The provisional list of 60 teams selected for the 24 2019 Heures Motos has just been revealed. 39 teams under FIM EWC contract form the heart of the field which will battle it out on the Bugatti circuit at Le Mans on April 20 and 21.
The countdown is on for the 42e edition of the 24 Heures Motos. The provisional list of entrants has just been announced during the press conference held at the Eurosport premises in the Paris region in the presence of Pierre Fillon, president of the ACO, organizer of the event, Jacques Bolle, vice -president of the FIM and president of the FFM, and François Ribeiro, Head of Eurosport Events.
The 39 teams under contract entered for the entire 2018-2019 FIM EWC season shape this grid of the 24 2019 Heures Motos. The international appeal of the championship is confirmed since twelve countries are represented by the 60 teams at the start with already 19 nationalities on the side of the drivers announced to date.
Newcomers to EWC
This year again, the FIM EWC attracts new greats of international speed. Engaged this season in EWC, Yamaha Viltaïs Pierret Experiences just announced the arrival of Xavier Simeon. This Belgian rider, winner of the FIM Superstock 1000 World Cup in 2009, hosted Moto2 from 2010 to 2017 before moving to MotoGP in 2018. We saw him at the 24 2008 Heures Motos as 4e rider for the Suzuki Endurance Racing Team.
Motors Events has recruited English BSB Superbike Championship presenter, James Westmoreland. He will make his debut in Endurance riding the #50 Suzuki entered in Superstock.
A new Italian team is also making its debut in Endurance at the 24 Heures Motos. SC Project Paton Reparto Corsica will bring together three former presenters of the Superbike and Supersport world championships, Lorenzo Lanzi, Michel Fabrizio and Luca Marconi, behind the handlebars of the #57 Honda.
80 days before the opening of this 2e round of the 2018-2019 FIM EWC, certain teams, such as Honda Endurance Racing, have yet to reveal their line-ups.
International coverage on the rise
International TV coverage is increasing again this year. Fifteen channels will broadcast the 24 Heures Motos in Europe, Asia, North America and Latin America. Three new broadcast channels are opening in Russia, the Czech Republic and the Philippines.
In France, the 24 Heures Motos will be followed live on Eurosport 2, on the Channel l'Équipe, and in full on the Eurosport player.
The start of the 24 2019 Heures Motos will be given on Saturday April 20 at 15 p.m.
Provisional entry list for the 24 Heures Motos – January 24, 2019
Pierre Fillon, President of the Automobile Club de l'Ouest: “Bugatti, Honda, BMW, Yamaha, Suzuki, Kawasaki, 24 Hours, Le Mans, La Chapelle bend… This logical sequence is also historic! Motorcycles, in fact, constitute the History of Le Mans and its daily life too. How many riding days are organized each year on our circuits, for experienced bikers and amateurs alike, all enthusiasts, like our teams who welcome them with pleasure and professionalism? More than a hundred! The mission of our instructors is to transmit experience, expertise and a state of mind too, that of the Motorcycle community.
To return to History and motorcycle competition at Le Mans, I am happy to talk about these recent or upcoming anniversaries: In 2018, we celebrated the 40th anniversary of the 24 Heures Motos with dignity, honoring all our champions. More than four decades of motorcycle endurance have been played out on the Bugatti. Prize lists and careers have been built on our circuit. April 20 and 21
Next year, we will host the 42nd edition of this essential classic of the FIM EWC world championship, which nevertheless always reserves so many surprises. With 5 manufacturers entered, the competition can only continue the Legend. At the ACO, we look forward to it. The quality of the applications selected by the Selection Committee is an indicator of the spectacle that will be offered to us on the track in April. This 24 2019 Heures Motos press conference bears witness to this.
A few weeks later, in May, we will celebrate the 50th anniversary of the French Moto GP. It's a real milestone, which gives meaning to the sequel, logical and historical: Motorcycling and Le Mans are two inseparable elements. »
Jacques Bolle, President of the French Motorcycling Federation: “The years go by and the 24 Heures Motos remains a major race in French motorcycling sport. We owe it not only to the prestige of the place.
The event continues to attract crowds and the best teams because it benefits from the media coverage of the discipline, and its good health after its passage under the control of Eurosport Events.
This enthusiasm is also explained by the charm of a competition which, despite time, remains faithful to its human values. We have verified many times, the winning crew is not necessarily the one with the best machine. It is often the best prepared, most homogeneous, most united team that pops the champagne at the end of the two clock rounds. People remain at the heart of performance, which is why this competition does not suffer the erosion of time.
I am sure, endurance will always appeal to the biker who can identify with these heroes.
May we salute and congratulate the Automobile Club de l'Ouest and all those commissioners who, through their passion, allow us to enjoy such a spectacle. »
Jorge Viegas, President of the International Motorcycling Federation: “The 24 Heures Motos remains an extremely important event in the FIM sporting calendar and on a personal level because I participated in the first edition in 1978 when I was a rider. This will be my first trip to an Endurance race as President of the FIM and I can't wait to come and attend this major event in motorcycling sport.
I will take advantage of my visit to share with you some good news about the future of the FIM Endurance World Championship! »
Francois Ribeiro, Operations Director of Eurosport Events, Promoter of the FIM EWC: “The entire Eurosport Events team is happy to kick off the second event of the 2018-2019 FIM EWC season, the 24 Heures Motos alongside the Automobile Club de l'Ouest, its organizer.
Like the Bol d'Or which opened the season last September, this 2019 edition of the 24 Heures Motos promises to be a race full of twists and turns and a major test to win the world title.
The Japanese team TSR associated with Honda France, reigning world champion, will arrive at Le Mans at the top of the provisional ranking after its victory at Le Castellet. But the competition is more and more intense each season with a greater commitment from manufacturers and permanent teams. More than 40 contracted teams representing 13 nations and 5 manufacturers will be at the start of the 24 Heures Motos on April 20.
I thank the FIM, the FFM and the Automobile Club de l'Ouest for the means and efforts deployed for the success of this 42nd edition of the 24 Heures Motos. »
CONTEXT AND PRESENT FORCES
After a seven-month break since the last edition of the 2018 Bol d'Or, the 2018/2019 FIM EWC world endurance championship resumes its rights during the 24 Heures Motos which will take place on April 20 and 21 at Le Mans on the Bugatti circuit. Last year, 76 spectators attended the 000th anniversary of the Sarthe event.
The 24 Heures Motos constitutes the second of five events in the 2018-2019 FIM EWC world endurance championship. The Automobile Club de l'Ouest, organizer of the event,
received numerous requests for commitment and once again, the line-up promises to be strong and varied. Since the creation of the event, the richness of the 24 Heures Motos has been in bringing together teams from different backgrounds. 60 teams will take part in testing and then the start on Saturday April 20 at 15 p.m.
They will be divided into three categories: 23 machines are entered in the Formula EWC category (top category of the 24 Hours Motorcycles), 35 in Superstock and 2 in the Experimental category.
The next edition of the 24 Heures Motos will see 5 MAJOR MOTORCYCLE MANUFACTURERS: BMW, HONDA, KAWASAKI, SUZUKI AND YAMAHA.
Victorious in 2018 and reigning world champion, the Japanese team FCC TSR Honda France with its drivers Freddy Foray, Josh Hook and
Mike Di Meglio will be the favorite. However, it will have to compete against seasoned and tenacious competition. THE Team SRC Kawasaki will have no other objective than victory after leading the 2018 Bol d'Or (first round of the 2018-2019 FIM EWC) for more than twenty-two hours.
To achieve this, the Greens will be able to count on their new recruit, Erwan Nigon, winner of the 24 2014 Heures Motos (with Suzuki). He will team up with
David Checa et Jeremy Guarnoni.
Reinvigorated, the Suzuki Endurance Racing Team is back at the forefront thanks to its new GSX-R 1000. Vincent-Philippe, Etienne Masson et Greg Black will throw away all their
forces in the battle to place SERT on the top step of the podium. Second in the Bol d'Or, YART-Yamaha has great ambitions. The Austrian team
will be keen to remember good memories of 2009 when she won the Le Mans classic. Broc Parkes, Marvin Fritz and Niccolò Canepa will share the handlebars of Yamaha #7. Honda will also be represented by the British team Honda Endurance Racing. Second in the general classification last year, she intends to climb an additional step. Finally, BMW is stepping up its efforts in FIM EWC. The German manufacturer is counting on a new version of S1000RR and the German team ERC-BMW Motorrad Endurance (formerly NRT48) to achieve its first success at the 24 Heures Motos.
Around these official teams, many challengers will want to show themselves. Bolliger Team Switerland, Wepol Racing, Maco Racing, National Moto or Yamaha Viltaïs Pierret Experiences will covet the top five in the general classification or a place on the podium.
With 35 entries, the Superstock category has the largest number of competitors.
Winner of this class last year, the 3ART Moto Team 95 joined the Formula EWC category. Many teams will want to succeed him. Among the contenders, the
Junior Team Le Mans Sud Suzuki has put together a high-flying crew composed of Louis Rossi, Alexis Masbou (two former grand prix winners) and Hugo Clere.
Victorious at the Bol d'Or, the German team Gert56 German Endurance Racing Team will want to ride the wave of success. Runner-up to 3ART Moto Team 95 in 2018, the Moto Ain team will travel to Sarthe to win after two consecutive second places.
Among the teams to follow because they are endearing, there is Team 18 Sapeurs-Pompiers. Since 2000, she has represented the men of fire in the World Endurance Championship and notably has a title of vice-world champion in 2009 and a victory in the Superproduction category at the 24 Heures Motos 2007.
The National Police Motorcycle Club will also be represented by the Yamaha #22 of Team 202. This emblematic number made its return to racing last year and was saluted by the checkered flag.
A 100% female crew will also be in the race. The Girls Racing Team will participate in its third 24 Heures Motos, always with the desire to progress in the hierarchy of
the Superstock category.
The Experimental category will bring together motorcycles not homologated within the framework of the FIM EWC and whose modifications go beyond the limits of the regulations. Two motorcycles will be entered in this class dedicated to innovative projects. The Metiss JLC Moto Team will once again enter a prototype without a frame and equipped with a triangulated front axle using a double disc braking system. The TTS Excent team will run a Kawasaki also equipped with an experimental front axle (a deformable quadrilateral placed just above the front wheel and driven by a pressurized monoshock). For JLC Moto and TTS Excent, the challenge of the 24 Heures Motos is as much sporting as it is technological. The objective is to bring significant development work to fruition by integrating the top ten in the general ranking.
With 12 different nationalities among the 60 teams entered and 16 driver nationalities, the 24 Heures Motos has once again established itself as an event of international renown.
The show will not only take place on the track. An essential element of the 24 Heures Motos, the concerts will bring the atmosphere to the heart of the Bugatti circuit village. The group of
Belgian rock band Triggerfinger will electrify the stage of the 24 Heures Motos on Saturday April 20. The Le Mans group Rotterdames will provide the opening act while DJ Loran, resident DJ of RTL2, will extend the party until late at night.
Last year, the Automobile Club de l'Ouest innovated by offering two evenings of concerts. This will be the case again this year. The 24 Heures Motos stage will host the final of the RTL2 young artists' springboard on Friday April 19. This major competition aims to find the two groups and/or artists who will perform during this final.
The competitors will meet on the Bugatti circuit on APRIL 2 AND 3 for two days of free testing no mandatory.
Provisional entry list for the 24 Heures Motos – January 24, 2019
Provisional championship ranking
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