Albacete 6hr Night-time Endurance Stage set for an exceptional race The ‘Albacete 6 hour Night-time Endurance’, the second huge test of the QMMF Endurance FIM World Championship, is fast approaching. On Saturday 5th May, from 18:00 until 00:00, twenty-eight teams will take to the 3.5km long Spanish track. Among the favourites is the Suzuki Endurance Racing Team, the double-victors from the ‘Le Mans 24 Hours’ last weekend. The first and second-placed GSX-R from Le Mans, is six points ahead of the ZX-10R of Team Kawasaki Motor France, who finished third at the famous 24 Hour race. The duel between the official Suzuki and Kawasaki is sure to provide huge entertainment for the crowds at Albacete. The arrival of an official Japanese Honda, however, has provided a new threat to the leaders. Albacete will mark the first appearance of the CBR1000RR of the FCC TSR team, winner of the ‘Suzuka 8 Hours’ in 2006. Riding the Honda super-bike will be Takeshi Tsujimura, responsible for the win in 2006, and Yoshiyuki Sugai who finished seventh at Suzuka in 2006. The factory Honda will be using the race as a first test before an eventual return to the official Endurance World Championship in 2008. The presence of the Spanish Yamaha of Folch Endurance is another characteristic of this year’s ‘Albacete 6 hour Night-time Endurance’. Endurance specialists Folch Endurance have finished second and third in the last two races at Albacete. Once again this year the Yamaha Folch will be looking for a place on the podium, under the guidance of rider Victor Casas, winner of the 2006 ‘Catalan 24 Hours’, together with Alex Martinez. Qatar Endurance Racing Team will also certainly be among the front-runners thanks to its Spanish riders. Competitive and on home turf, Jose Luis Cardoso and Ivan Silva are attempting to cast aside the memories of the disappointment of having to retire at Le Mans following mechanical problems. The Albacete circuit, 160km to the west of Valencia, is the only fully-lit track outside of Japan. The free tests will begin on Friday 4th May in the morning. The first qualifying round will take place on Friday afternoon and the second on Saturday morning. The race itself will get underway on Saturday 5th May at 18:00, finishing at midnight. Twenty-five points are on offer for the winner.