Le Mans (AFP)
Led by a great Mike Di Meglio, the Honda N.5 has a good lead over the title holder Kawasaki N.1, halfway through the 24 heures Motos (Sunday at 00:00), contested from Saturday to Sunday on the Bugatti circuit of Le Mans.
Having taken the lead just after the three-hour race mark, the Honda driven by the French Mike Di Meglio and Freddy Foray and the Australian Josh Hook has after 12 hours of racing 2 laps ahead of the Kawasaki N.1, title holder, and 3 on the Suzuki N.2, leader of the World Endurance Championship (EWC).
The lead bike made no mistakes from the start and was able to count on the speed, in each of its stints, from Mike Di Meglio. The 2008 125cc world champion even allowed himself, at the end of the stint shortly before midnight, to establish the fastest lap in the race in 1 min 37 sec 318/1000.
In total, the N.5 took the lead in 338 of the 402 laps covered.
Also flawless on the track but slower, the Kawasaki N.1 retains its second place, led by the trio Jérémy Guarnioni-Erwan Nigon-David Checa who won the race last year.
It is closely followed by the Suzuki N.2, which suffered from the appearance of rain at the start of the race but has since shown good consistency.
The BMW N.37 and the Yamaha N.7, which both briefly led the debates at the start of the race, follow in the standings, but their respective delays of 6 and 9 laps put them out of play for the victory, barring problems for the top three.
Very fast on the track but victim of youthful mistakes, the Ducati N.6, which takes part in its first 24-hour race, is currently 8th at 12 laps.
Tenth in the general classification, the BMW N.56 driven in particular by Lucy Glöckner, one of the few women in the paddock, easily dominates the Superstock category, six laps ahead of its first chaser.
© 2020 AFP