Filed under: EV/Plug-in, On Two Wheels, Europe/EU, USA, Racing



Le Mans was the place to be last weekend for electric racing fans as both the TTXGP European and FIM ePower International championships wound up their respective 2012 seasons with a joint race - the third time this season the two organizations have teamed up for such an event.

Münch Racing's Mattias Himmelmann walked away as the victor of both series after a season of commanding performances, but a small twist of fate kept him from the top podium step at this race. That honor went to Canadian Miguel Duhamel, who Lightning Motorcycles manage to lure out of retirement for the appearance. The former AMA champion proved that the past three years he's spent "on the couch" have not dulled his competitive spirit.

Duhamel had a slight edge on Himelmann in practice and qualifying, but it was the big German who actually started strongest when the green flag fell and he led for several laps. That's when fate stepped in.

Apparently, the Münch TTE-2 machine shut itself down after a small bit of rubber managed to mash the big red emergency stop button under the rear fender, and it rolled to a stop, allowing the field to pass it by. Luckily, the rider quickly found the problem and resumed the race, in hot pursuit mode. To his credit, Himmelmann closed the gap considerably, and at the end of the eight lap race, flew across the finish line just 1.929 seconds after the winner, fast enough to clinch 2nd place.

Yu Tang overcame a crash in practice to finish third for Zongshen Racing, bringing his DC-powered bike in ahead of his teammates Ho Chi Fung and David Dumain. Though last in the race after rushing to rebuild his bike after its motor burned up, Christian Amendt took third place overall in the season standings on his Epo.

While we ponder the racing drama to come in Daytona, where the Le Mans winner will team with long-time Lightning rider Michael Barnes to take on both the Münch machines and the Brammo boys (and others) at the TTXGP World Championship, scroll down for the official press release from Le Mans, along with video from Lightning Motors showing Duhamel taking a lap in qualifying and hitting 166.6 miles per hour down the front straight.Continue reading Münch Racing wins TTXGP Euro and FIM ePower Championship at Le Mans

Münch Racing wins TTXGP Euro and FIM ePower Championship at Le Mans originally appeared on Autoblog Green on Tue, 11 Sep 2012 09:44:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.



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