74th Bol d’Or this coming weekend at Magny Cours 10 favourites for a podium We can already feel the pressure among the favourites a few days from the start of the 74th Bol d’Or, as not less than ten teams can claim a spot on the final podium. Three of them are in the current top 5 world standings: 2009 Qtel FIM Endurance World championship winner Yamaha Austria Racing Team, the 2010 Le Mans winner Team Kawasaki GSR and 8 Hours of Albacete winner (but Le Mans retiree) Suzuki Endurance Racing Team. Behind those teams there is also a battle between the tyre manufacturers, as YART is on Michelin, GSR on Pirelli and SERT on Dunlop. No need to mention that the private Swiss team and current championship leader Bolliger Switzerland will be as determined as ever. A bit further in the standings is Yamaha France GMT 94. The French team decided to break its contract with Bridgestone and will enter the race on Michelin hoping for a podium finish. As a newcomer within the official machines, BMP Elf 99 Racing Team is also one of the favourites. There are some big changes for the Belgian team: after having started the season on Honda, BMP Elf 99 took over the official BMW on Michelin tyres and will enter with three of the best world endurance riders, Sébastien Gimbert, Erwan Nigon and Matthieu Lagrive. Gimbert and Nigon are very familiar with the awesome BMW track efficiency as last weekend they took the S 1000 RR fifth victory in a row in the French SBK championship. A step behind the main protagonists are three other serious podium contenders, two Hondas and one Suzuki. The CBR 1000 from Michelin Power Research Team wants to forget about being disqualified from their 2009 Bol d’Or podium and their broken engine from the last 24 Hours of Le Mans. On Pirellis, the Honda National Motos is also capable of a great race. And although the Suzuki RAC 41 City Bike team gave one of their best rider, Greg Junod, to Yamaha France GMT 94 for the Bol d’Or, they can still make an impression as they took a third place at the latest 24 Hours of Le Mans. The first qualification session will be held at Magny Cours this coming Thursday. Sixty-three teams have entered but only 57 spots are available on the starting grid. The race will start on Saturday at 3 pm. This will be the last autumn Bol d’Or at Magny-Cours, as from next season, the 24 Hours of Le Mans and Bol d’Or have swapped dates. The 2011 Bol d’Or will take place in April.