Source: Supplied.

A fourth-place finish in yesterday’s Coca-Cola Zero Suzuka 8 Hours for YART Yamaha Official EWC Team has positioned Broc Parkes within reach of the 2016 Endurance World Championship.

Experienced Australian Parkes rode over half the race distance on the team’s way to finish as top of the EWC regulars alongside Kohta Nozane and Takuya Fujita.

“Honestly we did not expect the result that we got,” Pirelli-equipped Parkes said. “Kohta really stepped up today and we couldn’t have hoped for a better result because we couldn’t have done better than that.

“The top three were quite a bit further away, so fourth was the ideal spot today. I had to do quite a bit of work, I rode half the race, but I felt like I needed to do it so I could finish in the dark and keep the gap because it was so close between fourth and seventh and we could easily have slipped back.

“It’s good for the championship points, it’s really close at the top, so coming to Oschersleben things could be interesting. It’s a track I like well and the bike works well there so we can have a go at the championship title.”

The result sees the YART Yamaha Official EWC Team climb to equal second in the championship standings, eight points behind countryman Alex Cudlin’s Team April Moto Motors Events Suzuki team.

Germany’s fourth and final round of the EWC title-race will take place with the Oschersleben 8 Hours on 26-27 August.