After a strong start to the race, F.C.C. TSR Honda France was forced toretire with 4 hours to go in the 87th Bol d’Or. The team finished the
season 12th in the world championship with 33 points.

・Class / FORMULA EWC ・Machine / HONDA CBR1000RR-R
・Circuit Paul Ricard (5.771 km) / France
■Result ・Race / DNF ・LAP / 580lap
・World Championship TEAM STANDINGS / 11th ・Total / 33pts
・Blue Rider / Josh Hook ・Yellow Rider / Mike Di Meglio・Red Rider / Alan Techer

Final clap for the 2024 FIM EWC season at the Bol d’Or, held on 14 and 15 September atthe famous Paul Ricard circuit (France).

After a particularly cold and windy start to the week, the 45 teams entered had to dealwith unprecedented and much warmer track conditions from the start of the race at 3pm on Saturday 14 September.

In the early stages, the F.C.C. TSR Honda France team established itself firmly at the front thanks to a good start from Alan Techer, who started from 5th on the grid. The French rider quickly moved up to 2nd place, setting a race lap record of 1.53.578 and then improving to 1.53.342. A battle then began for several laps with the Honda #4 for first place.

But the team’s hopes of a podium finish for the first time this season were dashed 1 hour 45 minutes into the race when a rear tyre explosion forced Josh Hook into the pits following serious damage to the rear of the bike. Despite the efficiency of the technical team, an intervention of around ten minutes was necessary, demoting the Franco-Japanese team to 41st position.

A long recovery began, but 2 hours later, a traction control problem, following the previous damage, stopped the progress of the #5 Honda, which was now back in 29th position. A further repair dropped the team again back down the standings.
Far from giving up, the three riders Josh Hook, Mike di Meglio and Alan Techer put their experience to good use by continuing to gain positions thanks to excellent lap times similar to those of the race leaders.

The F.C.C. TSR Honda France rejoined the Top 10 shortly after 5am.
At the end of the 16-hour race, the #5 Honda had climbed back up to 8th position, 5th in the EWC class, which earned it 6 intermediate points in the championship.

Just as the team reached 5th place in the overall standings at the end of the morning, Josh Hook encountered a technical issue which immobilised him at the trackside. Back in the pits and after a meticulous examination of the Honda CBR 1000RR-R Fireblade by the technical team, the verdict came : the team was forced to retire after 19 hours of a race marked by 18 retirements.

The team ended the 2024 season in 12th place in the championship, with 33 points. Thanks to these new lessons and with a constantly renewed determination, the F.C.C. TSR Honda France team is now looking ahead to 2025, to resume its quest for the EWC world crown.

■Josh Hook – rider
“It’s an unfortunate result that reflects our season as a whole. We were all looking forward to this race to finish on a high, especially as we had the pace to win. The technical team did a great job, but it’s just the way it goes sometimes. We had a terrible year and one to forget.”

■Mike di Meglio – rider
“It’s been a very complicated season for us, and we were really hoping for a good result in this final round. We worked very hard together to come up with a very good bike. Unfortunately the tyre problem penalised us by limiting our choices, but we still managed to ride fast and climb up the standings. The season ends as it began, and I’m disappointed for the team who deserved at least a podium.”

■Alan Techer – rider
“This race is a huge disappointment. The 3 riders had a very good race pace and the mechanics did an excellent job throughout the week. Unfortunately, we had a tyre blow out during Josh’s first stint and then a technical problem which led to this result.”

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