Suzuki Endurance Racing Team wins at Oschersleben

The Suzuki Endurance Racing Team triumphs at the Oschersleben 8 Hours after 313 breathtaking laps. The French team with eleven FIM World Endurance titles to its name had to battle it out till the very end to win the day just one lap ahead of the BMW Motorrad France Team Thevent and the Yamaha France GMT 94 Michelin Yamalube. The Suzuki Endurance Racing Team has further strengthened its position at the top of the provisional leader board with a lead of 19 points over the BMW Motorrad France Team Thevent and the Honda TT Legends. The result reflects the fierce battle for the podium waged over 8 hours by the three contenders for the top spot. The Suzuki Endurance Racing Team managed to hold on to the lead throughout most of the race thanks to Vincent Philippe, Anthony Delhalle and Yukio Kagayama, leaving Yamaha France GMT 94 Michelin Yamalube and BMW Motorrad France Team Thevent to scrap it out for second place as they each took turns to refuel. The BMW, ridden by Sébastien Gimbert, Damian Cudlin and Erwan Nigon, crossed the line in second place with a lead of just 13 s over the Yamaha with David Checa, Kenny Foray and Gwen Giabbani on board. The Honda TT Legends ridden by John McGuinness, Cameron Donald and Jason O’Halloran held on to its fourth place throughout the race, clinching another big score. The Yamalube Folch Endurance came in fifth in the EWC category. A trio of Superstock machines managed to squeeze in between the official British Honda and the Spanish Yamaha. 2011 FIM World Cup winner Team Motors Events AMT Assurances tops this category for the first time ahead of the Kawasaki of 3D Endurance Moto Center and the Suzuki of the Qatar Endurance Racing Team. It was a good day’s work for the Yamaha of DG Sport, ninth overall and fourth Superstock ahead of the Suzuki AM Moto Racing Compétition which has chalked up its first points of the season in Germany. The Bolliger Team Switzerland stayed in the big points after a crash at the start of the race. The Swiss Kawasaki, eleventh at the chequered flag, takes sixth place in the EWC category. It came in ahead of the Monster Energy Yamaha YART whose bid for victory was scuppered by an early crash by Katsuyuki Nakasuga. Maco Racing Team The Maco Racing Team was among the non-finishers. Dogged by electronic problems at the start, the Slovakian Yamaha was stymied by a broken drive chain that damaged the crank case and cost it the the benefit of a brilliant seventh position on the grid. The 24 Hours of Le Mans, sixth and final round of the FIM Endurance World Championship, will take place on Saturday 8 and Sunday 9 September on the France’s Bugatti circuit. The 2012 FIM Endurance World Championship Title will be therefore be decided en France. There are 40 points up for grabs by the winner of this last race of the season. Vincent Philippe, rider with the Suzuki Endurance Racing Team
"After my crash in Suzuka which knocked us off the podium, I absolutely had to take the chequered flag in first place." Anthony Delhalle, rider with the Suzuki Endurance Racing Team
« It’s been a perfect weekend. We were on top in the practice and things went really well for us in the race right up to the finish.» Damian Cudlin, rider with BMW Motorrad France Team Thevent
« I’m a bit disappointed that we didn’t manage to beat the Suzuki. But I admit that after my crash in the warm-up this morning I was a bit tense at the start and for the first few laps. » David Checa, rider with Yamaha France GMT 94 Michelin Yamalube
« This race was really special for me as I won here when I first joined the GMT team ten years ago. We had a perfect race again this year and the only problem was the competition. » Christophe Guyot, team manager of Yamaha France GMT 94 Michelin Yamalube
« We put up a good fight and we were able to show what we can do. We set out to focus on performance and steady fuel consumption. We still have to do some fine-tuning for le Mans. » Michael Savary, rider with Team Motors Events AMT Assurances
« It was a close race for the first place. We were unlucky at the Bol d’Or at the start of the season but since Doha we’ve been getting stronger all the time. We’ll be going into le Mans as leader of the Superstocks.» Valentin Debise, rider with 3D Endurance Moto Center
« I think we lost the race right at the start. I played it safe whereas the competition went for it right from the word go. But we are still in contention for the Superstock Cup and that’s very important for this team which is made up entirely of volunteers. » <media _blank>EWC - Standings after 4 rounds</media> <media _blank>SST - Standings after 3 rounds</media> <media _blank>Final Overall</media> For the latest pics, visit www.flickr.com/photos/fim-live/