This is a very long and very important interview given to us exclusively by Éric de Seynes, President & CEO of YAMAHA MOTOR EUROPE NV!
We will therefore divide it into three very distinct parts, the first taking stock of the commercial situation of Yamaha France and the last greeting the MotoGP world championship title Fabio Quartararo.
But the main course consists of the sporting program of the company with the three tuning forks, not only to obviously celebrate a particularly successful 2021 season, but above all to address the major problem looming at the dawn of this 2022 season, namely the ongoing regulation change in World Supersport.
And there, the boss of Yamaha Motor Europe, and therefore the head of the Iwata competition in the World Championship SBKputs on alert, with the utmost vigor, against a draft regulation released on December 25the which seems to him as aberrant as it is unfair. We recall that according to the latter, the Ducati 955cc, the MV Agusta 800cc and the Triumph 765cc will be able to race against the 600cc…
Eric, let's end this interview on a more satisfying note than the major problem of Supersport, with Fabio Quartararo who secured the first title for a French driver in the premier class of Grand Prix racing…
Eric de Seynes : “Obviously, it’s a huge joy! It's quite remarkable because we're both at the dawn of a new era with a very exciting renewal of riders in MotoGP, with a mindset from this new generation that I find really great for our sport. At the same time, we're already at the culmination of a journey that has been, for us, to reclaim this prestigious world championship title, to do so with one of the youngest riders on the grid, and French to boot! So there's a profound sense of recognition that is absolutely fantastic. Fantastic for motorcycle sport, fantastic for Yamaha, and fantastic for Fabio! In addition, we have developed a genuine bond or closeness, and That is why I prefer not to comment on the comments of certain "paddock experts" who allow themselves to circulate false leaks, who speculate on contract amounts that make no sense and that are based on nothing other than their personal speculation. I think it's a shame because it's very hurtful. I was therefore deeply shocked and hurt by this, especially for Fabio.
But otherwise, apart from that, The adventure with Fabio is fantastic, and I think it suddenly brings the great French champions back into the spotlight. that we were lucky enough to have and who could have had this title before him. But in the end it was Fabio who went and got it, and that's great!
Personally, and for Yamaha, I also think it's nice to see that, following in the footsteps of French riders who have reached the very highest level, that is, become world champion, Yamaha was generally not far behind. It's still great to think, looking back, thatUltimately, there is a kind of continuity in the commitment to French pilots that has never wavered or weakened since Patrick Pons' first title in 1979."
And this happens at the moment when Valentino RossiAn iconic figure for Yamaha, is retiring…
“Yes, it’s beautiful! There’s a kind of passing of the torch, which perhaps wasn’t as orchestrated and scripted as it might seem, but ultimately nature does things well and it’s a beautiful transition. Besides, Valentino is taking it very well . He’s completed his GP career, he’s finished the season, he has no regrets , and that’s just fine.”
Is there a point we haven't addressed or developed sufficiently?
"No. What I find wonderful, because that's really how I see it, is that The results obtained this year are ultimately just the fruit of hard workThis is the result of the drivers' hard work, the teams' hard work, and our own work in maintaining fidelity and loyalty to everyone involved and building together, over the long term, increasingly accomplished performances that ultimately deliver truly solid results. We're not the most flamboyant, we're not overly "show-off" like some other brands can be, but we work with passion, and fundamentally, the strength of our results is something that fully satisfies me.
When I think about the work we've built with GMT 94 for almost twenty years, with Yart, Viltais, and Moto Ain in endurance racing, Crescent, GRT, Evan Bros, and Kallio in Superbike and Supersport, Wilvo and Kemea in world motocross, and with MJC in the European MX championships for years... Season after season, we're there, and we continue to challenge ourselves to try and achieve the best. So, when that translates into results, well... These are beautiful stories, and above all, we all know their value....
When Maxime (Renaux) became world champion, we called each other that very day at 5:30, and I told him "You know Maxime, when you crossed the finish line, I thought of this: do you remember, in 2016, in 2018, what we went through? Well, you overcame all those challenges and your title is even more beautiful.". And he told me "Eric, you know, it's funny because I thought exactly the same thing."In fact, you realize that when we win, we win together. We reflect on the trials we went through, because you don't become world champion without going through tough times, moments of truth. So, when you have the chance to celebrate a world championship title with your driver, and you know that you went through all those difficult times with him during the previous seasons, I can tell you that the value of the title, its human value, is unique, intense, profound, and that's the most beautiful one!
With Toprak (Razgatlıoğlu), because Toprak's title is a huge satisfactionWe've already developed a very strong bond with him over the past two years. We supported him by letting him make his own final decisions, because ultimately what he was suffering from before was this lack of freedom and confidence. And you realize that all of a sudden it affects the whole team, all the mechanics, and that The five years we have already spent with Crescent suddenly take on a tremendous dimension! Simply because we're ready, because the team is ready! That's why 2021 has brought me so much satisfaction. Simply because everything we've built, all the doubts, all the questioning, all the resistance, suddenly see their truth revealed, the validity of our dedication is confirmed by the world title we've won. And we need to be aware of that and fully enjoy it, because it doesn't happen every season! But this time, we had that perfect combination of efforts already made by our teams and technicians, the maturity of our development, and the talent of our riders. It was built and it came. And that's why We had to work twice as hard this winter (laughs), because the moment you win, your competitors work twice as hard."And we need to anticipate it."
A huge thank you to Éric de Seynes for taking the time to do this interview!!!
