Yamaha YZR-M1 V-four MotoGP prototype in Malaysia – paultan.org

Here’s a first look at the Yamaha YZR-M1 MotoGP V-four prototype in action during the 2025 Petronas Grand Prix of Malaysia at the Sepang International Circuit (SIC). The YZR-M1 was first shown to the world ahead of the San Marino Grand Prix in September and will be ridden for this weekend’s MotoGP round by wildcard entry Augusto Fernandez.

The Yamaha Factory Racing Team started their V-four prototype testing plan with a run on Friday during free practice, where Fernandez collected further data for development. Although rain put a damper on the proceedings, Fernández finished the morning session in 22nd place and completed 15 laps.

As Time Attack spun, Fernandez was keen to improve his position, but a crash at Turn 9 halted his progress. Fernandez recorded a best lap time of 1’59.974, 2.415 seconds behind first place.

“I went into the weekend a bit optimistic, but this was a difficult first day. It was tricky because the grip was low. If you forget this and the lap time and concentrate on the feeling, it was different from the feeling we had in Misano, but more similar to how I felt during the tests in Barcelona and Brno. We were riding with new geometry and electronics from Misano, so we started all over again to find a new base,” said Fernandez.