Yamaha reveals 2002 GP bike

By JIM DUNCAN

There's something about the 2002 season that has me mesmerised. I'm all for four-stroke racing, especially considering most manufacturers have announced better power and top-speed statistics for the new sub-990cc four bangers.

But there's something else, too. Perhaps it's the enormity of changing the rules of the world's most prestigious bike racing protocol, and with this the anticipation that will build, right up until just before the first race in 2002.

Either way, we now have some tasty piccies and info on what will be Yamaha's entry machine into the 2002 season.

The company has said the inline four-cylinder bike revs to about 15,000rpm and, at this point, peak power is greater than the 500cc YZR. The word on the street is that the bike is capable of more than 200bhp. Not bad for a bike under 1000cc. The engine is said completely different to the mill found in the Yamaha R1, one of the best selling street bikes of recent times.

Using the same twin-spar Deltabox design as the YZR500, the newly named YZR-M1 took Yamaha's best engineers to decide what the new bike should do. Masahiko Nakajima, the man in charge of all things GP-related for Yamaha, had this to say about the YZR-M1: "We started from zero with this project, with one guiding principle - to produce a well-balanced motorcycle.

"But if you consider that all the top 500s are similar in layout and dimensions, this suggests that this is an ideal configuration. That's why we wanted to continue using our YZR-style chassis with the YZR-M1 - the engine was designed to fit within the package, not the other way around."

Obviously Yamaha is happy with the testing progress of the new bike - it's already completed more than 200 laps in an endurance test without sodomising the tyres (much). Nakajima continued: "With the new four-stroke Grand Prix machines, we believe that tyre life is the most crucial issue of all."

Michelin and Yamaha are currently working very closely to come up with the perfect tyre for the new prototype, as the new bikes weigh more than their 2-stroke siblings (by about 15kg on average) and also put more stress on the rear tyre thanks to the increased torque and horsepower.

The increased horsepower is also giving Yamaha engineers another aspect to mull over - wheelspin. At present, the company has no plans for a traction control module for the bike, instead commenting that they want the rider to have a completely linear power output. However, it did mention that wet races may pose a problem. We can't wait to see Biaggi on the YZR-M1 in the wet!

Speaking of Max Biaggi, the current 500cc contender is testing the YZR-M1 in his spare time. Between races, backgammon with his pet lizard and checking out the goss on Web Wombat, Biaggi has been riding the YZR-M1 and it's the first four-stroke GP bike he's ever ridden.

The injury-prone Italian said: "The bike doesn't feel so heavy, a little more than the 500, but not too much. The main thing I've been thinking about is the base chassis set-up. This is just a prototype machine so nothing is fixed - engine position, weight distribution and so on."

Obviously there may be a few changes between what we know now and in about nine months time, when the bike is painted in team colours, sitting on the starting grid. The fairing design and overall look isn't likely to change, so what you see here will be what hammers around the tracks next year.

Perhaps we may even see Gary McCoy astride one of these prototypes one day - his 'unique' riding style would probably suit the more powerful four-stroke bike. What fun they'll have...