2026 Le Mans 24 Hours: YART Yamaha vs BMW Motorrad for the win

Wide-open fight between YART Yamaha and BMW Motorrad World Endurance Team: at the 24 Heures Motos Le Mans everything is still up for grabs.

As the 49th edition of the 24 Heures Motos, the opening act of the FIM EWC Endurance World Championship 2026, heats up, everything is still in play for the win. In a blistering showdown at the Circuit Bugatti in Le Mans, the reigning World Champions YART Yamaha and the BMW Motorrad World Endurance Team are battling for the lead, with F.C.C. TSR Honda also in the mix in third place.

With the #1 proudly displayed on the R1’s fairing, YART Yamaha leads the contest ahead of BMW Motorrad World Endurance Team, who headed the opening two hours thanks to a stellar stint by Michael van der Mark. After a less-than-memorable start, the title-winning trio of Karel Hanika, Marvin Fritz, and Leandro Mercado managed to seize the lead and are aiming to repeat last year’s triumph in the Sarthe classic.

Among the contenders for victory, Yoshimura SERT Motul Suzuki remains in the hunt (1 lap down), closely shadowed by the #76 BMW of AutoRace Ube Racing Team. Slightly further back is the privateer #4 Honda of Tati Team AVA6 Racing, which was firmly in podium contention until a crash by Hugo Clere. Not part of this group is the #99 Yamaha R1 of ELF Marc VDS Racing Team/KM99, out of the race due to an engine failure right at the entry to the Dunlop curve, with our Alessandro Delbianco attacking for the podium. Just a few hours into the race, the 24 Heures Motos has thus lost one of the teams expected to be protagonists.

There’s a great battle in the Superstock class as well, with RAC41 Honda (led by our Kevin Manfredi) going head-to-head with the BMWs of Tecmas and MRP. As for Italy’s presence in Endurance, Honda No Limits currently sits in sixth place. REVO-M2 Aprilia, prominent in the early stages, lost valuable time due to a series of setbacks. Among the Production bikes, Legacy Competition Yamaha leads, chased in order by Greenteam 42 Kawasaki and Artec #119 Kawasaki.

In Italy, Eurosport from the Warner Bros Discovery group is broadcasting the Le Mans motorcycle 24 hours live in various formats. On Eurosport 2 (available to DAZN, TIMVISION and Amazon Prime Video Channels subscribers) several live segments are scheduled (HERE all the info). Alternatively, the HBO Max and Discovery+ streaming offer provides full coverage without commercial breaks. Commentary as always by Alessio Piana and Jacopo Zizza.