YFRT Wraps Up 8 Hours Test Feeling Fully Prepared

Day 2 of the official "Suzuka Test Session" for the Suzuka 8 Hours hosted by Suzuka Circuit took place under sunny skies and pleasant temperatures just above 20°C.

Riding in Group B, the Yamaha Factory Racing Team's (YFRT) first 80-minute session of the day (and fifth of the test) began at 9:30 a.m. In it, the teams continued yesterday's work of refining the machine setup, and with the weather cooperating, they were able to up their pace even further. The top three teams--Honda HRC, Yoshimura SERT Motul, and F.C.C. TSR Honda France--who will all surely be rivals in the race, posted times in the 2'04 range, though these represent their all-out fastest times and not race pace. Teams who ended the session between 4th and 17th put up lap times in the 2'05-2'06 range.

For YFRT, Katsuyuki Nakasuga did a longer run. He kept up a consistent pace even though track conditions were quite different to what the team will face in the race, as he completed 25 laps and gathered plenty of data on setup, tire life and fuel efficiency. His fastest time was a 2'06.166, placing him 11th, 1.393 seconds behind the leader, as he maintained a quick average pace in the 2'06-2'07 range throughout the session. Nakasuga had stated the day before that his goal was to get the bike ready for teammates Miller and Locatelli so that they could to get up to speed quickly. In that sense, the team concluded the fifth session having made solid progress.

Meanwhile, Soichiro Minamimoto completed 15 laps with frequent pit stops as he continued his testing duties from yesterday, posting a best time of 2'07.091 to be 19th.

As the afternoon wore on, temperatures remained largely unchanged and conditions remained stable as the sixth and final 90-minute session took place for 90 minutes from 1:25 p.m. The start of the session saw two red flags come out, which took up about 30 minutes of riding time. During the session, Minamimoto completed a long run and although there were further red flag incidents, he eventually picked up his pace, and like Nakasuga, he provided the team with a wealth of testing data.

Nakasuga checked off a wide range of testing items in the morning's long run, and in this sixth session, he completed 15 laps to wrap up some of the remaining ones. His 2'06.524 placed him 7th overall, while Minamimoto also broke into the 2'06s for the first time, finishing 10th overall with a 2'06.589, bringing all sessions to a close.

YFRT will be back for the official Suzuka 8 Hours pre-event test on June 30 and July 1 with the full team lineup participating (Nakasuga, Miller, and Locatelli) in the leadup to the race weekend that kicks off on July 3. The Yamalube YART Yamaha EWC Official Team, who are currently contesting the EWC regular season, will also be on track for the test alongside YFRT. They will be looking to get ready for the Suzuka 8 Hours following their appearance in the Spa 8 Hours in Belgium on June 6.

Yamaha Factory Racing Team

Katsuyuki Nakasuga

"The winglet-equipped R1 debuted last year in 2025, and since then I feel like we've gathered more data and that we have a solid foundation, so the bike is in good shape. As a team, we've also made some adjustments thanks to feedback on fine-tuning and control, so I think we're getting our rhythm back ahead of the 8 Hours, and that our team is working well.

In the long run I did this morning, we were able to look at tire life, but because the track temperature was so low, lap times were faster than we thought. So, I get the feeling that we won't really know until we get to the main event. But, being able to go this fast now means that we could spot some new challenges, so I think it's been a good test.

Looking ahead to the race, as a factory team, we're only focused on winning, and it's clear what we need to do to get there. With about a month and half left, I really want to stay focused and put in the work to make it happen."

Soichiro Minamimoto

"This morning, the plan was to keep testing the fuel system like we did yesterday and then to do a long run, but we ended up not being able to do that because of a red flag. We decided to move the long run into the afternoon, but another red flag prevented us from riding as we'd hoped. I felt more up to speed today, and even though my fastest lap was only in the 2'06 range for one lap, I felt I still had room to improve my pace. I was pretty pleased to think I might finally be capable of getting the most out of this R1. In the test, Nakasuga-san had to fully focus on the setup, which is natural, so I think I was able to fill in the gaps and get some other testing items done."

Team Manager Wataru Yoshikawa

"Nakasuga was able to complete a long run this morning, and that let us review and collect various data. In the afternoon, we had him check tires and fuel efficiency, and everything is going really smoothly with those. We could see that race pace and lap times on our long run were good, but we know they're quite different from what we expect to see in the race. With these cool conditions, the overall pace was quicker than we thought, but I can say that we definitely feel the progress we've made since last year. Now we'll have Miller and Locatelli ride the bike right before the race weekend to put the final touches on our preparations.

We also had Minamimoto do a long run for us. A red flag kept him from finishing it, but he got to experience riding with various bike conditions including a full fuel tank, and he posted some solid lap times. Even with his limited experience, he pushed himself to ride at a higher level, and that provided the team with a lot of good data.

With the race coming up, the riders will need to give it their all, but I think we're now in a position where we can do even better than last year. We know our rivals are fast, but we're going to pile on the pressure and go out there to get the win!"