De Alessio Piana / Corsedimoto.com
Two hours of free practice took place yesterday afternoon for the teams at the start of the 24 2020 Heures Motos at Le Mans: lots of breaking news ahead of Saturday's start.
The 24 2020h Motos at Le Mans, here we go! Yesterday afternoon, from 17:00 p.m. to 19:00 p.m., two hours of pre-event free practice marked the start of the long week of activities on the Sarthe track. For a 43rd edition which will take place behind closed doors, a surreal atmosphere will welcome the 39 teams at the start, with several new features.
Over the past 42 years, Dominique Meliand has experienced the 24 Hours of Le Mans as a participant. First as a mechanic, then from 1980 to last season as Team Manager of SERT, skipping one edition (2017) for a cardiovascular intervention, “ Le Chef » will not miss the meeting with the great Sarthe classic. Retired after the bitter end of the 2018/2019 season at the 8 Hours of Suzuka, Meliand will be the exceptional starter for the 43rd edition of the 24 Heures Motos at Le Mans on Saturday. It will be the 15-time World Champion Team Manager who will wave the French flag on Saturday at 12:00 p.m., marking the official start of the race. It should be remembered that Dominique Meliand, 73, spent his birthday in hospital last April, but fortunately, he has recovered physically and will be active this weekend at Le Mans.
DEPARTURE AT 12:00 A.M.
Speaking of starts, why will this year start at 12:00 p.m. and not the traditional time of 15:00 p.m.? Simply to allow the teams, due to restrictions due to the Covid-19 emergency, to be able to leave the Bugatti circuit on Sunday evening. Three additional hours that will help all teams speed up operations and return home. It should be noted that in its history the race did not start at 15:00 p.m. only in two circumstances: in the inaugural edition of 1978 at 16:00 p.m., and in 1991 at 15:15 p.m., the latter case being due to the live broadcast on Antenne 2 immediately after the conclusion of the television news…
PACKAGES
On the other hand, several teams will be missing who, at the very last minute, deserted the 24 hours of Le Mans, bringing the number of teams registered to 39. There will not be 6 permanent teams, whose package had already been announced in recent weeks: JEG Suzuki, Tecmas BMW, MotoTech, Pitlane Endurance, Hertrampf Racing and AvioBike. Over the last 10 days, 4 other teams have left the venue for various reasons: TMC35, Bertl K Racing, Exteria KPCS and Team R2CL. Roberto Tamburini was supposed to make his Endurance debut in the latter structure, but the problems inherent in extra-continental transfers blocked most of the team's personnel.
COVID-19
The Covid-19 emergency has actually complicated and not only the plans of pilots, mechanics and professionals. In addition to the mandatory test to enter the circuit, certain restrictions are worrying given the 24 hours. Also note that Bobby Bos, initially expected to start with the AM Moto Racing Competition team, had to abandon Le Mans despite himself because his brother was found positive in the test. Inevitable isolation for 2 weeks and goodbye to participation in the 24 hours...
EWC 360 FAN VISIT
Considering that the event will take place behind closed doors, the promoter Eurosport Events has studied different solutions to bring it closer to the public. In addition to live television guaranteed by Eurosport 2 (in Italy with a total of 20 hours of live broadcast between Saturday 29 and Sunday 30 August), the EWC 360 Fan Tour will be available from Friday 28. Basically , on the site www.ewc360fantour.com , it will be possible to watch the 24 Hours of Le Mans with a series of 360° videos: a tour in the pits, on the starting grid, a lap of the track on board and much more. A great initiative intended to be repeated also in the future.
FINAL IN ESTORIL
Speaking of the future, as we know after the cancellation of the Bol d'Or, the 2019/2020 FIM EWC season will see its epilogue with an unprecedented 12 Hours of Estoril. Compared to what was previously communicated, the race will take place on Saturday September 26 and no longer on Sunday 27. The detailed program of the event will be revealed in the coming days.
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