EWC: Defending champions Yamaha top opening day at Suzuka

Defending Suzuka 8 Hour champions Yamaha have taken the top spot on the opening day of action for this year’s race, with Alex Lowes, Michael van der Mark and Katsuyuki Nakasuga topping the timing sheets from the factory Musashi Honda squad.

The Honda team with Jack Miller, Takumi Takahashi and Takaaki Nakagami onboard ended the day second despite a crash for the Australian MotoGP racer, while Yoshimura Suzuki made it three manufacturers in the top three with Josh Brookes, Sylvain Guintoli and Takumi Tsuda.

The second factory team of FCC TSR Honda were fourth, ahead of MCE British Superbike title contender Leon Haslam and the Team Green Kawasaki squad.

Action at the endurance race gets underway properly tomorrow at the Suzuka circuit, with a full day of track action including night practice before Saturday’s short qualifying sessions.