Yamaha has been a part of the rich history of Dakar since the very first iteration of the desert classic , yet in an ironic twist , the Japanese manufacturer has decided recent disappointments in the dunes of Saudi Arabia are enough to pull out of the event and all rally raid events .
It comes as the Japanese manufacturer releases a ‘ raid ’ version of its Ténéré adventure bike , it ’ s a marketing opportunity that seems to have gone missing .
Recent poor results have driven the decision despite winning nine of the World ’ s toughest races , the first being the initial Dakar and the most recent 24 years ago with Stephane Peterhansel .
“ The decision wasn ' t easy to make , but I ' m convinced it was the right time to do it ,” sighs Yamaha Motor Europe President , Eric de Seynes .
“ While the Dakar Rally has mainly succeeded in remaining close to its roots , even when it moved out of its spiritual home of Africa , the world in which it exists has changed considerably ,” Seynes continued . “ Our off-road customers now have different expectations , and they look for different products , and we must cater for these if we are to stay connected .”
Yamaha has admitted that it can ’ t compete on two wheels with the likes of KTM , Honda and now , GASGAS and instead will focus on the side-by-side class despite recent domination by Can-Am .
“ It is for this reason we have decided to end our long history on two wheels at the Dakar Rally and in the FIM Cross-Country Rallies World Championship ,” continued de Seynes . “ While simultaneously strengthening our commitment to racing the Dakar on four wheels with the Yamaha YXZ1000R SSV .”
Yamaha took the wrong path to finding Dakar success by entering the WR450F , a bike more suited to trails and shorter versions of racing , rather than the fast open aspect of desert racing , and sales seem to suggest the WR450 isn ’ t what consumers are chasing .
“ Unfortunately , this base has evolved to the YZF450 which is a real cross machine ,” explained the Yamaha boss . “[ It was ] made to win 40-minute races and not those of more than 8,000 kilometres of which 5,000 kilometres of deep sand .
“ We worked hard to make a rally machine ; 6
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