Thursday, November 17 2011
Crescent Suzuki have announced a collaboration with Yoshimura, the Japanese tuning company, who will support the team as it enters its first year of World Superbike action.
Engines for the Crescent Suzuki GSX-R1000 that will be participating in the 2012 WSB Championship will be built and supplied by Yoshimura, they will also be supplying bespoke race performance exhausts.
Yoshimura engineers have already spent time at the Crescent race headquarters in Verwood, evaluating the development that has already been made by Chief Engineer Lez Pearson and his team with the 2011 GSX-R engine. The Japanese company will work alongside Crescent in developing the motors further, to make them as competitive as possible for the start of the 2012 season.
Yoshimura has a great record and enviable reputation in the world of motorcycle racing and tuning. The company was established in Japan in 1954 by Hideo ‘Pops’ Yoshimura, there followed the opening of a tuning shop in North Hollywood, America in 1971. The dedication instilled by Pops into the whole company from day one still holds true and has seen Yoshimura have great success in MotoGP, WSB and many national championships not forgetting involvement in the world of motocross and supercross racing. Although Pops passed away in 1995, his legacy lives on forever in the history of motorcycle competition and it is his undying spirit and drive that Crescent Suzuki will now proudly be a part of in its preparations for and attack on the World Superbike series 2012.
Yoshimura powered Crescent Suzuki SBK, will begin testing later this month with Leon Camier- recently named as the first team racer. His team-mate will be announced soon, as will further sponsor and partnership agreements. The 2012 World Superbike championship kicks off at Phillip Island, Australia in February.
Fujio Yoshimura, Owner- Yoshimura Japan: “We at Yoshimura greatly appreciate this collaboration and it will be our highest priority. Thanks to Paul and Crescent Suzuki for trusting our engine tuning capabilities and our passion towards competing at the front of the 2012 WSBK Championship Series. We believe Crescent Suzuki has a record of structuring the best racing team in the BSB championship series, with very dedicated technical and supportive team members presenting the most competitive machinery and riders at all races. We hope that the partnership between Yoshimura and Crescent Suzuki will be the most perfectly matched racing team on the WSBK circuits!”
Paul Denning – Crescent Suzuki Team Principal: “When Fujio and Yohei came to see me at the Japanese Grand Prix to discuss this partnership, it was clear that their passion and enthusiasm to work with Crescent Suzuki on the global stage was genuine and something they felt strongly about. For us as a team it is a significant level of assistance and a substantial boost to our performance potential. The Yoshimura company was built on engineering the best possible performance from engines and exhaust systems, and that principle has never changed. It is also very pleasing that the whole attitude to the project is of open communication and using the best combination of Yoshimura’s own concepts and ideas and those which already exist in the Crescent developed engine. Yoshimura is a global household name in the motorcycle industry and we are very proud that they have shown such trust in the Crescent Suzuki World Superbike team to partner us so closely, and for us to uphold their honour on the world stage.”
Jack Valentine – Team Manager: “I’m very excited with the ‘Powered by Yoshimura’ partnership for next year and after spending time with Fujio, Yohei and the Yoshimura team both in Portimao and at the Crescent workshops, I can see they share the same passion and vision as our team. With that in mind it should make for a formidable partnership in SBK 2012.”
