he rode to an 8.1-second victory over Mathew Scholtz. Beaubier’s race got a bit easier when his teammate Jake Gagne was forced to slow near the end of the race with a badly worn tire, the San Diegan slipping back to fourth at the conclusion of the shortened 13-lap race. Beaubier also benefitted from the red flag restart after he botched the initial run through the chicane.
Scholtz came out the better of a near-race long scrap with Bobby Fong, the South African battling back after running off track midway through the race. Fong battled through the pain from his injured left wrist/hand to finish third after the South African passed him on the final lap. Gagne was fourth, some six seconds ahead of Toni Elias, the Spaniard well clear of Josh Herrin.
Italian Lorenzo Zanetti ended up seventh in his MotoAmerica debut, the Ducati rider dropping down the order in the beginning of the race with an off-track excursion. Jayson Uribe ended up eighth in his first MotoAmerica race of the year on his Honda CBR1000RR. Uribe bested Cameron Petersen by two seconds with Bradley Ward rounding out the to 10.
To say that Cameron Beaubier is on a roll would be a gross understatement, after winning his ninth superbike race of the season, his sixth in a row and the 47th of his career at the Komatsu MotoAmerica Superbikes At The Ridge on Sunday.
In easily winning today’s 17-lap final, Beaubier eclipsed his season best of eight wins with his ninth of the season while extending his lead in the 2020 MotoAmerica Superbike Championship to 54 points.
“Yeah, man. It was really good to be able to get nine wins in a season and be able to pass my record that was a few years ago.That just feels really good for me. Everything’s going so good right now. Like I said yesterday, sometimes I feel like I need to get pinched. But at the same time, it’s weird to say but right now that I have the most experience in the Superbike class other than maybe Toni (Elias) or something like that. I’m just dialed in on my R1. I’ve been riding this thing for five or six years. I feel really, really good. Everyone’s working really, really hard at the Monster Attack Performance Yamaha team. It feels so good to put this up on the top of the podium multiple races throughout the year, and also having a great teammate in Jake (Gagne). Being able to go one-two today feels really good to just reward them for all their hard work. It’s just been fun so far this year. They’re slowly catching me. I’m just running for my life out there. Just hope to keep it going and really looking forward to going to New Jersey and seeing how this bike works around there. Hats off to everyone here at Ridge. They made the track a little safer with that chicane. They’re willing to change the track here and there to make it a little safer for when we come back in the future. I think it was a really fun track. So, hats off to them.”
Beaubier’s teammate Jake Gagne ended up second, a day after a front tire issue knocked him off the podium and into fourth place. Gagne’s 20 points stretches his advantage in the championship, and he sits in a solid second place, 22 points ahead of Mathew Scholtz, who finished fourth on Sunday.
Bobby Fong matched his result from yesterday with another third-place finish, the M4 ECSTAR Suzuki rider again racing with pain in his left wrist/hand from his crash at PittRace a few weeks ago. Fong closed on Gagne in the closing stages of the race, coming up .528 of a second behind the Yamaha rider. Scholtz, meanwhile, was another 3.1 seconds behind Fong in fourth place.
Fifth place on track went to Toni Elias, but he was docked a position which in turn handed the spot to Josh Herrin. Elias had passed Herrin on the final lap after a race-long battle between the two veterans.
Stock 1000 Championship points leader Cameron Petersen had a strong ride to seventh, the South African chasing down Lorenzo Zanetti for the entire race with the Italian crashing out on the final lap. Jayson Uribe had his second straight top-10 finish in his first MotoAmerica event of the year, the Californian riding to eighth some two seconds clear of Bradley Ward. Travis Wyman salvaged a difficult weekend with a 10th-place finish on his BMW.
Source: MCNews.com.au
Images courtesy of FIM CEV Repsol
Qualifying for Round 3 and 4 of the 2020 FIM CEV Repsol on Friday saw riders take to the Circuito de Jerez Angel Nieto, with qualifying practice times setting the grid for Saturday and Sunday’s races!
After the fierce competition, Daniel Muñoz took his first pole position of the year and the first of his FIM Moto3 Junior World Championship career. Moto3 pole position was at the mercy of the track conditions, with many riders not besting their lap time from the morning’s QP1 session. The top 3 would all set their quickest lap time in QP1 rather than QP2, leaving Izan Guevara, championship leader Pedro Acosta to line up on the grid behind Daniel Muñoz.
18-year-old Australian Billy Van Eerde from the Hunter Valley in NSW (Asia Talent Team) was due to start from eighth but was injured during QP2, breaking the femur in his left leg, ending his weekend and turning the focus to recovery after needing surgery as a result. With typical recovery from this kind of injury being in the region of eight weeks, whether Billy will be back in time for the season final remains in question.
“Quick update on Billy after his crash in Q2 yesterday. Unfortunately he has a broken femur in his left leg and went into surgery last night to have it pinned and repaired. He is very disappointed which is to be expected after a great qualify in Q1. Not sure when he will be back, but now he needs to focus on his recovery. We would like to give the Junior Talent Team the biggest shout out for helping out with all the transfers to hospitals and his hospital care. They have been absolutely amazing and we can’t thank them enough. Also to Paula who stayed by his side until Brian arrived at the hospital this morning. Thank you everyone for all your kind messages of support. He is OK, in a little discomfort and we will know more in the coming days.”
Fellow Aussie 17-year-old Joel Kelso from Darwin, qualified in 15th for the weekend – with van Eerde’s withdrawal moving him to 14th on the grid, with Senna Agius 29th, both also in the Moto3 class.
In the Moto2 European Championship it was Yari Montella who claimed pole position once again, while the final pole position went the way of Zonta Van Den Goorbergh, as he picked up his maiden pole in the European Talent Cup. 14-year-old Australian Harrison Voight from the Gold Coast qualified strongly in sixth in the European Talent Cup, with 14-year-old Jacob Roulstone from Jamberoo, NSW, starting the grid from 16th.
In the FIM Moto3 Junior World Championship, Xavi Artigas took the first race win of the weekend, choosing the perfect time to pick up his second win of the season. Artigas would end up winning by just under a second from Daniel Holgado with third place Gerard Riu less than a tenth behind.
It wasn’t all plain sailing for Artigas though, he entered the final lap in the middle of a battle along with then joint championship leader, Pedro Acosta. However, Acosta would crash out at Turn 6, leaving him with 0 points and now trailing Artigas by 25 in the standings.
Top performing Australian in van Eerde’s absence was Joel Kelso finishing in 11th place, having started from last after an electrical issue caused him to miss pit opening, while Senna Agius came home in 17th. A string of earlier mechanical issues had seemed solved for Kelso, after receiving a new engine Thursday night before Friday’s qualifying.
In the Moto2 European Championship, Yari Montella ruled the roost once again as the Italian pulled clear and won by 4.3 seconds. He was challenged by Alessandro Zaccone in the early laps, and Zaccone would come home in second, taking his best finish of the year so far. Niki Tuuli would have his worst result of the season so far, with third place being a testament to the Finn’s consistency in 2020.
Speaking of consistency, David Alonso would start the day by taking victory in the first HETC race, despite actually crossing the line in second behind Zonta Van Den Goorbergh. The Dutchman was dropped one place after exceeding track limits thus finishing second as Australian Harrison Voight picked up his first podium of the year after being promoted from fifth to third. Fellow Aussie Jacob Roulstone finished 18th.
Race 2 came all the way down to the final corner. Alonso would lead going in but had to fend off the attack from Van Den Goorbergh, leaving them both open to a charging Marco Morelli to pick up his first HETC win. Alonso would finish second, and so off the top step for the first time, as Alberto Ferrandez picked up third.
Harrison Voight suffered from mechanical issues in Race 2, finishing in 18th, with Jacob Roulstone the top Australian finisher in 16th.
For the second day in a row, FIM CEV Repsol took to the Jerez circuit for a new race day and the action rolled on as Round 4 got underway at the historic venue.
In the FIM Moto3 Junior World Championship, Izan Guevara and Jose Julian Garcia split the wins between them with both riders taking their first career victory in the class.
In FIM Moto3 race 1, the drama went all the way to the final turn with Guevara eventually prevailing, but that was only after he was able to dodge the luckless David Salvador who crashed out at the final turn after clipping the rear wheel of Pedro Acosta. Acosta would lose what looked likely to be a race win and come across the line in third as his main Championship rival, Xavier Artigas, would pip him to second place.
Joel Kelso was unfortunately taken out in Race 2 when another rider overcooked the second corner, taking out his front wheel, leaving him too sore to continue racing, with Senna Agius the top – and only – Australian finisher as a result in 17th.
“Unfortunately due to a mechanical issue I was unable to start from my original position, in the end I’m happy with the race to come from last to 11th is a great achievement! Unfortunately during race two I got taken out, I will not take part in Race 3.”
The second race would eventually go the way of Jose Julian Garcia after last lap, last corner track limits drama gifted him the win. It was Izan Guevara who crossed the line in first place, but he was stripped of picking up the double as he exceeded track limits at the final turn, forcing him to drop 1 place, meaning Garcia took the top step. Behind Guevara in second was Pedro Acosta, adding a third place to the one he picked up in race 1. Senna Agius was once again the only Australian finisher in 18th.
Moto2 fired into life with Keminth Kubo taking the holeshot, but the Thai rider would eventually slip back to take fifth. Yari Montella barged his way to the front at the end of lap 1 and didn’t look back from there, racing into the distance to win by six-seconds. Behind him, Alessandro Zaccone ran second for much of the race before taking a trip through the gravel at turn 11, eventually coming home in ninth place. That meant that the still recovering Niki Tuuli picked up another second place as he held Alejandro Medina at arms length as he took the first Moto2 podium of his career.
Zonta Van Den Goorbergh raced to victory in a restarted HETC race. The race was red flagged after Filippo Farioli highsided out of Turn 6 but was fortunately unhurt. A five-lap dash followed, with Van Den Goorbergh controlling it from the front. Chaos ensued behind as Angel Piqueras, Marco Morelli and Adrian Cruces all crashed out at the final turn on the final lap. In the aftermath of the final corner drama, David Alonso and his teammate Ivan Ortola took second and third. The final HETC race of the weekend saw Harrison Voight race to eighth, with Jacob Roulstone 16th.
“Race 3 at Jerez was the toughest race I’ve ever had with almost 14 or so riders in the front group. At the end I finished 8th so I’m happy but I knew the result could of been better. I gave it my all with my elbows out and being aggressive. Overall it’s been a great weekend and we made some big improvements from the previous rounds. Big thank you to everyone in the team SIC 58 Squadra CORSE, Mum and Dad and to everyone that was cheering on from home.”
Source: MCNews.com.au
Endurance victory to Australia’s Hook alongside Foray and Di Meglio.
Image: Supplied.
Australian Josh Hook’s F.C.C. TSR Honda France team has taken a triumphant victory in the Le Mans 24 Hours, round three of the 2020 Endurance World Championship (EWC).
As a result of the fickle weather and constantly changing track conditions, the teams were under pressure for the entire 24 hours.
It’s the second win from TSR Honda – led by Hook alongside Freddy Foray and Mike Di Meglio – in the famous French endurance event, capturing victory ahead of Webike SRC Kawasaki France Trickstar and current points-leader Suzuki Endurance Racing Team.
The tricky track conditions deprived Suzuki Endurance Racing Team of the second place they had looked sure of claiming two hours from the finish. A crash made them lose their two-lap advantage over Webike SRC Kawasaki France Trickstar.
Image: Supplied.
Following a crash early on in the race, pole-setters YART Yamaha pushed hard to get back into the leading pack, as Karel Hanika, Marvin Fritz and Niccolo Canepa finished in fourth place, but five laps behind the winners.
The BMW Motorrad World Endurance Team was a late non-finisher, which benefited VRD Igol Pierret Experiences Yamaha as that team inherited fifth place, ahead of 3ART Best of Bike Yamaha and Broc Parkes’ Wojcik Racing Team Yamaha in P7.
Le Mans also threw the championship wide-open, since five of the six factory teams are now grouped together at the top of the provisional standings ahead of the the final round, which will play out on Saturday, 26 September, at the 12 Hours of Estoril in Portugal.
Source: CycleOnline.com.au
Photos: Images Everything Photography & M33 Productions
Three-time World Superbike champion and current co-owner of ASBK team DesmoSport Ducati Troy Bayliss, needs little introduction, while his son Oli, only 16, is already rising through the ranks of racing. Last weekend Oli tried the DesmoSport Ducati V4R superbike for the first time, here’s Troy and Oli Bayliss’s take from after the Pirelli Southern Downs meet at Morgan Park, Australia.
Oli, you’re only 16, but this weekend you made your debut on the V4R superbike at the Pirelli Southern Downs series. How did the weekend go?
Oli Bayliss: “It was a really good weekend. We started off doing OK times and progressing every session. In the last race of the day we got the bike sorted. I had the best feeling on the bike over the weekend and everything turned out good.”
What was it like getting on a superbike for the first time? You’ve spent almost two years on the 600. Did it take a long time to get used to the power? And how did you feel afterwards?
Oli: “Coming from the 600, the V4 is a similar aspect. You come out of the corners and, off the bottom, it doesn’t have that much power, compared to what I’ve heard from the V2. But once it gets high up in the rev range it’s so fast. So fast.”
Troy, how did you feel seeing Oli riding the superbike? What advice did you give him?
Troy Bayliss: “It was a strange one. The plan was not to have Oli on a superbike this year. But Oli’s been giving Ben Henry (DesmoSport co-founder) a hard time because he said: ‘remember you said when I win a race on the 600 I could have a ride on the bigger bike?’ But the way it’s worked out this year, with the ASBK on hold, we’re stuck in Queensland. The Pirelli Southern Downs series, which was at Morgan Park, had a round at the weekend and we thought, with the way the world is at the moment, it’s a good opportunity to let Oli have a ride on the bike. Being parents, it’s difficult to watch. I’m so comfortable with him on the 600, and he seems so in control of it. So stepping up to a bigger bike is quite stressful. It was hard to watch for a while but seeing him progress over the weekend, he looked good on the bike. He knows Morgan Park very well. The only thing is, Morgan Park is probably the most difficult track to ride a Superbike on in Australia. It’s so physical. It was really good for Oli to ride alongside Mike Jones. Mike’s so smooth and fast and he’s great to have on our team.”
What advice did Mike give you through the weekend and during the day of testing prior to the weekend?
Oli: “Pretty much, we turned up on Thursday and everything was going well. Mike gave me a few laps and we both followed each other around for a bit. When it came to qualifying Mike told me to just be smooth and not to rush anything because we’ve got the whole weekend to be here. Once we started racing there were no nerves and no pressure. We just went out there to have a bit of fun. And the whole team really helped a lot.”
We know what Troy’s career and record has been like. But what are your plans for the future? And what’s the ultimate goal?
Oli: “Just to be one of the best in the world. We don’t really know what the next few years have to come, due to coronavirus. I’d like to be doing Australia Superbike or World Supersport. Or something along those lines. To keep progressing.”
Troy, seeing Oli jump on a red bike again and the Superbike class in particular, does it bring it all back, and does it make you feel like throwing your leg over a bike again?
Troy: “Oh no, I’m so happy to be on the side lines. I really am. I’m actually in a really good head space. I’m fit and healthy. If I wanted to ride I could. One day I’ll have a ride with Oli and Mike to have a bit of fun. But it’s all about doing everything we can to make these guys as fast as they possibly can be. I love the team and working on the bikes and talking with the boys. It’s just a game. You go through the levels. And it’s trying to master the levels, that’s all it is.”
What’s it like having your dad as your coach?
Oli: “It’s really good. When I first started racing 300s, we used to ride around Morgan Park together. We did the same on the 600s for a bit. Once I got a bit faster than him , he stopped riding and I kept on improving. Definitely this year we’ll have another ride on the R6s together. He’s been dying for it. We’ll have a go and post the results.”
Troy: “I’m pretty keen to have a spin on the R6. But he’s definitely progressed a lot since the last time we rode together. At 16, he’s pretty young, but he’s nearly done the second year in the 600s and he’s really learned a lot. Especially in the last year. It was the perfect opportunity to put Oli on the bike. We have a great relationship with Ducati, and we love Motul. Motul’s been with us for a long time. It’s a great product and that’s all that goes in the bikes.”
You’ve both ridden Oli’s Cube Racing R6. Who’s faster?
Troy: ” Oli, by 1.2 seconds. That was over a year ago. We’ve progressed a bit with the bike. We’ve got the bike working really well, so I’m sure I could go quite a bit quicker than the last time I was on it. I’m sure outright speed he’ll be faster than me. We’ll soon find out next time we go to Morgan Park. Watch this space.”
You’ve both ridden the Desmo Sport Ducati V4R. Who’s faster?
Troy: “I’ve got him covered there by nearly a second. Especially at Morgan Park, because it’s a track where you have to physically attack the place. It’s that rough and hard work. And I’ve been round there a lot of times on a superbike. But for his first weekend, to be going as fast as he’s going is pretty good.”
Who’s had the biggest influence on your racing career so far?
Oli: “Dad. Or mum. Every time we go to the track, Dad and I are always chatting about how I can go faster or smoother.”
Troy: “It’s not just me either but with Ben at the workshop down at Cube Performance Centre. The whole team, the same as every team, is all about having a good relationship and making the boys faster.”
How do you like being a team owner with Ben compared to being a rider?
Troy: “Doing this in Australia is not too stressful. I wouldn’t want to be doing this worldwide. I have no interest in that at all. We’re having a great time here in the ASBK paddock. Ben and I get on well together. It’s been fun the last few years and we’re lucky to have Mike as the reigning champion. We hope to keep the winning ways going.”
How did you find the steps up between bikes?
Oli: “Going from the 300 to 600 was a bit of a change, but after a few days at Morgan Park I felt really at home on the bike, on the R6. Now coming from the R6 to the V4, it’s the same thing. After a few more days and races, I’ll really feel comfortable on that bike and push it to the extra step.”
Source: MCNews.com.au
Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team) reclaimed his Championship lead on Sunday after being beaten on Saturday by Scott Redding. Rea bounced back with two victories at MotorLand Aragon on Sunday and now leads the series by ten-points.
Rea won the Tissot Superpole race from Scott Redding and Michael van der Mark with Alvaro Bautista scoring fourth on the new HRC Fireblade and thus the KRT #1 started the Sunday afternoon race from pole position and, despite pressure from Scott Redding (Aruba Ducati) in the early corners, was able to pull away from the chasing group.
Rea led every lap throughout the race despite a mistake on Lap 14 which allowed Chaz Davies (Aruba Ducati) to close the gap from around two-seconds to just two-tenths. Despite Davies attempting a move into Turn 1 on Lap 15, Rea held on to take victory by over one second ahead of Davies.
Alvaro Bautista (Team HRC), who started the race from fourth, got ahead of Redding in the early stages, and claimed his first podium for Honda and Honda’s first podium since Magny-Cours in 2016; Bautista and Honda showed good pace throughout the weekend.
Redding finished the race in fourth place after being passed by Bautista and Davies, but the British rider also had to make a move on Michael van der Mark (Pata Yamaha) on Lap 4 to help secure that fourth place.
Michael Ruben Rinaldi (GoEleven Ducati) made it three Ducati machines in the top five with fifth place as he also got by van der Mark, with the Dutchman finishing in sixth place.
Leon Haslam (Team HRC) made it two Hondas in the top seven after a titanic battle with a group of five riders. Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pata Yamaha) claimed eighth place with Alex Lowes (Kawasaki Racing Team) in ninth and Garrett Gerloff (GRT Yamaha) completed the top 10. There was just one second separating Haslam, Razgatlioglu, Lowes and Gerloff.
Xavi Fores (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing) had a strong result in 11th place, finishing less than a tenth of a second behind American rider Gerloff as part of the group of five riders fighting for seventh place.
Tom Sykes was the lead BMW rider in 12th place as the final rider in that battle; Federico Caricasulo (GRT Yamaha) finishing around three seconds behind Sykes in 13th. Eugene Laverty (BMW) and Maximilian Scheib (ORELAC Racing VerdNatura) completed the points with 15th.
Sylvain Barrier (Brixx Ducati), Christophe Ponsson (Nuova M2 Racing), Takumi Takahashi (MIE Racing Althea Honda) and team-mate Lorenzo Gabellini all finished the race while Loris Baz (Ten Kate Yamaha) retired from the race following a crash on Lap 4 of 18 at Turn 15; the French rider unable to re-join the race following the incident where he came off on his bike on his own. He was not the only non-finisher as Marco Melandri (Barni Racing) who retired with a technical issue and Roman Ramos (OutDO Kawasaki TPR) retired from the race on the penultimate lap.
MIE Racing and Althea Racing cooperation also came to an end after this round. From the upcoming Teruel Round, the team name will change to MIE Racing Honda Team with Takumi Takahashi as sole rider.
“In the Superpole race I made an OK start but then Loris Baz came on the inside, so I got a little bit flustered. I knew I had to keep the rhythm really fast in the beginning because it was a good opportunity. Using the softer SCX tyre for the sprint race has a lot of potential but we did not do so many laps on it in practice, and the conditions were not as hot. So, thanks to my team because Pere and all the guys gave me a really good set-up. In race two I went wide at one point and that gave Chaz the chance to attack in turn one but I wanted to attack him back straight away and set my own rhythm. I knew I could push and put my head down again. I did not expect the pace I had today in race two; I was so surprised. I knew I could be fast and the Superpole race gave me a lot of confidence. When I could really get stuck into the 1’50 laps, and keep that load going at the beginning of the race, it was easier to manage when the tyre would drop. I learned from race one yesterday.”
“I’m very happy with the way things went this weekend. It is clear that the first place has another value but I am really satisfied with the work done by the team that put me in a position to be competitive since Friday. Unfortunately, the start was not the best and in the first laps, I had to fight with the group. Then I was able to lap with a good race pace and to fight with Jonny (Rea) until the last corner. We will get back on track with solid foundations next week end”.
“Unfortunately I struggled a lot since the very first laps to make the rear tyre work well. I was never able to find the grip that would allow me to push with the right rhythm. In the next two days, we will have to work to understand if it was a problem with the bike or just a tyre that didn’t work in the best way, also because Chaz went very fast. I find it hard to accept to win race one and then finish fourth in race two”.
“I’m so happy with this podium because it’s a result of all our hard work so far. We’ve been able to take another good step forward this weekend. I was also pleased with my fourth-place result in the Superpole race, as it’s not easy over such a limited number of laps. We can say we’re on our way to achieving our target, which is to win, though there is still work to do of course. I am happy with the way we are developing the bike and we clearly have good potential. Now it’s a case of fine tuning the whole package and continuing to work step by step. I want to thank HRC and Honda and all my mechanics who have worked so hard to resolve various issues that emerged over the weekend. They all really deserve this podium. We are making clear progress, I’m gaining confidence race by race, and I’m looking forward to seeing if we can take another step forward next weekend here at the same track.”
“It’s been a little frustrating because in testing here two weeks ago, things were going well and we were consistent in our performance. But when we started the work this weekend, we had some problems and race 1 and the sprint race were both difficult for me. Race 2 on the other hand was very positive, it was the first time I was able to really battle with other riders and fight until the final corner, beating those in my group on the last lap to close seventh. So there were many positives in the last race, and Bautista finishing on the podium is another big positive of course. When we’re both struggling it’s not good for motivation but when you see your team-mate make the podium you realise where the bike can be. Hopefully we can take what we’ve learned and take the next step next weekend.”
“I was quite happy for the Superpole race and was fourth for most of it, but just lacked a bit of speed at the end, when Alvaro Bautista and Chaz passed me. They were a bit quicker and I could not fight them off after the crash yesterday. We made a change with the front of the bike for the long race today and I did not feel comfortable. I was sort of fighting the bike. I was involved in quite a big battle, which was fun, but not in the positions that I want to be battling for. It was hard because I was not as confident in the front and it was sliding a lot so I could not be too aggressive. We put some points on the board and we have a few days now to get some good result in Aragon again next weekend. Well done to Johnny and the guys today, bouncing back from yesterday’s race. He did a fantastic job, so we know the Ninja ZX-10RR can do it, so we need to put our heads together before the next weekend to give myself a little bit more confidence with a better set-up.”
“It was a difficult weekend, but we expected it. Having not done a test here before the weekend, we knew we were going to struggle but maybe not as much. It is a tricky circuit and we could see that the Yamahas had more problems here. We really struggled with engine braking as the rear grip deteriorated after 3 laps. It is frustrating especially since we started from the front row and I got the holeshot twice. The qualifying result is what we need to remember from this weekend. We mustn’t forget we worked really hard for this. I believed I could make it in the first race and then the second when I was following Jonathan for three laps. But as soon as I started to lose grip, we started to experience many problems with corner entries. We need to work on the electronics, engine brake and the ser-up of the bike. We have a few days to analyse this. We need to find a solution to get closer to the front. We will try it again next week!”
“I think we can be quite happy with today’s performance, this morning in Warm Up we tried something a little different on the bike and it felt better compared to yesterday. In the Superpole Race I had a lot of fun, there was some good action and I felt strong. I was missing a bit of grip at the end, but I was really happy to finish on the podium for the first time at Aragón. For Race 2, we had a good bike for the long distance and from the start I was really fast and managed to get up to second place. From there, Johnny was a bit too quick to catch! As soon as my grip dropped, I struggled a lot on the exit of the corners and one-by-one people started passing me, so that’s why we finished sixth. Despite this, I think we are going in the right direction. We made some good progress and the best thing is that we have a lot of data from this weekend which we can use for the next one.”
“Today, I think this has been my worst weekend this year even though we finished and collected points in every race. We tried a different set-up for rear grip after yesterday, in the Superpole Race it didn’t feel too bad, but it did not work for me during Race 2 and so this is the result. Now I will look ahead with my team for next week here at Aragón and work to find another approach to try and fight at the front.”
“It was a shame in the Superpole Race. Chaz Davies made a miscalculation in one corner which pushed me out wide and left me nowhere to go. This is a shame as Tati Mercado got injured in the aftermath which is something you never want to see. Race two was frustrating, we had certainly had the pace to get away from the guys, but we had those limitations on the straights which undid all the hard work we did in the corners catching them up.”
“The weekend as a whole has been so tough, which I didn’t see coming. Starting down the grid made it difficult, but we just didn’t have the pace. However, finally today we found what we needed so we were able to make progress with the bike in the final race two. So that at least gives us some direction for next week in Aragón, but we have lost an entire weekend.”
“We would have liked to do better today but unfortunately I didn’t have the same feeling with the bike as I did yesterday despite having made no changes to it. Perhaps the conditions were a little different. Anyway, I think we’ve had a positive weekend if we take it as a whole. Not only because we were able to finish in the points zone yesterday, but also in terms of the work we have completed over the three days. So I look forward to making further improvement in the next races. I want to congratulate Alvaro and Honda for today’s very well-deserved podium. This also serves as further motivation for us to do better too.”
| Pos | Rider | Bike | Time/Gap |
| 1 | J. Rea | Kawasaki | 0.00 |
| 2 | C. Davies | Ducati | +1.28 |
| 3 | A. Bautista | Honda | +3.599 |
| 4 | S. Redding | Ducati | +5.445 |
| 5 | M. Rinaldi | Ducati | +6.687 |
| 6 | M. Van Der Mark | Yamaha | +9.561 |
| 7 | L. Haslam | Honda | +20.911 |
| 8 | T. Razgatlioglu | Yamaha | +21.248 |
| 9 | A. Lowes | Kawasaki | +21.399 |
| 10 | G. Gerloff | Yamaha | +21.717 |
| 11 | X. Fores | Kawasaki | +21.809 |
| 12 | T. Sykes | BMW | +22.012 |
| 13 | F. Caricasulo | Yamaha | +25.244 |
| 14 | E. Laverty | BMW | +30.088 |
| 15 | M. Scheib | Kawasaki | +36.546 |
| 16 | S. Barrier | Ducati | +49.074 |
| 17 | C. Ponsson | Aprilia | +55.511 |
| 18 | T. Takahashi | Honda | +100.754 |
| 19 | L. Gabellini | Honda | +135.65 |
| Not Classified | |||
| 20 | R. Ramos | Kawasaki | 1 Lap |
| 21 | M. Melandri | Ducati | 8 Laps |
| 22 | L. Baz | Yamaha | 14 Laps |
| Pos | Rider | Bike | Time/Gap |
| 1 | J. Rea | Kawasaki | 0.000 |
| 2 | S. Redding | Ducati | +2.635 |
| 3 | M. Van Der Mark | Yamaha | +4.041 |
| 4 | A. Bautista | Honda | +5.560 |
| 5 | C. Davies | Ducati | +5.976 |
| 6 | A. Lowes | Kawasaki | +6.232 |
| 7 | T. Razgatlioglu | Yamaha | +7.094 |
| 8 | M. Rinaldi | Ducati | +7.589 |
| 9 | L. Baz | Yamaha | +7.909 |
| 10 | L. Haslam | Honda | +11.399 |
| 11 | F. Caricasulo | Yamaha | +13.204 |
| 12 | X. Fores | Kawasaki | +14.430 |
| 13 | G. Gerloff | Yamaha | +16.096 |
| 14 | M. Scheib | Kawasaki | +16.266 |
| 15 | T. Sykes | BMW | +17.958 |
| 16 | E. Laverty | BMW | +23.574 |
| 17 | M. Melandri | Ducati | +24.169 |
| 18 | S. Barrier | Ducati | +26.146 |
| 19 | R. Ramos | Kawasaki | +26.790 |
| 20 | T. Takahashi | Honda | +39.799 |
| 21 | L. Gabellini | Honda | +1m08.958 |
| Not Classified | |||
| NC | C. Ponsson | Aprilia | / |
| RET | L. Mercado | Ducati | / |
| Pos | RIder | Points |
| 1 | Jonathan Rea | 189 |
| 2 | Scott Redding | 179 |
| 3 | Toprak Razgatlioglu | 124 |
| 4 | Chaz Davies | 120 |
| 5 | Michael Van Der Mark | 110 |
| 6 | Alex Lowes | 102 |
| 7 | Michael Ruben Rinaldi | 79 |
| 8 | Alvaro Bautista | 77 |
| 9 | Loris Baz | 64 |
| 10 | Leon Haslam | 51 |
| 11 | Tom Sykes | 51 |
| 12 | Garrett Gerloff | 28 |
| 13 | Xavi Fores | 27 |
| 14 | Federico Caricasulo | 22 |
| 15 | Marco Melandri | 19 |
| 16 | Eugene Laverty | 18 |
| 17 | Sandro Cortese | 14 |
| 18 | Leandro Mercado | 12 |
| 19 | Maximilian Scheib | 11 |
| 20 | Sylvain Barrier | 5 |
| 21 | Christophe Ponsson | 4 |
| 22 | Roman Ramos | 3 |
| 23 | Takumi Takahashi | 1 |
FIM Supersport World Championship action continued at the Prosecco DOC Aragon Round with Andrea Locatelli claiming another victory and fastest lap as his Championship blitz continued at MotorLand Aragon. Locatelli has now won his first seven races after moving across from Moto2 to WorldSSP.
Locatelli had been beaten off the line by Lucas Mahias (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing) but took just a handful of corners to re-gain the lead. Mahias was able to put Locatelli under pressure during the first half of the race but his pace started to drop off; Frenchman Jules Cluzel (GMT94 Yamaha) able to pass Mahias on Lap 7.
Mahias was able to follow his fellow French rider with the pair duelling for second. Cluzel would finish the race in second place with Raffaele de Rosa (MV Agusta Reparto Corse) claiming a podium after a late charge through the field.
Mahias would finish in fourth place after being passed by Cluzel and de Rosa in the second half of the 15-lap race, the French rider finishing 4.5 seconds clear of Philipp Oettl (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing) in fifth place. Isaac Viñales (Kallio Racing) finished in sixth place, almost 10 seconds behind Locatelli.
Viñales had around an eight second gap to Corentin Perolari (GMT94 Yamaha) who was involved in a titanic battle for seventh place with South African rider Steven Odendaal (EAB Ten Kate Racing); the pair finishing the race with a drag race to the line and being separated by just 0.010s as they crossed the line. Danny Webb (WRP Wepol Racing) equalled his best race finish in WorldSSP with ninth place, also featured in race-long battle with Manuel Gonzalez (Kawasaki ParkinGO Team) and Hungarian Peter Sebestyen (OXXO Yamaha Team Toth); Gonzalez and Sebestyen finishing in tenth and 11th but with just 0.017s separating the trio.
Federico Fuligni (MV Agusta Reparto Corse) finished in 12th place with Can Öncü (Turkish Racing Team) finishing in 13th. Alejandro Carranza Ruiz (EMPREADOR Racing) was the highest placed WorldSSP – Challenge rider in 14th while Hikari Okubo (Dynavolt Honda) completed the points with a 15th place finish.
Estonian rider Hannes Soomer (Kallio Racing) retired from the race following a Lap 1 crash, while Axel Bassani (Soradis Yamaha Motoxracing) also crashing during the race and retiring. Lachlan Epis (MPM Routz Racing) failed to finish the race after a crash at Turn 1 in the early stages of the race; the trio the only three to not finish the race.
“It’s fantastic and it’s incredible. Every time, we don’t make a mistake, and this is important. We are faster every time. Also, with the difficult conditions today with a lot of wind, we are stronger. We will work a little bit for next weekend because we are staying here for another weekend.”
“I am happy again because the fight was hard. There are a lot of fast guys in this race fighting for second position. I am happy to finish second. To be honest, in some places, I was struggling with the grip a little bit and they were faster than me. The Kawasaki at the beginning was so fast, especially in acceleration and some turns, they were just pulling away. After a few laps, I managed to stay and come back a little bit on Mahias. I passed him and after that, it was another story because I was alone, and I was giving the pace to the riders behind me and they were pushing me hard. To finish second, another second place, but it’s great to take 20 points and be in front of these guys.”
“This morning, in warm up, my feeling was very good. I thought it was possible to have a good race. But, as always, my first and second laps were not very quick. After three laps, I check my lap time and see it is very good. I concentrated on overtaking the group in front to claim the podium. I am very happy, especially for my team.”
| Pos | Rider | Bike | Time/Gap |
| 1 | A. Locatelli | Yamaha | 0.00 |
| 2 | J. Cluzel | Yamaha | +2.19 |
| 3 | R. De Rosa | MV Agusta | +2.479 |
| 4 | L. Mahias | Kawasaki | +2.925 |
| 5 | P. Oettl | Kawasaki | +7.393 |
| 6 | I. Vinales | Yamaha | +9.981 |
| 7 | C. Perolari | Yamaha | +17.81 |
| 8 | S. Odendaal | Yamaha | +17.82 |
| 9 | D. Webb | Yamaha | +19.156 |
| 10 | M. Gonzalez | Kawasaki | +19.167 |
| 11 | P. Sebestyen | Yamaha | +19.173 |
| 12 | F. Fuligni | MV Agusta | +19.513 |
| 13 | C. Oncu | Kawasaki | +21.739 |
| 14 | A. Ruiz Carranza | Yamaha | +30.69 |
| 15 | H. Okubo | Honda | +33.792 |
| 16 | S. Valtulini | Kawasaki | +40.752 |
| 17 | L. Cresson | Yamaha | +43.033 |
| 18 | P. Hobelsberger | Honda | +47.477 |
| 19 | A. Verdoia | Yamaha | +49.918 |
| 20 | M. Herrera | Yamaha | +49.95 |
| 21 | G. Hendra Pratama | Yamaha | +50.089 |
| 22 | L. Montella | Yamaha | 1m04.794 |
| Not Classified | |||
| RET | 83 L. Epis | Yamaha | 13 Laps |
| RET | A. Bassani | Yamaha | / |
| RET | H. Soomer | Yamaha | / |
| Pos | Rider | Points |
| 1 | Andrea Locatelli | 175 |
| 2 | Jules Cluzel | 130 |
| 3 | Lucas Mahias | 86 |
| 4 | Philipp Oettl | 76 |
| 5 | Corentin Perolari | 72 |
| 6 | Raffaele De Rosa | 71 |
| 7 | Steven Odendaal | 67 |
| 8 | Isaac Vinales | 63 |
| 9 | Manuel Gonzalez | 53 |
| 10 | Hannes Soomer | 39 |
| 11 | Danny Webb | 34 |
| 12 | Can Alexander Oncu | 30 |
| 13 | Peter Sebestyen | 18 |
| 14 | Alejandro Ruiz Carranza | 15 |
| 15 | Federico Fuligni | 13 |
| 16 | Miquel Pons | 9 |
| 17 | Patrick Hobelsberger | 6 |
| 18 | Loris Cresson | 6 |
| 19 | Andy Verdoia | 4 |
| 20 | Kevin Manfredi | 3 |
| 21 | Axel Bassani | 3 |
| 22 | Maria Herrera | 2 |
| 23 | Jaimie Van Sikkelerus | 2 |
| 24 | Hikari Okubo | 1 |
| 25 | Galang Hendra Pratama | 1 |
| 26 | Luigi Montella | 1 |
A weekend of action in FIM Supersport World Championship finished with a sensational overtake by Jeffrey Buis (MTM Kawasaki) meant he claimed his second win at MotorLand Aragon in as many days, with the polesitter leading for most of the race but a sweeping move around the final two corners to take race victory and the Championship lead; with just eight points separating the top four riders.
Buis had started from pole position and looked to try to break away to repeat yesterday’s dominant victory, but Buis was kept in sight by his rivals. On the penultimate lap, Buis found himself without the lead of the race and took a normal racing line into Turn 1, allowing him to keep maximum speed through the corner without the benefit of the slipstream. It paid dividends for Buis as he was able to take the lead again before team-mate Scott Deroue (MTM Kawasaki) passed him on the last lap.
Deroue had the lead going into the long back straight and Buis used the slipstream effect to keep himself in contention before sweeping around the outside of Turns 17 and 18 and launching himself off the final corner to claim a sensational victory following the stunning overtake. Thomas Brianti (Prodina Ircos) claimed his first podium of 2020 with second place, holding off Deroue who finished third.
Unai Orradre (Yamaha MS Racing) finished in fourth place while featuring in the pack for the lead with Meikon Kawakami (Team Brasil AD 78) finishing in fifth; the Brazilian able to keep in contention after starting from the front row. 2018 Champion Ana Carrasco (Kawasaki Provec WorldSSP300) finished in sixth place; the top six riders separated by less than a second.
Bruno Ieraci (Kawasaki GP Project) finished in seventh place, 1.3 seconds off Buis to show how close WorldSSP300 is in 2020. Ton Kawakami (Yamaha MS Racing), who also started from the front row, finished in eighth place ahead of the recovering Koen Meuffels (MTM Kawasaki); Dutchman Meuffels starting at the back of the grid following a technical infringement on Saturday. Victor Rodriguez Nunez (2R Racing) completed the top ten, finishing just 0.001s ahead of Hugo de Cancellis (Team Trasimeno).
Glenn van Straalen (EAB Ten Kate Racing) finished in 12th place with Kevin Sabatucci (Kawasaki GP Project), Filippo Rovelli (Kawasaki ParkinGO Team) and Ukrainian Nick Kalinin (Battley-RT Motorsports by SKM-Kawasaki) completed the points. There was just under a second separating Meuffels in ninth and Rovelli in 14th place.
Yuta Okaya (MTM Kawasaki) was the first retirement of the race after a crash on the opening lap of the race while Johan Gimbert (GP Project) also retired in the early stages of the race alongside Oscar Nunez Roldan (Scuderia Maranga Racing), Tom Edwards (Kawasaki ParkinGO Team) and Adrian Huertas (ProGP Racing). Tom Booth-Amos (RT Motorsports by SKM – Kawasaki) and Bahattin Sofuoglu (Biblion Motoxracing Yamaha WorldSSP300) suffered a crash which forced them both to retire.
Tom Bramich missed out on making the race after missing the cut in the Last Chance Race, despite finishing that race only 1.3-seconds behind the race winner, P9 was not enough to qualify for the main races.
“At the beginning of the race I thought I could make a gap, but my pitboard says 0.0. I thought it was going to be a big group. The last lap was a little bit crazy!”
“I’m very happy with my first podium in WorldSSP300. Thank you to all my team, my sponsors, my family thanks to everyone.”
“I had a good start and the first laps were good. I was chasing my teammate Jeffrey and he had really good pace. He’s so fast here. I was really pushing to stay with him. I thought that after some laps we may have had a gap, because Jeffrey yesterday had a gap, but when I looked behind there was a big group. They overtook me, I was back to fifth, so I had to go to the back of Jeffrey again. It was really hard, but it worked, and I’m happy with third.”
| Pos | Rider | Bike | Class | Gap |
| 1 | J. Buis | Kawasaki | A | 0.000 |
| 2 | T. Brianti | Kawasaki | B | +0.146 |
| 3 | S. Deroue | Kawasaki | B | +0.214 |
| 4 | U. Orradre | Yamaha | A | +0.592 |
| 5 | M. Kawakami | Yamaha | B | +0.632 |
| 6 | A. Carrasco | Kawasaki | B | +0.906 |
| 7 | B. Ieraci | Kawasaki | A | +1.307 |
| 8 | T. Kawakami | Yamaha | B | +2.154 |
| 9 | K. Meuffels | Kawasaki | A | +12.149 |
| 10 | V. Rodriguez Nunez | Kawasaki | A | +12.49 |
| 11 | H. De Cancellis | Yamaha | B | +12.491 |
| 12 | G. Van Straalen | Yamaha | A | +12.531 |
| 13 | K. Sabatucci | Kawasaki | B | +13.015 |
| 14 | F. Rovelli | Kawasaki | A | +13.054 |
| 15 | N. Kalinin | Kawasaki | A | +16.93 |
| 16 | A. Kroh | Yamaha | A | +19.49 |
| 17 | K. Aloisi | Yamaha | A | +19.512 |
| 18 | O. Konig | Kawasaki | B | +20.027 |
| 19 | E. De La Vega | Yamaha | B | +20.335 |
| 20 | A. Carrion | Kawasaki | A | +20.365 |
| 21 | A. Coppola | Kawasaki | B | +20.381 |
| 22 | T. Bercot | Yamaha | B | +20.382 |
| 23 | M. Gennai | Yamaha | A | +20.427 |
| 24 | A. Diaz | Yamaha | A | +23.083 |
| 25 | G. Mastroluca | Kawasaki | B | +27.184 |
| 26 | M. Perez | Kawasaki | A | +33.565 |
| 26 | I. Iglesias Bravo | Kawasaki | B | +115.041 |
| Not Classified | ||||
| RET | S. Markarian | Yamaha | B | 1 Lap |
| RET | B. Sofuoglu | Yamaha | B | 5 Laps |
| RET | T. Booth-Amos | Kawasaki | B | 5 Laps |
| RET | A. Huertas | Yamaha | B | 5 Laps |
| RET | T. Edwards | Kawasaki | B | 7 Laps |
| RET | O. Nunez Roldan | Kawasaki | A | 7 Laps |
| RET | J. Gimbert | Kawasaki | A | 8 Laps |
| RET | Y. Okaya | Kawasaki | B | 8 Laps |
| Pos | Rider | Points |
| 1 | Jeffrey Buis | 86 |
| 2 | Ana Carrasco | 84 |
| 3 | Scott Deroue | 83 |
| 4 | Unai Orradre | 78 |
| 5 | Tom Booth-Amos | 63 |
| 6 | Thomas Brianti | 58 |
| 7 | Bahattin Sofuoglu | 57 |
| 8 | Meikon Kawakami | 37 |
| 9 | Mika Perez | 35 |
| 10 | Yuta Okaya | 29 |
| 11 | Bruno Ieraci | 27 |
| 12 | Hugo De Cancellis | 24 |
| 13 | Ton Kawakami | 22 |
| 14 | Koen Meuffels | 22 |
| 15 | Samuel Di Sora | 20 |
| 16 | Nick Kalinin | 19 |
| 17 | Kevin Sabatucci | 16 |
| 18 | Victor Rodriguez Nunez | 14 |
| 19 | Glenn Van Straalen | 12 |
| 20 | Tom Edwards | 9 |
| 21 | Alvaro Diaz | 8 |
| 22 | Alan Kroh | 5 |
| 23 | Inigo Iglesias Bravo | 4 |
| 24 | Enzo De La Vega | 4 |
| 25 | Oliver Konig | 4 |
| 26 | Filippo Rovelli | 4 |
| 27 | Alfonso Coppola | 4 |
| 28 | Alejandro Carrion | 4 |
| 29 | Adrian Huertas | 3 |
| 30 | Kim Aloisi | 3 |
| 31 | Tom Bercot | 1 |
Source: MCNews.com.au
The Japanese-backed F.C.C. TSR Honda France team have clinched victory at Le Mans, ahead of Webike SRC Kawasaki France Trickstar and Suzuki Endurance Racing Team, with SERT continuing to lead the championship standings with a 40-point lead.
Three different constructors and three different tyre manufacturers stood on the 2020 24 Heures Motos podium. Bridgestone-shod F.C.C. TSR Honda France notched up their second win at Le Mans with riders Josh Hook, Freddy Foray and Mike di Meglio.
At the end of the first eight hours of the 43rd edition of the 24 Heures Motos, F.C.C. TSR Honda France were still holding on to first place and scored the 10 bonus points awarded after the first third of the race. The team spent the whole night at the front of the pack, maintaining the lead over their rivals, to collect a further 10-point bonus at the end of the 16th hour. During the night, Di Meglio even set the race lap record with 1’36.985. The trio of riders did not make any mistakes during this picture-perfect race and eventually crossed the line taking the chequered flag to win the 24-hour race.
Making their first outing on the track using Michelin tyres, Webike SRC Kawasaki France Trickstar defended their second place to the last thanks to Jérémy Guarnoni, Erwan Nigon and David Checa. They finished one lap ahead of Dunlop-shod Suzuki Endurance Racing Team (Etienne Masson, Gregg Black and Xavier Simeon), who held second on hour four, before settling into third overnight.
Unfortunately, two hours from the finish, Black was involved in a collision with a lapped rider and needed to come into the pits for a quick repair and after five minutes, the team – headed by Damien Saulnier – was back on track in third position; a position they held until the flag.
Following a crash early on in the race, YART Yamaha pushed hard to get back into the leading pack. Throughout the night, YART were the quickest team on track, taking advantage of the grip provided by the Bridgestone slicks in the cooler, dry conditions. Chasing down fourth position, Hanika powered through a wet Sunday morning before Canpea took over as the track dried out, closing the gap to BMW in fourth, catching and passing them with just over three hours to go.
YART’s podium chances were reignited with two hours remaining after a crash for the Suzuki Endurance Racing Team, who were running second at the time. Despite the best efforts of the Czech rider, he couldn’t match the pace of the repaired Suzuki, who strapped on the dry tyres while Hanika was still on wets. YART Yamaha turned their attention to bringing the bike home in fourth, which they were able to successfully do. YART’s Karel Hanika, Marvin Fritz and Niccolò Canepa finished in fourth place, five laps behind the winners.
BMW Motorrad World Endurance Team, solidly anchored in fifth place, lost their position after Ilya Mykhalchyk crashed at the tail end of the race. The factory BMW team were unable to cross the finish line and therefore not classified. The late-stage drama enabled F.C.C. TSR Honda France to shoot up to second place in the provisional championship standings.
It also benefited VRD Igol Pierret Experiences, who inherited fifth place, ahead of 3ART Best of Bike and Polish team Wójcik Racing Team, which included Australian Broc Parkes alongside Gino Rea and Axel Maurin – who became winners of the EWC Dunlop Independent Trophy.
Suzuki Endurance Racing Team now leads the standings from F.C.C. TSR Honda France, with Yamalube Yamaha EWC Official Team by YART third overall.
As a result of the fickle weather and constantly changing track conditions, the teams were under pressure for the entire 24 hours of this year’s race. Stray showers in the final stages of the race forced the teams into some chancy tyre strategy.
The race also threw the FIM Endurance Championship open. Five of the six factory teams are grouped together at the top of the provisional standings with less than a month to go for the final, which will play out on Saturday 26 September at the 12 Hours of Estoril in Portugal.
Ducati is missing from that group, despite some great performances by Team ERC Endurance all weekend long. The German team did their utmost to stay within striking reach of the leading pack at Le Mans. But they ran into a number of problems, running out of fuel, crashing more than once and experiencing technical issues, ultimately withdrawing at the end of the night with an electrical problem.
A BMW team won for the first time this season by dint of running a flawless race in the Superstock class with riders Stefan Kerschbaumer, Lucy Glöckner and Toni Finsterbusch. GERT56 by GS Yuasa’s win ahead of No Limits Motor Team and Moto Ain also throws open the FIM Superstock World Cup. Moto Ain, who finished on the podium despite multiple crashes, still top the provisional standings, but the points gaps are narrower on the eve of the final at Estoril.
Two other teams in this category lost their chance at the overall win. BMRT 3D Maxxess Nevers and Wójcik Racing Team withdrew after several crashes.
The only Aprilia-mounted team, local squad and 24 Heures Motos regular Aprilia Le Mans 2 Roues, were given the Anthony Delhalle EWC Spirit Trophy. After Nelson Major crashed, Eddy Dupuy and Marco Boué pushed on throughout the night as a two-man team to keep Aprilia in the race. The Aprilia #15 crossed the finish line in 27th place with Nelson Major making a comeback to take the pressure off his teammates. Their combative spirit won them the trophy launched in memory of Anthony Delhalle.
“It was an unbelievable race! We headed in this weekend with the new bike, the team had only few months to prepare it and we arrived here and got the job done. The new Honda Fireblade SP is amazing, straight out of the box it’s already competitive and surprised us all, riders and team, because we went faster on that bike than on any other bike directly. We kept on improving the bike and we arrived in Le Mans with a bike that was able to win the race, and we knew that from the start. A massive thank you to the team and our partners that worked so hard to get this new bike up and running. They deserve this victory and I’m happy that Freddy, Mike and myself were able to do it!”
“When you look back, you realise that the Fireblade made its first steps and won the race today. I just want to say a big thank you to this team for achieving an incredible performance because at the start of the week we didn’t know what to expect from a bike that started from scratch. Sharing this with the team and my teammates is fantastic too. I would like to congratulate Mike for riding really well and also Josh who was injured and made it through to the end. This is the second win we’ve shared here with the team and it’s great. A few weeks ago we didn’t even know if it would be possible to race because of the sanitary situation and today we are in Le Mans and we won the race, it’s just magic!”
“It was a crazy race! Right from the start I thought that the race pace would be much faster, and as we were starting from a new machine I was ready to accept to let my rivals go. I made a good start and I was second behind Gregg Black, who I quickly overtook at the end of the first lap, and then I started to ride with my own pace. I was quite surprised to see that I was able to build up a gap so I calmed things down a bit during the first stint. When a few competitors started to make mistakes with the tricky conditions, we chose to stay focused on our pace. Then during the night, I started to understand how the bike worked and to have fun with it, and I set quite good lap times. The team did a really fantastic job on the new Fireblade SP, we trained as much as we could during the whole Covid period and we won in the end, that’s great.”
“For sure, we are always aiming for victory but after this very complicated race, with changing weather conditions and many twists and turns, I’m really satisfied with this third place, especially since it’s a great deal for us in the championship. We are still leading the championship but it’s not over yet. There is still one race left and in Endurance you never know what can happen until you cross the finish line! Once again, I would like to thank all the technical staff and the riders for the great work they did. I am very proud of them. I would also like to thank the ACO and Eurosport Events for the organisation of this event in a complex sanitary context. And last but not least, a big thank you to our sponsors for their strong support despite the difficult year that we have all experienced.”
“It’s a bitter pill to swallow. We were, of course, aiming to be higher in the standings. I’m very sorry for the crash in my first stint. I felt good on the bike, and when the rain came, I didn’t feel like I was pushing, but when I arrived at the corner, there was more water than I expected and slipped off breaking the handlebar. We lost a lot of time, but from there we did our best, each rider was strong and the team did a great job. We were the fastest on the track, we could do 1:37s, but in the end, we did well to come back to P4 – not the podium we were hoping four but got good points. We are still able to fight for the championship in Estoril, but it’s tough to go to Portugal with no trophy here in Le Mans. I want to thank the team for standing by me, it’s my first crash in an Endurance race, but we all stuck together and did our best to recover. Bridgestone supported us a lot, Yamaha has made a great bike, so I thank everyone in our team, and we can bounce back stronger in Estoril.”
“We got it! Team 77 after 793 laps finish the legendary 24 Heures Motos race in a great seventh place! We also won the Dunlop Trophy. Unfortunately, after 14 hours of the competition due to the failure, the Polish National Team fell off 🇵🇱 777, but the boys also showed an amazing class. Thank you! See you in four weeks in Estoril at the FIM EWC final.”
| Pos | Team | Man. | Total Time | Gap |
| 1 | F.C.C. TSR Honda France | Honda | 24:00:57.502 | – |
| 2 | WEBIKE SRC KAWASAKI France TRICKSTAR | Kawasaki | 24:02:33.761 | +2 Lp. |
| 3 | Suzuki Endurance Racing Team | Suzuki | 24:02:16.192 | +3 Lp. |
| 4 | YART – YAMAHA | Yamaha | 24:00:57.952 | +5 Lp. |
| 5 | VRD IGOL PIERRET EXPERIENCES | Yamaha | 24:01:22.949 | +17 Lp. |
| 6 | 3ART BEST OF BIKE | Yamaha | 24:01:31.651 | +22 Lp. |
| 7 | Wójcik Racing Team | Yamaha | 24:01:56.358 | +23 Lp. |
| 8 | GERT56 by GS YUASA | BMW | 24:01:25.036 | +30 Lp. |
| 9 | No Limits Motor Team | Suzuki | 24:02:38.348 | +33 Lp. |
| 10 | TEAM MOTO AIN | Yamaha | 24:01:35.646 | +35 Lp. |
| 11 | MACO RACING Team | Yamaha | 24:02:31.068 | +35 Lp. |
| 12 | Team 33 Coyote Louit Moto | Kawasaki | 24:00:57.532 | +37 Lp. |
| 13 | Motobox Kremer Racing #65 | Yamaha | 24:01:16.290 | +42 Lp. |
| 14 | Team LRP Poland | BMW | 24:01:15.464 | +46 Lp. |
| 15 | JMA MOTOS ACTION BIKE | Suzuki | 24:01:28.446 | +47 Lp. |
| 16 | OG MOTORSPORT BY SARAZIN | Yamaha | 24:00:58.400 | +50 Lp. |
| 17 | AM Moto Racing Competition | Kawasaki | 24:00:57.755 | +51 Lp. |
| 18 | Slider Endurance | Yamaha | 24:00:59.403 | +51 Lp. |
| 19 | Junior Team Suzuki LMS | Suzuki | 24:01:02.702 | +60 Lp. |
| 20 | Tati Team Beaujolais Racing | Kawasaki | 24:01:19.602 | +61 Lp. |
| 21 | Team Bolliger Switzerland | Kawasaki | 24:02:32.660 | +61 Lp. |
| 22 | Falcon Racing Rennes Motos | Yamaha | 24:02:50.441 | +62 Lp. |
| 23 | Dunlop Motors Events | Suzuki | 24:02:05.843 | +70 Lp. |
| 24 | ENERGIE ENDURANCE 91 | Kawasaki | 24:01:03.985 | +75 Lp. |
| 25 | British Endurance Racing Team | Suzuki | 24:03:15.523 | +75 Lp. |
| 26 | Aprilia Le Mans 2 Roues | Aprilia | 24:01:03.067 | +85 Lp. |
| 27 | Moto Sport Endurance | Yamaha | 24:02:38.731 | +88 Lp. |
| 28 | TEAM 202 | Yamaha | 24:01:03.683 | +96 Lp. |
| 29 | ATLANTIC RACING TEAM | Honda | 24:01:04.140 | +128 Lp. |
| 30 | TEAM RACING 85 | Kawasaki | 24:01:46.649 | +140 Lp. |
| Pos | Team | Man. | Nat. | Points. |
| 1 | Suzuki Endurance Racing Team | Suzuki | FRA | 127 |
| 2 | F.C.C. TSR Honda France | Honda | JPN | 87 |
| 3 | Yamalube Yamaha EWC Official Team by YART | Yamaha | AUT | 82 |
| 4 | BMW MOTORRAD WORLD ENDURANCE TEAM | BMW | BEL | 82 |
| 5 | TEAM SRC KAWASAKI FRANCE | Kawasaki | FRA | 80 |
| 6 | Wójcik Racing Team | Yamaha | POL | 70 |
| 7 | VRD IGOL PIERRET EXPERIENCES | Yamaha | FRA | 62 |
| 8 | 3ART BEST OF BIKE | Yamaha | FRA | 62 |
| 9 | MACO RACING Team | Yamaha | SVK | 46 |
| 10 | Tati Team Beaujolais Racing | Kawasaki | FRA | 35 |
| 11 | Team Bolliger Switzerland | Kawasaki | SUI | 30 |
| 12 | Honda Asia-Dream Racing with SHOWA | Honda | JPN | 28 |
| 13 | Team LRP Poland | BMW | POL | 27 |
| 14 | TECMAS BMW GMC | BMW | FRA | 26 |
| 15 | National Motos | Honda | FRA | 22 |
| 16 | Yamaha Sepang Racing | Yamaha | MAS | 20 |
| 17 | BMW Sepang Racing | BMW | MAS | 14 |
| 18 | ERC-Endurance | Ducati | GER | 14 |
| 19 | Motobox Kremer Racing #65 | Yamaha | GER | 13 |
| 20 | SUZUKI JEG – KAGAYAMA | Suzuki | ESP | 12 |
| 21 | TEAM PLUSONE | BMW | JPN | 11 |
| 22 | MOTOTECH EWC TEAM | Yamaha | BEL | 11 |
| 23 | British Endurance Racing Team | Suzuki | GBR | 11 |
| 24 | Team R2CL | Suzuki | FRA | 10 |
| 25 | Zuff Racing Honda Swiss Team | Honda | SUI | 8 |
| 26 | Bertl K. Racing Team | BMW | AUT | 8 |
| 27 | FSB MATT RACING | Yamaha | POR | 6 |
| 28 | Team Kodama | Yamaha | JPN | 5 |
| 29 | KRP SANYOKOUGYOU & will raise RS-ITOH | Kawasaki | JPN | 4 |
| 30 | EMRT | Yamaha | FRA | 4 |
Source: MCNews.com.au
Locatelli stays unbeaten in Supersport while Australians Lachy Epis (Supersport) and Tom Edwards (World SSPT300) have no luck.
Image: Supplied.
Jonathon Rea and the Kawasaki Racing Team have regained the Motul Superbike World Championship lead after victory in a gritty performance in race two at MotorLand Aragon.
Rea started Sunday proceedings in the best way possible by once again winning the ten lap Tissot Superpole Race, giving him pole position for the final race. Tom Sykes (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) was placed under investigation after an incident at the corkscrew saw him collect Leandro Mercado (Motocorsa Racing), the impact forcing the Argentinian rider to withdraw from race two.
Rea took command of the 18 lap race two right from the lights, taking the holeshot but bringing Scott Redding (Aruba.it Racing Ducati) with him. The challenge from Redding was short lived, however, as he drifted back to fourth citing grip issues.
Out front Rea had pulled almost two seconds clear and it was at this stage the second Aruba.it Ducati of Chaz Davies was making a move. Davies claimed Michael Van Der Mark (Pata Yamaha WorldSBK Official Team) and then Alvaro Bautista (Team HRC). A mistake on lap 14 from Rea slashed his lead and Davies was able to briefly run at the front. The error seemed to motivate Rea even more, cutting a line back past Davies and pulling clear once again. Davies attempted to keep up the pressure, but Rea was riding for the race win and pulled over a second gap by the chequered flag. Davies finished just behind him with Bautista in third to claim Honda’s first podium since Magny-Cours in 2016.
Redding clung onto fourth with Michael Rubin-Rinaldi (Team GoEleven in fifth. Van Der Mark took sixth while the other HRC Honda of Leon Haslam was seventh.
Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pata Yamaha WorldSBK Official Team) claimed eighth place with Alex Lowes (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) in ninth and Garrett Gerloff (GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Junior Team) completing the top 10.
Rea now leads the championship by 10 points with the next round at the same Aragon MotorLand circuit next weekend.
Image: Supplied.
In World Supersport Andrea Locatelli extended his phenomenal unbeaten record, having won every race of the year so far – seven wins from seven starts. Lucas Mahias (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing) briefly led at the start, but Locatelli soon took control.
Jules Cluzel (GMT94 Yamaha) took second place ahead of a strong finishing Raffaele de Rosa (MV Agusta Reparto Corse) while Mahias took fourth. Locatelli is now clear by 45 points to Cluzel. Australian Lachy Epis had another difficult race, forced out after two laps.
Jeffrey Buis (MTM Kawasaki Motoport) took out race two and the double at Aragon in the Supersport 300 class, but it took an improbable wide line through the final corners to secure victory. Teammate Scott Deroue (MTM Kawasaki Motoport) held the lead on the back straight, only to lose out to both Buis and Thomas Brianti (Prodina Ircos Team WorldSSP300), who claimed his first podium of 2020 with second place, with Deroue finishing third. Buis now leads the championship by two points from 2018 champion Ana Carrasco (Kawasaki Provec WorldSSP300). Australian Tom Edwards (Kawasaki ParkinGo Team) endured a tough weekend after crashing out.
Source: CycleOnline.com.au
