Kawasaki has announced that it will not have a factory team entered to the 2023 Suzuka 8 Hours race.
The announcement from Kawasaki means that the only ZX-10RR machinery in Suzuka this year will be run by private entries, and the brand’s official Endurance World Championship team, run by the Japanese-based Trickstar squad who took over the running of the factory EWC effort this year.
It also arrives following a disappointing start to the 2023 WorldSBK season for the brand, and the Provec Racing-run Kawasaki Racing Team, who are yet to win a race this season.
Since 2019, when Kawasaki won the race, the Akashi marque’s factory ‘8 Hour team has also been run by Provec Racing. The reasons behind the absence of Kawasaki from the event have been listed as logistical, and because: “To compete at the highest level and have success snatched from your hands is not easy to adjust to so we will not appear on the grid this year,” according to a statement from KRT Team Manager, Guim Roda, published in a Kawasaki press release.
The full statement from KRT Team Manager, Guim Roda, reads: “Competing at the Suzuka 8 Hour requires time and commitment from a vast number of people. It might look similar to Superbike racing – and we even use Superbike riders like Johnny and Alex - but this race is like no other and requires its own testing and preparation programme on top of what we already do in WorldSBK.
“Just about everything is different and everyone needs to take time to adapt to different technical and performance parameters for this one race. To compete at the highest level and have success snatched from your hands is not easy to adjust to so we will not appear on the grid this year. Our 2023 focus at KRT is now 100% WorldSBK. We wish all competitors and teams involved in the 2023 race an exciting and safe event.”
The 2023 Suzuka 8 Hour is scheduled for 4-6 August. The departure of Kawasaki’s factory team from the event follows Yamaha’s withdrawal in 2022. Assuming Yamaha does not return in 2023, and considering Suzuki’s factory interests will be limited to the Yoshimura SERT EWC team, the only full factory effort headed to Suzuka is likely to be Team HRC, which won last year on the Honda CBR1000RR-R's debut with Iker Lecuona, Tetsuta Nagashima, and Takumi Takahashi.
