Silverstone, Great Britain

Lin Jarvis Interview, Part 2: Yamaha's Quest For A Satellite Team, And Which Concessions Would Actually Make A Difference

By David Emmett | Wed, 16/08/2023 - 13:25

Where once the Japanese manufacturers dominated grand prix racing's premier class, right now, both Yamaha and Honda find themselves in the MotoGP doldrums. The man charged with turning Yamaha's fortunes around is Yamaha Motor Racing Managing Director Lin Jarvis.

In the first part of the interview I conducted with him at Silverstone, Jarvis explained why Yamaha had decided to sign Alex Rins instead of Franco Morbidelli for 2024, and why the Japanese factories are struggling. In this second part, we discuss Yamaha's plans for a satellite team, what they need to do to attract one, and the criteria they would apply. Jarvis also explains why he thinks concessions would be good for Yamaha, and exactly which concessions would help them find their competitive edge again.

Lin Jarvis Interview, Part 1: Why Yamaha Swapped Morbidelli For Rins, And How The Japanese Factories Fell Behind

By David Emmett | Tue, 15/08/2023 - 21:42

It has been a turbulent time for the Japanese manufacturers. Yamaha and Honda have dominated MotoGP for years, but now they find themselves struggling to score points, far removed from their former competitive selves. Monster Energy Yamaha rider Fabio Quartararo went from winning the MotoGP crown in 2021, to finishing runner up to Pecco Bagnaia last year, to languishing down in eleventh place in the championship, 149 points behind the leader Bagnaia.

At least Yamaha are in better shape than Honda. The 2023 Yamaha M1 is not a bad bike, it is just slow, with aggressive power delivery. Quartararo managed a podium in Austin, and another in the sprint race in Assen, showing that in the right conditions, the bike still has a chance to be competitive.

That is not going to be enough to allow Quartararo to compete for a championship over a full season, however. To achieve that, much bigger changes are needed, both in terms of engineering and the entire development process.

The person charged with overseeing the European side of that process is Yamaha Motor Racing's Managing Director Lin Jarvis. He is the counterpart to Takahiro Sumi, who leads Yamaha's Motorsports Development Division, and Kazutoshi Seki, who is MotoGP Group Leader and the YZR-M1 Project Leader. Improving the synergy between the European and Japanese parts of Yamaha's MotoGP project is going to be key to making progress.

Whither Japan? How Honda And Yamaha Turned Silverstone Into A Test, And What That Means For The Future

By David Emmett | Fri, 11/08/2023 - 21:07

I hardly need remind you at this juncture just how bad things are for the Japanese MotoGP manufacturers at the moment. Honda is fourth in the manufacturers standings, just ahead of Yamaha, while both are nearly 70 points behind Aprilia, the factory in third, and 230 points behind leader Ducati.

Repsol Honda is dead last in the team standings, Monster Energy Yamaha at least ahead of most of the satellite teams. Best rider on a Japanese bike is Fabio Quartararo in eleventh, just ahead of Franco Morbidelli in twelfth. Takaaki Nakagami is best Honda rider, way down in seventeenth.

Six time MotoGP champion Marc Marquez has just 15 points, one ahead of Raul Fernandez, universally seen as a disappointment in his second year in MotoGP, and two points ahead of KTM test rider Dani Pedrosa, who scored all his points in just one round at Jerez.

Alex Marquez Confirmed At Gresini For 2024 - MotoGP Silly Season About To Take Off

By David Emmett | Thu, 10/08/2023 - 11:19

With the paddock reassembled at Silverstone, the MotoGP rider market kicked back into high gear. First of the rider signings is an expected one: Gresini Ducati have signed Alex Marquez for another year, through the 2024 MotoGP season.

That Alex Marquez has earned the contract extension is beyond question. The younger Marquez brother took pole in Argentina, and scored his first podium for the team there. He has since had two more front-row starts, and added a sprint race victory at Silverstone to seal the deal.

In addition to signing with Alex Marquez, Gresini also extended their contract with Ducati through the 2024 and 2025 seasons. Gresini has been remarkably successful since parting ways with Aprilia, winning four races in 2022 with Enea Bastianini, the Italian finishing third in the championship that year. Gresini are building on that success with Alex Marquez, and will do so for two more years.

Silverstone MotoGP Sunday Subscriber Notes: Initial Thoughts On Silverstone, Tire Pressures, Penalties Not Handed Out, And More

By David Emmett | Mon, 07/08/2023 - 00:32

It has been a long and eventful weekend, and there will be much to write about this coming week. Including an interview with Lin Jarvis, talking about the decision to sign Alex Rins instead of Franco Morbidelli, what Yamaha is doing to address their problems, and what type of concessions would really make a difference for Yamaha and Honda.

But first, some initial thoughts after a fantastic day of racing, across all three classes. It made a nonsense of British national broadcaster ITV's decision not to show the MotoGP race live, preferring to broadcast a meaningless soccer game. That was bad for ITV, but also bad for MotoGP. Silverstone is one of the tracks that produces fantastic racing, which needs to be seen by as wide an audience as possible. Today's race was the kind of race that will bring in new fans if casual TV viewers get to see it.

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