FIM Endurance World Championship Germany: Pre-Race (updated regularly)

May 19, 2009 by admin
Filed under 2010 Race Calendar

newest at top

Yamaha Amadeus X-One

Test day at Mugello at the eve of next Oschersleben 8 Hour Monday May 18 for the Team Yamaha Amadeus X-One. On the Tuscany track Willy Gruy and the newcomer Ayrton Badovini made a profitable setting activity on the new R1 2009 version, that at Le Mans, owing the bad weather condition, could not be made how the team is used.

Ayrton Badovini is at his first contact ever with the Yamaha and he shoulder the most of work. “I like the bike and the team looks to work in a very professional way.” – said at the end the Italian rider. – “I know that practically the bike arrived to the team’s workshop at the eve of Le Mans round, so we still have to do a lot of work to set the package. Today we made a lot of tests focused to understand the reaction at different setting, and together with Willy and the team we found a good working method. Of course in the Endurance races you have to set the bike as a compromise solution between the three rider requirements, but with Willy we found quickly a good agreement and Paolo Tessari has such a big experience that allow him to be capable of handling every situation. Physically I’m quite well after my crash, but I remember Oschersleben as a rather demanding track and I’m not riding a bike almost since a couple of months, so I have to get my confidence once more. I’m quite motivated, more the race Sunday I’ll have my birthday, I’m confident in a great present for myself!”

Willy Gruy too is quite satisfied for the made job: “Ayrton and me we exchange each other all our riding opinions and, at the end of the day, the bike was looking o be a lot better, as well the amateur riders in the track didn’t allow us to push over a safety limit. We focused our work on handling, a very important a point very important on the German racetrack where the long, flat corners constant radius are rather difficult. I’m sure that, with a minimum of luck, we’ll reach a good result.”

Maurizio Bargiacchi, team owner and manager of the Italian team, did not cover his satisfaction: “The work done today has been surely important; the Mugello circuit is unapproachable for a correct set-up of the bike. Ayrton did request several adjustments on the bike that offer positive answer, as Willy too did confirm. The most important is the team-play that quickly was born between the riders and the team engineers and between the two riders too. When at all that we add the experience and the ability for «making team» that Tex has I’m going to leave for Oscherleben, where last season we get a good result too, quite confident in a good performance.”

***************************

FIM

The Qtel FIM Endurance World Championship will be hosted by Germany at the end of the month. The second round of the 2009 calendar, the 8 Hours of Oschersleben, will take place on Sunday 31 May, over the 3667m race track near Magdeburg.

The 24 Hours of Le Mans winner, the Yamaha Austria Racing Team, arrives in Germany as the firm favourite. YART is already ahead of the RT Racing Team, the closest
permanent team on the provisional championship, by 17 points. On the Austrian Yamaha, Igor Jerman, Steve Martin and Gwen Giabbani will do their best to improve their leadership. 30 points are to be taken for the winner of the 8 Hours of Oschersleben.

After a fantastic race at Le Mans, the RT Racing Team will have to confirm. At
Oschersleben, this Franco-Italian Suzuki ridden by Jean-Louis Devoyon, Frédéric Jond
and former Bolliger Team rider David Morillon, will have to battle against several
permanent teams from the world’s top ten. As Patric Muff is now racing in the IDM (the
German Superbike Championship) the Bolliger Team Switzerland has now great
expectations of Horst Saiger, Rico Penzkoffer and Eric Mizera to score big points.
This will also be the aim of the Italians from No Limits on Suzuki, with Christer Minin,
Emiliano Belluci and Hervé Gantner and of the team Amadeus X-One on Yamaha with Will
Gruy, Paolo Tessari and the young Italian rider Ayrton Badovini (he will be 23 years old
on 31 May) competing since 2008 in World Superbike. The same applies to RMT 21
Racing Germany. The German Honda, ridden by Matti Seidel among others will want to
shine in front of its home fans.

Other permanent teams, who were unlucky at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, will also be
highly motivated. The Honda Michelin Research Power Team of William Costes, Hugo
Marchand and Josep Monge, seems to be the most dangerous rival of Yamaha Austria for
victory. Although they gave a great performance during the qualifying tests at Le Mans,
the Honda Michelin Research Power Team had to retire after several crashes and serious
electrical problems.

We’ll have to count on the Slovak Yamaha of BK Maco Moto Racing Team, with Dani
Ribalta but without Jason Pridmore, still recovering from his big crash at Le Mans, and on
the British Yamaha of Phase One Endurance of Pedro Vallcaneras and brothers Alex and
Damian Cudlin, and the two Suzukis of Team 18 Sapeurs Pompiers with Stéphane
Molinier, David Brière and Jérôme Tangre and the AM Moto Racing of Sullivan Hernandez,
Pierre Guersillon and Fabrice Auger, who often does very well at Oschersleben.

In the Superstock class, the Qatar Endurance Racing Team is the best placed permanent
team in the provisional standings in the FIM Superstock World Cup. They will be at
Oschersleben with Mashel Al Naimi, Rashid Al Mannai and Anthony Delhalle, the same
riders who finished in a fantastic sixth overall place at Le Mans. The QERT is also entering
with a second Suzuki, given to three Qatari riders. They all have to battle against the
Suzuki Endurance Moto 45 of Alexandre Lagrive, Nicolas Jaulneau and Adrien Ganfornina
and the Yamaha LTG 57 Zone Rouge of Franck Miller, Branko Srdanov and Michaël
Lalevée, who had to retire at Le Mans.

The free practices will start on Thursday 28 May in the afternoon and the first qualifying
sessions will be on Friday from midday. The Superpole is scheduled for Saturday at 5 pm.
Thirty-six teams are registered for this semi-nocturnal 8 Hours of Oschersleben. The start
will be given on Sunday 31 May at 2 pm for a 10 pm arrival.

************************************

FIM

Second round of the Qtel FIM Endurance World Championship, the 8 Hours of Oschersleben will take place Sunday the 31st of May during the twelfth “German Speedweek” on a German racetrack near Magdeburg. Thirty-six teams will enter this semi-nocturnal race, starting at 2 pm on Sunday 31st of May.

Winner of the 24 Hours of Le Mans and second last year at Oschersleben, Yamaha Austria
Racing Team is the favourite for victory. After a fantastic race at Le Mans, RT Racing Team will also want to repeat their performance. And a few unlucky teams at Le Mans will want to take revenge, such as Michelin Power Research Team, Phase One Endurance, Team 18 Sapeurs Pompiers, BK Maco Moto Racing Team or AM Moto Racing Team. Having been between 10th and 14th place at Le Mans, Bolliger Team Switzerland, No Limits, Amadeus X-One and the German team RMT 21 Racing Germany will also be some serious contenders for the battle in the lead.

In the Superstock class, Qatar Endurance Racing Team, winner last year in Germany,
remains the favourite for victory and they even enter with a second Suzuki at Oschersleben. The Qatari team will have to battle against Endurance Moto 45, who took sixth place in Superstock at Le Mans, the new permanent team Atomic Moto Sport and let’s not forget LTG 57 Zone Rouge, which had to retire at Le Mans but will certainly be highly motivated in Germany. These permanents teams will have also to battle against some local teams highly competitive on their home ground.

As usual in Oschersleben, the starting grid will welcome a few uncommon bikes in the Qtel FIM Endurance World Championship. One KTM RC8, two Buell 1125 R, one BMW K 1200 S and one Triumph 675 Daytona are expected in Germany. They will all compete in the Open class.

The free practice will start on Thursday 28th of May in the afternoon and the first qualifying session the following day, from 12. The Superpole is scheduled on Saturday at 5 pm.