Honda teams and riders go into the 31st running of the Suzuka 8 Hours race on Sunday, July 27, totally focused on nothing less than outright victory at the classic Japanese circuit that is synonymous with the fastest race on the World Endurance Championship calendar. Honda teams have contested every Suzuka 8 Hours and have recorded unrivalled success in the race winning no less than 21 times from 30 appearances in Japan’s most prestigious motorcycle event. However, in 2007 Hondas 10 year winning streak came to an end when the HRC #11 Honda CBR1000RR factory machine of multi-eight hours winner Tady Okada and race debutant Carlos Checa were forced to accept second place at the end. Finishing second to the Yoshimura team of Yuki Kagayama and Kosuki Akiyoshi after their thrilling fight back in the latter stages of the race was difficult to accept. Checa returns to contest his second 8 hours this time partnered by his Ten Kate World Superbike team mate Ryuichi Kiyonari, race winner in 2005 when partnered with the now retired Tohru Ukawa. The two men were partnered for the Suzuka 300km race on June 8 last when, despite another late charge by the #33 factory Honda machine, the partnership finished a very close second to the same Yoshimura duo, this time by an agonizing 2.5 seconds. These setbacks have served to instill the Honda men with a steely determination to reverse these results. Under the leadership of team manager Teruaki Matsubara every member of the HRC team is totally motivated and will give 100% as they bid to regain 8 hours bragging rights. The second DREAM Honda CBR1000RR will be raced by the Anglo Japanese pairing of Jonathan Rae and Yukio Takahashi. The Japanese rider has 8 hours experience having raced for HRC in the 2004 edition of the event. Takahashi crashed that day during the free practice and could not take part in the race but took the checkered flag at the 2006 running of the Suzuka 300Km race. The 250cc GP rider returned to Japan after the German GP and spent two days testing the machine earmarked for him and Rae and pronounced himself ready to race. Rae (SIC), who won the Czech Republic round of the World Supersport Championship, at Brno, last Sunday, was reserve rider to the DREAM Honda teams in 2007.The Northern Irishman raced the 2008 CBR1000RR to fifth place at the Suzuka 300km in June and goes into the 8 hours full of confidence following extensive testing with the machine at Suzuka. All four riders are in top form and the CBR1000RR has been improved since the 300km race in June giving added impetus to the teams’ efforts. Both factory machines will be in identical technical specifications but will run with different race tyres. The #11 DREAM Honda will race with Bridgestone’s #33 equipped with Dunlop rubber. They will face proven adversaries on Sunday. Apart from the Yoshimura duo of Kagayama and Akiyoshi and team mates Daisuku Sakai and Atsuki Watanabe, the Honda factory riders have to contend with stiff opposition from well equipped Honda teams capable of victory on Sunday. Chief among them will be the TSS FCC CBR1000RR in the hands of near veteran riders Shinichi Ito and Takeshi Tsujimura, race winners in 2006 before finishing third last year. For three-times race winner Ito the race has a special significance – victory on Sunday will see the likeable former GP rider equal the record of four victories recorded by Tohru Ukawa and Wayne Gardner. Team Sakurai Honda can never be discounted at Suzuka, in any form of racing the 8 hours in particular. The team has scored consistently good results in the race and field the strong line up Chojun Kameya and Leon Haslam on the #34 machine. The partnership went to the line for the recent 300km race but a first lap crash ruled out eight riders from the restart, Kameya among them. Consequently Haslam has had no more than a few laps practice on the CBR1000RR the pair will race but is happy with the compromises he has had to make on machine set up to give both men a relatively untroubled ride. Moriwaki Engineering is another top runner at Suzuka and will enter the three man team of Tetsuya Yamaguchi, Cal Crutchlow and Steve Plater aboard their CBR1000RR. Yamaguchi and Crutchlow finished eighth at the 300km. The reigning World Champions, Suzuki Endurance Racing Team (SERT) run with their tried and trusted team of Vincent Philippe, Matthieu Legrieve and Julien Da Costa. Yamaha will field two teams from the World Endurance Championship. Phase One will have Damien Cudlin, Scott Smart and Glen Richards running in their colours while the #7 Yamaha will be raced by the formidable trio of Igor Jerman, Steve Martin and Steve Plater. Kawasaki will look to the vastly experienced Ryuji Tsuruta, Ken Eguchi and Shinya Takeshi to run in the top group and outlast the top teams. Pre-race quotes from Honda riders and team staff. Teruaki Matsubara: DREAM Honda racing Team 2008 Suzuka 8 Hours race Project Leader “We have finished the pre-8 hr race final testing on July 16th and 17th. As Checa, Kiyonari and Rea were in Brno for their WSB/WSS mission, only Japanese riders were at Suzuka. Yuki Takahashi was riding the machine eagerly. He did around 100 laps during the two days testing. We had testing in the beginning of July but as Rea had to ride the machine, Yuki didn’t have much chance to ride it then. But this time, he was learning a lot. He marked 2’9’s once and was marking 2′ 10’s consistently. Considering the set-up was basically Rea’s set-up, I think he was doing very good. The #33 Team is using Dunlop tyre and we have good choice for the race.” “For #11 of Checa and Kiyonari, we have almost finalized the spec during the testing in early July. Checa marked 2 07’s and Kiyo marked 2 08’s. Kiyo is now feeling much better than he was at Suzuka 300km race with Bridgestone tyre. Once he marks a certain lap time, he never goes backward. Next time, he can ride even quicker. Checa is eager to win the race. He is inspiring everyone in the team. Also Checa does what he said and it gives us confidence. Checa and Kiyonari have good feeling with the Bridgestone tyre they are using. Last year we lost to Yoshimura and our consecutive win record has ended. So we must make revenge this year. Last year, Yoshimura did 216 laps so our target for this year is to mark 217 laps. It is possible mathematically, although lap times must be increased slightly. For the first stint, we expect the top group to do 2’08-09’s. When back markers appear after the first half of the first stint, the average lap time would drop to 2’11’s.” “Pit work is also crucial. Our target is 14 seconds for the whole pit work and we have achieved this already. Now we are practicing pit work almost ten times a day. The most important thing is to stay cool and make no mistakes.” “For this year, the rival will be the Yoshimura pair of Kosuke Akiyoshi and Yuki Kagayama. Also Shinichi Ito and Satoshi Tsujimura will be very fast. Ito has marked 2 07’s and Tsujimura has marked 2 08’s during the testing. So this year’s 8 hour race will be really tough but I am sure all our riders are ready to win back.” Ryuichi Kiyonari: “I am quite satisfied with the tests we have done. At the time of Suzuka 300km race, I was struggling to get used to the machine. The CBR1000RRW I ride for the 8 hr race is a lot different from the Ten Kate Honda machine I ride for the WSB. But finally I have a good feeling with the machine and Bridgestone tyre. Checa has a lot of experience and is very much determined. He is also very funny which makes me relax. He is a fantastic partner and I learn a lot from him.” “Last year and the year before, I couldn’t win 8 hr races so I want to win the race this year desperately. Last year, I won the BSB Championship but it was no comfort to make up for the retirement from the 8 hr race. We only have one 8 hr race a year, so if you lose, you have to wait another year to make up for that. I don’t want to wait another year.” Carlos Checa: “This year feels good and because we have the experience of last year it feels like we already have something positive. This year it looks like the combination of the new Honda, Bridgestone, Kiyo and me is working quite well. We are not necessarily much faster than last year but I think we can be more consistent, and we have a better overall pace. Last year was not so bad and I was quite comfortable. We probably didn’t have the support on the front that we have this year, and that is why for me I have more confidence. We don’t have to take care of the front because it feels a lot more stuck to the ground. I think that is due to a combination of the tyres and the bike. Our tests have been good on the new bike and I think we have done very good work. The feeling I had with the last test was quite positive, and I think we are at a good level.” “I really like the 8-Hour, because the bike works quite well, all the preparations I like, and it is very physical. The only thing I don’t like is the travelling, the jet-lag is quite inconvenient. But when I am there I really enjoy it. Suzuka is also one of the best tracks. It is a little bit dangerous in some points, but the risk is what makes part of this sport. I do many activities because there is some risk and this risk wakes you up a little. We have a good package to win and that also gives me a good motivation to go there to race.” Jonathan Rae (SIC): “Testing for the race has been going pretty well so far. I managed to go as quick as I realistically could in the early stages of testing and then I went on from there and finished fifth in the 300km race. We did another test recently and Dunlop brought a new front tyre that steers a lot better and that helped a lot. The 2008 bike is a lot better than the bike from last year. The chassis turns faster than last year’s bike and there is not only more top end, but more torque, so you don’t have to rev it so hard. The riding position is better for me as well because there is a bit more space to move around on the bike. When we tested with my favourite front and favourite rear tyre we were as quick as Kiyo-san, so I hope my team-mate and I can go at the same pace as each other. Then we can aim for a podium finish. It’s a race that means a lot to me simply because it’s a race that means a lot to Honda. You ask anyone outside of Europe and some are not sure what the 8-Hour race is, but ask anyone in Japan and it is the biggest thing you can imagine. So I want to do well out there to please Honda.” Leon Haslam: “This is my first Suzuka 8 Hours and I’m really looking forward to the race. I’m racing the Sakurai Honda, a HRC CBR1000RR but I’ve have only tested the bike for a day and a half but my team mate, Chojun Kameya has had a couple of extra days testing the bike. We were teamed together for the Suzuka 300km race last month but he got caught up in the big crash soon after the start so I didn’t get in a lap of the race. But the set up was good and we didn’t have to compromise too much on the settings. We needed a little more speed at the 300 km race but it will be better for the 8 hours. We will be running the same Dunlop tyres as the top teams so we will be setting faster lap times than last month.” Yuki Takahashi: “During the testing in early July, mainly Jonathan was riding, so this is actually my first test. I rode as many laps as possible to get used to the machine. Usually I am riding two stroke 250cc machine so this big four stroke machine feels a lot different and I have to get used to it. I marked 2′ 09’s once but I have to mark 2’09’s consistently. I think once I get used to it, it will be possible. I still haven’t discussed about machine set-up with Jonathan but am looking forward to race with him. In ’04, I was a member of the factory team in 8 hr race but crashed and injured during the practice. In ’06, I won Suzuka 300km race with Kiyonari, but crashed and injured during the testing before 8 hr race. In both cases, I missed the 8 hr race and it was a great shame. So I desperately want to race this year and make revenge. If we can get good set-up, it is possible for me to do 2’08’s for a quick lap and also do 2’9-10’s for average lap time.” Shinichi Ito : “I marked 2’07’s during the testing with my race tyre. If we use qualifying tyre for the Super Pole, it is possible to go one and a half second or two seconds quicker. My partner Tsujimura is kind of genius and once he is in good shape, we never know how quick he can ride. Suzuka 8 Hours race winners 1978 2007. 1978: Wes Cooley, USA Mike Baldwin, USA Suzuki GS1000 194 laps. 1979: Tony Hatton, AUS Michael Cole, AUS Honda CB900 197 1980: Wes Cooley, USA Graeme Crosby, NZ Suzuki GS1000 200 1981: Mike Baldwin, USA Dave Aldana, USA Honda RS1000 199 1982: Shigeo Iijima, J Shinji Hagiwara, J Honda CB900F 120 1983: Herve Moineau, B Richard Hubin, B Suzuki GS1000R 190 1984: Mike Baldwin, USA Fred Merkel, USA Honda RS750R 192 1985: Wayne Gardner, AUS Masaki Tokano, J Honda RVF750 195 1986: Wayne Gardner, AUS Dominique Sarron, F Honda RVF750 197 1987: Martin Wimmer, D Kevin MaGee, AUS Yamaha YZF750 200 1988: Kevin MaGee, AUS Wayne Rainey, USA Yamaha YZF750 202 1989: Dominique Sarron, F Alex Vieira, Por Honda RVF750 202 1990: Tadahiko Taira, J Eddie Lawson, USA Yamaha YZF750 205 1991: Wayne Gardner, AUS Mick Doohan, AUS Honda RVF750 192 1992: Wayne Gardner, AUS Daryl Beattie, AUS Honda RVF750 208 1993: Scott Russell, USA Aaron Slight, NZ Kawasaki ZXR 7 207 1994: Doug Polen, USA – Aaron Slight, NZ Honda RVF/RC45 183 1995: Aaron Slight, NZ Tadayuki Okada, J Honda RVF/RC45 212 1996: Colin Edwards, USA Noriyuki Haga, J Yamaha YZF750 214 1997: Shinichi Ito, J Tohru Ukawa, J Honda RVF/RC45 186 1998: Shinichi Ito, J Tohru Ukawa, J Honda RVF/RC45 212 1999: Tadayuki Okada, J Alex Barros, Bra Honda RVF/RC45 213 2000: Tohru Ukawa, J Daijiro Kato, J Honda VTR1000SPW 215 2001: Valentino Rossi, I – Colin Edwards, USA Honda VTR1000SPW 217 2002: Daijiro Kato, J – Colin Edwards, USA Honda VTR1000SPW 219 2003: Yukio Nukumi, J – Manubu Kamada, J Honda VTR1000SPW 212 2004: Tohru Ukawa, J Hitoyasu Izutsu, J Honda CBR1000RRW 210 2005: Ryuichi Kiyonari, J – Tohru Ukawa, J Honda CBR1000RRW 204 2006: Shinichi Ito, J – Takeshi Tsujimura, J Honda CBR1000RR 214 2007: Yuki Kagayama, J Kosuki Akiyoshi, J Yoshimura Suzuki S-GSX-R1000 216