D-7 for the Suzuka 8 Hours! After a second series of tests in Japan, the pressure is mounting and the favorites are positioning themselves to try to gain the upper hand over the competition.
Winner in 2015, the Yamaha Factory Racing Team is already at the forefront ahead of Team Kagayama and Musashi RT Harc-Pro. The best team in the running for the FIM EWC title is FCC TSR Honda.
With a lap time of 2'06.960 on the handlebars of the R1 #21 of the Yamaha Factory Racing Team, victorious in 2015, Katsuyuki Nakasuga set the tone during the final tests of the Suzuka 8 Hours July 13 and 14. Less than a second from the extraordinary pole position won last season by his teammate Espargaro Pol, the Yamaha Factory Racing Team appears to be the team to beat at Suzuka. Katsuyuki Nakasuga and Pol Espargaro are this year associated with Alex Lowes.
Still in the leading trio, the Team Kagayama (Suzuki #17) led by Yukio Kagayama, Ryuichi Kiyonari et Naomichi Uramoto signed his best lap in 2'08.377 with Kiyonari ahead of the Musashi RT Harc-Pro (Honda #634) in 2'08.519 with Takumi Takahashi, Michael van der Mark and Nicky Hayden.
Le Yoshimura Suzuki Shell Advance (#12) stays on pace with a lap in 2'08.554 and aims for victory with Takuya Tsuda, Joshua Brookes and Noriyuki Haga.
The FCC TSR Honda in attack position
The most international of Japanese teams, FCC TSR Honda, 4th in the provisional ranking of the FIM EWC Championship, is the best of the teams currently in the running for the 2016 world title.
Kazuma Watanabe, Patrick Jacobsen and Dominique Aegerter completed their best lap in 2'08.720 just ahead of the Official Kawasaki #87 of Team Green in 2'08.724 with Akira Yanagawa, Kasuki Watanabe and Leon Haslam.
We will also note during these tests at Suzuka the neck and neck between the Yamaha GMT94 in 2'11.104 and the Suzuki Endurance Racing Team in 2'11.221. The GMT94 Yamaha will be at the start with David Checa, Niccolò Canepa and Lucas Mahias, the SERT (Suzuki #1) with Vincent Philippe, Anthony Delhalle and Etienne Masson.
Eleven FIM EWC teams at the start
Eight other teams under contract in the FIM EWC Championship will be at the start of the 39th edition of the 8 Hours of Suzuka. The most prominent is the Team April Moto Motors Events (Suzuki #50) which tops the provisional ranking after its good performances at Le Mans and Portimão at the start of the season. Riding the Suzuki #50, Gregg Black, Grégoy Fastré and Alex Cudlin have the mission to stay at the top of the table.
After his abandonment in Portimão, the SRC Kawasaki (#11) must catch up with Grégory Leblanc and Matthieu Lagrive but without Fabien Foret, victim of phlebitis. They will team up with Jeremy Guarnoni, currently 7th in Superstock 1000 FIM Cup.
Among the teams appearing in the top 15 of the provisional FIM EWC ranking, we will also monitor the performances of the Honda Endurance Racing (#111) with Julien da Costa, Sébastien Gimbert and Freddy Foray, YART Yamaha Official EWC Team (#7) which will associate Broc Parkes to Japanese Takuya Fujita and Kohta Nozane, Team R2CL with Aaron Morris, Aiden Wagner and Sébastien Suchet (Suzuki #2) and Kawasaki #8 of Team Bolliger Switzerland conducted by Horst Saiger, Michael Savary and Gianluca Vizziello.
The Flembbo Leader Team and Motobox Kremer Racing will also be at the start of the Suzuka 8 Hours.
See you on Thursday July 28 for the first official tests of the 39th edition of the Suzuka 8 Hours.
8 Suzuka 2016 Hours – Provisional entry list
8 Suzuka 2016 Hours – Timetables
the FIM EWC is on www.fimewc.com