Dramatic twist at the 24 Hours of Le Mans: BMW Motorrad in pursuit

Van der Mark crashes at the peak of the 24 Hours of Le Mans: it’s a fight with Yoshimura Suzuki for 2nd place, YART Yamaha leads.

An extremely eventful middle phase of the 49th edition of the 24 Heures Motos, the opening round of the 2026 FIM EWC Endurance World Championship. With more than two-thirds of the race completed at Le Mans’ Circuit Bugatti, reigning World Champions YART Yamaha lead by 4 laps over BMW Motorrad World Endurance Team and Yoshimura SERT Motul Suzuki, the latter fully embroiled in the battle for second place.

It seemed everything was set for a historic triumph, but BMW Motorrad World Endurance Team’s push for victory suffered a heavy setback. After an issue that forced an unexpected pit stop, at daybreak Michael van der Mark and another rider went down at the Le Musée sweeper. The former Superbike World Championship standout brought the bike back to the pits, with the result that the #37 M 1000 RR now trails the YART Yamaha leaders by 4 laps.

With 5 hours to go before the checkered flag, YART Yamaha is poised to repeat last year’s triumph in the great Sarthe classic. So far, it has been an error-free run for the #1 R1 ridden by Karel Hanika, Marvin Fritz, and Leandro Mercado. BMW Motorrad World Endurance, meanwhile, finds itself locked in a fight for second place with Yoshimura SERT Motul Suzuki, with the ever-reliable #12 GSX-R 1000R in the hands of Gregg Black, Etienne Masson, and Dan Linfoot.

While Kawasaki Webike TRICKSTAR (with our own Christian Gamarino in the lineup) suffered a setback in its bid for the third step of the podium, the hierarchy is taking shape in the Superstock class. Team MRP BMW leads with a sizable margin over the very Italian No Limits Motor Team, well within podium range with the #44 Honda also ridden by Gabriele Giannini and Doriano Vietti Ramus. Just off the podium—currently completed by TRT27 AZ Honda—are RAC41 Honda (fronted by Kevin Manfredi) and REVO-M2 Aprilia. Still in Stock, noteworthy is the retirement of reigning champions Honda National Motos due to a blown engine. In Production, it’s a tight fight between GREENTEAM 42 Kawasaki and LEGACY COMPETITION Yamaha for class honors.