The results of those efforts in 2018 included Valentino Rossi placing 3rd overall in the MotoGP World Championship with teammate Maverick Viñales finishing 4th, an unprecedented fourth consecutive victory at the Suzuka 8 Hours season finale of the Endurance World Championship (EWC), and title wins in the respective premier classes of the All Japan Road Race Championship, the Asia Road Racing Championship, and the MotoAmerica AMA/FIM North America Championship. In addition to these achievements, we brought Kando* to people around the world.

Also, since 2015, Yamaha has been creating a tiered step-up structure to develop young riders from Southeast Asia and around the world. Our efforts in this area have shown steady progress and results as several riders have made the jump from Asia to Europe in pursuit of new challenges.

As Yamaha Motor began racing when it was founded in 1955, 2019 marks the beginning of our 65th year of racing. And once again, Yamaha will put its maximum effort forward in contesting the world’s principal racing series, contributing to 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.

Details on Yamaha’s main racing teams for 2019: https://global.yamaha-motor.com/race/team/
Related image gallery: https://www.image.net/yamaha_ms_media_conference_2019
2019 Yamaha Motorsports Media Conference: https://global.yamaha-motor.com/race/release/2019/003/

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20190205005387/en/