Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1990's

. This is true. It is now time to consider going four-stroke racing as soon as the GPMA (Grand Prix Manufacturers Association) can work on this idea with the federation and the rights holders. People are already talking about this and what they are saying is very reasonable. The problem is that there are other investments to consider. Honda has invested in 500cc twillS and Kenny Roberts has developed a three-cylinder two-stroke. Compromises must be made and we must immediately begin feasibility studies. It would take two or three years to prepare this. This is al1 idea that many people are talking about, and we must make careful decisions for the future now. Mick .ooohan also said that in his opinion the best 500cc GP bike toda'y is probably the Yamaha. He said Yamaha just lacks a number-one rider. Maybe he wants to begin negotiations With you again for next year... We are flattered by what he says and, of course, we agree. (Laughs) We had negotiations with Mick Doohan last year, offering him the opportunity to join Yamaha, but there was no agreement finally. I am sure the racing manager, Mr. Sakurada, is happy to h~ar what he says about Qur machine. We have seen progress in the testing and in times at Suzuka and Malaysia, but unfortunately the results have not made the progress so obvious to everyone as to Mr. Doohan. I heard that last year Ooohan made many demands from Yamaha and that Yamaha agreed to all these demands, but then he decided to return to Honda. Is this true, and would Yamaha negotiate again with Ooohan after that experien ce? Yes, it is true and yes, we would negotiate, but, after the experience last year, the negotiations would be different and much shorter. Also, we do not want to have a bad relationship with Honda, bidding against them like last year. We will see after the summer if the situation has changed, so that we would be encouraged to discuss such things again. Some people have said that Yamaha has fallen behind in recent years because the factory has not responded quickly enough to the needs of riders that improvement has been too slow. Is 'this true in your opinion? This is difficult to answer. I will let Mr. (Shuji) Sakurada (Yamaha's GP racing manager) reply, but I will say that I believe Yamaha has responded very quickly to the changes required by the move to unleaded fuel and that we have made strong progress in relation to our rivals in this, Sukurada: After three years racing and winning with Wayne Rainey, we believed our bike was very competitive. We built the type of chassiS with the geometry and engine characteristics that suited Wayne Rainey, but afterwards we have had to try and build our bike to suit other riders like Luca Cadalora and Narick Abe. We have tried to satisfy tHeir demands for more front-wheel st~ering to make higher corner speeds. We have been working for a couple of years on this, and with this year's bike I th'ink we have finally developed this new type of bike. Has the change to unleaded fuel made things better or worse for you? Sakurada: In some ways we have had pcoblems, like everyone is having. We kiiow that there is less power from ]¥,OOO to 13,000 rpm, but the power coming in at the bottom of the rev range is better and easier to use. And so we see improving lap times with less power. Most riders come from 250 and like this kind of bike. It is very, very different from the bike that Wayne Rainey used to win three titles. How important is racing to Yamaha? Since Yamaha began to sell motorcycles worldwide, Yamaha has been involved in rating. Our philosophy is that as long as we produce motorcycles, we will never stop racing. We' have our attention focused on classes and even individual events that we consider very important. We decided that Daytona is an important event and that we would continue to concentrate upon this race. We also believe the Dakar race is very important, and we support this race. Our key racing activities are in motocross, supercross, superbike and GP racing in all classes, especially 500. This year we are very pleased that Jeremy McGrath has won the American 250 Supercross title and that John Dowd has won the 125 Supercross title, and we are very pleased that the 400cc four-stroke that Doug Henry has ridden has been successful and popular with fans. Did you expect such good results from Nanba and Haga at the Japanese GP? Honestly, I must say that we did not. Perhaps I should apologize to Haga, but I did not think he would be on the podium at Suzuka, And in Superbike, I did not think he would win at Donington. It was his first time in England, and he won both heats. That is amazillg. It was also amazing that he was t1)ird at Suzuka on the 500. As for Nanba, well, we considered him retired. We were ready to say, "Thank you for your good career," and then he lapped in 2:06 and was on the pole until Max Baiggi did 2:05.7. We were amazed and very encouraged because we saw that our motorcycle is very much improved. We saw good results from the YZR250 bikes in the' Japanese GP with sec- ond-and third-place finishes from wild-card riders, but at the GP level you are only running the TZM bikes. When will we see a return of the YZR250? . If the program continues on schedule, we will return with a works 250 next year. What is the relationship between Yamaha and your former rider, Tetsuya Harada? Our relationship with Tetsuya-san is friendly. In 1996, Wayne Rainey's team was running one 250 and one 500 and it was very hard to develop both bikes. (Loris) Capirossi was the 500 rider and Harada was the 250 rider. We wanted to continue with Harada, but we would have had to make a separate importer's team for him in 250. At that time he wanted to join Aprilia and we understood. There is no barrier between Yamaha and Harada - no unfriendliness. Does that mean that Harada could ride again for Yamalla? Yes. If all conditions were right - a team, sponsorship, etc. - it would be possible for Harada to ride for us again. Just today, Harada was here visiting us and talking with Nanba about the new bikes. He has worked with Nanba for many years and with· us. But Harada has a contract with Aprilia now. . You have said that your relationship with Harada after the split is friendly and that it would not be impossible lor Yamaha and Harada to be together again. What is the relationship with Kenny Rob~rts? Kenny Roberts has his own team and his own motorcycle and he is now a rival of Yamaha. I sometimes see Kenny Roberts, and we sometimes have occa'sion to talk about general things. But that is all I can say. In 500cc racing, you have good bikes,. but you are not getting results. Are you still looking for a number-one rider? What about Noriyuki Haga? If he wins the World Superbike title, will he come to 500? Yes, we are always looking for a number-one rider. About Haga I would say that if he wins the Superbike Championship, he will be ready for ilie next and the highest challenge, which is World GP. It would be right for Haga, if he wins in Superbike, to go to 500, because that is the fastest category. Superbike racing has become more important, and you have said that it is important because there is a direct relationship between the race bike and the product that Yamaha sells. What does GP racing mean to Yamaha? At every track we measure the speeds and lap times of GP bikes and superbikes. Almost always, the GP 500s are fastest. As long as GP 500 is fastest, they will be the greatest challenge for riders and manufacturers. That is why it is important that if changes are made in the regulations that the performance of eN the GP bikes is kept superior. And Doohan says _ I n all interview taped for a future Bike Week show on Speedvision, Mick Doohan said in Jerez that he feels the 500cc two-stroke engine has outlived its time. "'I won't be around to be racing when this comes about, if it ever does, so I can just give my opinion straight out;' Doohan said. He believes it would be a big mistake to consider a 600 or 650cc limit for the new 500c,< class. "They'd be all revs and not enough bottom-end power:' Doohan said. 'What1'd do is go straight to a 1000cc limit up to four cylinders. You'd have enough power to get back to the true spirit of the 500cc class with that, and the manUfactures would behappy."

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