Home
It’s still time for market deals, bargains and negotiations between riders and team managers, as the calendar of the 2009 Endurance World Championship has been announced.
Some teams are already made for next year. Second at the 2008 championship, Yamaha Austria Racing Team keeps for 2009 the Slovenian rider Igor Jerman and Australian Steve Martin, and goes back with one of their previous ace, the French rider Gwen Giabbani.
In the Suzuki Endurance Racing Team, team manager Dominique Meliand had to downscale his ambitions. After a drastic budget reduction for Endurance by Suzuki, SERT would enter only one machine, and only for the two French classics, the 24 Hours of Le Mans and the Bol d’Or. Obviously, Meliand is still looking for extra sponsors or budget allowance, in order to compete the full season. As far as the riders are concerned, he will have to do without Matthieu Lagrive, who went to Honda in World Supersport – and in World Endurance with Honda France – as well as Julien Da Costa, who recently signed at MSS Kawasaki for a British Superbike season. However, the Suzuki team is involved with enough riders to create another potential winning team.
Kawasaki France has announced their official engagement at Le Mans and the Bol d’Or, and are still investigating the possibility of competing a full season for 2009, except at Suzuka.
Yamaha France GMT 94 also announced their participation at the two French classics, Le Mans and the Bol d’Or. The Yamaha R1 94 will be ridden by French Sébastien Gimbert, Spanish David Checa and the French Erwan Nigon, who was official Kawasaki rider in 2008, and is still under official contract with Kawasaki. We’ll have to check out the deal regarding Nigon, between Kawasaki and Yamaha.
Honda France is making is official come-back on the two main French rounds with the Honda CBR 1000 RR n° 111. Prepared by Ten Kate, the bike will be given to the French Jean-Michel Bayle, Sébastien Charpentier and Matthieu Lagrive. Matthieu will also be racing World Supersport on a CBR 600 R from team Honda Altea.
Some experienced riders are still looking for a team. This is the case, for instance, for French David Morillon, who’s contract with Bolliger Switzerland came to a end, and is ready to consider any proposition for the 2009 World Championship. To contact him : david.morillon@cg79.fr