Page 2 of 2 FirstFirst 12
Results 25 to 29 of 29

Thread: Eboz Signs with Yamaha

  1. #25
    Senior Member Wahooman's Avatar
    Join Date
    Sep 2003
    Location
    The HUGE city of Milliken, Colorado
    Posts
    979

    Re: Eboz Signs with Yamaha

    To clarify in earlier posts....
    I was talking about Gobert, not Yates, but was not aware he had left Yamaha...oops.
    As for Yamaha and superbike.....I was talking with our Yamaha rep and basically as we have stated above the money just isn't there. They pour more $$ at MotoGP than you can imagine. Also with Yamaha being so diverse in the numerous products they offer you have to choose your market and where you want to focus. Our rep told me they are getting back into the "sled" (snowmobiles) this year and spending more money there, where they have in the past years not really focuses at all. They feel they can really ramp up the Yamaha name there.....of course does not do a lot for the 2 wheel side of things.
    I feel it will be a pretty exciting year......the new R6, LE R1 and the new changes on the GSX-R 600 should be fun to watch.
    As for Mladin owning superbike....yes he definetely dominates, but I can't wait to watch Spies this year. Last year being his first on the 1000 he showed what he can do and his abilities on the bigger bike. I hope to Spies even more competitive next year and possibly go for the championship!

  2. #26
    Member *MV* #33's Avatar
    Join Date
    Feb 2003
    Location
    Arvada
    Posts
    270

    Re: Eboz Signs with Yamaha

    Quote Originally Posted by ~Barn~";p="244414
    If the AMA rules have a loophole, then I can only assume it will be addressed. I've never actually read the text of how the class is governed.

    Being a racer Mike, you might know better than most.... Does the R1 LE actually fall within the rules of the class? I mean... are slipper clutches allowed, if they come on a production machine. The production Gix 1000 has them, so I guess I have to assume so. I never considered it a cheaterbike.

    I guess to answer the question, I approve of anything that is done, within the rules, so long as the rules are written to not give any particular manufacturer, an unfair advantage.

    Maybe since Yamaha only made 500 LE's, the AMA should re-write the rules to say that "XYZ manufacturer, must sell atleast no less than 1000 models of the machine they intend to race." Or something to that affect.

    Doing that I think would:
    A.) Bring more of an attractive product to market, which is good for consumers.
    and B.) Allows that the bike still must still meet the minimum sales volume, to compete. Which is good for racing, because machines that are technologically 'outpriced' for the general public, would be a no-go.

    Yea the LE is Super Stock legal.

    heres how the rule book reads for AMA SuperStk

    2005
    g. Approval of Supersport and Superstock Motorcycles
    1. Only approved motorcycles may be used in Supersport and
    Superstock competition.
    2. Supersport and Superstock motorcycles must be street certified
    in the US and available through US retail dealers.
    Minimum import requirement per model is as follows:
    All manufacturers - 400 units.


    So really its not cheating but in my mind it kinda is. Its just going to give them an equpiment advantage . But I guess they better do very well or look really bad. So in other words.. GAME ON

    haha

    MV

  3. #27
    Junior Member Kranth's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jun 2005
    Location
    Westerville, OH
    Posts
    20

    Re: Eboz Signs with Yamaha

    First, I'm pretty sure the R1 LE will be legal to race in Superstock. It does have to be homologated - meaning that somebody (Yamaha US probably) has to pay a fee and lend the AMA a sample bike for tech inspection purposes. Of course it still has to meet the rules that MV listed as well. The bike is clearly a "homologation special" Yamaha has likely imported just enough of them to meet the rules requirements for AMA racing. Since all of the special bits on the LE are parts that you can legally upgrade in Superbike but not Superstock racing (clutch, wheels, forks, etc) there would be no advantage in homologating this model for Superbike. So this thing was clearly made to win Superstock.

    Second, Yamaha has developed Superbike parts - Nori Haga won two World Superbike races on a Yamaha this year (beating Corser and Vermeulen straight up) and finished third in the points. Haga and Pitt are back on Yamahas in WSBK for 2006, so somebody (Yamaha Motor Europe most likely) is spending the money to develop SBK parts for the R1 next year.

    Third, Yamaha US has the riders it needs to compete in AMA Superbike. Eric has won races against Matt on a bike that was 5 years old and there were several times last year that DiSalvo's stock R1 would have given him a front row start in Superbike. With qualifying times ahead of everyone except Mladin twice.

    Yamaha is not testing for Superbike, they are ready for Superbike. All they lack is the guts. As a fan I would rather see my bike finish third in a Superbike race against the best the country has to offer than on the top of a support class podium. Clearly Yamaha doesn't feel the same way, why else would they spend god knows how much money to develop a "homologation special" that is only useful in Superstock instead of developing a Superbike?

  4. #28

    Re: Eboz Signs with Yamaha

    I agree with most everything stated here - except one small bit:

    It's not Yamaha who's to blame. It's the AMA.

    Yamaha is in the business of selling bikes and making money. They race for development and marketing purposes - not for charity and certainly not for the enjoyment of a few rabid race fans. The marketing guys at Yamaha are smart - and they realize that most sportbike buyers don't know Mat Mladin from Marco Melandri and couldn't explain the difference between Supersport and Superstock if their life depended on it. But they do know that big full page spreads in the Cycle World boldly proclaiming title wins and podium sweeps sell bikes - regardless of whether they beat Mladin or Haner to get that title...

    I see it as a good business/marketing move.

    The AMA is in the business of running a competitive professional race series. It's their job to entice all the factories into Superbike. As they haven't put any rules in place making Superstock a privateer-only class, it's no surprise to me that Yamaha would rather race it than Superbike.

    The AMA needs to fix that problem if they really want all the factories in Superbike.

    I say good for Yamaha with the LE. They made a bike that met the rules and it gives them an advantage. Now, can they beat Suzuki? We'll see...

    But if they can't... Oooo... that won't be good.

    geoff

  5. #29
    Junior Member Kranth's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jun 2005
    Location
    Westerville, OH
    Posts
    20

    Re: Eboz Signs with Yamaha

    Sure, you can blame the AMA for not holding a gun to Yamaha's head, but the fact remains that they are the ones with no balls.

Similar Threads

  1. Yamaha offering to buy back any 2006 R6
    By Lel in forum The Pros
    Replies: 1
    Last Post: Wed Feb 15th, 2006, 05:19 PM
  2. Help: Rearset Adapters for Yamaha R1
    By Anonymous in forum Bike Tech
    Replies: 14
    Last Post: Fri Aug 15th, 2003, 08:16 AM
  3. Yamaha Shops
    By swtdaddyjones in forum Shop Experiences
    Replies: 3
    Last Post: Fri Jul 4th, 2003, 02:19 PM
  4. Casualwear by Yamaha
    By CarynR1 in forum Shop Experiences
    Replies: 2
    Last Post: Mon May 26th, 2003, 10:14 PM
  5. A good Yamaha dealer
    By R1Guy in forum Shop Experiences
    Replies: 14
    Last Post: Mon May 26th, 2003, 10:09 PM

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •