In years past, this race has been the season finale. But, it's now the second round. It will be hot because it's in the desert and the weather changes a lot. The race will be run between 5;00 P.M. and 1;00 A.M. on June 9th.
The tire manufacturers will have a real test on their hands in this event with the track conditions. They include Michelin, Pirelli, and Dunlop. This is the first of three eight hour races in a row. An eight hour event is very different. Use the entire fuel capacity available, try to spend the least amount of time in the pits. The strategies are more adaptable in eight hour races as compared to the 24 hour races. Yamaha has won three races in Qatar. The other two races have been won by SERT. BMW Motorrad France has pole with their #99 bike. Erwan Nigon is the rider setting pole time. He shares with Sebastien Gimbert and Damien Cudlin.
Anthony West from Moto 2 and MotoGP will be in this race, on bike #95 for Qatar Endurance Racing Team on their Suzuki GSXR 1000 sharing with Nasser Al Malki and Elena Rossell. A smallish field of 23 bikes are set to start the race. At the start, BMW Motorrad France gets the early lead. Erwan Nigon leads into the first corner. However, it's not BMW. It's Suzuki and Yamaha getting the jump as SERT takes P1 with Vincent Philippe at the controls of their GSXR1000. With two hours gone, BMW leads. Suzuki chases them with Vincent Philippe, Anthony Delhalle, and Yukio Kagayama in second.
Bolliger Kawasaki and Honda TT Legends run fourth and fifth. Meanwhile, in Super Stock, it's bike #95 leading. This is the Qatar Endurance Racing Team Suzuki with Anthony West, Nasser Al Malki, and check the third rider. It's supposed to be Elena Rossell, but the graphic lists rider Nina Prinz. Clarification. This is a four rider team with Nina Prinz. So, the lineup is West/Al Malki/Rossell/Prinz. The safety car is dispatched after a crash by the #4 Yamalube Folch Endurance bike. This is the Yamaha R1 shared by Daniel Ribalta, Arturo Tizon, and Roberto Martinez.
The #4 bike is brought back to it's garage. Pit stop time now. First in is the #13 bike for Penz 13 Kraftwerk. This is the Super Stock division BMW S1000RR being shared by Pedro Vallcaneras, Michal Filla, and Gregory Fastre. Honda TT Legends now pits their CBR1000RR. Michael Laverty will take over from Ryuichi Kiyonari. But, at the sharp end, it's still a battle between Suzuki and Yamaha (SERT and YART, respectively). Former World Superbike standout Noriyuki Haga is riding for YART in place of Steve Martin. Haga shares with regular team riders Gwen Giabbani, and Igor Jerman.
BMW continues to run well, but another Yamaha team (Yamaha GMT 94) is not having the race they expected to. Sharing the #94 Yamaha R1, it's the usual trio of David Checa, Kenny Foray, and Mathieu Lagrive. Noriyuki Haga on the #7 bike has not competed in World Superbike for a number of years, instead focusing on the British Superbike Championship. Michael Laverty, likewise, is a British Superbike regular. Bolliger Team Switzerland and their Kawasaki ZX10R is running well. The regular riding trio is in command, including Horst Saiger, Roman Stamm, and Jerome Tangre.
As the sun sets, Folch Endurance emerges from the garage, ready to get back into the race. Daniel Ribalta's earlier crash didn't hurt the bike too badly. Retiring from competition at this stage, it's the #44 Superstock team No Limits Motor Racing with a Suzuki GSXR1000. The rider's strength included a trio of Italians. Simone Saltarelli, Fabrizio Perotti, and Cristiano Erbacci. The motor blew on the bike according to team manager, Moreno Codeluppi. The sun has now set on the Losail International Circuit, getting into the second half of this race.
Folch Endurance is still pounding around after being in the garage. Here's the clarification with the second Qatari bike. This is the team bike to the one being ridden in part by Anthony West. This second bike was a late entry and the number cannot be deciphered. Presumably, it is bike #96. Elena Rossell shares this bike with Saeed Al Sulaiti and Sultan Al Kuwari. Yamaha GMT 94 makes a scheduled pit stop. They won the 8 Hours of Doha last year. Next in the queue to pit lane, it's YART. The #95 bike also comes in, mentioned earlier. Nina Prinz takes over for her first stint in the race.
The standings after two hours look like this.
1. EWC #99 BMW Motorrad France BMW S1000RR
Gimbert/Cudlin/Nigon
2. EWC #7 Monster Energy Yamaha
YART Yamaha R1
Haga/Jerman/Giabbani
3. EWC #1 Suzuki Endurance Racing Team Suzuki GSXR1000
Philippe/Delhalle/Kagayama
4. EWC #8 Boliger Team Switzerland Kawasaki ZX10R
Saiger/Stamm/Tangre
5. EWC #77 Honda TT Legends Honda CBR1000RR
Kiyonari/Laverty/O'Halloran
6. SST #95 Qatar Endurance Racing Team Suzuki GSXR1000
Al Malki/West/ Rosell
7. SST #13 Penz 13 Kraftwerk/Herpigny Racing BMW S1000RR
Valcaneras/Filla/Fastre
8. SST #50 Team Motors Events
AMT Assurances Suzuki GSXR1000
Savary/Dietrich/Moreira
9. SST #96 Qatar Endurance Racing Team Suzuki GSXR1000
Al Mannai/Al Naimi/Al Naimi
10. SST #67 Starteam 67 Suzuki GSXR1000
Lucas/Hart/Diguet
At the halfway mark of four hours, it's still BMW Motorrad France in the lead. Right now, they have two laps in hand over the Boliger Team. Honda TT Legends has gone from fifth to third in the overall. Honda TT Legends makes a pit stop. For the three riders (Kiyonari, Laverty, and O'Halloran), they are acclimating well to roles as substitute riders for this race.
This is the first race at night for Jason O'Halloran. But his team mate Ryuichi Kiyonari has been a veteran of endurance motorcycle road racing, having competed several times in what will be round three of the series, the Suzuka 8 Hours. Shortly after two hours, Yamaha GMT 94 was in the garage, fixing the bike. Team manager Christophe Guyot explains that David Checa was running slower lap times than the team expected. The bike could be overheating. That called for a radiator change.
Yamaha GMT 94 retired shortly after, and, SERT is having their own problems. They have a faulty oil line. With the delays, YART moves up in the standings, but they are not immune to their own setbacks. Something was wrong in the engine department on their Yamaha R1. Gwen Giabbani and Noriyuki Haga handled most of the riding chores during this part of the race. In Super Stock, the battle is between QERT and Penz 13 Kraftwerk. In the third hour now (not the fourth as mentioned before), the two QERT bikes battle together and almost have a run-in with one another.
QERT team manager Luis Solano says that a good result is expected, but, it can never be completely certain in endurance motorcycle road racing. Interestingly, QERT is only three laps behind the leading team of BMW Motorrad France. BMW team manager Michael Bartholemy is confident. BMW's consistency on pit stops allows them to retain their lead in this race, which they've pretty much held since lap one. Bolliger is now second on their Kawasaki ZX10R. Bolliger flies the flag for Kawasaki in Qatar as SRC Kawasaki who won the Bol D'or, are not taking part in the Qatar round.
Another team having a good run is DG Sport in Superstock. This is bike #9, a Belgian run team with a Yamaha R1. Sharing the riding chores are Didier van Keymeulen, Alex Cudlin, and Gianluca Vizziello. The #9 bike pits for routine service, with a crewman calling to the rider, "lights! Lights out!", making sure he knows to turn off the headlight in the box. DG Sport team manager Olivier Aerts says that with well planned strategy, the team can work through some of the issues they've been dealing with.
YART and their #7 bike with one rider being Noriyuki Haga, has retired with engine maladies. Team manager Mandy Kainz says that thy hope to have more luck at the Suzuka 8 Hours.
Here are the standings after the halfway mark in the event (four hours).
1. EWC #99 BMW Motorrad France BMW S1000RR
Gimbert/Cudlin/Nigon
2. EWC #8 Boliger Team Switzerland Kawasaki ZX10R
Saiger/Stamm/Tangre
3. EWC #77 Honda TT Legends Honda CBR1000RR
Kiyonari/Laverty/O'Halloran
4. SST #95 Qatar Endurance Racing Team Suzuki GSXR1000
Al Malki/West/Rosell
5. SST #13 Penz 13 Kraftwerk/Herpigny Racing BMW S1000RR
Valcaneras/Filla/Fastre
6. SST #50 Team Motors Events
AMT Assurances Suzuki GSXR1000
Savary/Dietrich/Moreira
7. SST #68 Atomic Motorsport Suzuki GSXR1000
Muteau/Jond/Devoyan
8. SST #9 DG Sport Yamaha R1
van Keymeulen/Cudlin/Vizziello
9. EWC #1 Suzuki Endurance Racing Team Suzuki GSXR1000
Philippe/Delhalle/Kagayama
10. SST #96 Qatar Endurance Racing Team Suzuki GSXR1000
Al Mannai/Al Naimi/Al Naimi
With their problems, SERT has dropped from third to ninth in the overall. With two hours or so to go (at the six hour mark), Bolliger Kawasaki is still in a good position to take the fight to BMW Motorrad France. They make a scheduled pit stop. Team manager for Bolliger, Hanspeter Bigler is confident about the team's chances for a good result. Honda TT Legends is hanging on to third position right now.
SERT makes a scheduled pit stop and are just five laps behind now. They can gain ground. QERT and Kraftwerk battle it out in Super Stock. Kraftwerk makes a scheduled pit stop. Michael Laverty is doing his first night race for Honda TT Legends. Folch Endurance is also still on track, trying to pick up points despite their fraught race. QERT was doing well, but one of their bikes had to retire at the six hour mark with mechanical troubles.
This is the first race for one of the riders at night for Honda TT Legends. It's probably Jason O'Halloran as both Michael Laverty and Riyuchi Kiyonari have experience with endurance races. Daniel Ribalta thought he had issues with the #4 Yamaha. But, that isn't the case. The bike seems to be running smoothly once more. It is discovered that the second QERT bike went out with crankshaft issues. SERT pits for another rider change as they continue their quest to get on the podium. SERT has had trouble with an oil line and that's what set them back.
The sister bike for QERT II has also given up the ghost. So, both bikes are now on the list of retirements as this race is headed for it's closing stages. Team manager Luis Solano explains that it's the crankshaft. The engines are under a lot of load. Bike #95 leads Super Stock though. At the six hour mark, here are the standings.
1. EWC #99 BMW Motorrad France BMW S1000RR
Gimbert/Cudlin/Nigon
2. EWC #8 Boliger Team Switzerland Kawasaki ZX10R
Saiger/Stamm/Tangre
3. EWC #77 Honda TT Legends Honda CBR1000RR
Kiyonari/Laverty/O'Halloran
4. SST #95 Qatar Endurance Racing Team Suzuki GSXR1000
Al Malki/West/Rosell
5. EWC #1 Suzuki Endurance Racing Team Suzuki GSXR1000
Philippe/Delhalle/Kagayama
6. SST #13 Penz 13 Kraftwerk/Herpigny Racing BMW S1000RR
Valcaneras/Filla/Fastre
7. SST #50 Team Motors Events
AMT Assurances Suzuki GSXR1000
Savary/Dietrich/Moreira
8. SST #9 DG Sport Yamaha R1
van Keymeulen/Cudlin/Vizziello
9. SST #68 Atomic Motorsport Suzuki GSXR1000
Muteau/Jond/Devoyon
10. EWC #14 Maco Racing Yamaha R1
Pridmore/Junod/Black
The Yamaha that has inherited tenth spot has former AMA Superbike star and current SPEED motorcycling analyst Jason Pridmore as one of it's riders. The team runs fifth in class in Endurance World Cup, and tenth in the overall. There are just two hours left to race, but the drivers are getting tired. Honda TT Legends makes a pit stop. They could get their first podium this season. Bolliger is currently second and it looks like BMW Motorrad France will win this race.
SERT makes their final pit stop. They will finish fourth, four laps behind the winner. Team Motors Events looks like they'll get on the Super Stock podium. The QERT bike of West, Prinz, and Al Malki makes it's last pit stop. BMW Motorrad France makes their last pit stop. They will score what is only their second victory in endurance motorcycle road racing. BMW Motorrad France wins it with Sebastien Gimbert, Damien Cudlin, and Erwan Nigon! Qatar Endurance Racing wins Super Stock.
EWC: #99 Gimbert/Cudlin/Nigon BMW S1000RR
SST: #95 Al Malki/West/Rosell Suzuki GSXR1000
The next race on the calendar for the FIM World Endurance Championship is the legendary 8 Hours of Suzuka. Stay tuned for a report on that event in the not too distant future.
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