The British/French pairing of Harrison Payne (ARS Yamaha) and Kevin Rousseau moved another step closer to regaining the crown they lost last season after dominating both races at round three of the FIM Sidecar World Championship, staged over a scorching weekend at the Pau-Arnos Circuit in South West France where for once it was sun – not rain – that stopped play.
- Heatwave results in shortened programme at Pau-Arnos Circuit
- Harrison Payne and Kevin Rousseau double up at round three
- Pekka Päivärinta and Adam Christie are best of the rest in France
Leading vastly-experienced Finnish rider Pekka Päivärinta (ARS Yamaha) and his British passenger Adam Christie by just four points at the start of the weekend, Payne/Rousseau extended their advantage to eleven-and-a-half points after racing to a pair of victories in an abbreviated programme as a heatwave swept the region.
Qualifying on pole, Payne/Rousseau led the field into the first corner of Saturday’s Sprint race chased by Päivärinta/Christie and the defending champions Sam and Thomas Christie (LCR Yamaha) ahead of a chasing pack that included two-time champions Todd Ellis (ARS Yamaha) from Great Britain and his French passenger Emmanuelle Clément along with the Swiss/German pairing of Markus Schlosser (LCR Yamaha) and Lucas Krieg.
The British/French team of Tim Reeves (ARS Yamaha) and Melanie Farnier were also in touch along with local heroes Paul Leglise (LCR Yamaha) and passenger Marjorie Cescutti before contact between Schlosser and Reeves put the British rider off the track and cost both crews a number of positions.
The action at the front was even hotter than the soaring track temperatures as Päivärinta/Christie, with the Christie brothers chasing hard, poured the pressure on 2024 champions Payne/Rousseau and looked in vain to make a decisive pass while fourth-placed Ellis/Clément were struggling to find grip as they attempted to keep the leading trio within striking distance.
2026 FIM Sidecar World Championship at Pau-Arnos Circuit, France © Mark Walters
After following Päivärinta/Christie home in both races at round two held last month in Grobnik-Rijeka in Croatia, Payne/Rousseau returned to the top step of the podium with a winning margin of just over two seconds ahead of the Finnish five-time FIM Sidecar Rider World Champion and his British passenger before a gap of more than eight-and-a-half seconds to the reigning champions.
Ellis/Clément were next across the line ahead of Leglise/Cescutti who were a season-best fifth with the Dutch crew of Bennie Streuer (ARS Yamaha) and Manon Vissenberg completing the top six as Reeves/Farnier fought their way from last up to eighth, one position and just under three seconds ahead of a disappointed Schlosser and Krieg.
The following day’s Main race was shortened to fourteen laps and rescheduled for the morning to avoid the searing afternoon heat and once again it was Payne/Rousseau who led Päivärinta/Christie into the first turn with Schlosser/Krieg getting a much better start this time around in third.
The Christie brothers held an initial fourth ahead of Ellis/Clément, Reeves/Farnier and Streuer/Vissenberg, but the already abbreviated race was red-flagged when Ellis/Clément suffered a high-speed crash at the start of lap five.
Following a decision not to stage a restart, the race was called with Payne/Rousseau taking the win from Päivärinta/Christie and the Christie brothers with Schlosser/Krieg fourth from Leglise/Cescutti and Streuer/Vissenberg with half points awarded to all scorers.
The 2026 FIM Sidecar World Championship now enters the second half of the campaign with round four scheduled for Cremona in Italy on 7-9 August.
Rounds three through to six of the 2026 FIM Sidecar World Championship will be streamed LIVE on FIM-MOTO.TV. For more information click here.