Yamaha veteran bids to end career with a unique accolade
Ex-MotoGP rider Niccolo Canepa prepares for one final outing as a professional racer in the gruelling 24-hour Bol d'Or EWC race with YART before retiring
Former MotoGP rider Niccolo Canepa heads into the final round of the 2024 Endurance World Championship with the rare chance of concluding his career as a World Champion in what will be his final outing as a professional racer.
The 36-year old has already announced this weekend’s Bol d’Or 24-hour race at Paul Ricard will be his final outing with the Yamaha Austria Racing Team (YART), bringing the curtain down on an international career that has spanned almost 20 years.
In that time Canepa has competed at the highest-levels of MotoGP - with Pramac Ducati in 2009 - WorldSBK and EWC, while he has also participated in Moto2, MotoE and BSB.
For this weekend, Canepa joins YART team-mates Marvin Fritz and Karel Hanika in protecting a championship lead that could see him sign off at the very top as World Champion.
“This will be a very emotional Bol d’Or for me, as it will be the last race of my career. It will be very special. Despite this, my focus is 100% on the championship. We arrive here leading the overall standings, and our aim is to secure back-to-back titles and keep the #1 for next year, too.
“This is our main goal. We have shown how strong we are all season. The bike has been incredible, and my teammates have been amazing, so we want to continue this form without anything else getting in the way.
“I feel back to 100% physically, unlike the start of the season when I was injured from my Daytona crash, and I am ready to fight until the chequered flag.
“I want to end my career in the best possible way, not only for me but for everyone in the YART team, by winning another championship with them.”
YART head into the round-the-clock finale grasping a slender six point advantage over the Suzuki Endurance Racing Team of Gregg Black, Erwan Masson and Dan Linfoot. The Italian-Austrian-Czech trio were Endurance World Champions in 2023 with YART.
Canepa - who has also conducted duties as a Yamaha test rider - scored a best result of ninth place during his time in MotoGP with Pramac Ducati, while he scored a podium in MotoE. Canepa raced with Ducati, Kawasaki and Erik Buell Racing during his time in WorldSBK.
