The 8 2025 Hours of Spa witnessed a major turnaround! After more than six hours of racing, the former race leader, the No. 6 YART Yamaha, crashed in the rain. The brand's podium hopes were dashed with less than 7 minutes to go before the checkered flag.
It was a nightmare Saturday at Spa for YART Yamaha. While the No. 7 crew had taken the lead midway through the race, a series of mishaps dashed the team's hopes.
It all started when a pit stop was investigated by race control after a rider in the crew touched the Yamaha when he wasn't allowed to. Just over an hour later, the penalty was handed down, and the Yart was given a 10-second stop-and-go. Spending over 40 seconds in the pits, the rider who was doing his stint at the time exited the pit lane in third place.
The team's woes didn't end there. 45 minutes later, Karel Hanika was caught out by the track conditions. While it had been raining for over four hours at Spa, he lost control on his 154th lap of the race. As a result, he had to complete a lap of the Spa-Francorchamps circuit, albeit with some pain, to bring the car back to the pits.
The repairs were relatively quick, and after 3 minutes 15 seconds, the #7 returned to the track, claiming fourth place. It was now the #1 Suzuki, although well behind, that claimed the smallest step on the podium. The gap between the two machines was 30 seconds with just over an hour to go.
More information on the situation of the 8 Hours of Spa Race after more than 6 hours of racing via this link.
© FIM EWC
