Fiat Yamaha unveils 2010 YZR-M1

Rossi and Lorenzo will no longer share data

By Motorcycle.Com Staff, Feb. 04, 2010

Yamaha unveiled the 2010 livery for its YZR-M1 MotoGP race bike ahead of the pre-season test in Malaysia.

The 2009 MotoGP Champion Valentino Rossi and runner-up Jorge Lorenzo are back on the track at the Sepang Circuit ready to continue their success in 2010.

“2009 was the most successful year for Yamaha’s racing activities for many years. It will be difficult to follow such a performance but we are intending to try!” says Lin Jarvis, managing director of Yamaha Motor Racing. “We are lucky to have the same fantastic rider line-up with Valentino and Jorge and we are looking forward to getting started with our work on track.”

Valentino Rossi is ready to defend his MotoGP crown.

For 2010, team engineers worked at improving the M1’s chassis and extending the durability of the engines. Teams will be limited to six engines through the entire 18-race schedule or face penalties. The engine rule may have an effect on many teams’ overall strategy, especially as the season goes on. In particular, damaging an engine in a crash early in the season could put a MotoGP team in a tight situation.

Jorge Lorenzo and Valentino Rossi will no longer be sharing their data with each other.

The previous two seasons, Fiat Yamaha erected a dividing wall to separate Rossi and Lorenzo in the pit garage. The wall will be back in 2010, but Yamaha is taking the additional step of not sharing data between the two rivals.

“This year we are taking into consideration the two riders will be main rivals for the championship. We decided to respect this internal competition, to respect their own way to race and to approach the competition therefore during the (race) weekend, the two teams will be much more independent,” says Davide Brivio, Fiat Yamaha team manager. “Of course, at the Yamaha Motor Company level, back in the factory and the office, the engineers will have access to all information but the two teams inside the garage will work more independently, even from a technical point of view.”