Steve Plater riders Phase One in Doha Eight Hours

The Doha Eight Hours, the final leg of the 2007 QMMF Endurance FIM World Championship, roars into action on November 10, 2007 in Qatar, and is set to determine the final Championship standings of this incredible season.

While the 2007 World Championship title has already gone to the Suzuki Endurance Racing Team, the other all-important Championships podium places will be disputed between four permanent teams – Yamaha Austria Racing Team, Yamaha Phase One Endurance, Endurance Moto 38 and Bolliger Team Switzerland.

Yamaha Austria, currently fifth in the overall classifications, could move up to third by finishing second at the Doha Eight Hours.

If they were to win in Doha, Yamaha’s Austrian riders Igor Jerman, Steve Martin and Damian Cudlin could actually move to second overall in the Championship standings. Such a result would be unexpected for YART after such a difficult 2007 season.

Yamaha Phase One Endurance will also be looking to move up the standings at this final race of the season.

The English team has enlisted the services of Steve Plater from Team Kawasaki France (who will be absent from Doha), to team-up with Warwick Nowland and Glenn Richards. Their objective is to take second place or the win.

Yamaha Phase One, however, cannot mathematically finish higher than third in the overall Championship classifications.

Endurance Moto 38 also has a strong card to play in Doha. The leading Superproduction team from France will line-up in Doha with Julien Millet, Cyril Brivet and Joao Contente Fernandes.

Endurance Moto 38 finished in an impressive seventh place at the Bol d’Or and is looking to finish in the top five in the overall Championship table.

Bolliger Team Switzerland could be the team most motivated to succeed in Doha. After Horst Saiger’s fall in the final minutes of the Bol d’Or, which saw the team lose its fifth place to the Swiss Kawasaki, Bolliger has revenge in mind in Doha.

David Morillon, Patric Muff and Eric Mizera will line-up for them and by picking up a podium place in Qatar, Bolliger Switzerland would also return to third place in the overall classifications.

The battle in Doha is set to be very open and the local teams also should not be discounted.

The permanent team, Qatar Endurance Racing Team, could benefit from its knowledge of the track and weather conditions. Six other Qatari teams will also line-up in Doha, of which three (teams 41, 69 and 77) have called on the Junior Team Suzuki to help them at the Doha Eight Hours.

The Team 18 Sapeurs Pompiers should also not be forgotten about and they come to Doha on the back of strong results at Le Mans, Albacete and the Bol d’Or this season.

The first practice for the Doha Eight Hours take place on Thursday, November 8, 2007. The race itself will take place on Saturday, November 10, 2007 at 2pm local time.