YART Yamaha Ready for Different Challenge at 8 Hours of Spa Motos
The Yamalube YART Yamaha EWC Official Team of Niccolò Canepa, Karel Hanika, and Marvin Fritz, the reigning FIM Endurance World Champions, are gearing up to take on the first 8 Hours of Spa Motos on the 7th-8th of June as they aim to make it back-to-back victories in Belgium.
The second round of the 2024 FIM Endurance World Championship (EWC) sees the YART team prepare for a brand-new challenge. After two editions of the 24H SPA EWC Motos, reviving the spirit of the famous 24 Heures de Liege that ran until 2001, the race at the legendary Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps circuit features a new eight-hour format for the first time in 2024, which will require a completely different approach from the defending champions on their Bridgestone-shod #1 R1.
Last year, the Austrian squad won the 24-hour race after a sensational performance that saw them qualify on pole with an almost one-second advantage over the rest of the field. They were then involved in a thrilling battle at the front, with numerous safety cars ensuring that the top teams were kept close together before YART took the lead with just over 15 hours gone. It would be a lead that they would not relinquish, despite some late drama with a puncture as they approached the 19-hour mark, eventually winning the race with a one-lap margin.
It was YART’s first 24-hour race victory since 2009 when the team also went on to lift the title, and they will be hoping to repeat the feat in 2024. They head to Belgium on the back of an incredibly strong showing at the opening round of the season, the 24 Heures Motos in Le Mans, where they secured pole and led for the majority of the race. Unfortunately, just before the 16-hour mark, Hanika, through no fault of his own, was caught out by dew on the track and crashed, injuring himself in the process.
With the Czech rider unable to continue, Canepa, who himself was recovering from an injury he sustained at the Daytona 200, and Fritz rode back-to-back for the last eight hours. The duo showed incredible fighting spirit to pull off a sensational comeback and secure third place. This meant YART left Le Mans second in the EWC overall standings with 52 points, nine behind the leaders.
Now, with all three riders fully fit and raring to go at a track that they love and know they can be competitive at, plus with a total of 35 points up for grabs in Belgium, the aim for YART is to leave Spa with the victory and the championship lead.
Now in their second season in the EWC, the KM99 squad, which features a new lineup of riders in 2024 of Jérémy Guarnoni, Florian Marino, and Randy de Puniet, will be looking to improve on the team’s 19th-placed finish in the 24-hour version of the race last year. The trio are aiming to build on a solid start to the season that saw them bounce back from a crash to secure 13th overall and ninth in the Formula EWC class at Le Mans.
One of the most famous racetracks in the world, Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps presents a unique set of demands on riders, bikes, and tyres, with its huge elevation changes and its EWC-specific 6.985km layout making it the longest track on the calendar. It is also one of the fastest and features a combination of long straights and high-speed sections, including the famous Eau Rouge and Raidillon up-hill segment, along with slower, more technical corners, with Hanika holding the outright EWC lap record of 2:18.845 set during qualifying in 2022.
The action at Spa follows a slightly different format compared to the rest of the EWC rounds in 2024. It kicks off on Thursday with two Private Practice sessions for the teams to fine-tune their bike settings. Then, on Friday, there will be two qualifying sessions for each rider to decide grid positions before the eight-hour race gets underway, with the traditional running start on Saturday at 1 pm Local time (UTC+2).
Niccolò Canepa
Yamalube YART Yamaha EWC Official Team
“I am really looking forward to racing at Spa again. In the last couple of years, we have been very competitive here, and it is a track that I love. Already this year at Le Mans, we have demonstrated that our pace has taken another step, so I cannot wait to go racing again. I am excited to see how it will be different this year with the eight-hour format. It will be more of a sprint race, with all of the teams a lot closer, so right from the first lap on the first stint, it will be crucial to be fast all the way until the end of the race. Fuel consumption could also play a crucial role. We haven’t done any tests this year at Spa, unlike some of our competitors; plus, with a shortened race week compared to other races, it will be a real challenge. Therefore, we hope the weather will be good on Thursday for the practice sessions so we can find a good setup and be ready to fight for the victory!”
Marvin Fritz
Yamalube YART Yamaha EWC Official Team
“Spa is one of our favourite tracks, and we have great memories from our victory here last year. Of course, this year, the format has changed from a 24-hour race to an eight-hour race, but it is the same for everyone. We feel confident we can continue the pace and form we showed in Le Mans. We have an amazing team behind us, plus a great bike and a good feeling with the Bridgestone tyres, so we are optimistic that we can fight for the win again and get as many championship points as possible before we go to Suzuka.”
Karel Hanika
Yamalube YART Yamaha EWC Official Team
“I am looking forward to the race after what has been a long break. We know that the YART R1 on Bridgestone tyres works really well at Spa, and we won here last season. This year, it will be different now that it is only an eight-hour race, so we are expecting a quicker pace, and it will be a tough race. We will have to push every lap, but I am very confident because my teammates and the whole team were amazing in Le Mans. I am feeling good and back to full fitness, so I cannot wait to go racing in Spa.”
Mandy Kainz
Yamalube YART Yamaha EWC Official Team – Team Manager
“We are looking forward to this weekend at Spa. The track is good for us, it’s good for the tyres, and it’s good for the riders, which we showed last year with our victory. Obviously, we will have to look at the strategy to use for fuel consumption, as now it is a shorter race, and the pace will be quicker. On paper, we are one of the favourites, but there are five or six teams who can win. As always, the one parameter you cannot calculate is the endurance factor. In an eight-hour race, if you crash, the race can be lost, so you must be very clever and find the right compromise between speed and endurance. An eight-hour race is very different compared to a 24-hour race, so we will adapt our setup and try our best to fight for the victory once more.”
