Introducing Yamaha's Factory and Supported Teams and Riders for 2020 - February 7, 2020-Yamaha Motor Co., Ltd. (Tokyo: 7272) is actively engaged ...

Feb 07, 2020 02:00 UTC

Introducing Yamaha’s
Factory and Supported
Teams and Riders for
2020
February 7, 2020—Yamaha Motor Co., Ltd. (Tokyo: 7272) is actively engaged
in racing efforts all over the world under its three main principles of raising

the value of the Yamaha brand, incorporating technologies and feedback
from racing into our products, and promoting the healthy spread of
motorcycle racing.
The results of those efforts in 2019 included Maverick Viñales placing 3rd
overall in the MotoGP World Championship while teammate Valentino Rossi
placed 7th. Added to this were title wins in the premier classes of the All
Japan Road Race Championship and MotoAmerica Superbike Championship,
the AMA Supercross Championship’s 250SX West series, and the Asia Road
Racing Championship’s SuperSports 600 (SS600) and Underbone 150
(UB150) classes. Each of these wins helped us bring Kando* to people
around the world.
Further, Yamaha’s work since 2015 to develop riding talent primarily around
road racing has borne fruit, with young racers from Southeast Asia and
Europe showing growth in key racing series in Europe and beginning to take
their next steps upward. This demonstrates that our work in this space is
showing steady results.
In 2020, we will once again continue to contest and aim for victory in the
world’s principal racing series while nurturing the next generation of racers,
promoting motorsports culture, and communicating our “Revs your Heart”
brand slogan.

*Kando is a Japanese word for the simultaneous feelings of deep
satisfaction and intense excitement that we experience when we encounter
something of exceptional value.

Road Racing

For the 2020 MotoGP World Championship, the Monster Energy Yamaha
MotoGP factory team will feature Maverick Viñales, who took to the podium
seven times—including two race wins—last year to finish 3rd overall, and
Valentino Rossi, who finished on the podium twice to place 7th for the year.

The PETRONAS Yamaha Sepang Racing Team took the accolade of top
Independent Team in 2019 and their rider line-up remains unchanged for
2020 with Fabio Quartararo, who secured Rookie of the Year honours and
5th in the standings with seven podium finishes, and Franco Morbidelli,
who finished a personal-best 10th overall last season.
With these four riders on the YZR-M1, Yamaha will seek to clinch the
MotoGP Triple Crown of Rider, Team and Constructor titles.

The Pata Yamaha WorldSBK Official Team will again compete in the World
Superbike Championship with Michael van der Mark, who—including
Superpole races—took one win, four 2nd places and three 3rd places for 4th
overall. Newly joining him this season is Toprak Razgatlioğlu, who showed
strong form in the latter half of 2019 as he took his first-ever win and
finished 5th overall.
The GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Junior Team has an all-new line-up as they are

set to field 2019 World Supersport Championship runner-up Federico
Caricasulo and series newcomer Garrett Gerloff, who took 3rd last season in
the MotoAmerica Superbike Championship.
These four riders will strive to take Yamaha’s first championship victory in
the class since 2009 aboard the new-and-improved 2020 YZF-R1 featuring
next-generation R-Series design and more.

The YART Yamaha Official EWC Team placed 4th in the 2018–2019
Endurance World Championship (EWC) season and is already contesting the
2019–2020 EWC season aboard the endurance-spec YZF-R1. Riders Niccolò
Canepa, Marvin Fritz and Karel Hanika form the team’s new line-up for this
season. Two races were run in 2019 in which the team was forced to retire
from the 24-hour Bol d'Or season-opener, but then went on to win the first-
ever Sepang 8 Hours that followed. This leaves them in 4th overall with
three rounds to go, so they will be looking to come back strong to lift the
title.

In the MotoAmerica AMA/FIM North American Road Racing Championship,
the Monster Energy/Attack Performance/Yamaha Racing team will compete
in the premier Superbike class on 2020 YZF-R1s. The team’s line-up retains
reigning champion Cameron Beaubier, who clinched his fourth career title
last year after wins in 2015, 2016 and 2018, and the California native will
be looking to make it a hat-trick of national titles in 2020. He will be joined
by 2015 MotoAmerica Superstock 1000 Champion and fellow Californian
Jake Gagne, who has raced in both the MotoAmerica and World Superbike
championships in recent years.

In the Asia Road Racing Championship (ARRC), the Team title-winning
Yamaha Racing Team ASEAN will once again race in the premier Asia
Superbike 1000 (ASB1000) class, using 2020 YZF-R1M machinery. Taking
three race wins and finishing as the 2019 title runner-up, Broc Parkes will
again line up alongside teammate Yuki Ito, who took six podium finishes on
his way to 5th overall last year.
Teams owned and run by Yamaha group companies will also be competing
in the ASB1000, SuperSports 600 (SS600), Asia Production 250 (AP250) and
Underbone 150 (UB150) classes. Last season Yamaha won titles in the
SS600 and UB150 classes, but in order to further boost our presence in
Southeast Asia where enthusiasm for motorsports is on the rise, Yamaha
will continue providing support to its affiliated teams and aiming for titles
in every class.

In cooperation with Valentino Rossi’s VR46 Riders Academy, the Yamaha
VR46 Master Camp rider development programme has been held since 2016
to train and develop young talent. To date, 41 riders from 15
countries—mainly from Southeast Asia and Europe—have attended the
Master Camp.
Several Master Camp graduates have made steady steps up to higher
categories of racing, including 2019 ARRC SS600 Champion Peerapong

Boonlert and fellow Thai rider Keminth Kubo, who is set to race again in the
CEV Moto2 European Championship. Indonesian racer Galang Hendra
Pratama and Andy Verdoia from France will also be making the jump from
competing full-time in World Supersport 300 to the World Supersport
Championship as they continue striving to grow as riders.
With two Yamaha VR46 Master Camps scheduled to be held in this hallmark
fifth year, Yamaha will continue to work closely with its local partners and
subsidiaries to discover and develop riders ready and capable of battling at
the world level.

For more information on the Yamaha VR46 Master Camp

https://race.yamaha-motor.co.jp/sp/vr46ra/

Motocross/Supercross

In the Motocross World Championship’s top class of MXGP, the Monster
Energy Yamaha Factory MXGP team will aim for the title aboard the 2020
YZ450F. The team will field three riders: last season’s vice champion Jeremy
Seewer, 4th ranked Gautier Paulin and 5th ranked Arnaud Tonus. All three
will be aiming to clinch Yamaha’s first MXGP title since 2015.
In the MX2 class, the Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MX2 team will keep
the same roster with Jago Geerts and Ben Watson, who finished last season
in 3rd and 10th, respectively. They will be riding the latest 2020 YZ250F
machines.

In the AMA Supercross Championship that got underway on January 4, 2020,
the Monster Energy/Yamaha Factory Racing Team’s line-up for the premier
450cc class remains unchanged with Justin Barcia, who finished 2019 in
13th, and 16th ranked Aaron Plessinger. Both will be campaigning on the
2020 YZ450F.
The Monster Energy/Star/Yamaha Racing is participating in both the East
and West Division championships of 250cc Supercross on the 2020 YZ250F,
with reigning champion Dylan Ferrandis and Justin Cooper competing in the
West Division and Shane McElrath and Colt Nichols in the East Division.

For the AMA Motocross Championship that begins in May, the Monster
Energy/Yamaha Factory Racing Team will compete aboard the 2020 YZ450F
in the pinnacle 450cc class with the same rider line-up of Barcia and
Plessinger for the outdoors title challenge. In the 250cc class, the Monster
Energy/Star/Yamaha Racing will campaign on the 2020 YZ250F with the
same rider line-up of Ferrandis, Cooper, McElrath and Nichols, but also
joined by Ty Masterpool for a five-rider roster for the outdoors season.

Main Yamaha Race Teams for 2020

Road Racing

Motocross/Supercross

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Contacts

           Motor Sports Strategy Division
           +81 538 37 4025