Suzuki Endurance Racing Team in pole position at Oschersleben ahead of BMW Motorrad France Team Thevent and Monster Energy Yamaha YART
After a disappointment at the Suzuka 8 Hours in Japan in July, the Suzuki Endurance Racing Team seems determined not to give any ground at the Oschersleben 8 Hours. Reigning FIM Endurance World Champions and current leaders in the provisional world rankings by a small margin, the Suzuki Endurance Racing Team have managed to contain the competition in the qualifiers and will start tomorrow from pole position at the Oschersleben 8 Hours, fourth and penultimate round of the 2012 season.
On the average of the all their best lap times, Vincent Philippe, Anthony Delhalle and Yukio Kagayama of the Suzuki Endurance Racing Team squeaked ahead of the BMW Motorrad France Team Thevent with Sébastien Gimbert, Damian Cudlin and Erwan Nigon on board. “We haven’t yet got the tuning of the motorcycle 100% right”, said Nicolas Dussauge, sports director of the BMW team.
The Monster Energy Yamaha YART can boast the best individual performance of the qualifiers with a lap time of 1’26.397 clocked up by Katsuyuki Nakasuga. Nakasuga and his team-mates Igor Jerman and Steve Martin will be starting in the third position on the grid ahead of the Yamaha France GMT 94 Michelin Yamalube ridden by David Checa, Kenny Foray and Gwen Giabbani.
These four teams are all lying within a single second. The Honda TT Legends (Cameron Donald, John McGuinness and Jason O’Halloran) is close behind this group of pre-race favourites and ahead of the first Superstock machine, the Suzuki of MCP Starteam 67 ridden by Claude Lucas and Jonathan Hardt, and the Yamaha of the Maco Racing Team manned by Gregory Junod, Gregg Black and Lucas de Carolis.
The Qatar Endurance Racing Team (Anthony West, Nina Prinz, Nasser Al Malki) moves up a place on the grid as Bolliger Team Switzerland was held up this afternoon following a crash by Roman Stamm. The third Superstock machine, the Suzuki AM Moto Racing Compétition, makes up the top 10 coming out of the qualifiers.
The start of the Oschersleben 8 Hours will be given at 14.00 hours tomorrow, Saturday, for a night finish at 22.00 hours.
Results
You can follow the race on Saturday from 14 h 00 (GMT +2) on FIM-LIVE.COM with the “LIVE TIMING” set up by Tag Heuer, and get regular live updates on Twitter
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