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Yamaha unveils 2014 challenger in Jakarta

The 2014 Yamaha YZR-M1 revealed by riders Lorenzo and Valentino.

Jorge Lorenzo and Valentino Rossi unveil the Yamaha YZR-M1

Jorge Lorenzo and Valentino Rossi unveil the Yamaha YZR-M1

Yamaha MotoGP

Yamaha Factory Racing stars Jorge Lorenzo and Valentino Rossi kicked off the new MotoGP season today by unveiling the 2014 Yamaha YZR-M1 live in front of nearly 4000 members of the Yamaha family at the 3S Dealer meeting in Indonesia.

The two-day visit saw both riders engage in a number of activities for their first official outing of 2014. Yesterday Jorge met with a number of local media before heading off to take part in a soccer game with a team of Lorenzo fans and members of the Yamaha community.

This morning Jorge and Vale went together to meet Mr. Joko Widodo, the current Governor of Jakarta. The threesome spent some time cycling and chatting together before the riders moved on to join the thousands of Yamaha dealers gathered to witness the unveiling of the 2014 YZR-M1 that marked the start of the 3S Dealer Meeting.

Jorge Lorenzo, Yamaha Factory Racing rides a bicycle with fans
Jorge Lorenzo, Yamaha Factory Racing rides a bicycle with fans

Photo by: Yamaha MotoGP

Jorge and Vale wrapped up the day by recording a local TV show and shooting a Yamaha TV commercial before heading to the airport and saying goodbye to Indonesia once again.

Jorge Lorenzo: "It’s always nice to come into a sunny country with happy people, especially Indonesia, a country that gets crazy about MotoGP. Both Vale and myself have a lot of fans. Everyone recognises us in the street and gives us a lot of love so it's a good place to promote Yamaha.

Every year this Asian market gets more and more important so our visits here increase. This time we decided to do the launch here, in front of thousands of Yamaha people.

I like the new bike a lot, it's very smart and elegant with more white. It’s not just the colour though; I’m excited to see what’s inside the bike in Sepang!

My expectations for this season are very high. This winter I had an operation to take out the metal plates in my shoulder so I’m a bit lighter but I’m also a bit fatter after Christmas! I am training hard to lose some kilos and I will try to start the season well like last year and be straight onto the podium."

The Yamaha YZR-M1 of Valentino Rossi
The Yamaha YZR-M1 of Valentino Rossi

Photo by: Yamaha MotoGP

Valentino Rossi: "This season is very important for me and the fact that we officially start the season here in Jakarta makes it even more special. I can’t remember any previous unveiling by Yamaha made outside Europe, so today’s event was special for several reasons. Yamaha deliberately decided to offer the Indonesian dealers the chance to host the unveiling of the 2014 M1 during their big annual meeting here in Jakarta and this is another sign of the increasing importance of the SE Asian market for the global business. I truly hope to be able to race here again, very soon, before it’s too late!!

We unveiled the new livery for 2014 today; it’s very nice, very elegant and has more white than last year. It’s still very much in the Yamaha Factory style and I like it a lot.

The expectations for the coming season are very high. My target is to try and do better than last year, be more competitive and fight for the podium every weekend."

Yamaha MotoGP

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