2025 FIM EWC Round 1 — 24 Hours of Le Mans | Race Report (19–20 April)
Six crashes but never giving up, Team Étoile reached its goal of finishing the 24-hour race, taking fourth in the SST class and 29 points — and at last completing the 24-hour distance that had eluded the team a year earlier.
Race day presented changing conditions — rain, drizzle, overcast — that called for both rain tyres and slicks. The spate of crashes from the start may have been influenced not only by the track surface but also by oil left on the circuit during the morning's support side-car race and by large amounts of rapeseed pollen blown onto the asphalt.
Compared with previous years the ambient temperature stayed relatively high even in the rain, dropping to just 10 °C at the coldest point — a sharp contrast to the Pre-Le Mans test conditions.
Hikari Okubo took the start for Team Étoile but crashed at the final corner on lap seven. The bike dropped from the top of the SST class to 11th, yet after two hours it was back in the lead.
Over the course of the race, however, Okubo crashed twice, Kazuki Watanabe once and Motoharu Ito three times — six incidents in total for the team. At the six-hour mark they were down to 17th in SST (30th overall), but the regular mechanics repaired the bike with lightning speed each time and sent it back out.
As a result, the team finished fourth in the SST class (12th overall), achieving the 24-hour finish that had eluded them the year before. They earned 29 championship points, moved up to fifth in the standings and also received the Mechanics Award.
With a 31-point gap to the series leader, the whole team will tackle round two, the Spa 8 Hours, aiming once again for pole position and for top honours in the race itself, just as last year.
We would like to thank all the fans who left comments during the live stream and on social media, and everyone who cheered us on through the broadcast. Your support means a great deal to us. Thank you.
Rider & team principal comments
Rider
Hikari Okubo
“Because we knew the weather on race day would be unstable, I went into the start wanting to break clear of the pack. I actually grabbed the holeshot and led the SST class, so things were going smoothly until I made a careless mistake and crashed at the final corner on lap seven, which meant we had to fight back from there.”
“Later on, in some of the roughest weather we've seen in years, I went down again at night, and I feel sorry for putting the team through that. Even so, everyone kept fighting and we eventually finished fourth in SST, which is a decent result.”
“We crashed six times in total, but every time our crew repaired the bike quickly, and that's what let us reach the finish. As a rider I feel I have to become stronger, and I realised that with this team the world championship is not just a dream. For now, I'm simply pleased we achieved the team's first 24-hour finish.”
Rider
Kazuki Watanabe
“This race was our first step — ‘finish first, then move toward the next goal’ — so the most important thing is that we got through the 24 hours and ended up fourth in SST.”
“So many things happened in the race, and my own crash is a big lesson. Conditions were extremely tricky; there were 202 falls in total. Of course I won't use the difficulty as an excuse, but this race made me deeply aware of what I still need to manage as a rider.”
“Looking at the whole event, the team evolved; thanks to limiting the time lost from six crashes we got this result, which highlights how strong the team is. I'm sorry for the extra workload on the crew, but their preparation showed in our finish. It was a tough race, yet it revealed the team's true power.”
“I think this was a confidence-building race for everyone. Our season goal is the title, and the 29 points we earned make me genuinely excited for the Spa 8 Hours. Next time I want to win. I'll do my best.”
Rider
Motoharu Ito
“I'm a bit tired, but that just shows I experienced endurance racing thoroughly. In my first stint the strategy worked perfectly — we gained places in tough conditions and handed the bike over in good shape, which is great for the future.”
“Every stint after that also started in the rain; even when parts of the track dried there were still wet patches, and that continued into the night. It was completely different from the official test this month — we never had a fully dry lap. I ended up crashing three times, which you should avoid in endurance racing, so I need to rethink my mentality and how not to push too hard.”
“Almost every team crashed; it was a rare, special race. Having my first 24-hour experience like this will be hugely useful. I'm deeply grateful to the team for fixing the bike each time and sending me back out. I felt everyone's strong will to finish, and it inspired me to reach the end. Thank you.”
Rider
Kyosuke Okuda
“I'm simply happy that Team Étoile finished a 24-hour race for the first time. I'd already finished the Bol d'Or with another team, but that was with three riders. This time we had four, and because the rain improved fuel economy I only rode four stints in total. My first stint lasted an hour and a half, which I'd never done on a 1,000 cc bike, so it felt long. With plenty of rest, it was physically quite easy.”
“Mentally, though, it was exhausting because the track was so rough. There were so many crashes, yet we kept repairing the bike and finished fourth — that's what a 24-hour race is about. I believe not crashing is fundamental in endurance, so when it rained during my stints I rode cautiously on lap one, copied the lines of faster riders and stayed alert to everything around me.”
“I was really moved that we completed the 24 hours. I didn't cry, but I was a little misty-eyed inside. I'll join the team at the Spa 8 Hours as staff next time, supporting them while doing my job. One day I'd love to race at Spa-Francorchamps myself!”
Team Principal
Takashi Ichikawa
“Over these 24 hours I have felt Team Étoile become a truly unified team. Even when crashes and troubles kept coming, no one gave up; each person fulfilled their role, believed in one another and supported the rest, and that led to our finish and the 29 points we earned. Skill, physical strength and, above all, mental resilience — this stage tested all of them. We will carry what we gained here into the next round. Our 2025 season has only just begun. Thank you for your continued support.”
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