Le Mans (AFP)

The Japanese manufacturers still present, BMW in trouble and Ducati as a newcomer: the 43rd edition of the 24 heures Motos will be without an audience but not without a show this weekend on the Bugatti circuit in Le Mans.

In the absence of the public for the first time since the creation of the event in 1978 due to the Covid-19 pandemic, only the athlete will count, from Saturday to Sunday, far from the "popular festival" that is d usual event, in the words of the president of the Automobile club de l'Ouest, Pierre Fillon.

The field is also tightened: 38 motorcycles will be at the start, against a small sixty usually. Thirty-nine cars were expected, but the N.57 of Mana'au Compétition had to forfeit after three accidents during practice.

On paper, Japanese machines are favorites. The victory has never escaped them: fourteen titles for Kawasaki, twelve for Honda and Suzuki and four for Yamaha.

Victorious last year, the Kawasaki N.1 has also renewed its crew, made up of the French Jérémy Guarnoni and Erwan Nigon and the veteran Spanish David Checa. But she did not seem comfortable in qualifying, snatching only 7th place on the grid.

Another Japanese bike, the Yamaha N.7, will start from pole position tomorrow, having dominated free practice and then qualifying thanks to its trio Karel Hanika-Marvin Fritz-Niccolo Canepa.

"For three days, we have been enjoying a series of satisfactions," said Czech Karel Hanika after qualifying. And the N.7 is not yet at its full potential: "We must find solutions to be even faster" during the race, reacted Niccolo Canepa for his part.

- Beware of Suzuki -

Another Yamaha, the N.77 of the Polish team Wojcik, will want to repeat the feat that saw it, almost a year ago, take second place in the Bol d'Or, the other great race 24-hour motorcycle endurance race, canceled this year.

The Honda N.5, led by former 125cc world champion Mike Di Meglio, will start from fourth place.

And it will be necessary, as every year, to be wary of the Suzuki N.2 of SERT. Ten times winner of the Le Mans event and fifteen times world endurance champion, the French team would pay a tribute to its recently retired founder, Dominique Méliand, who will start the race on Saturday at 12 p.m. (10 a.m. GMT).

Long discreet during practice, the SERT shone during the second qualifying session on Friday to snatch third place on the grid.

The Suzuki, world championship leader (82 pts), will start just behind its runner-up in this ranking, the BMW N.37 (68 pts), which can feed the legitimate ambition of finally dethroning the Japanese manufacturers. Third in the Bol d'Or and in the other event contested this season, the eight hours of Sepang, the N.37 will aim a little higher on Sunday.

- "Ideal trio" -

Behind these five manufacturers, a newcomer could create a surprise: Ducati, which for the first time lines up an official motorcycle in a 24-hour race.

The crew, formed by the three-time winner (2010 to 2012) Julien Da Costa, whose last 24 Hours will be, ex-MotoGP rider Randy de Puniet and Manceau Louis Rossi, winner on the same Moto3 circuit in 2012, is described as an "ideal trio" by the team coordinator, Jean-Michel Pfrimmer.

The bike, which has never run a 24 hour race, is not immune to beginner's mistakes ... nor beginner's luck.

Twice second on Kawasaki then Honda, Randy de Puniet also warns: "It's endurance, nothing is ever played (...) There will be surprises," he told AFP.

His teammate Julien Da Costa agrees: "I have never known a 24 hour race without a grain of sand".

Experience shows that in endurance, anything can happen. It is this same experience which, in the race, can make all the difference.

© 2020 AFP