Yamaha will be capable of depend on the expertise of 15-time MotoGP race winner Andrea Dovizioso on this week’s shakedown take a look at on the Sepang Circuit in Malaysia.
Concession producers Yamaha and Honda, MotoGP rookies Ai Ogura, Somkiat Chantra and Fermin Aldeguer, and take a look at riders from Ducati, KTM and Aprilia will take to the Malaysian observe from 31 January to 2 February for the primary pre-season take a look at of the 12 months.
Yamaha had already introduced that its race riders Fabio Quartararo and Alex Rins can be current in Sepang for the take a look at, together with new take a look at rider Augusto Fernandez.
The latter has been recruited to the take a look at staff following his departure from Tech3 KTM in 2024 and fills an essential void at Yamaha, with Cal Crutchlow having been out of motion since struggling a hand damage. Few consider the Briton will be capable of return aboard a MotoGP bike once more.
However the massive information is that the trio can be joined by former grand prix star Dovizioso, as Yamaha tries each trick within the e book to return to successful methods.
On Tuesday, Dovizioso uploaded a video on Instagram, exhibiting how he was coaching to return to the M1 on the demanding and the bodily exhausting Sepang circuit.
Though the Italian is finest identified for his time at Ducati, throughout which he challenged then-Honda rider Marc Marquez for the championship, he did full 19 races with Yamaha’s Petronas SRT staff in 2021-22 earlier than calling time on his profession.
Andrea Dovizioso
Picture by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Pictures
Since his retirement from energetic competitors, Dovizioso has already been working behind the scenes with Yamaha, taking part in a number one position within the growth of its new V4 engine.
Manufacturing facility rider Rins revealed on Motorsport Network’s ‘Por Orejas’ podcast in December that Yamaha was attributable to run the brand new engine for the primary time in December, however couldn’t get it constructed and assembled in time for the take a look at.
With Dovizioso now being included in Yamaha’s Sepang line-up, there’s a severe risk that the brand new V4 motor will lastly hit the observe this week.
The Japanese producer has maintained a lot secrecy about its V4 mission and it was solely final 12 months that it admitted its existence. With the Sepang shakedown working behind closed doorways, a couple of days previous to the primary full-fledged take a look at of 2025 on the identical observe subsequent week, Yamaha will be capable of run the engine with out attracting a lot consideration.
Nonetheless, Yamaha doesn’t count on to race with the brand new V4 engine till no less than the second half of the 2025 season. At current, it’s the solely producer in MotoGP that makes use of an in-line four-cylinder motor, with all its rivals constructing engines to the ‘V’ configuration.
On this article
Germán Garcia Casanova
MotoGP
Yamaha Manufacturing facility Racing
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