The last stage of the 2023 World Endurance Championship took place on the picturesque Paul Richard circuit, located in Le Castellet in France, with the prestigious 24 Hours of Bol d'Or.
The driver from Spezzino, Kevin Manfredi, now an expert in endurance racing, took part in his fourteenth 24 Hours in his career and, as always, met expectations, proving to be fast, constant and prepared. But above all, he demonstrated extraordinary tenacity in completing the feat despite a last-minute injury.
On the second day of testing, he was involved in a nasty high-side at turn six, which caused him to fall violently and land on his feet, causing a small fracture to his left heel and a tendon injury to his right ankle, as well as some abrasions. due to the impact.
Kevin brought the bike back to the garage under his own power and then went to the circuit's medical center to check on his condition.
After just 20 minutes from the accident and therefore from the injury, the Spezzino returned to the track, recording the team's best time in practice and helping to place it in third position.
In the two qualifying sessions, he chose to conserve energy for the race, covering only a few laps. However, he took pole position in Q1 in the stock category and second position in Q2. These results, along with his teammates Webb and Krezemien, guaranteed the team another top 3 spot on the grid.
Kevin: “On Tuesday I fell violently, while I landed and scraped on the asphalt I felt pain in my ankles and in ten seconds I had time to think about many negative things, but the adrenaline was what allowed me to get up and immediately get back on track. motorcycle to the garage to have it repaired.
The doctors at Paul Richard Medical Center were phenomenal, they tightened my right ankle and bandaged it, reassuring me that I would make it.
In qualifying, a few hours later I was afraid of tiring my ankles too much and I saved myself, but I still managed to achieve two excellent performances.
The race was tough, physically I felt at 110%, I didn't use painkillers to avoid losing the clarity I needed at the end, so at every stint I was among the fastest in the category, on some occasions even the fastest and not I have never made mistakes.
Some technical problems at the start of the race made us lose ground, after just two hours of racing we were 15th in the superstock and the top 5 was very far away, but Endurance races are long and we must not lose heart.
We gradually climbed positions and in the end we achieved a well-deserved fifth place.
I can't hide a certain dissatisfaction with fifth place, and there is a bit of regret because we could have done better, but we could also have done worse...
The most frustrating thing is finishing the championship in fourth place, equal on points with third in the standings. It would have been gratifying to receive the third place medal in the 2023 World Endurance Stock Championship.”
Kevin Manfredi has never been one to give up and this time too, like last year at Le Mans, he demonstrated his resilience.
A little more luck could help him earn those results that he chases head-on every year against all odds and problems.
Kevin today feels like a complete rider and wants to make an even further leap forward in 2024 at all costs.
Fourth place in the 2023 World Endurance Championship, combined with his excellent results in the motoE world championship, constitutes a highly valuable calling card for his future.
Kevin thanks all the sponsors and technical partners of the 2023 season.
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