Suzuka 8H – Kawasaki wins Suzuka 8H and becomes 2019 world endurance champion – Used KAWASAKI

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Kawasaki wins Suzuka 8H and becomes 2019 endurance world champion

Suzuka 8H - Kawasaki wins Suzuka 8H and becomes 2019 world endurance champion - Used KAWASAKI

The official Kawasaki team won the final of the World Endurance Championship in Suzuka (Japan) after contesting the attribution of the victory to the Yamaha factory team. But the world title goes for the first time to the SRC Kawasaki France team, following the frustrating engine failure of the SERT Suzuki in the last moments…. Debrief.

Kawasaki leaves Japan with the double satisfaction of returning to victory at the Suzuka 8H for the first time since 1993 with its official ZX-10R (Haslam, Rea and Razgatlioglu) and of winning the world title thanks to the SRC Kawasaki France structure ( Guarnoni, Nigon and Checa) ! 

  • MNC special file : 
  • MNC special file : 

This consecration was decided at the end of a thrilling event: three factory teams were neck and neck for a masterful battle, despite conditions made complex by showers: Kawasaki KRT (Haslam, Rea and Razgatlioglu) Yamaha Factory ( Nakasuga, Lowes and Van der Mark, winners of the two previous editions) and Red Bull Honda (Takahashi, Bradl and Kiyonari).

This trio of official motorcycles held in nine seconds during the first six hours, their positions varying mainly according to the refueling: the CBR1000RR, slightly slower but consuming less, took the lead of the Japanese event for a few laps each time. stop of ZX-10R n ° 10 and R1 n ° 21.

Beyond the talent of the pilots, the fight between the Kawasaki and the Yamaha was also played by the speed that the KRT team demonstrated to refuel the ZX-10R. The Yamaha factory team – qualified on pole – took an extra three to four seconds to deal with the R1 at each stop, or around 25 seconds wasted in the pits.

Suzuka 8H - Kawasaki wins Suzuka 8H and becomes 2019 world endurance champion - Used KAWASAKI

Not much, of course, in an endurance race of eight hours … But perhaps enough to lose a race, since the Yamaha n ° 21 was finally beaten by only 18 seconds by the Kawasaki n ° 10 after a incredible final !

A breakage, a fall and a complaint 

Thanks to a series of quick laps from Jonathan Rea, the Kawasaki Racing Team (KRT) seemed to be heading for victory in the final half hour … The reigning WSBK world champion had managed to gain some lead over the Factory Honda and a gap of 26 seconds on the official Yamaha.

 Suzuka 8H - Kawasaki wins Suzuka 8H and becomes 2019 world endurance champion - Used KAWASAKI

Alex Lowes then takes the handlebars of the R1 for the last stint and attacks excessively in a light rain: the Briton comes back like a torpedo on the CBR1000RR and doubles it 25 minutes from the finish, at the same time grabbing half a dozen seconds on the leader !

But suddenly, dramatic change: the piloted by Etienne Masson breaks its engine and releases thick white smoke five minutes from the finish, putting an end to Dominique Meliand’s hopes of retiring on a … The crew made up of Vincent Philippe, Etienne Masson and Gregg Black then occupied the 9th position.

  • MNC of July 22, 2019 : SERT will give everything to Suzuka for Dominique Meliand’s last race ! 
  • MNC of June 14, 2019 : The SRC Kawasaki team will participate in the Suzuka 8H 2019 

This particularly frustrating withdrawal benefits the team, which thus seals its first EWC endurance world title with an 11th place in Japan! The French structure is sacred with eight points ahead of the F.C.C. TSR Honda France, former world champion.

"We are very happy, the drivers did a very good job, so did my team and it’s fantastic," said Gilles Staffler. “Winning the title was a dream for us, Kawasaki and all the sponsors. It’s a great day”, continues the SRC team manager..

Kawasaki KRT to the mat…

But the abandonment of the SERT has another consequence: under pressure from the Yamaha, Jonathan Rea made a mistake three minutes from the finish, a priori trapped by the oil spilled by the GSX-R1000 n ° 2 … The red flag is raised to interrupt the race, while the factory ZX-10R is immobilized.

The Yamaha team crossed the finish line as the winner a few moments later, but confusion reigned: the exit of the red flag a few minutes from the finish means that the results of the race are fixed according to the positions of the previous lap, as this is practiced in most international races.

The victory therefore seems to go to the Kawasaki KRT, leader ahead of the official Yamaha and Honda before the red flag. Except that to validate his position, Jonathan Rea should have brought his motorcycle back to the parc ferme within five minutes after the interruption, it is officially indicated as a first step…

However, at 19:35 (local time), that is to say seven minutes after the exit of the red flag, the factory ZX-10R has not yet returned: "the race management announces the Yamaha 21 winner of the race", says Eric by Seynes. "It’s hard to believe it, but it’s beautiful, it’s hard, it’s endurance. Sharing with the pilots, photos, crying mechanics, a shared feeling of joy and disbelief", continues the head of Yamaha Europe, winner of the four previous editions.

The euphoria was short-lived, however: Kawasaki lodged a complaint indicating that the EWC regulations do not actually mention this mandatory return of all motorcycles within five minutes after the interruption, including the one that caused the red flag. Logical, after all, since the latter is generally in poor condition! Cold shower for Yamaha, finally stripped of its success in favor of Kawasaki…

For the Greens, on the other hand, it was an explosion of joy: Kawasaki had not won at Suzuka since 1993! The only dissatisfied member of the official KRT team: Toprak Razgatlioglu, confined to the role of reserve pilot alongside the experienced Rea and Haslam, much to the disappointment of his mentor Kenan Sofuoglu…

"Today, I am very tired of having watched the race for eight hours!", Quips the young Turkish prodigy, present for the first time at Suzuka. "But I am very happy for Johnny and Leon because it was an amazing job today".

Rea from the hotel to the podium !

The victory on the Green carpet – inevitably! – Kawasaki n ° 10 did not catch Yamaha off guard: Jonathan Rea, its main craftsman, was already back at his hotel when the attribution of the success was communicated to him! Enough to erase his disappointment at having lost everything in the last moments…

 Suzuka 8H - Kawasaki wins Suzuka 8H and becomes 2019 world endurance champion - Used KAWASAKI

“I came back to the hotel, depressed, after saying goodbye to the guys on the team with a lot of tears,” said the four-time SBK champion. "I was already at the restaurant, ordering my dinner, when my mechanic Uri calls me and says, ‘Hey, are you sitting down?’ I thought he was going to ask me to go to another restaurant. … but he informs me we won! "

"I think common sense prevailed in this case," said the Northern Irish driver, returned to collect his trophy in shorts and a t-shirt. "I have no words, I am very moved and happy. (…) During the race, it’s hell: it’s the most difficult race you can imagine. But to get a result like this one almost makes me want to come back: the emotional roller coasters are unreal here ".

Rise of the European teams at Suzuka

The Kawasaki KRT therefore won this 42nd edition of the Suzuka 8H in front of the official Yamaha and the Red Bull Honda, under the eyes of "65,000 spectators on Sunday", counts the organizer who is delighted with this increasing attendance on race day. ("+ 8%") despite a typhoon alert on Saturday.

 Suzuka 8H - Kawasaki wins Suzuka 8H and becomes 2019 world endurance champion - Used KAWASAKI

The F.C.C. TSR Honda France – title holder – strongly defended its 4th place ahead of Yoshimura Suzuki Motul Racing throughout the race. The YART finished 6th, followed by the Musashi RT Harc-Pro Honda which made a superb comeback despite a penalty of 1.30 minutes.

Four other European teams put their names in the Top 20: Honda Endurance Racing is ranked 13th, Bolliger Team Switzerland – started 31st! – is 15th, ERC-BMW Motorrad Endurance 16th and Omega Maco Racing 20th.

Remarkable results insofar as the Japanese event is traditionally the preserve of Japanese structures, which deploy enormous resources to shine at home with motorcycles fitted with prototype tires and equipped with electronics worthy of MotoGP. !

The constructor title for Yamaha

"We are competitors, not people who lament", concludes Eric de Seynes, who consoles himself with the constructor title acquired by Yamaha with 251.5 points against 224.5 for Kawasaki, 218 for Honda, 180 for Suzuki and 89 for BMW. 

"We congratulate the winner on his race and we will seek victory again here in 2019. We are world constructor champion this year and we are delighted with it", assures the Yamaha manager, giving the details of the pretty decoration above. of the official Yamaha n ° 21.

The next world endurance season will start in France with the Bol d’Or les. The teams will then head to Malaysia to participate in the first edition of the Sepang 8H on December 14, 2019.

Suzuka 8H 2019 updated results and standings

Suzuka 8H - Kawasaki wins Suzuka 8H and becomes 2019 world endurance champion - Used KAWASAKI

General classification of the 2018/2019 World Endurance Championship

  1. TEAM SRC KAWASAKI FRANCE Kawasaki FRA David CHECA / Randy DE PUNIET / Jeremy GUARNONI / Erwan NIGON 145.5 points
  2. F.C.C. TSR Honda France Honda JPN Mike DI MEGLIO / Freddy FORAY / Josh HOOK / Alan TECHER 137.5
  3. Suzuki Endurance Racing Team Suzuki FRA Gregg BLACK / Gregory LEBLANC / Etienne MASSON / Vincent PHILIPPE 127
  4. YART – YAMAHA Yamaha AUT Niccolò CANEPA / Marvin FRITZ / Randy KRUMMENACHER / Max NEUKIRCHNER / Broc PARKES 110.5
  5. WEPOL Racing Yamaha GER Martin JESSOPP / Matthieu LAGRIVE / Michael LAVERTY / Sheridan MORAIS / Daniel WEBB 101
  6. Honda Endurance Racing Honda GBR Randy DE PUNIET / Sebastien GIMBERT / Jan HALBICH / Yonny HERNANDEZ / Gregory LEBLANC / Erwan NIGON / Johan NIGON 91
  7. Bolliger Team Switzerland Kawasaki SUI Danny BUCHAN / Danny BUCHAN / Osamu DEGUCHI / Jonathan HUGOT / Julian MAYER / Marco NEKVASIL / Roman STAMM / Sebastien SUCHET / Nigel WALRAVEN 83.5
  8. VRD IGOL PIERRET EXPERIENCES Yamaha FRA Florian ALT / Vincent LONBOIS / Florian MARINO / David PERRET / Xavier SIMEON / Alan TECHER 53
  9. Kawasaki Racing Team Suzuka 8H Kawasaki JPN Leon HASLAM / Toprak RAZGATLIOGLU / Jonathan REA 49
  10. MOTO AIN Yamaha FRA Stefan HILL / Robin MULHAUSER / Julien PILOT / Roberto ROLFO 45
  11. GERT56 by GS YUASA BMW GER Filip ALTENDORFER / Pepijn BIJSTERBOSCH / Lucy GLOCKNER / Stefan KERSCHBAUMER / Rico LOWE / Julian PUFFE 45
  12. YAMAHA FACTORY RACING TEAM Yamaha JPN Alex LOWES / Katsuyuki NAKASUGA / Michael VAN DER MARK 41
  13. BMRT 3D MACCIO RACING Kawasaki FRA Jonathan HARDT / Anthony LOISEAU / Jimmy MACCIO / Jerome MACCIO / Romain MANGE 39
  14. FANY GASTRO BMW MOTORRAD- by MERCURY RACING BMW CZE Ladislav CHMELÍK / Karel HANIKA / Ond? Ej JE? EK / Illya MYKHALCHYK / David PERRET / James WESTMORELAND 38
  15. WEBIKE TATI TEAM TRICKSTAR Kawasaki FRA Osamu DEGUCHI / Kevin DENIS / Julien ENJOLRAS / Bastien MACKELS 36
  16. Red Bull Honda Honda JPN Stefan BRADL / Ryuichi KIYONARI / Takumi TAKAHASHI 34.5
  17. Team 33 Coyote Louit Moto Kawasaki FRA Enzo BOULOM / Chris LEESCH / Kevin MANFREDI / Stephane PAGANI / Antoine THOUZET 32
  18. Junior Team LMS Suzuki Suzuki FRA Hugo CLERE / Eddy DUPUY / Alexis MASBOU / Louis ROSSI / Alex SARRABAYROUSE 30
  19. Wójcik Racing Team 2 Yamaha POL Daniel BUKOWSKI / Kamil KRZEMIE? / Adrian PASEK / Angel RODRIGUEZ / Philipp STEINMAYR / Marek SZKOPEK / Artur WIELEBSKI 28
  20. No Limits Motor Team Suzuki ITA Cristiano ASCANIO / Christian GAMARINO / Michael MAZZINA / Luca SCASSA / Cedric TANGRE / Luca VITALI 28
  21. 3ART- MOTO TEAM 95 Yamaha FRA Morgan BERCHET / Matthieu LUSSIANA / Alex PLANCASSAGNE 27
  22. YOSHIMURA SUZUKI MOTUL RACING Suzuki JPN Sylvain GUINTOLI / Yukio KAGAYAMA / Kazuki WATANABE 26.5
  23. National Motos Honda FRA Stephane EGEA / Gaetan GOUGET / Baptiste GUITTET / Emeric JONCHIERE 25
  24. MOTORS EVENTS Suzuki FRA Kev COGHLAN / Gregory FASTRÉ / Adrien GANFORNINA / Baptiste GUITTET / Johan NIGON / James WESTMORELAND 24
  25. Motobox Kremer Racing # 65 Yamaha GER Geoffroy DEHAYE / Christopher KEMMER / Gregory ORTIZ / Jan VIEHMANN 24
  26. MuSASHi RT HARC-PRO. Honda Honda JPN Dominique AEGERTER / Javi FORES / Javier FORES / Ryo MIZUNO 23
  27. Wójcik Racing Team Yamaha POL Christoffer BERGMAN / Pawe? GÓRKA / Marko JERMAN / Gino REA / Pawe? SZKOPEK / Marek SZKOPEK / Bart? Omiej WICZY? SKI 23
  28. Team ERC-BMW Motorrad Endurance BMW GER Jan BÜHN / Julien DA COSTA / Kenny FORAY / Mathieu GINES 23
  29. S-PULSE DREAM RACING. IAI Suzuki JPN Thomas BRIDEWELL / Hideyuki OGATA / Bradley RAY 19.5
  30. KYB MORIWAKI RACING Honda JPN Troy HERFOSS / Tomoyoshi KOYAMA / Yuki TAKAHASHI 18
  31. Honda Dream RT SAKURAI HONDA Honda JPN Sodo HAMAHARA / Shinichi ITO / Kosuke SAKUMOTO 16.5
  32. MACO RACING Team Yamaha SVK Louis BULLE / David CHEVALIER / Anthony DOS SANTOS / Marko JERMAN / Gregory LEBLANC / Julian MAYER / Johan NIGON / Tomas SVITOK / Pawe? SZKOPEK 16.5
  33. Honda Asia-Dream Racing with SHOWA Honda JPN Andi Farid IZDIHAR / Teppei NAGOE / Muhammad Zaqhwan ZAIDI 15
  34. Team 18 Kawasaki Fire Brigade FRA Maxime BONNOT / Dylan BUISSON / Robin CAMUS / Enrique FERRER / Florent TOURNE 12
  35. Team LRP Poland BMW POL Arnaud FRIEDRICH / Bart? Omiej LEWANDOWSKI / Bartlomiej MORANSKI / Dominik VINCON 12
  36. JMA MOTOS ACTION BIKE Suzuki FRA Julien BONNET / Billy CORNUT / Nicolas CRONIER / Stephane EGEA / Maxime GUCCIARDI / Sebastien LAGER / Dylan MILLE / Guillaume MONTESSUIT / Florian PELEGRIN / Kevin ROUSSEAU 8
  37. TEAM FRONTIER Honda JPN Alan TECHER / Nicolas TEROL / Daniel WEBB 7.5
  38. OG MOTORSPORT BY SARAZIN Yamaha FRA Mathieu CHARPIN / Julien DIGUET / Adrien GANFORNINA / Jonathan HUGOT / Stephane PAGANI 7
  39. Zuff Racing Team Honda SUI Jeff AEBERHARD / Sebastien FRAGA / Adrien PITTET / Kevin TRUEB 6
  40. Honda Suzuka Racing Team Honda JPN Daijiro HIURA / Yudai KAMEI / Jun TADOKORO 6
  41. AM Moto Racing Competition Kawasaki FRA Anthony ALIERN / Guillaume ANTIGA / Marc NEUMANN / Steven NEUMANN / Julien PILOT / Janusch PROKOP / Clement STOLL / Anthony VIOLLAND 5
  42. MOTOTECH EWC TEAM Yamaha BEL Marc BUCHNER / Gregory FASTRÉ / Camille HEDELIN / Bram LAMBRECHTS / Sebastien LE GRELLE / Vincent LONBOIS / Nigel WALRAVEN 4
  43. PITLANE ENDURANCE Yamaha FRA Karl CROIX / Paul DUFOUR / Clement GRANZOTTTO / Quentin LARCHER / Maxim PELLIZOTTI 3
  44. TK SUZUKI BLUE MAX Suzuki JPN Azlan KAMARUZAMAN / Gregory LEBLANC / Takuya TSUDA 3
  45. GSM RACING Suzuki MON Nico BONIFACIO / Ladislav CHMELÍK / Brandon CRETU / Bjorn ESTMENT / Michael FUDALA / Stefano FUGARDI / Vladimir LEONOV / Federico NAPOLI / Christian NAPOLI / Pablo PUSCHMANN / Sebastien SERRA / Andrea TUCCI 2
  46. Team R2CL Suzuki FRA Bobby BOS / Dylan BUISSON / Joshua ELLIOTT / Gwen GIABBANI / Yoshihiro KONNO / Clinton SELLER 1.5
  47. Slider Endurance Yamaha FRA Charles CORTOT / Charles DILLER / Vincent HOUSSIN / Angelo LICCIARDI / Thibaut NAGORSKI 1
  48. Falcon Racing Rennes Motos Yamaha FRA Christophe BRARD / Arnaud DEJEAN / Olivier LOUAULT / Eric PEPIN / Charles ROCHE 1
  49. SET Racing Yamaha SWE Christoffer BERGMAN / Jari TUOVINEN / Ville VALTONEN 

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