The 2018 Suzuka 8-Hours is in the books, and it was one to remember. In a lot of ways, this was Suzuka back in its heyday. Factory bikes, world-class riders, and a flat-out sprint race between the best of the best.
It was a shame that the weather interrupted what had looked set to be a classic 8-Hours. With Jonathan Rea hitting the deck in the treacherous conditions, it took a potential race-winner out of contention, and ended three and a half hours of toe-to-toe, bar-to-bar between Kawasaki and Yamaha.
For the first time since 2015, Yamaha was challenged, but Alex Lowes and Michael van der Mark weren’t rattled.
Prior to the race Van der Mark joked that “I don’t get scared on a bike, I scare the others!” and on Sunday the two-time WorldSBK race-winner certainly wasn’t scared of the reputation that Rea brings as a three-time world champion.
The Dutchman’s opening stint was superb, and his fight with Rea was something unlike any seen we have at the 8-Hours in recent years. When they pitted, it was up to Lowes and Leon Haslam to continue the fight and that’s exactly what happened.
Over the course of those opening hours, we were treated to the full spectacle of motorcycle racing, and it was everything it should be. With that in mind, here are some of the biggest talking points of the 2018 Suzuka 8 Hours.
Yamaha vs. Kawasaki
Kawasaki had the speed, but Yamaha had the consistency. All the Number 21 crew heard throughout the build-up was that Kawasaki was the underdogs.
It made the riders laugh to consider Jonathan Rea an underdog on a Kawasaki surrounded by his WorldSBK team.
The narrative was wrong in Yamaha’s eyes, and even though they were confident of winning the race, it was clear they knew that Kawasaki would put them under pressure.
The Yamaha Factory Racing Team is a full-factory effort. Japanese engineers working exclusively on the 8-Hours project, and ensuring every box is ticked in the buildup. Kawasaki was a different proposition.
It was a combination of Japan and Europe. The WorldSBK team provided lots of support, indeed Guim Roda was wandering around the paddock at Suzuka in his civvies, with Pere Riba taking on a key role.
Having two top European riders and familiar faces from KRT was crucial for Rea to even get involved in the project.
“This was the perfect time for me to come back to Suzuka,” said Rea. “I’ve had opportunities to come back, with Kawasaki before, but it just didn’t seem right. It didn’t seem like a full effort.”
“I wasn’t interested in coming back if I couldn’t win again. WorldSBK is still the main priority for Kawasaki, but the 8-Hours project gathered some momentum and having two top European riders with a factory Japanese rider shows this.”
“This isn’t my team, but there were conditions that I wanted Kawasaki to meet if I was to come to Suzuka. I wanted to have some familiarity with Pere and Uri in the garage.”
“It can be daunting to come here from the world championship, and go to a team you’ve never worked with before. That’s why having those guys was important to me, and one of the conditions of my contract.”
“Having a teammate like Leon was important too. He’s a bull terrier out there and he never gives up!”
Kawasaki ticked the boxes and took pole position. Their outright pace gave them an edge over Yamaha, but over the course of 8-Hours it’s about being consistent rather than flashing fast times.
“We spend weeks testing to get the most out of the bike, and then we remember it’s about being fast for 8-Hours,” was how Lowes assessed the challenge of Suzuka.
That consistency has been Yamaha’s forté in recent years and it paid off with a win even though this was their toughest race yet.
It’s Harder to Stay at the Top:
It’s harder to stay on top of the mountain than it is to climb it in the first place. Yamaha has a target painted on its back at Suzuka. Their recent success demands that the factory continues winning, and that places a huge stress on the squad. There’s no joy of victory; it’s a relief at getting the job done.
After Sunday’s race, Van der Mark talked about how tough it had been for him to claim a fourth Suzuka success.
“This was the hardest Suzuka for us,” said the Dutchman. “You could see rain coming towards the track, and that anticipation was almost as bad as the actual rain.”
“It would come and go very quickly and my third stint was very hard. It started to rain, and I had a black visor and I couldn’t see anything. I managed to pull a gap! It was the hardest win for sure.”
“The first stints were like a Superbike race! I was battling with Johnny at all times, but I was struggling with rear grip and Johnny looked so good with that, but he was struggling to overtake traffic so we were really close.”
“He’d try and pull away, but I’d get it back in traffic. I probably pushed too hard in our second stint together, and with about ten laps to go my tire was dropping.”
“I probably pushed too hard in that stint. I was on the limit but he ran out of fuel so I think both of our pace was too high in that stint.”
That stint was where the race was won. With Rea running out of fuel it cost the Number 11 time in the pits, and when the race resumed in an ensuing show, Rea got caught out by the conditions.
Ultimately the team was unwilling to change its strategy despite the rain, and the Northern Irishman crashed on slick tires as he tried to stay out until the next pit window.
“I was on slick tires in the full wet, and I was asking the pit with my hand if I could come in, and the pit board kept saying stay [out],” Rea said. “It was a strange crash as there was not too much lean angle, no throttle, and the rear came around like a Speedway bike.”
“Unfortunately, I couldn’t save it, but fortunately no injury and I was able to get the bike back so we only lost one lap. It was really frustrating as it came in a bad moment for us.”
“We had so many different conditions thrown at us, and things that we weren’t prepared for in endurance racing with our lack of experience. Maybe I should have stuck to my guns when I wanted to come into the pits instead of listening to my pit board.”
It’s hard to see that Kawasaki and Rea won’t return in 2019, and with an extra year of experience Yamaha will have to dig even deeper in 12 months time.
Jacobsen Earns His Stripes and a Podium:
America had a rider on the Suzuka podium with PJ Jacobsen, part of the second placed finishing HRC squad. The American had a tough 8-Hours, and was only given one stint on the bike.
It came in the atrocious conditions that led to an hour-long safety car period, and when the race resumed, Jacobsen was left trying to learn and feel his way around a wet Suzuka circuit for the first time.
“It was pretty difficult, to be honest, having not tested the bike in the wet and going into the unknown,” Jacobsen said. “I was thrown into the deep end, but I was also a bit nervous, as I knew who I was racing for, the factory team HRC, so there were a lot of things in play in my head.“
“I wasn’t too comfortable in my session, and I think I could have done a lot better, but I was a bit nervous and not riding at my full potential.”
“Usually I like wet conditions, but I was still in unknown territory with the bike and the track. I was happy to bring the bike back to the pit box, and have it ready to go.
“I think we all could have done a bit better but I think they all did a great job as teammates, they did an awesome job. I can’t thank HRC, Red Bull Japan, and everybody for giving me this opportunity to race for this team. It’s great to get my first podium here.”
The WorldSBK rider was racing as a replacement for the injured Leon Camier and acquitted himself well in an all-Japanese squad, alongside factory test rider Takumi Takahashi and MotoGP rider Takaaki Nakagami.
It was important for Jacobsen to get through the weekend mistake free. With limited running in practice avoiding making a mistake during his stint was a solid effort in trying conditions.
Photos: © 2018 Steve English – All Rights Reserved
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