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WHEN LEGENDS UNITE! YAMAHA RACING HERITAGE CLUB BRINGS TOGETHER RACING HISTORY AT JEREZ
The Yamaha Racing Heritage Membership took a starring position on the current Yamaha Racing Expertise at Jerez, bringing collectively racing legends reminiscent of Valentino Rossi and Luca Cadalora alongside the producer’s present crop of WorldSBK and Endurance World Championship riders on the Circuito de Jerez Angel Nieto on some iconic two-stroke equipment.
The Yamaha Racing Heritage Membership (YRHC) was established to safeguard and rejoice Yamaha’s wealthy racing legacy, and what higher method to try this than by inviting members and a few legendary riders to the unique two-day Yamaha Racing Expertise (YRE) in Spain?
The fantastic climate at Jerez was matched solely by the unbelievable lineup of World Championship-winning Yamaha riders. 9-time Grand Prix World Champion Rossi was joined by three-time Grand Prix World Champion Cadalora, together with Yamaha’s present WorldSBK riders, together with six-time Superbike World Champion Jonathan Rea and his Pata Prometeon Yamaha teammate, 2020 WorldSSP Champion Andrea Locatelli, plus double WorldSSP Champion (2021 & 2022) Dominique Aegerter.
On prime of this, the reigning FIM Endurance World Champions, Yamalube YART Yamaha EWC Official Group’s Niccolò Canepa, Karel Hanika, Marvin Fritz, and Robin Mulhauser additionally bought to hitch the enjoyable. With all of those celebrity riders, the 2024 YRE was all the time going to be an epic occasion, however the Yamaha Racing Heritage Membership pit field proved to be a significant spotlight and gained the reward of the “coolest storage” from Canepa.
One of many primary causes for this was right down to YRHC members bringing a number of the most iconic two-stroke bikes from the previous couple of many years to Spain. The undoubted stars of the present have been the immaculately maintained Eddie Lawson YZR500s, his title-winning 1986 0W81 and his 1987 0W86, in addition to Cadalora’s 1990 YZR250 0WB9 that he rode to 3rd within the championship that yr, all generously offered by the Battisti household, following the loss of life of one of many founder members of the YRHC and legendary bike collector Luciano Battisti final yr.
Different bikes that have been a success with the riders have been the 2 lovely 2001 YZR500 0WL6 replicas, one in Max Biaggi’s colors from that yr and the opposite primarily based on Alex Hoffman’s 2002 Yamaha livery, lovingly constructed from the bottom up by YRHC members Carlo Mattarozzi and Alex Arletti.
There have been additionally three YRHC TZ750 replicas, one primarily based on the TZ750D Christian Sarron rode to second within the 1977 Formulation 750 Championship, one primarily based on the YZR750 15x World Champion Giacomo Agostini rode to his final World Championship race victory in 1977, and one other primarily based on the YZR750 that Johnny Cecotto gained the Formulation 750 title on in 1978.
The one situation with such a formidable lineup of bikes and riders was deciding who would get to experience what. When the occasion kicked off, Rossi instantly jumped on the likelihood to hit the observe on Lawson’s 1986 YZR500, which was the primary time “The Physician” had ridden a 500cc two-stroke GP bike since MotoGP switched to the four-stroke period in 2002.
Rea joined him using the 0W86, with Cadalora on his YZR250, making for a once-in-a-lifetime spectacle of a trio of white and purple Yamaha two-stroke GP bikes streaking across the Jerez circuit.
Rea summed it up finest by describing the expertise as, “Driving round on the YZR500s with Valentino simply in entrance of me was an actual “pinch your self” second, and one thing I’ll always remember!”
The Northern Irishman additionally bought to deliver again some recollections later within the occasion when he went out on the TZ750 Agostini reproduction, a motorcycle just like one his Grandfather used to personal. “Attending to experience the Giacomo Agostini TZ750 was a particular second for me, as my dad used to have one in his storage and sponsored Joey Dunlop when he rode one, in order that was an emotional second.”
One other spotlight was Locatelli using the Biaggi reproduction 0WL6, one of many final two-stroke GP bikes of its period, because the Italian fulfilled a childhood dream: “To experience that bike was superb. I grew up watching him race on TV and imagined using that very bike. I wasn’t disenchanted. It was actually quick, the tyres and brakes have been good, and actually, it was a dream come true to experience it round Jerez.”
Canepa was additionally delighted to get his arms on the Biaggi reproduction, stating, “The facility comes so aggressively, you must be actually cautious. However once you begin to perceive the engine character, you’ll be able to actually take pleasure in it, and the facility it delivers is implausible. Plus, in fact, the sound is unbelievable! It’s spectacular how gentle and good it’s to experience this bike, even in comparison with fashionable bikes, and it was an actual dream come true to experience one of many final ever two-stroke 500 GP bikes.”
The Italian additionally described Sarron’s TZ750 reproduction as “a beast!” whereas Locatelli was in awe when he bought to experience Agostini’s YZR750 reproduction: “It’s so completely different from my present bike, nevertheless it nonetheless has a lot energy, and you must experience it with a very completely different model, however I actually loved it!”
After two days of sensational observe motion in Jerez, the following occasion on the YRHC 2024 calendar is the Veterans Motocross des Nations (VMXoN) at Foxhills from the twenty second to the twenty fifth of August, which is able to function three-time 125cc MX World Champion Alessio Chiodi, alongside a show of historic Yamaha off-road bikes.
The put up Video: Yamaha Racing Heritage Membership Brings Legends Collectively At Jerez appeared first on Roadracing World Journal | Bike Driving, Racing & Tech Information.
