The Yamalube YART Yamaha EWC Official Team is the winner of the 2023 Endurance World Championship, after a tense end to the season at Circuit Paul Ricard this afternoon, with Yoshimura SERT Motul winning the 86th edition of the Bol d’Or.
YART, based in Austria, was one of the six teams in the fight for the EWC title at the start of the legendary 24-hour race, but had a nerve-wracking conclusion to the race due to a temperature issue that forced the team to make multiple pit stops for repairs.
With the withdrawal of the current champion F.C.C. TSR Honda France at 03:30, following a technical failure, and BMW Motorrad World Endurance Team dropping out of the lead battle due to two unscheduled pit stops, YART essentially needed to finish in the top nine in the EWC Formula to secure the EWC’s top prize.
With a special livery to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the Yamaha R1, the YART trio equipped with Bridgestone, Niccolò Canepa, Marvin Fritz, and Karel Hanika, ran flawlessly, ultimately finishing in fourth place to secure the EWC gold, after maintaining the race lead on several occasions.
Having lived through a time with more lows than highs, Yoshimura SERT Motul was determined to finish the 2023 campaign on top of a race that would mark Sylvain Guintoli’s final outing with Suzuki in the EWC. Despite Gregg Black and Étienne Masson competing as a duo in the last nine hours, after Guintoli fell ill, Yoshimura SERT Motul triumphed by a clear margin. This despite Black being one of the eight riders to fall in oil at the end of the Mistral straight this morning, triggering a long safety car period.
Honda Viltaïs Racing was unable to repeat their heroic feats of 2022, winners of the Bol d’Or, but secured a second place, their best of the season, with riders Florian Alt, Steven Odenaal, and newcomer Leandro Mercado impressing on the #333 machine shod with Pirelli. BMW Motorrad World Endurance Team, composed of Jérémy Guarnoni, Illya Mykhalchyk, and Markus Reiterberger, completed the podium, their third top-three finish of the year.
Team Kawasaki Webike Trickstar moved up to fifth, behind Yamalube YART Yamaha EWC Official Team, as TATI Team Beringer Racing retired this morning. The TATI team, powered by Kawasaki, briefly held the lead during the first hour, capitalizing on their decision to use intermediate tires for quickly drying conditions.
After having clinched the coveted EWC crown at the Paul Ricard Circuit 12 months ago, the Japanese team ran into trouble just before 3 am, when Mike Di Meglio was forced to push the Honda #1 after it stopped at the entrance to the fast lane. Despite their best efforts, the team was forced to retire with a terminal technical issue at 03:26. Along with his teammates Josh Hook and Alan Techer, Di Meglio knew that their hopes for another EWC title would be salvaged if their main rivals also stopped. In the end, it was a frustrating finish to what would otherwise have been a strong season. The Maco Racing Team beat Team LRP Poland for sixth place among the Formula EWC teams, with Team Bolliger Switzerland, Moto-Ain, and KM99 following. The Belgian team KM99, making its debut at the Bol d’Or, was among the top five when it had an electrical issue at 01:25. The #77 Wójcik Racing Team retired shortly after eight hours, after suffering a delay due to an electronic problem early in the race. Motobox Kremer Racing spent six minutes repairing their Yamaha after Christian Napoli was caught in a multi-bike crash at Segnes Corner. Chas Davies relinquished the lead 40 minutes into the race to make way for Xavi Forés. But his replacement soon ran into trouble after a collision in the last corner left the Spaniard limping to the edge of the track and his Ducati Pingale V4R with terminal damage. The incident prompted an early safety car intervention.
