Team Suzuki Press Office – June 3.
Yoshimura SERT Motul: Suzuki GSX-R1000R – 3rd.
Yoshimura Suzuki Endurance Racing Team Motul will start tomorrow’s 24H Spa EWC Motos in Belgium from third place on the grid after setting a provisional lap record at the start of today’s final qualifying sessions.
With 39 teams on track, Yoshimura SERT Motul and the GSX-R1000R, who were fourth in yesterday’s qualifying, made the most of testing set-ups and tyres and all the work done by the team crew over the past few days on the newly-renovated circuit.
These efforts paid off, with a great performance by Gregg Black and a lap-time of 2.19.368; the Anglo-Frenchman finished his first session with the provisional lap record.
Xavier Simeon was in the second group on track and was motivated to match his teammate’s performance in his home EWC race. However, the Belgian rider’s session was disrupted, first by a small problem with the rear lighting on his bike that forced him to return to the pits, then by the difficulty of finding a clear lap to get the best out of the Suzuki GSX-R1000R. Simeon had to wait until the very final minutes to make his move and climbed to third with a time of 2.20.321.
Crashes and interruptions during the third (red) session also hindered Sylvain Guintoli. After a good start, and already in second position on the timesheet, he had to wait until the end of the stint to get the opportunity to improve his time. On the penultimate lap, the Frenchman set a time of 2.20.417 and placed the team’s GSX-R1000R in second position.
Benefitting from solid teamwork and the fast pace of the reigning World Champion, and series leader, new reserve rider, British Superbike rider Christian Iddon, posted the fastest time in his session with a best lap of 2.21.864.
This third placed qualifying position added another three points to the official Suzuki team’s championship tally, meaning it carries a six-point advantage as it heads to the second round of the 2022 series, and the second 24-hour endurance on the 2022 calendar.
The first edition of the 24H Spa Motos starts on Saturday June 4th at 1pm (local time).
Damien SAULNIER – Team Manager:
“It’s a good qualification for us. We had a little bit of a slip yesterday, but today we got it right. The changes made to the bike have paid off as the riders have a much better feeling. This top three is what we expected and it means we will have a good fight in the race, which is going to be complicated, with a lot of safety cars and bad weather.”
Yohei KATO – Team Director:
“This second qualification was pretty good thanks to the lessons learned yesterday. We showed some good performances, especially with Gregg who did a great time! It’s a pity because we had some small problems afterwards which did not allow Xavier and Sylvain to do their best performances. But we know what we have to work on before the start of the race.”
Gregg BLACK:
“This morning we have put into practice the work done all week by the team. Personally, I had very good conditions during my session, which allowed me to make an excellent time. I am really satisfied by this. We showed our potential. These qualifications allow us to score some points but the most important is of course the race, which is going to be very difficult, with complicated weather conditions. Our strong point is the efficiency of the whole team in the race. So you’ll have to count on us once again!”
Xavier SIMEON:
“My session was disrupted today. I had a lot of trouble finding the right moment to do fast laps. Actually, I only had one real opportunity to make the best of my new tyre and I didn’t manage to get the time I wanted. I’m a bit disappointed because we could have been in a better position but Gregg did a great job, so in the end we have a very good average time. We know we have a good pace for the race and that’s the most important thing.”
Sylvain GUINTOLI:
“When the planets align, our bike is capable of being very fast. We saw that with Gregg. Yesterday we made a bad front tyre choice and I ended my session with some difficulties but today everything was much better. I got a good feeling on the bike, but my session was interrupted by two red flags and at the end I had a small technical problem. I could not put everything together to make a better time. The overall performance of the team is very satisfying even if we had the potential to do even better. We worked well and we have a good understanding of the track. So we are ready for the race.”
