Le Yamaha GMT94, three-time FIM endurance world champion and entered in the FIM Supersport World Championship, will move to the FIM Superbike World Championship in 2023, with a latest generation Yamaha R1, and the full support of Yamaha Motor Europe. Lorenzo Baldassarri, will be the rider of the GMT94 Yamaha WorldSBK Team.
After spending the last five seasons in the intermediate category with Yamaha support, the GMT94 Yamaha team has achieved seven victories and 25 podiums. The team now tackles the premier class for the first time since 2009. Following his impressive debut year in WorldSSP, the team and Yamaha are delighted to sign Baldassarri for the 2023 season.
GMT94 Yamaha will continue to compete in the WorldSSP championship for a sixth consecutive season in 2023, with French Supersport champion, Valentine Debise.
Founded in 1991, the GMT94 team has a long and successful history in motorcycle racing, celebrating its first title in the French Superbike Championship in 1998, won by the team's founder Christophe Guyot. In its second season in EWC, the team officially announced itself on the world stage, winning the 24 Hours of Oschersleben in 2000, and finishing second in the final standings.
In 2001, the team took the first of its three victories at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, and after narrowly missing out on the title in its first five seasons, the now Yamaha-equipped GMT94 was crowned EWC champion in 2004. By the time it retired from endurance racing in 2018, the GMT94 Yamaha team had accumulated three world titles (adding the 2014 and 2016-17 titles to its 2004 title), 17 victories, including two Bol D'or, and 36 podiums.
Christophe GUYOT's team then launched into the WorldSSP championship in 2018, taking seven wins with Jules Cluzel, as well as 25 podiums, most recently at the team's home race at Magny-Cours this year .
Baldassarri was chosen as he showed incredible speed and consistency in 2022, winning four races and 14 podiums, including on his debut at Aragón. The Italian currently occupies second place in the standings, and with three rounds remaining, remains well placed for the title.
Before this season, Baldassarri was well established in the Grand Prix paddock. Having made his debut during the 2013 Moto3 season, his undeniable talents earned him promotion to the Moto2 World Championship in 2014.
There he quickly became a regular in the top 10, and celebrated his first podium at the 2015 Australian round at Phillip Island. The following season he added two more podiums to his tally, including a resounding victory at the San Marino GP, beating MotoGP riders like Franco Morbidelli, Álex Rins, Takaaki Nakagami and Johann Zarco.
In 2018, Baldassarri took another victory, this time at the Spanish GP in Jerez, and finished fifth in the Moto2 standings. The following year, the #7 driver started the season with three wins in four races, ultimately finishing the year in seventh place in the standings. “Balda” left the GP paddock in 2021, entering the WorldSSP championship with the aim of promotion to WorldSBK.
Christophe GUYOT, Team Manager GMT94 Yamaha WorldSBK Team: “ We are delighted to welcome Lorenzo BALDASSARRI, in the Superbike category, for the 2023 season. He is today one of the two contenders for the world title in Supersport. Our desire, in consultation with Yamaha, was to offer this opportunity to a rider who was able to win 2022 races and follow the path to access the premier category of the discipline. With Valentin DEBISE (France) in Supersport, and Lorenzo BALDASSARRI (Italy) in Superbike, the GMT94 is among the teams attached solely to sporting results in order to give desire and hope to all riders to one day reach the highest level . »
Lorenzo Baldassarri, GMT94 Yamaha WorldSBK Team rider in 2023: “ I'm very happy, because I started this project with Yamaha in WorldSSP after Moto2, and my goal has always been to be in WorldSBK. This year we had a very good season, we grew together and I'm still improving. I am ready to take this step in the WorldSBK championship with Yamaha and the GMT94 Yamaha WorldSBK Team. Thank you to them for giving me this opportunity, I can't wait to start this new adventure. »
Andrea Dosoli, Racing Manager of Yamaha Motor Europe: “ It's nice to see the team we've been supporting since the WorldSSP championship moving up to WorldSBK. We have seen the success this has had in the past with the GRT Yamaha team, and now we will support the GMT94 Yamaha in the same way. This is a team that knows what it takes to be competitive at the highest level, and we expect a good performance from the start of the season. Yamaha wanted to offer an opportunity to the best riders in WorldSSP, and with Lorenzo we have a rider who is clearly ready to take the next step. From the first race he impressed us and to be in the fight for the title in such a competitive category is an incredible achievement in itself. We look forward to having the GMT94 Yamaha WorldSBK Team and Lorenzo on the grid in 2023. »
