The engine is an essential question of the Yamaha MotoGP project which will be implemented until 2024 around Fabio Quartararo. The latter wants a more substantial cavalry to, at least, counter the fiery horde overflowing with energy coming from the bowels of the Ducati, and we promised it to him. Lin Jarvis in an exclusive interview confirmed this, although in the Valencia test it turned out to be depressing wishful thinking. The Englishman also closes the 2022 file by recalling his version, which, in fact, is the official one.
Lynn Jarvis confided in the columns of crash.net on a subject that is at least strategic for Yamaha , manufacturer involved in MotoGP with currently only two motorcycles. And only one able to play the leading roles with fabio quartararo. This is the famous 2023 engine which must get in tune with European competition while behind the scenes, Cal Crutchlow, the test driver, reminds us that we must not lose the DNA of the M1 which is nestled in the handling of its chassis. A balance that is never easy to achieve, but which can be lost quickly and never regained...
Before lifting the veil on what is happening in Iwata, Lin Jarvis takes stock of the situation for 2022, recalling the official scenario, more or less damaged by other approaches made with conviction. We read from the team director: “ with Covid, we were stuck for two seasons where we had our engine frozen. So that meant we couldn't do any upgrades in 2021. Then in 2022 we were very busy developing an engine with a performance level different in terms of power. However, it is always a question of evaluating the performance gain in relation to the reliability factor, and if you don't have 100% guaranteed reliability, you should hesitate. With a question mark over the reliability of the planned upgrades, Yamaha adopted the conservative approach ».
« Basically at that point we made the decision we wanted avoid any risk, and so we decided, shall we say, not to use the same 2021 engine, but we decided to stay with a conservative performance level in 2022 to make sure that we would maintain reliability ", has explained Jarvis who concludes: “ so that's really what happened ».
Lin Jarvis: “ the latest generation of next year's Yamaha engine will arrive at Sepang«
Of which act. And for 2023? There was the hiring of Luca Marmorini to the clear roadmap: “ power, please! » says the Englishman who assures that he has been given the means to succeed: “ We have changed our organization inside Japan by integrating this Italian engineering group. The objective is to take a big step for next year ».
And he specifies that the mechanical philosophy will remain anchored in the culture of the in-line four-cylinder: “ with the departure of Suzuki, we are the only manufacturer to continue this, but we have a lot of knowledge and expertise with the inline 4, and in our opinion, it's not the engine format that is the restriction. Of course, each type of engine has different characteristics. But inline 4, in itself, still has plenty of room for further development. So this is what concerns us at the moment ».
The fact remains that this “occupation” did not come to light during the Valencia test, the first of the 2023 offseason… But Lynn Jarvis, without explaining the disappointment of not having seen anything particular at the mechanical level during these tests, assures that the best is to come: “ the latest generation of next year's engine will arrive at Sepang ", did he declare. " So we still have three to four months to continue developing and perfecting the engine. ". See you in Malaysia in February, for a return to school which will already be the moment of truth for Yamaha .
