8-Hours of Oschersleben
FIM Endurance World Championship (EWC)
Motorsport Arena Oschersleben
Oschersleben, Germany
August 27, 2016
Final Overall Race Results:
1. GMT94 Yamaha (David Checa/Niccolo Canepa/Lucas Mahias), Yam YZF-R1, Superbike, Total Race Time 8:01:13.549
2. Suzuki Endurance Racing Team (Vincent Philippe/Anthony Delhalle/Etienne Masson), Suz GSX-R1000, Superbike, -21.315 seconds
3. Penz13.com – BMW Motorrad Team (Kenny Foray/Lukas Pesek/Matthieau Lussiana), BMW S1000RR, Superbike, -3 laps
4. Honda Endurance Racing (Julien Da Costa/Sebastien Gimbert/Freddy Foray), Hon CBR1000RR SP, Superbike, -5 laps
5. Maco Racing Team (Gregory Junod/Anthony Dos Santos/Marko Jerman), Yam YZF-R1, Superbike, -6 laps
6. Team 3ART Yam-Avenue (Louis Bulle/Alex Plancassagne/Lukas Trautmann), Yam YZF-R1, Superstock, -7 laps
7. Lukoil BMW Motorrad CSEU (Fabrizio Lai/Julian Mayer/Roland Resch), BMW S1000RR, Superbike, -7 laps, 19.114 seconds
8. Starteam PAM-Racing (Kevin Longearet/Jonathan Hardt/Sebastien Gerard), Suz GSX-R1000, Superstock, -8 laps
9. AM Moto Racing Competition (Jonathan Goetschy/Jimmy Maccio/Kevin Denis), Kaw ZX-10R, Superstock, -8 laps, 71.536 seconds
10. Tati Team Beaujolais Racing (Julien Enjolras/Dylan Buisson/Hugo Clere), Kaw ZX-10R, Superstock, -9 laps
14. Team Rapid Transit (Ivan Silva/Brandon Cretu), Yam YZF-R1, Superbike, -12 laps
29. YART Yamaha (Broc Parkes/Marvin Fritz/Sheridan Morais), Yam YZF-R1, Superbike, -30 laps
32. F.C.C. TSR Honda (PJ Jacobsen/Damian Cudlin/Kazuma Watanabe), Hon CBR1000RR, Superbike, -220 laps
35. SRC Kawasaki (Gregory Leblanc/Matthieu Lagrive/Fabien Foret), Kaw ZX-10R, Superbike, -304 laps
FIM Endurance World Championship Team Point Standings (after 4 of 4 races):
1. Suzuki Endurance Racing Team, 88 points
2. GMT94 Yamaha, 87
3. Team April Moto Motors Events, 78
4. Honda Endurance Racing, 72
5. TIE, SRC Kawasaki/YART Yamaha Official EWC Team, 60
7. F.C.C. TSR Honda, 56
8. Team 3art Yam ‘Avenue, 50
9. Team R2CL, 45
10. AM Moto Racing Competition, 38
More, from a press release issued by Eurosport Events:
GMT94 WINS RACE BY 21 SECONDS
SERT WINS TITLE BY 1 POINT
GMT94 crossed the finish line of an extraordinary race just ahead of Suzuki Endurance Racing Team – who won the FIM EWC 2016 championship by just one point. Penz13.com BMW Motorrad finished third at the Oschersleben 8 Hours.
Suspense ran high until the very last minute of the race, with the outcome of the duel between GMT94 Yamaha and Suzuki Endurance Racing Team uncertain to the end. There was a mere 21-second gap between the two French teams at the finish. GMT94 Yamaha (David Checa, Niccolò Canepa and Lucas Mahias) are celebrating their win at the Oschersleben 8 Hours (their second this season, after Portimão) while Suzuki Endurance Racing Team (Vincent Philippe, Anthony Delhalle and Etienne Masson) are rejoicing in their new status as FIM EWC world champions – the team’s 15th world title – at the end of a tough season with no wins. Suzuki Endurance Racing Team squeezed past GMT94 Yamaha to top spot in the world standings, with only a one-point lead.
On the third step of the podium after finishing three laps behind the leader, Penz13.com BMW Motorrad is relishing its finest race. Rico Penzkofer’s team scored their first points this season with only two riders, Kenny Foray and Lukas Pesek, in the absence of Mathieu Gines who was injured in the IDM.
Fourth past the finish line, five laps behind GMT94 Yamaha, Honda Endurance Racing ran a fine race, staying in the top 5 throughout – though a brake problem gave Julien da Costa, Sébastien Gimbert and Freddy Foray a scare. Another contender often overshadowed by the factory-backed teams, Maco Racing Team, picked up 5th place at Oschersleben after a fantastic late-stage sprint by Greg Junod, Anthony dos Santos and Marko Jerman.
A win and the World Cup for Team 3Art Yam’Avenue
The top Superstock, Team 3Art Yam’Avenue, was right behind Maco Racing Team. Louis Bulle, Alex Plancassagne and Lukas Trautmann ran a perfect race, and walked off with both the Superstock win at Oschersleben and the 2016 Superstock World Cup.
Behind Lukoil BMW Motorrad CSEU, which placed 7th (the Czech team wrapped up its first FIM EWC season in Germany), a set of Superstocks finished in a tight group: Starteam PAM-Racing, AM Moto Racing Compétition and Tati Team Beaujolais Racing, in that order – also the top three of the Dunlop Independent Trophy at Oschersleben.
Team April Moto Motors Events finished 11th, having fallen back from the leading pack due to a crash and an overheating engine. Starting the race at the top of the provisional FIM EWC standings, Team April Moto Motors Events ended up third in the final world standings.
An edge-of-seat finale
The Oschersleben 8 Hours was forecast to be a suspenseful race, and it didn’t disappoint. There was much drama and many upsets for practically the entire 8 hours.
The favourites to win the world title had a tough time of it from the start. Team SRC Kawasaki was the first to fall by the wayside, forced to withdraw with a broken engine after only five laps, though Gregory Leblanc had got off to a good start. Then it was F.C.C. TSR Honda’s turn to retire following a mechanical problem 72 laps into the race.
The favourite in the Superstock class, Völpker NRT48 Schubert Motors, suffered a crash.
An hour and a half from the finish, one final spectacular upset totally shook up the pecking order. YART Yamaha Official EWC Team had been leading the race from the start with Broc Parkes, Marvin Fritz and Sheridan Morais. But the Austrian Yamaha fell victim to an overheated engine and had to throw in the towel after 192 laps in the lead.
More, from a press release issued by Honda Endurance Racing:
Fourth place finish for Honda Endurance Racing at the 8 Hours of Oschersleben
8 Hours of Oschersleben
Motorsport Arena Oschersleben, Germany
With 304 laps completed and over 1,112.64km covered the Honda Endurance Racing team finished the final round of the 2016 FIM Endurance World Championship at the 8 Hours of Oschersleben, in fourth place and fourth overall in the championship standings.
The race got underway at 14.00hrs local time and starting from ninth place on the grid Freddy Foray quickly got to work aboard the Honda CBR1000RR Fireblade SP chasing down the front group. By the first pit stop the team were sitting in third place.
After an issue with the brake caliper sticking during the pit stop, which lost crucial time the team was down in seventh place. Julien Da Costa was out on track next and during his stint pushed hard to make up the lost places and had moved into fifth place by the second pit stop.
Taking over the reins of the Fireblade next was Sébastien Gimbert, however drama unfolded on track and an oil spill caused by a three-bike crash brought out the safety car. During this time the team opted to pit early and replace the brake calipers to prevent further pit stop complications.
Returning to the track in seventh place Gimbert, who is nursing badly bruised ribs after a crash in practice, masterfully rode the CBR back into fifth position. With super-speedy pit stops, the crew worked hard to ensure no more time was lost.
Over the next four hours Honda’s endurance specialists worked hard to ensure the fifth place wasn’t lost. However, in the final 30 minutes it was announced that championship rivals YART had retired, moving Honda Endurance Racing into fourth place.
The final stages of the race saw the Honda team look on as Foray was tasked with bringing the Fireblade home and maintaining that fourth place. After eight hours and 304 laps the Honda Endurance Racing team finished the 8 Hours of Oschersleben fourth.
The team has experience a mixed 2016 season with results, although constantly in the mix with the leading groups over the four races, some little niggles have plagued them from showing their true potential. However the result from today and finishing the season in fourth place, puts them in a good place ahead of the Bol d’Or (16-18 September), which marks the start of the 2017 EWC season in its new championship format.
Freddy Foray
Well fourth, you know it’s not so bad. When I started the race today I knew we had to push to be able to move up the places and we managed this. Of course we always want to finish higher and win, but we’re happy with fourth. The race was good, the Fireblade was faultless and the team as always worked hard to give us the best possible package. It’s been a difficult year at times, but to finish fourth overall is a positive. We will now put our focus to the Bol d’Or where the goal will of course be for the win!
Julien Da Costa
Fourth place today is good and we are happy, we started ninth so to make up the places is good. We don’t fight at the front, which for a rider is the most important thing, but this year we have finished every race and as close to the podium as was possible at the time. Of course Le Mans was a real shame for us as the second-place points, with Portimao and today would have moved us higher in the championship, but you know this is racing! We now have a good energy for the Bol d’Or and we’re looking forward to getting there and fighting for the win!
Sébastien Gimbert
For me the race was difficult, I am struggling with my ribs and it was physically difficult to push. At the start of the race I had a different feeling with the Fireblade setting, which I wasn’t too happy with, but after my second stint I was starting to get used to it and did some very fast laps, which I was pleased with. The pace of the riders in front was very strong, so to start the race ninth and finish fourth is very positive. We finished the championship fourth as well and we now have good motivation going to the Bol d’Or in a few weeks time. All three of us want to win and will push hard to make this happen.
Jonny Twelvetrees
Assistant team manager
So we finished today fourth and fourth overall in the championship, of course we wanted more and to win here, but looking at the pace of the guys in front unfortunately with the small problems we had early on, it meant it wasn’t possible to fight with the front pack – but fourth was a great result considering the circumstances. We’re pleased with both results but there’s also a sense of what could have been. Looking back over the championship, we go to Le Mans where we were running in second place, but a problem put us back and we finished 19th in the end – which had we finished second we would have walked away with 109 points, but it’s racing and there are always what ifs, you just have to bounce back. So to finish the season fourth after the start we had is positive and it has been a great season. We now have three weeks until the new season kicks off with the Bol d’Or, which we’re all looking forward to.
More, from a press release issued by Team Suzuki Press Office:
SUZUKI WINS WORLD ENDURANCE CHAMPIONSHIP!
Suzuki has won the World Endurance Championship after an exciting and drama-filled deciding-round at the Oschersleben 8-Hour Race in Germany yesterday that saw two GSX-R1000 teams take to the 2016 overall podium.
Suzuki Endurance Racing Team riders Vincent Philippe, Anthony Delhalle and Etienne Masson lifted SERT’s 15th World Trophy aboard their GSX-R1000 after a race-long battle where they fought with several contenders; as just a handful of points separated the main challengers coming into this fourth and final event following the Suzuka 8-Hour race in Japan at the end of July.
Joining SERT on the overall championship podium was Suzuki privateer Team April Motor Motors Events, the early series leaders Gregg Black, Alex Cudlin and Gregory Fastre finishing third overall after suffering with some issues on the day, and with Fastre hurting after a crash in qualifying, but fighting back to finish 11th overall in the race.
At Oschersleben, SERT completed a total of 309 laps, to finish just 21-seconds behind race winners and eventual series runners-up GMT94 Yamaha. During a frantic eight hours, the Suzuki team took seven pit-stops (a total of 39.2 minutes) to clinch the title by just one point.
Coming into the final round, SERT was in fourth place, nine points behind series leaders Team April Motor Motors Events, and just one point behind SRC Kawasaki and YART Yamaha, who were both forced-out of the event for various reasons. Also in the hunt was GMT94 a further seven behind; so the scene was set for possibly the most-exciting finale of the world’s most demanding of ‘on-track’ motorcycle racing.
In practice and qualifying, SERT was always in the top-times, qualifying in third position, but from the start of the race – and under hot and dry conditions – the Le Mans, France-based, Dominique Meliand-run squad, took the lead until Gregg Black on the # 50 April Motors’ GSX-R overtook Philippe and held it during an exciting opening few laps that saw the two Suzukis and Yamahas dominating. Black was unfortunate to slip-off in the opening 15 minutes, but heroically held onto the bike as it ploughed into the gravel and got back on track immediately, riding the rest of his stint minus a right footpeg, which was eventually replaced when he finished his first stint.
Drama continued to unfold as some of the leading title challengers dropped out and following the ‘Virtual Championship’ win scenario switching between YART, GMT94, April Motors and SERT, in the end it was SERT and the reliability of the GSX-R1000 that successfully defended the title.
More, from a press release issued by Yamaha Racing:
Yamaha Concludes 2016 FIM EWC Season with Double Victory in Oschersleben
The GMT94 Yamaha Official EWC Team brought Yamaha its third victory of the 2016 FIM Endurance World Championship at this weekend’s 8 Hours of Oschersleben race to end the season as the Vice-Champions for the second year in succession. The YART Yamaha Official EWC Team also fought like gladiators at the Motorsport Arena Oschersleben, but saw their championship challenge diminish when they were forced to retire after six hours due to a minor technical issue. Team 3ART Yam’ Avenue delivered a brilliant performance to secure sixth place as the highest ranking SST team, giving Yamaha the FIM EWC World Cup Title.
GMT94 Yamaha’s David Checa, Niccolò Canepa and Lucas Mahias did exactly what they had to do, having arrived at the final round of the 2016 FIM EWC season 16 points behind the championship leader, with 35 points still up for grabs.
Starting from second, Checa rode a cautious first lap, entering the first corner in fifth position. However, as soon as the tyres were warmed the Spaniard’s confidence grew and it wasn’t long before the French team cheered on their #94 bike at the front of the field.
Second rider Canepa had never been to the Oscherleben Arena before this weekend, but the track clearly started to grow on him as the week went on. Though he suffered from a lack of grip when the track temperature rose to 52 degrees Celsius on his first stint and he had to let the YART team pass, he still managed the gap to make sure the team could come back strong when the temperatures would drop in the later stages of the race.
Third rider Mahias was not only fighting for the team title but also for the rider title. He showed great spirit during his first stint as, despite feeling the pressure to perform, he pushed out steady laps. He made one of the highlights of today’s race when multiple riders crashed in the triple left hander and he pulled off an amazing save, avoiding all riders, bikes and mechanics, at high-speed off-track, thanks to his off-road skills.
After getting away with the incident, it was plain sailing for the GMT94 team, who continued to pick up the pace towards the end of the race as Canepa predicted. They kept their heads down and, with their pit stop strategy planned to perfection, Checa rode a brilliant night session to take a glorious win by 21.315s and secure second in the championship.
First YART rider Broc Parkes, started from pole and came out of the first corner in third place. As the GMT94 team started to pick up the pace, the Australian wasn’t shy to follow and rode a strong stint before handing over the bike to second rider Marvin Fritz.
The young German has a great love for the YZF-R1 machine and let it show. His riding did most of the talking. Being the only rider on track dropping consistent high 1’27 and low 1’28 laps, he was quick to take the lead in the race and pull away from his chasing rivals.
The pair of them rode the entire race, with third rider Sheridan Morais supporting them and waiting on the sideline in case either Parkes or Fritz would be unable to continue, which was ultimately not necessary.
YART rode on the limit for six hours straight without any mistakes, but their efforts ended early after the sixth hour. Despite their great pace they suffered a technical issue, which ended their challenge for the title.
Today’s results see GMT94 Yamaha take home 35 points and finish the season in second place with 87 points in total, just one point behind the championship winners. YART holds sixth place in the standings with a total of 60 points.
Thanks to GMT94 incredible achievement over the last three races, Mahias secured the 2016 Endurance Rider World Champion title, while Yamaha also secured the manufacturers’ title.
Team 3ART YAM’ Avenue also added the Superstock title, thanks to an incredible performance that saw Louis Bulle, Alex Plancassagne and Lukas Trautmann ride a faultless race from start to finish to earned them 16 points and claim the FIM EWC World Cup Title.
Christophe Guyot – GMT94 Yamaha Official EWC Team, Team Manager
“I’m very sorry for not winning the title for Yamaha. Yamaha has won three races this season and two victories came from us, this gave Yamaha the manufacturer title and Lucas the rider title. It’s our fifth time winning at Oschersleben, we won the 12 hours three times and the 8 hours two times now, in 2015 and this year, so we are very happy with our performance. I want to thank the team, the riders and Yamaha for their support and dedication and look forward to the Bol’dOr race at the start of the 2016/2017 season.”
David Checa – GMT94 Yamaha Official EWC Team, Rider
“When I started my last stint we were 36 seconds behind and I managed the difference. Of course the target was to win the race. At the beginning of the race I tried to put pressure on Broc to see if he would make a mistake, but he didn’t. Then I tried to push in second place and manage the gap to YART. I would have preferred to win, instead of them having a problem with their bike? When they had a problem we stopped pushing as much as we did before they had a problem.”
Niccolò Canepa – GMT94 Yamaha Official EWC Team, Rider
“I’m really happy because this was my first season in World Endurance and it’s my first time here at the Motorsport Arena Oschersleben. I’m really happy because I had an amazing ride, which I didn’t have before, and an amazing team. It’s really incredible and the championship has a very high level. Regarding the race I’m very satisfied, because we came here to win and we did, so that’s good enough in itself, but the most important thing is that we won two out of four races this season and this means that we are ready for next season. To lose the championship by one point is disappointing, but that’s what endurance is like and at least we learned something.”
Lucas Mahias – GMT94 Yamaha Official EWC Team, Rider
“I’m very happy about winning the title, but it’s not just my title, because I rode for two teams this season. It’s good for me personally, but it’s not just my achievement. I want to thank my teammates and also Yamaha for the great experience.”
Mandy Kainz – YART Yamaha Official EWC Team Manager
“Of course the team is disappointed to leave Oschersleben empty handed after what started as such a strong race for us. We were very competitive from the start of the weekend and we were leading the majority of the race after a good start from Broc. He kept his head cool under pressure and during the safety car situations, and we had some very fast stints from Marvin. We decided that Sheridan would only fill in as a replacement rider if either Broc or Marvin wouldn’t be able to complete the race. It’s unfortunate that their amazing effort wasn’t rewarded the way it should have been. Instead we suffered a technical issue and couldn’t finish the race.”
Broc Parkes – YART Yamaha Official EWC Team, Rider
“It was really disappointing because we showed from qualifying that we had the pace to win and we did a great job until the sixth hour when we led the race. We chose to do it with two riders, Marvin and I, and we had a good pace. We knew that to win the championship we only needed to finish second to GMT94 so we just wanted to make consistent lap times and try to keep the lead. If GMT94 would have passed us, it wouldn’t have been a big problem, but unfortunately we had a technical issue which was a major bummer because we were two hours from home. It’s sad for the team and for us, because we were so close to being World Champion but sometimes that happens.”
Marvin Fritz – YART Yamaha Official EWC Team, Rider
“The start of the race was really good. Broc did a good first session and then it was my turn. I was overtaking GMT94’s Canepa and made a 30 or 40 seconds gap to him. It was a big gap and a really good stint. Then Broc and I did really good sessions, always fast and had the fastest lap time. Unfortunately, we had some technical issues and that all came together and it wasn’t our day in the end. We deserved the title, I think. We were lapping the best and made it happen with only two riders all day, but that’s endurance? Now I look forward to Bol d’or and I think I can make a good start in the new season. The bike and the tyres were working well, the team was working hard all weekend. I wish Bradley a good recovery and that he can be back on the bike as soon as possible, and I want to say thank you to Yamaha for their support.”
Lukas Trautmann
3ART YAM’AVENUE Rider
“This race went exactly right for us. It was the first time the Le Mans start worked well for us, it took a few times for me to get used to it. It was difficult to manage the tyre wear because in the Superstock class we need to use the front tyre for nearly four hours and the rear for two hours. With these high temperatures that’s quite a tough thing to do, but my team mates have done a great job. I think it’s amazing that the team is a front runner, while it’s just a small private team, with some support from Yamaha. When you look around in the paddock, you see what happens on the EWC side with the big trucks, which is all incredible to me.”
FIM Endurance World Championship standing
1. Suzuki Endurance Racing Team, 88
2. GMT94 Yamaha Official EWC Team, 87
3. Team April Moto Motors Events, 78
4. Honda Endurance Racing, 72
5. SRC Kawasaki, 60
6. YART Yamaha Official EWC Team, 60
7. F.C.C. TSR Honda, 56
8. TEAM 3ART YAM’AVENUE, 50
9. Team R2CL, 45
10. AM Moto Racing Competition, 38