Hanika Sets Team Best 2'06.009 in QP1

Day 2 of the 44th FIM World Endurance Championship "Coca-Cola" Suzuka 8 Hours Endurance Road Race got underway with a 1.5 hour test session in the morning, followed by a two-hour free practice session. In the afternoon, the first official qualifying session saw three riders from each team--wearing a blue, yellow, or red armband--take part in a 20-minute time attack each, and finally a night session finished off proceedings. It was a full day of activity. In the first official qualifying session, the Yamalube YART YAMAHA EWC Official Team proved to be the main attraction.

First up was blue rider Niccolò Canepa. With new tires front and rear on his YZF-R1, he left the pits about a minute and a half behind the other riders to try for a clear lap. In his first attempt at a flying lap he had excellent pace and set the quickest time in sector 2, but when the red flag came out his lap time was cancelled. This did not deter him, as in his second attempt he set a 2'06.513 to take over 1st position. A moment later however, Team HRC with Japan Post set a faster 2'05.722 to demote YART to 2nd where they finished the session.

Next up was yellow armband rider Marvin Fritz. He started out on used tires, and in his first flying lap he looked strong, clocking a personal best in sector 2 just before the red flag came out again. His 2'07.004 was cancelled as he crossed the finish line shortly after that. On his second attempt he set the fastest time of the session with a 2'07.084, even though he was on a set of used tires.

Last of the three YART riders was red rider Karel Hanika. This session, like the previous two, was also red-flagged early on. Once the track was clear, Hanika re-focused and started on his time attack. Team HRC with Japan Post, who had set a fast time earlier, first set a 2'06.121, but Hanika, who was riding behind, was faster and crossed the line for a 2'06.009 and the fastest time of the session. Fritz topped his session and Hanika repeated the feat, setting the stage for what is sure to be an exciting second official qualifying session tomorrow.

For team IRF with AZURLANE, blue rider Kento Kawana took 40th overall with a time of 2'14.129. Yellow rider Yoshiaki Endo, making his first appearance in the Suzuka 8 Hours, was 38th with a team-best time of 2'13.996, while red rider Motoaki Sawamura was 32nd with a time of 2'14.046.

1st Qualifying Rider Blue

Pos.	No.	Team	Machine	Time
1	33	Team HRC with Japan Post	Honda	2'05.722
2	7	YART Yamaha Official EWC TEAM	Yamaha	2'06.513
3	12	Yoshimura SERT Motul	Suzuki	2'06.923
4	17	Astemo Honda Dream SI Racing	Honda	2'07.048
5	1	F.C.C. TSR Honda France	Honda	2'07.050
6	73	SDG Honda Racing	Honda	2'07.253
7	76	AutoRace Ube Racing Team	Suzuki	2'07.296
8	95	S-PLUSE DREAM RACING -ITEC	Suzuki	2'07.415
9	37	BMW MOTORRAD WORLD ENDURANCE TEAM	BMW	2'07.565
10	104	TOHO Racing	Honda	2'07.668
40	41	IRF with AZURLANE	Yamaha	2'14.129

1st Qualifying Rider Yellow

Pos.	No.	Team	Machine	Time
1	7	YART Yamaha Official EWC TEAM	Yamaha	2'07.084
2	33	Team HRC with Japan Post	Honda	2'07.158
3	76	AutoRace Ube Racing Team	Suzuki	2'07.175
4	17	Astemo Honda Dream SI Racing	Honda	2'07.193
5	12	Yoshimura SERT Motul	Suzuki	2'07.201
6	71	Honda Dream RT SAKURAI HONDA	Honda	2'07.265
7	104	TOHO Racing	Honda	2'07.314
8	37	BMW MOTORRAD WORLD ENDURANCE TEAM	BMW	2'07.417
9	1	F.C.C. TSR Honda France	Honda	2'08.011
10	11	Kawasaki Webike Trickstar	Kawasaki	2'08.234
38	41	IRF with AZURLANE	Yamaha	2'13.996

1st Qualifying Rider Red

Pos.	No.	Team	Machine	Time
1	7	YART Yamaha Official EWC TEAM	Yamaha	2'06.009
2	33	Team HRC with Japan Post	Honda	2'06.121
3	104	TOHO Racing	Honda	2'07.317
4	1	F.C.C. TSR Honda France	Honda	2'07.486
5	73	SDG Honda Racing	Honda	2'07.594
6	95	S-PLUSE DREAM RACING -ITEC	Suzuki	2'07.859
7	71	Honda Dream RT SAKURAI HONDA	Honda	2'08.271
8	54	GOSHI Racing	Honda	2'08.357
9	12	Yoshimura SERT Motul	Suzuki	2'08.402
10	40	Team ATJ	Honda	2'08.431
32	41	IRF with AZURLANE	Yamaha	2'14.046

YAMALUBE YART YAMAHA EWC Official Team

Karel Hanika: 2.06.009

"Today was long, but actually Wednesday was a bit longer and we were able to try many things. Today we changed a couple of small things, especially with the electronics and a small adjustment of the suspension. I felt quite good the first time I tried the soft tires in the morning and our pace was very competitive. In the qualifying session, I was able to use a new rear tire and my first lap was not so good, but in the second flying lap was quite good and clean. I didn't make any big mistakes, and I'm happy with this lap time. All of us three can do similar lap times so I'm very positive for tomorrow. We don't know at the moment who will run the Top 10 Trial, but I think any of the three of us can do the job."

Niccolò Canepa: 2'06.513

"I had a red flag on my first flying lap, which was disappointing because I think it would have been a fast lap. After that, I wanted to keep the tires in good condition for Marvin, but even with that the lap time was still good. So I'm really happy. It's good to see that we are fast and are ready to race the 8 Hours. The track temperature today was extremely hot, over 60 degrees, but I was amazed that I could still do a good time. I hope the conditions are good tomorrow because I want to beat my lap time from last year. Also, I hope we can do the Top 10 Trial this year, because I've done Qualifying many times but never had the chance to do the Top 10 Trial as it's always been canceled due to weather."

Marvin Fritz: 2'07.084

"I did a 2'06.4 in the first session, proving that the work we did on Wednesday was in a good direction. In the qualifying session it was quite difficult because it was very hot so we tried to take care our tires. I'm happy because I took Canepa's used tires and my first flying lap was cancelled with the red flag, but on my second the tires worked really well and I got into the 2'07 range and I came out on top of the session which is important. Big thanks to the team, Yamaha and Bridgestone for their support. Tomorrow we'll use some new tires and I think we can make a 2'05. The we'll see who will do the Top 10 Trial. At the end, all three of us are super fast, so we'll be up there for sure."

Team Manager Mandy Kanz

"Even though we had the red flag in the middle of two good attempts in qualifying, I'm happy with today's results. Especially when you look at the fact that there were very few riders faster than YART today. We can also be happy because we had no crashes and we saved our tires so we can attack tomorrow. I hope the conditions tomorrow will be better than today because it was incredibly hot."

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