Starting in second position on the grid, the crew formed by French riders Gregg Black, Sylvain Guintoli and Belgian Xavier Siméon never left the trio of leading machines and patiently built their victory without having to take unnecessary risks. .
The winners completed 840 laps and Austrian team Yart's N.7 Yamaha was second by one lap, followed remotely by TSR France's N.5 Honda, third by 14 laps behind the Suzuki. victorious.
The red Yamaha of the Team 18 Firefighters team took 4th place in the Le Mans race and first in the Superstock category, reserved for motorcycles closer to the series.
After two editions without an audience, due to the Covid-19 pandemic, nearly 50,000 spectators had made the trip, giving this biker meeting its very special atmosphere, all under a bright sun and thanks to mild weather.
The SERT Suzuki, defending champion and 2021 endurance world champion, was able to take advantage of the misadventures of the Honda N.5 (mechanical problems and fall), the retirement of the BMW N.37 (engine failure) and the setbacks of the Ducati N.6 (fall and mechanical problems).
The Yart, which had qualified for the third consecutive year in pole position, managed to catch up, without breaking its engine as in 2021, after having completely missed its start.
The Yamaha N.7 driven by German Marvin Fritz hunts the Suzuki N.1 of leader Gregg Black, at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, April 17, 2022 JEAN-FRANCOIS MONIER AFP
The race was marked by numerous interventions by the safety car, right up to the last minutes of these 24 Hours.
The most significant took place one lap after the start, following a collision between the BMW N.74 and the Yamaha N.96 in the hands of British rider Bradley Smith, who came from the Grand Prix motorcycles.
With this victory, Suzuki equals Kawasaki's record -14 victories on the Le Mans circuit- and takes the lead in the 2022 World Endurance Championship. Next meeting in Belgium, at Spa-Francorchamps.
© 2022 AFP