Yanagawa to ride for Kawasaki at Motegi
Kawasaki have announced that they will field a third bike at Motegi, Japan, next month for local rider Akira Yanagawa
The Japanese rode for Kawasaki in their first race with the original ZX-RR at Motegi in 2002, but was forced out after breaking his pelvis in a crash. He is currently racing in the All Japan Superbike Championship, but has admitted to having some unfinished business in MotoGP.
"The first time I raced the Ninja ZX-RR was also at Motegi, when Kawasaki made their long awaited return to Grand Prix racing after an absence of more than two decades," said Yanagawa, who last raced in MotoGP at the 2003 Pacific Grand Prix as a wild card entry for Kawasaki.
"On that occasion I crashed out of the race, so I'm really looking forward to the opportunity to finally finish what I started five years ago.
"I'm under no illusions about how tough it will be, racing against the very best riders in the world, but I hope that I will be able to finish in the points and also provide important feedback for Kawasaki's development engineers.
"For me, race day will be about enjoying the chance to race the latest version of Kawasaki's Ninja ZX-RR and finishing as high up the order as I can."
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