GMT94 win Oschersleben 8 Hour

Oschersleben 8 Hours 2016

Oschersleben 8 Hour 2016 - Niccolo Canepa — Oschersleben 8 Hour 2016 – Niccolo Canepa

GMT94 win race – SERT win Championship by single point

Oschersleben 8 Hour 2016 - SERT - Vincent Philippe, Anthony Delhalle and Etienne Masson — Oschersleben 8 Hour 2016 – SERT – Vincent Philippe, Anthony Delhalle and Etienne Masson

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.

Oschersleben 8 Hour 2016 - SERT — Oschersleben 8 Hour 2016 – SERT

As the clock stopped however it was GMT94 Yamaha (David Checa, Niccolò Canepa and Lucas Mahias) celebrating their win in the battle of the Oschersleben 8 Hours.

Oschersleben 8 Hour 2016 - Mahias — Oschersleben 8 Hour 2016 – Mahias

In the long term war for the overall FIM Endurance World Championship however it was Suzuki Endurance Racing Team (Vincent Philippe, Anthony Delhalle and Etienne Masson) rejoicing in their new status as FIM EWC world champions, the team’s 15th world title, at the end of a tough season without a single overall win. 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.

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 after only managing 11th at Oschersleben due to a crash followed by overheating problems. A disappointing end to the season for the championship leaders Gregg Black, Alex Cudlin and Gregory Fastre

Oschersleben 8 Hour 2016 - Alex Cudlin — Oschersleben 8 Hour 2016 – Alex Cudlin – Team April Motors Events

Another hot favourite for the title also had a tough time of it. 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.

Oschersleben 8 Hour 2016 - Kawasaki SRC — Oschersleben 8 Hour 2016 – Kawasaki SRC

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.

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.”