6H of Most - Race - Final results after 6 hours - Final ranking
6H of Most - Championship Classification - 2021 FIM Endurance World Championship-Teams Ranking
More, from a press release issued by Eurosport Events:
BMW WIN AT MOST BY A WHISKER AHEAD OF YART
The smallest gap in the history of Endurance – 70 milliseconds – separated BMW Motorrad World Endurance Team from YART–Yamaha Official EWC Team at the finish of the 6 Hours of Most. The factory BMW won their first endurance world championship race and the Yamaha team climbed on to the podium for the first time this season. Third at Most, Yoshimura SERT Motul were crowned 2021 FIM EWC world champions.
The first edition of the 6 Hours of Most won’t be forgotten in a hurry. A crazy duel was fought during the last few minutes of the race between BMW Motorrad World Endurance Team (Ilya Mikhalchik, Markus Reiterberger and Kenny Foray) and YART–Yamaha Official EWC Team (Marvin Fritz, Karel Hanika and Niccolò Canepa). The German riders Markus Reiterberger for BMW Motorrad and Marvin Fritz for YART offered viewers a spectacular fight for the win. A mere 70 milliseconds separated the two machines at the finish. An absolute first in world Endurance! Over the last half-hour, Marvin Fritz beat the fastest race lap four times. He set the final record, a 1:33.875, on his second-last lap.
It was also BMW’s very first victory in the FIM Endurance world championship.
The duel nearly eclipsed the fight for third place on the podium between Yoshimura SERT Motul and Webike SRC Kawasaki France Trickstar. The Franco-Japanese Suzuki team (Gregg Black, Xavier Simeon and Sylvain Guintoli) fended off the attacks of the French Kawasaki to the very end. Yoshimura SERT Motul’s objective was to win a 17th world title in style and also climb on to the podium at Most. They achieved their objective.
Thanks to their win, BMW Motorrad World Endurance Team claimed the overall runner-up spot.
Webike SRC Kawasaki France Trickstar (Jérémy Guarnoni, Erwan Nigon and David Checa) finished 4th at the 6 Hours of Most after running a flawless race. The factory Kawasaki team wound up the season on the third step of the overall podium.
Wójcik Racing Team (Gino Rea, Sheridan Morais and Dan Linfoot), who were at the front of the field throughout, finished 5th at Most. It was their best result following a tough season.
ERC Endurance-Ducati (Etienne Masson, Lorenzo Zanetti and Mathieu Gines) made progress at every race and were 6th at the finish ahead of the first Superstock, No Limits Motor Team (Luca Scassa, Kevin Calia and Alexis Masbou).
The Czech team TME Racing took 2nd place in the Superstock class after a superb race among the Superstock front-runners. Energie Endurance 91, 3rd in the Superstock class, climbed on to the podium in class for the first time.
BMRT 3D Maxxess Nevers, the winners of the FIM Superstock World Cup at the Bol d’Or, were forced to withdraw. Thanks to their win at Most, No Limits Motor Team claimed the runner-up spot in the FIM Endurance World Cup.
6 hours of flat-out racing
After Gregg Black’s holeshot in the saddle of Yoshimura SERT Motul’s Suzuki, Mike di Meglio placed F.C.C. TSR Honda France in the lead. Ilya Mikhalchik quickly took over the lead for BMW Motorrad World Endurance Team while Marvin Fritz was doing a fast climb back up after a sluggish start from pole.
The first incidents affected the leading pack two hours into the race. F.C.C. TSR Honda France crashed and ended up not classified. Tati Team Beringer Racing and Moto Ain also crashed when they were in the Top 10, followed by VRD Igol Experiences whose Yamaha suffered engine failure.
VRD Igol Experiences were 7th and determined to defend their 2nd place in the overall standings. They were not classified despite a lap pushing the bike to get past the finish line, but their determination won them the Anthony Delhalle EWC Spirit Trophy.
More, from a press release issued by Suzuki:
SUZUKI CLINCHES THE 2021 ENDURANCE WORLD TITLE
Yoshimura SERT Motul: GSX-R1000R – 3rd / 1st World Championship.
No Limits Motor Team: GSX-R1000R – SST Class – 1st / 2nd World Championship.
Suzuki claimed the Endurance World Championship crown today at the final round of the 2021 Endurance World Championship (EWC) at the Autodrom Most in the Czech Republic. Its factory-supported Yoshimura SERT Motul team delivered a faultless and calculated race.
The 2021 season confirmed the superiority of the Suzuki brand in the FIM EWC. With two dominating victories at the 24 Heures Motos and the Bol d’Or 24 Hours in France, the official factory team started the fourth round, and season finale, with a comfortable lead in the championship standings. However, the team of Gregg Black, Xavier Siméon and Sylvain Guintoli, still needed to secure a good result to take the title at the 6 Hours of Most.
The team had a strong start when the super-cool and fast-starting Black grabbed the holeshot from third position on the grid. Without taking any unnecessary risks but keeping a strong pressure on the team’s opponents in the championship, the French-English-born rider finished his stint by placing the Suzuki in third position as he handed over to Siméon.
The excellent and smooth work continued with Black’s teammates Siméon and Guintoli putting in consistently-fast stints. As the hours passed, some racing incidents upset the order of the leaderboard for the team’s nearest challengers, but Yoshimura SERT Motul made no mistakes.
The three riders settled into a strong and comfortable third position and kept a steady pace, right up until the chequered flag fell, to take the third step of the podium. In doing so, they won the 2021 FIM EWC title in convincing style with a total of 175.5 points, some 42.5 points ahead of second-placed BMW Motorrad.
Suzuki has now won a total of 20 Endurance World titles; 16 with the Suzuki Endurance Racing Team (SERT) and now the 2021 title with the new Yoshimura SERT Motul team. For the French-Japanese Yoshimura SERT Motul team, it is a crucial win in its first year of EWC participation.
Suzuki dominated the event as, in the Superstock category, the victory went to the GSX-R1000R #44 of No Limits Motor Team ridden by Luca Scassa, Alexis Masbou and Kevin Calia. The Italian team finished second in the FIM World Cup.
Damien Saulnier – Team Manager: “We came to take the title and we hoped to get on the podium too. I have a thought for the #333 with whom we fought a great battle. At the finish there was emotion, joy and a deep gratitude for Yoshimura because this association led to impressive work. I am very proud of this team. We wanted to take as little risk as possible but still take our chances. The package with the bike, tyres and riders worked very well. Dominique Méliand entrusted me with the keys of the SERT and I am happy, in my position as team manager, to offer this team a second title.”
Yohei Kato – Team Director: “I am very pleased and honoured to win the championship in the first year of participation as the Yoshimura SERT Motul team. We vowed to fight in this Endurance World Championship on behalf of the Suzuki Factory Team. This season has proved to be a dream come true by winning two of the world’s most famous 24-hour races, namely, the 24 Heures of Le Mans and the Bol d’Or.
“This world championship title is the first for this new team and the 20th for Suzuki. Suzuki, Yoshimura and SERT will keep working together to improve the Suzuki GSX-R1000R into an even better package. The whole team will respect each other in the spirit of one for all, all for one. I think this is the best possible result to mark the continuation of our efforts!
“Thank you to all the Yoshimura, SERT and Suzuki fans who warmly supported the new Yoshimura SERT Motul team. We pledge to attract fans to an even better championship next year and Yoshimura SERT Motul will go all out to defend its title.”
Xavier Siméon: “I had a small scare during the race on an oil stain. Crashing was forbidden in this race and I was lucky to save the bike in extreme circumstances. We had less pressure than at the Bol d’Or where we had to make up the points lost in Estoril. In Most, we could make a careful race which allowed us to win this title which rewards all the team’s work.”
Gregg Black: “SERT is probably one of the best teams in endurance racing for a long time. The association with Yoshimura has paid off because we have an incredible bike. The team has done a lot of work as well as Yoshimura and it is a pleasure for us to ride this bike. The team has also often shown a good racing strategy and that’s important because it’s not always the fastest on the track who wins the championship. So I am very happy to have worked with Yoshimura and my two new teammates.”
Sylvain Guintoli: “This season was like a dream because everything went according to plan. The most incredible thing for me was to win the 24 Heures Motos and the Bol d’Or – two events that I absolutely wanted to win one day. That’s why I had the idea to join Yoshimura SERT Motul. This title is fantastic because it rewards all the work done by everyone. We arrived here with the championship in mind but also the will to be on the podium, so the contract is fulfilled!”
