EWC: Yamaha takes third straight Suzuka pole

The factory Yamaha team of World Superbike duo Alex Lowes and Michael van der Mark and Japanese Superbike champion Katsuyuki Nakasuga have taken their third consecutive pole position for the Suzuka 8 Hour race, with Nakasuga only just missing out on a lap record to leave the trio top of the time sheets.

They’ll start tomorrow’s race from the top spot after dominating the entire weekend, holding off a strong push from Takumi Tsuda on the Yoshimura Suzuki in superpole despite the MotoGP test rider carrying all the team’s hopes after a crash on his flying lap for Sylvain Guintoli.

Leon Haslam took Team Green Kawasaki to a strong third place behind the Yamaha and Suzuki, ending the session only 0.099 behind Tsuda but clear of the first of the factory Honda machines in fourth, with Moto2 rider Dominique Aegerter on the FCC TSR Honda leading the battle of Hondas at their home track.

Yamaha Austria will start from fifth and best of the permanent Endurance World Championship teams as they look to their own title aspirations at the final round of the series, ahead of Moriwaki Honda, Honda Suzuka Racing Team and Team Kagayama Suzuki, with Honda Team Asia rounding out the top ten.