Yamaha Confirms Katsuyuki Nakasuga As Wild Card For Japanese GP

Yamaha Racing has confirmed that Katsuyuki Nakasuga will participate in the 2016 Japanese MotoGP as a wild card entry. He will be seen riding a factory-spec YZR-M1 for the Yamalube Yamaha Factory Racing Team.

The Japanese MotoGP round will be contested on October 6, 2016. This will be the fifth time in a row Nakasuga will ride in MotoGP at Twin Ring Motegi circuit. In 2015, Nakasuga finished in eighth place at his home circuit.

Nakasuga's best finish in his MotoGP career has to be the 2012 Valencia GP. He finished second in a well-fought battle against seasoned MotoGP riders as a wild card entry. The 2016-season marks the Japanese rider's seventh appearance in MotoGP competition.

Nakasuga was also part of the winning alliance at the 2016 Suzuki 8 Hours Challenge. Nakasuga partnered with Alex Lowes and Pol Espargaro to win Yamaha's sixth title in the endurance race. It was also a back-to-back victory, which was last achieved by Yamaha back in 1988.