Yahama has been around GP racing for the past 50 years and to commemorate this silver anniversary, the Japanese motorcycle maker will be unveiling a special livery for the YZR-M1 motorbike. Likewise, this special livery will also dress up the brand’s MotoGP racebikes at Assen TT and Laguna Seca.
As for what you need to look out for with the bike, the “YZR-M1 WGP50th Anniversary Edition” livery will come in a unique red and white paint scheme that celebrates the two-tone livery of the Yamaha Factory Racing team. There’s also a special 50th anniversary logo that will be used by the team this season. This logo will be displayed on the fuel tank of the 2011 YZR-M1 bike, as well as on the uniforms of all the members of the Yamaha Factory Racing Team, and team riders Jorge Lorenzo, the reigning MotoGP World Champion and 2010 Rookie of the Year Ben Spies.
The bike will make its official debut at a special event on June 22, 2011 where it will be broken in by no less than Lorenzo and Spies themselves. That event is still a little over a month away so in the meantime, you can check out photos and a video of the special edition bike.
Ducati is definitely back in the competition, winning the Spanish leg of the 2010 MotoGP season. And they did it with an additional bonus too, bagging third place in the race. The race was held at the Motorland Aragon circuit in Aragon, Spain on September 19th.
Australian rider Casey Stoner was the hero of the hour for the Italian motorcycle manufacturer, beating hometown hero Dani Pedrosa to the checkered flag. Pedrosa came in a full five seconds behind Stoner in the finish. Completing the victory for Ducati is American Nicky Hayden, who came in third.
With the win, Stoner cut down Ducati’s losing streak in the current MotoGP season. Prior to his win, Ducati was able to get a second place finish at the United States Grand Prix held at Laguna Seca in Monterey, California. The second place finish also came courtesy of Stoner. However, Ducati still remains third in the manufacturer’s standings with 105 points.
Fans of popular MotoGP racer Valentino Rossi might not get to see him in action at the last two rounds of the 2010 MotoGP season. Apparently, Rossi has to undergo surgery in order to treat a shoulder injury he received in an accident last April 15th while doing motocross training in Pesaro Italy. The injury came just four days after he won the the first race of the season in Qatar. Rossi still managed to race for the second round in Jerez, Spain, placing third overall. Teammate Jorge Lorenzo won first place in that round.
Unfortunately for Rossi, this accident wasn’t the only one that would end up affecting him during this racing season. Rossi ended up being involved in another accident just two months after the first one when he was practicing in Mugello for the Italian Grand Prix. He suffered a broken leg and subsequently missed that race and the next three races that followed. It was the first time in his career that he was not able to start for an event.
September 5th of this year was a sad day for MotoGP fans all over the world. On this date, Technomag-CIP rider Shoya Tomizawa died after crashing into a corner in the Misano World Circuit in Italy. Tomizawa was only 19 at the time of the accident.
The young rider was competing in the inaugural San Marino Grand Prix race for the newly created Moto2 class. Tomizawa was approaching the Curvone corner on lap 12 when he lost control of his bike and was thrown onto the track. He was then hit by the the bikes of riders Scott Redding and Alex de Angelis, who were right behind him when the accident happened. Tomizawa was immediately rushed to the circuit’s medical center then to a hospital in nearby Rccione where he died due to severe cranial, thoracic, and abdominal trauma.
Last Sunday, two weeks after Tomizawa’s death, the MotoGP Paddock paid him a tribute in a special ceremony held at the Motorland Aragon circuit in Spain. The Technomag-CIP team rolled his bike onto the starting grid and a minute of silence followed, in his honor. Riders attending the tribute also placed the #48 (Tomizawa’s number) onto their uniforms, helmets, and bikes as a sign of respect. Tomizawa was laid to rest in his hometown of Asahi, Chiba in Japan on Sept. 15.
MotoGP also announced that the number 48 will be retired from the Moto2 races as one of the tributes to him. Furthermore, Tomizawa will be posthumously awarded the Michel Metraux trophy, given the best rider in the category. The award was given after Tomizawa’s fellow riders unanimously voted for him upon the suggestion of current Moto2 leader Tom Elias. His family will receive the trophy in the next Grand Prix in Japan this November.
Yamaha fans everywhere can rejoice as Colin Edwards will be joining the team again for the 2011 MotoGP season. Edwards has confirmed that he has resigned for a new one year contract with his team Monster Yamaha Tech 3. The new contract is an extension of his current contract with the team.
The 36-year-old Edwards made the announcement after completing his 100th race at the Gran Premio A-Style de Aragon in Spain last Sunday. He joined the Yamaha team in 2008 and has since become one of the most prominent riders of the team. He had an outstanding stint with Yamaha last year, winning the top non factory rider award. Edwards started in the MotoGP circuit in 2003, riding for Aprilia.
Edwards is currently number 11 in the world rankings, with his best start at seventh position at Laguna Seca, Brno, and Misano. And despite having a disappointing 12th place finish in last Sunday’s race, he was still able to maintain his current position.
Dani Pedrosa rode his Honda towards the win of Italy’s MotoGP Grand Prix yesterday in Mugello during the forth stage of the 2010 Championship. The Spaniard was followed by Yamaha rider Jorge Lorenzo (the man on top for the moment) and teammate Andrea Dovizioso. Valentino Rossi crashed quite hard during the qualifying rounds on Sunday, so he had to satisfy with the moral support shown by fans during the race as he was recuperating in hospital in Florence after his right tibia operation. Please read the race results after the jump.
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Monster Yamaha Tech3 riders Colin Edwards and Ben Spies got into a MotoGP chitchat for BBC Sport ahead of next weekend’s Mugello race. They actually tried to make it look like an interview in which the experienced rider, Edwards, questions the newcomer, Spies, about the world of MotoGP, but the Texans actually end up talking about cowboy hats and hot sauce. See what more in the video after the jump.
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Fiat Yamaha rider Jorge Lorenzo imposed himself as the clear winner at the Monster Energy Grand Prix de France. The Spanish was followed by teammate Valentino Rossi, while Andrea Dovizioso had to fight his way on the third position of the podium. All in all, the race was a total success for Lorenzo, who now leads with a 9 points difference the MotoGP World Championship. Please read the race results after the jump.
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For the upcoming Le Mans MotoGP race, Yamaha France has released just four different race replicas of their four MotoGP riders. So the Valentino Rossi and Jorge Lorenzo replicas feature the Fiat-Yamaha color scheme, while those of Ben Spies and Colin Edwards received the Monster Tech3 Yamaha paintjobs.
But there’s actually much more to these bikes than just paint; there’s a small race kit, which includes:
Bike seat cover with the official team colors bearing the number of pilot
Pair of YEC racing levers
Replica helmet of the MotoGP rider whose race replica you’ve chosen (which can be signed by that rider was well)
Official Yamaha team shirt,
2 paddock passes paddock at Le Mans for the Moto GP weekend
“Wild card” track day with Yamaha instructors
Certificate of authenticity and a plaque attached to specific authentication framework makes these machines truly unique.
Most importantly, the four Yamaha GP riders are the ones handing in the keys and that has probably the most to do with the fact that only the Colin Edwards replica is still available despite the €16,990 price tag, $1,000 more than what Europeans would pay for a standard R1.
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Jorge Lorenzo won the Spanish Grand Prix after a spectacular duel with Dani Pedrosa in the final lap of the Jerez MotoGP. Teammate Valentino Rossi was the third to pass the finish line.
Honda rider Dani Pedrosa set off from pole-position and pretty much dominated the Jerez race until, with six laps before the checker flag, Jorge Lorenzo came strong from behind and finally claimed the first place on the podium during the race’s final lap. Read the race results after the jump.
