Australia’s Damian Cudlin has credited his BMW Motorrad France Team after claiming an impressive podium finish in the Bol d’Or 24-Hour last weekend in at Magny-Cours in France, marking the opening round of the 2011 FIM World Endurance Championship.
Alongside Frenchmen Sebastian Gimbert and Erwan Nigon, Cudlin became one of very few Australians to ever reach the podium steps in the great race when the #99 BMW crossed the line with 803 laps, trailing only Kawasaki France in second and current world champions, Suzuki Endurance Racing Team.
“Anyone who has finished this race before knows just how hard the Bold’or can be, so to be standing on the podium at the end of it all is a really nice feeling,” Cudlin said. “It’s one of both elation and relief.
“But I’ve been trying to stand on the podium here for a long time and have never had the team behind me that could get us over the line – that is until now. I owe this result to the work of my team and my fantastic teammates.
“Endurance racing really is a team sport and it takes a big team effort to achieve this, that’s why I’m really glad to be a part of this one.”
With no time to rest, Cudlin will now switch focus back to his sprint racing roots when he makes his IDM Superbike debut for the Alpha Technik/Van Zon/Kraftwerk/BMW Team at the opening round of the IDM series in Lausitzring this weekend.