Just ahead of EICMA2023, Yamaha revealed the Heritage Sports for the first time. XSR900GP » equipped with an 3 cc in-line 888-cylinder engine from the MT-3 series. This had been announced a year earlier by the Japanese magazine Young Machine, always aware of the slightest Japanese rumor.
Still for the brand in tune, the specialist magazine predicts this time the arrival of a YZF-R9 which will take over from the defunct R6 (except for competition riders), obviously based on the 3-cylinder engine of the MT -09 producing 120 horsepower.
Even though they have been discussing the concept for several years, Japanese journalists have little information at the moment, except that the machine will have to fit financially into a range already including the YZF-R1 and the MT-09. As a result, the latter could be available in two versions, with an even more affordable appeal offer with standard suspensions, supplemented by a version with high-end suspensions for the most demanding.
As for the hypothetical YZF-R9, it would be properly equipped with numerous electronic controls, a 6-axis inertial sensor, a traction control system, and aesthetically descending fins in a direct line from the Fabio Quartararo's MotoGP YZR-M1. The graphic designers of Young Machine have therefore made a free interpretation which illustrates this article, promising us more information in the issue of their journal which will be available on January 24.
Admit that the beast is nice, but don't rush to your Yamaha dealer tomorrow yet: on the one hand it was not present at EICMA, which makes an arrival in 2024 unlikely and more likely a released in 2025, and on the other hand nothing has yet been confirmed by Iwata's men. Young Machine specialists nevertheless assess its chances of arriving on the market at 80%.
Stay tuned…
