Yamaha Motor Europe is excited to announce the start of a year-long celebration to mark the 50th anniversary of the World Championship winning YZ.
The Yamaha YZ250 initially entered production in 1974, but Hakan Andersson raced a prototype version of the bike, the YZM250 complete with monoshock suspension, from the third round onwards in the 1973 FIM 250cc Motocross World Championship. Andersson went on to win the championship that year, securing Yamaha its first world title in motocross.
Throughout its five-decade history, various iterations of the Yamaha YZ have amassed an impressive 34 FIM motocross world titles, with the most recent achieved by Nancy van de Ven in the 2022 FIM Women’s Motocross World Championship.
To commemorate this historic milestone, the Monster Energy Yamaha Factory MXGP and MX2 teams will run a special retro inspired livery on their YZ450FM and YZ250FM machines at the MXGP of Flanders in Lommel, Belgium this weekend.
The same livery will also adorn the YZ450F and YZ250F bikes of the Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing riders in the United States, as they contest round eight of the 2023 AMA Pro Motocross Championship at Washougal in Washington state the same weekend.
The specially designed commemorative livery is based on the iconic colourway that featured on the YZ250, YZ125 and YZ80 two-stroke bikes launched by Yamaha for the 1993 season, following the FIM 250 Motocross World Championship title won by American racer and AMA Motorcycle Hall of Famer Donny Schmit, the previous year.
To complement the distinctive livery on their YZ450F and YZ250F machines, Yamaha’s motocross racers will line up at Lommel and Washougal wearing special race kits inspired by the same iconic 1993 purple and white design.
Paolo Pavesio
Marketing and Motorsport Director, Yamaha Motor Europe
“It is fitting that we kick off the celebration of the 50th anniversary of the Yamaha YZ in the environment in which, from the outset, it was designed to excel, the racetrack. The commemorative design our riders will run in Lommel will certainly trigger fond memories for the generation of motocross fans who remember the original 1993 YZ livery on which it is based, and I am sure it will also inspire our younger generation of bLU cRU riders by showing them how cool their parents were. It is incredible we are already celebrating 50 years of YZ. There are countless memories and victories we can reflect on, but for me, this impressive milestone achievement is an inspiration for the next 50 years. As we look back at our history, we’re motivated to keep working hard to offer to our fans and customers many more years of amazing motorcycles and exciting racing. “
