Le Castellet, France, Sep 19, 2022 - (JCN Newswire) - F.C.C. TSR Honda France, running second in the 2022 FIM* Endurance World Championship (EWC), made a comeback to win this year's championship in the final round, the Bol d'Or 2022, held at Circuit Paul Ricard on September 17 - 18. The team has won the title for the second time, its first in the 2017-2018 season.
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F.C.C. TSR Honda France kicked off its 2022 campaign with riders Josh Hook (29 years old, Australia), Geno Rea (33 years old, UK) and Mike Di Meglio (24 years old, France) on a Honda CBR1000RR-R FIREBLADE SP.
In the season-opener, the 24 Heures Motos held at Le Mans, the team qualified third, and finished third. In Round 2, the 24H SPA EWC Motos, the team started fourth on the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps grid, and although down to tenth place mid-race, made a dramatic comeback to fourth, and a last lap charge by Rea gave them third in the final results.
In Round 3, the Suzuka 8 Hours, held for the first time in three years, Rea crashed during free practice and was transported by helicopter to a hospital. Hook and Di Meglio was left to ride the eight-hour classic at the Suzuka Circuit in Mie. They qualified fourth, and although they faced numerous problems throughout the race, reclaimed places and finished tenth.
F.C.C. TSR Honda France headed into the final round, the Bol d'Or 2022, second overall, 23 points behind the series leader. Alan Techer (28 years old, France), one of the riders in the team's previous victory in 2017-2018, stood in for Rea, in the hope that his experience will help them reclaim the title. The team started from fourth on the grid at 3:00 pm on the 17th. Two incidents sent their placing down to 28th, but consistent and determined riding brought the team back up to 4th place by the time the race ended at 3:00 pm on the 18th. As other championship contenders fail to complete the race, F.C.C. TSR Honda France won the overall championship.
Josh Hook | F.C.C. TSR Honda France
"I have learned from the past to never take a result for granted before the chequered flag. We have come back from complicated situations in the past and nothing is ever certain. Like everyone else, we did our race and never gave up. We did very well, all three of us were fast, especially at night. We were quickly no longer in a position to fight for victory, so we focused on the championship, which was clearly the priority goal. We chose to take care of the engine as much as possible to avoid the problems that most of our competitors have. And it's done!"
Mike Di Meglio | F.C.C. TSR Honda France
"I'm very happy to finally be World Endurance Champion! I came so close with GMT94 and I'm really proud of this title after so many years of fighting for it. It was a really tough race. We had some problems and our opponents were forced to stop one after the other. When Tati Team #4 was fighting at the front, we decided to build up enough of a gap to our chaser to get out of trouble. But when they dropped down the rankings, we changed our strategy to preserve the engine as much as possible by shifting earlier on the straight. It was the best thing to do because the world championship was more important than a podium finish."
Alan Techer | F.C.C. TSR Honda France
"It was a complicated race for everyone, we also had some mechanical problems. The team worked hard to reduce the time spent in the pits and, with my teammates, we did our best to respect the race plan. The objective was clearly the title, and after the Suzuki's retirement, we battled with the Tati Team, my former team. This is a special emotion for me, because I win this title with the team that had already given me the chance to be champion in 2018. We also have a big thought for Gino to whom we dedicate this title."
* FIM: Federation Internationale de Motocyclisme
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