Suzuka 8 Hours action
Suzuka 8 Hours action
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2025 Suzuka 8 Hours - LIVE UPDATES!

Live text commentary for the 46th running of the Suzuka 8 Hours.

 
Honda and Yamaha are set to duel for victory in the 2025 Suzuka 8 Hours, the world's most prestigious motorcycle endurance race.
 
Honda is gunning for a record-extending 31st victory in the Japanese endurance classic after MotoGP star Johann Zarco put the factory No. 30 bike he shares with Takumi Takahashi on pole position.
 
However, there was little to separate between Honda and its homegrown rival Yamaha in Saturday's final qualifying session, with the latter having made an immediate impression on its return as a works team.
 
The No. 21 Yamaha R1 will be shared by an all-star line-up comprising Jack Miller, Andrea Locatelli and Katsuyuki Nakasuga.
 
Full-season World Endurance Championship squads like YART Yamaha, Harc-Pro Honda and the factory BMW Motorrad team could also sprint a surprise on Sunday.

The race kicks off at 11:30am JST / 3:30am BST and finishes under the lights at 7:30pm JST / 11:30am BST.
03 Aug 2025
05:57
YART not out of the woods

Jason O'Ohalloran has brought the No. 7 YART Yamaha back in the garage for more repairs. 

05:48
Quick repair work at YART

After just four minutes in the pits, the YART Yamaha team has managed to send Jason O'Ohalloran back out on track again. However, given he spent a fair bit of time on the ground before bringing the bike back, he has dropped three laps down in 27th place.

05:43
Trouble for YART Yamaha

Jason O'Ohalloran has dropped it at the chicane while running in traffic. He was trying to keep up with third-placed Michael van der Mark.

O'Ohalloran remounts on the bike and brings it back to the garage immediately.

It's important to note that YART Yamaha arrived in Suzuka as the championship leader.

05:41
Kawasaki

Kawasaki last competed in the Suzuka 8 Hours with its factory WSBK team in 2023. But there are still a number of outfits running the ZX-10R this year. The #11 Kawasaki Webike Trickstar bike is currently placed 13th with Gregory Leblanc, just behind the recovering No. 1 Yoshimura Suzuki of Cocora Atsumi.

05:38
Watch out for Michael van der Mark

Michael van der Mark has moved up to third place on the factory No. 37 BMW after passing the No. 73 Honda of Teppei Nagoe and the No. 7 YART Yamaha of Jason O'Halloran in quick succession.

Unfortunately for him, Jack Miller is 46s up the road in second place.

05:34
How is Jack Miller's stint going so far?

Factory Yamaha rider Jack Miller is currently running 13s behind Takumi Takahashi in second. Here is a look at his recent lap times.

2m08.428s

2m09.299s

2m07.499s.

2m08.769s

05:32
YART Yamaha in podium spots

With the pitstops now complete, the No. 7 YART Yamaha is now running in third place with Jason O'Ohalloran. Teppei Nagoe has dropped to fourth on the No. 73 Harc-Pro Honda.

05:30
Johann Zarco pits

Johann Zarco brings the race-leading No. 30 Honda into the pits at the end of the hour. Takumi Takahashi is back aboard the bike.

05:23
Jack Miller takes to the track!

Jack Miller begins his first stint in the Suzuka 8 Hours. Miller takes over the No. 21 Yamaha from Andrea Locatelli and will be hoping to close the gap to the race-leading No. 30 Honda, which is yet to pit.

05:21
Suzuki at Suzuka

Apart from the Yoshimura team, the winner of the inaugural Suzuka 8 Hours back in 1978, Suzuki is also represented by its own factory team this year.

Takuya Tsuda, Albert Arenas and Etienne Masson are riding the No. 0 GSX-R1000R in the experimental class on 100% sustainable fuel.

 

05:15
Second round of stops

Odendaal pits from sixth place aboard the factory BMW, kicking off the second round of pitstops.

The Kagayama Ducati is also in the pits

05:13
Order after 100 minutes
  1. Zarco (No. 30 Honda)
  2. Locatelli (No. 21 Yamaha)
  3. Abe (No. 73 Honda)
  4. Hanika (No. 7 Yamaha)
  5. Kunimine (No. 40 Honda)
  6. Odendaal (No. 37 BMW)
  7. Arenas (No. 0 Suzuki)
  8. Yamanaka (No. 17 Honda)
  9. Schrotter (No. 3 BMW)
  10. Todd (No. 76 BMW)
05:00
How quick is Johann Zarco?

Johann Zarco has quickly built a gap of 14s  aboard the factory Honda. His best lap so far been a 2m07.059s, which is just a little over a tenth slower than the best lap of the race so far set by Naomichi Uramoto on the Ube Racing BMW.

Here is a look at Zarco's recent lap times

2m08.118s

2m07.720s

2m08.951s

2m08.203s

2m07.183s

04:56
Ducati at the Suzuka 8 Hours

Ducati is represented in the Suzuka 8 Hours with a single entry from Team Kagayama. Marcel Schrotter is currently running ninth on the No. 3 Panigale V4 R, 53s down on Johann Zarco's Honda.

04:47
Race over for FCC TSR

Alan Techer has just revealed that F.C.C. TSR Honda is retiring from the race after his teammate reported a lack of power in the second stint. Techer fears this could also mean the end of the team's chances of winning the EWC title.

04:45
YART Yamaha in focus

Don't discount the YART Yamaha yet. Karel Hanika has just demoted Isle of Man TT winner Davey Todd (Ube Racing BMW) to grab fourth place aboard the EWC points-leading bike.

04:40
Disaster for FCC TSR

The F.C.C. TSR Honda bike is in the garage with mechanical issues. The Honda squad has been immensely successful at Suzuka and most recently won the race in 2012 a certain Jonathan Rea in its line-up.

04:37
Crash for lead Suzuki

Dan Linfoot has crashed in the first sector aboard the No. 1 Yoshimura Suzuki. He quickly remounted on the bike, but is now down in 12th place

04:35

We are now an hour into the race. For those who are unfamiliar with the Suzuka 8 Hours' Le Mans-style start, here is a video

04:31
Yamaha on the move

The No. 21 Yamaha is now running in a net second place after the pitstops. Andrea Locatelli is running just over a second clear of third-place Keito Abe on the No. 73 Harc-Pro Honda

04:28
Johann Zarco takes over factory Honda

Takumi Takahashi has finally pitted from the lead after 27 laps and just under an hour on the bike.

Johann Zarco hops on the factory Honda!

04:27
Yamaha pits

Nakasauga brings the factory Yamaha into the pits after 26 laps, with Andrea Locatelli taking over. Jack Miller will have to wait for his stint.

04:21
Pitstops begin

The first pitstops have begun. Erstwhile race leader Kunii are among those to pit.

Keito Abe has taken over the No. 73 Harc-Pro Honda from Kunii.

04:14
Takahashi pulls away further

Takahashi has now stretched his advantage up to four seconds.

Kunii and Uramoto are squabbling for second place, while Gregg and Nakasuga are a further three seconds adrift in fourth and fifth place.

04:04
Takahashi unleashes true pace

Takahashi has quickly built a 1.7s lead on the factory Honda after snatching the lead from Kunii.

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