The Automobile Club de l’Ouest and the Préfecture de la Sarthe, the Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme (FIM), the Fédération Française de Motocyclisme (FFM) and Eurosport Events, promoter of the FIM EWC world championship, have agreed to cancel this year’s Le Mans 24 Hours Motos race.

The current health crisis is putting huge pressure on French hospitals, meaning that we simply cannot hold the event safely. 

The ACO is now looking into the possibilities of postponing the event to a later date. More information will be released within the next ten days.

Pierre Fillon, President of the Automobile Club de l’Ouest: Deciding to cancel the 24 Hours Motos was extremely difficult. Unfortunately, the ongoing pandemic means we cannot uphold our usual organisational standards. My thoughts are with medical workers, who have had a very tough time over the past year or so. We are now doing our utmost to set a new date for the 44th 24 Hours Motos.

Sébastien Poirier, President of the Fédération Française de Motocyclisme (FFM): Cancelling is never the easy option and I’d like to express my full support for the ACO. We’ll continue to do all we can to assist all our competitors and hope to see them on the starting grid of the Bugatti Circuit very soon. Now is the time for solidarity with healthcare workers and together we will overcome this crisis.

François Ribeiro, Head of Eurosport Events: Competitor safety is non-negotiable and given the pressure on hospitals now and in the coming weeks, we are unable to maintain the Le Mans 24 Hours Motos. We are already working with the ACO to find a new date to bring the FIM EWC world championship to Le Mans. That is our one and only goal now.