“Massive honour” to race Suzuka 8 Hours for Yamaha - Jack Miller

Pramac MotoGP rider Jack Miller says it will be a “massive honour” to race in Yamaha’s 70th anniversary livery at the Suzuka 8 Hours in August.

Miller, who joined Yamaha this year after two years at KTM, will be making his second appearance at the famous Japanese endurance race this year having competed there in 2017 with Honda, and was a part of the unveiling of the factory YZF-R1 of the Yamaha Racing Team for this year's edition ahead of this week's private test on 3-4 July.

“Obviously, I'm extremely excited to be able to wear the red and white for the Suzuka 8 Hours,” said Jack Miller, whose Pramac Yamaha M1 was dressed in the same YZF-R1-inspired paint scheme at the Dutch MotoGP last Sunday (29 June).

“It’s a massive honour for me to be able to run these colours, especially during the 70th anniversary for Yamaha.

“These colours mean a lot when I think about legendary colours. Like Agostini’s 1975 championship win in the iconic red and white of Yamaha.

“It’s a big pleasure to wear these fantastic colours at a race like the Suzuka 8 Hours.”

Nakasuga: “We have to get a result worthy of these colours”

For Yamaha veteran Katsuyuki Nakasuga, a retro Yamaha livery is nothing new, but in any case brings additional incentive to achieve a strong result.

“I’ve been racing a long time and, through my career, I’ve had the opportunity to be a part of some of Yamaha’s big milestones,” Nakasuga said.

“I’ve raced with some special liveries, and I’ve always felt honoured to do that, so for this year’s 8 Hours, getting to race in the 1999 YZF-R7 colours is another point of pride for me.

“I feel like we have to get a result worthy of these colours, so there’s some extra pressure.

“About the livery itself, I love it! I think it’s really cool.

“I’ve ridden red and white Yamaha liveries before, like the speed block design, and I’ve ridden in black and yellow, too. But this feels different from any of those, so I’m really looking forward to taking this year’s bike out on track.

“Just like I’ve done in the past, I’ll be focused on getting a great result for the team.”