Wataru Yoshikawa is a Japanese

Japanese people

The are an ethnic group originating in the Japanese archipelago and are the predominant ethnic group of Japan. Worldwide, approximately 130 million people are of Japanese descent; of these, approximately 127 million are residents of Japan. People of Japanese ancestry who live in other countries...

 motorcycle

Motorcycle

A motorcycle is a single-track, two-wheeled motor vehicle. Motorcycles vary considerably depending on the task for which they are designed, such as long distance travel, navigating congested urban traffic, cruising, sport and racing, or off-road conditions.Motorcycles are one of the most...

 rider.

Yoshikawa won the All Japan Superbike Championship in 1994 and 1999. He also participated in the World Superbike Championship, finishing 9th in the 1996 season

1996 Superbike World Championship season

The 1996 Superbike World Championship season was the 9th F.I.M. Superbike World Championship season. The season started on April 14 at Misano, and finished on October 27 at Phillip Island after 12 rounds....

. In 2003 Yoshikawa finished second at the Suzuka 8 Hours

Suzuka 8 Hours

The is a motorcycle endurance race held at the Suzuka Circuit in Japan each year. As the name implies, the race runs for eight hours consecutively and teams are composed of two riders and one alternate.-History:...

, partnering Shinichi Nakatomi on a Yamaha YZF-R1

Yamaha YZF-R1

The Yamaha YZF-R1 is an open class sport bike, or superbike, motorcycle manufactured by Yamaha Motor Company since 1998.-1998–1999:Yamaha launched the YZF-R1 after redesigning the Genesis engine to offset the crankshaft, gearbox input, and output shafts. This "compacting" of the engine made the...

.

Yoshikawa is presently a test rider for the Yamaha

Yamaha Motor Company

, is a Japanese motorized vehicle-producing company. Yamaha Motor is part of Yamaha Corporation and its headquarter is located in Iwata, Shizuoka. Along with expanding Yamaha Corporation into the world's biggest piano maker, then Yamaha CEO Genichi Kawakami took Yamaha into the field of motorized...

 factory, and helped develop the Yamaha YZR-M1

Yamaha YZR-M1

The Yamaha YZR-M1 is an motorcycle specifically developed by Yamaha Motor Company to race in the current MotoGP series. It succeeded the YZR500 by the 2002 season and was originally developed with a engine...

. On June 23, 2010 it was announced that Yoshikawa will replace the injured Valentino Rossi

Valentino Rossi

Valentino Rossi, , is an Italian professional motorcycle racer and multiple MotoGP World Champion. He is one of the most successful motorcycle racers of all time, with nine Grand Prix World Championships to his name – seven of which are in the premier class.Following his father, Graziano Rossi,...

 in the MotoGP

Grand Prix motorcycle racing

Road Racing World Championship Grand Prix is the premier championship of motorcycle road racing currently divided into three distinct classes: 125cc, Moto2 and MotoGP. The 125cc class uses a two-stroke engine while Moto2 and MotoGP use four-stroke engines. In 2010 the 250cc two-stroke was replaced...

 Fiat Yamaha factory works team, until Rossi is again able to race.

Races by year

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Yr	Class	Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	Pos	Pts
2002 2002 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season The 2002 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season was the 54th F.I.M. Road Racing World Championship season. The season consist of 16 races, which started with the Japanese Grand Prix on 7 April and ended with the Valencian Community Grand Prix on 3 November....	MotoGP	Yamaha Yamaha Motor Company , is a Japanese motorized vehicle-producing company. Yamaha Motor is part of Yamaha Corporation and its headquarter is located in Iwata, Shizuoka. Along with expanding Yamaha Corporation into the world's biggest piano maker, then Yamaha CEO Genichi Kawakami took Yamaha into the field of motorized...	JPN 2002 Japanese motorcycle Grand Prix The 2002 Japanese motorcycle Grand Prix was the first round of the 2002 MotoGP Championship. It took place on the weekend of 5 -April 7, 2002 at Suzuka. The race was historic in that it was the first race of the MotoGP class, with engine capacities raised to 990cc from 500cc.-MotoGP...	RSA 2002 South African motorcycle Grand Prix The 2002 South African motorcycle Grand Prix was the second round of the 2002 MotoGP Championship. It took place on the weekend of 19 -April 21, 2002 at the Phakisa Freeway.-MotoGP classification:-250cc classification:-125cc classification:...	SPA 2002 Spanish motorcycle Grand Prix The 2002 Spanish motorcycle Grand Prix was the third round of the 2002 MotoGP Championship. It took place on the weekend of 3 - May 5, 2002 at the Circuito Permanente de Jerez.- MotoGP classification :- 250cc classification :- 125cc classification :...	FRA 2002 French motorcycle Grand Prix The 2002 French motorcycle Grand Prix was the fourth round of the 2002 MotoGP Championship. It took place on the weekend of 17 -May 19, 2002 at the Bugatti Circuit located in Le Mans, France.-MotoGP classification:...	ITA 2002 Italian motorcycle Grand Prix The 2002 Italian motorcycle Grand Prix was the fifth round of the 2002 MotoGP Championship. It took place on the weekend of May 31-June 2, 2002 at the Mugello Circuit.-MotoGP classification:-250cc classification:-125cc classification:...	CAT	NED 2002 Dutch TT The 2002 Dutch TT was the seventh round of the 2002 MotoGP Championship. It took place on the weekend of 27 -June 29, 2002 at the TT Circuit Assen located in Assen, Netherlands.-MotoGP classification:-250cc classification:-125cc classification:...	GBR 2002 British motorcycle Grand Prix The 2002 British motorcycle Grand Prix was the eighth round of the 2002 MotoGP Championship. It took place on the weekend of 12 -July 14, 2002 at the Donington Park circuit.-MotoGP classification:-250cc classification:-125cc classification:...	GER 2002 German motorcycle Grand Prix The 2002 German motorcycle Grand Prix was the ninth round of the 2002 MotoGP Championship. It took place on the weekend of 19 -July 21, 2002 at the Sachsenring.-MotoGP classification:-250cc classification:-125cc classification:...	CZE 2002 Czech Republic motorcycle Grand Prix The 2002 Czech Republic motorcycle Grand Prix was the tenth round of the 2002 MotoGP Championship. It took place on the weekend of 23 -August 25, 2002 at the Masaryk Circuit located in Brno, Czech Republic.-MotoGP classification:-250cc classification:...	POR	BRA 2002 Brazilian motorcycle Grand Prix The 2002 Rio de Janeiro motorcycle Grand Prix was the twelfth round of the 2002 MotoGP Championship. It took place on the weekend of September 20–22, 2002 at Autódromo Internacional Nelson Piquet.-MotoGP classification:-250cc classification:...	PAC 2002 Pacific motorcycle Grand Prix The 2002 Pacific motorcycle Grand Prix was the thirteenth round of the 2002 MotoGP Championship. It took place on the weekend of 4 -October 6, 2002 at the Twin Ring Motegi circuit.-MotoGP classification:-250cc classification:-125cc classification:... 12	MAL 2002 Malaysian motorcycle Grand Prix The 2002 Malaysian motorcycle Grand Prix was the fourteenth round of the 2002 MotoGP Championship. It took place on the weekend of 11 -October 13, 2002 at the Sepang International Circuit.-MotoGP classification:-250cc classification:...	AUS 2002 Australian motorcycle Grand Prix The 2002 Australian motorcycle Grand Prix was the penultimate round of the 2002 MotoGP Championship. It took place on the weekend of 18–20 October 2002 at the Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit.-MotoGP classification:-250cc classification:...	VAL 2002 Valencian Community motorcycle Grand Prix The 2002 Valencian Community motorcycle Grand Prix was the last round of the 2002 MotoGP Championship. It took place on the weekend of 1 -November 3, 2002 at the Circuit de Valencia.-MotoGP classification:-250cc classification:-125cc classification:...			25th	4
2010 2010 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season The 2010 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season was the 62nd F.I.M. Road Racing World Championship season. It was the first season for the new Moto2 class....	MotoGP	Yamaha Yamaha Motor Company , is a Japanese motorized vehicle-producing company. Yamaha Motor is part of Yamaha Corporation and its headquarter is located in Iwata, Shizuoka. Along with expanding Yamaha Corporation into the world's biggest piano maker, then Yamaha CEO Genichi Kawakami took Yamaha into the field of motorized...	QAT 2010 Qatar motorcycle Grand Prix The 2010 Qatar motorcycle Grand Prix, officially the Commercialbank Grand Prix of Qatar, was the opening round of the 2010 MotoGP championship. It took place on the weekend of April 9–11, 2010 at the Losail International Circuit located in Doha, Qatar. Spectator attendance was 7302...	SPA 2010 Spanish motorcycle Grand Prix The 2010 Spanish motorcycle Grand Prix, officially the Gran Premio bwin de España, was the second round of the 2010 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season. It took place on the weekend of April 30–May 2, 2010 at the Circuito de Jerez located in Jerez de la Frontera, Spain...	FRA 2010 French motorcycle Grand Prix The 2010 French motorcycle Grand Prix, officially the Monster Energy Grand Prix de France, was the third round of the 2010 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season. It took place on the weekend of May 21–23, 2010 at the Bugatti Circuit in Le Mans, France...	ITA 2010 Italian motorcycle Grand Prix The 2010 Italian motorcycle Grand Prix was the fourth round of the 2010 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season. It took place on the weekend of June 4–6, 2010 at the Mugello Circuit. Seven-time MotoGP world champion Valentino Rossi suffered a displaced compound fracture of his right tibia in free...	GBR 2010 British motorcycle Grand Prix The 2010 British motorcycle Grand Prix was the fifth round of the 2010 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season. It took place on the weekend of June 18–20, 2010 at Silverstone...	NED 2010 Dutch TT The 2010 Dutch TT was the sixth round of the 2010 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season. It took place on the weekend of June 24–26, 2010 at the TT Circuit Assen.-MotoGP classification:-Moto2 classification:-125cc classification:-References:...	CAT 2010 Catalan motorcycle Grand Prix The 2010 Catalan motorcycle Grand Prix was the seventh round of the 2010 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season. It took place on the weekend of July 2–4, 2010 at the Circuit de Catalunya.-MotoGP classification:-Moto2 classification:-125cc classification:... 15	GER 2010 German motorcycle Grand Prix The 2010 German motorcycle Grand Prix was the eighth round of the 2010 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season. It took place on the weekend of July 16–18, 2010 at the Sachsenring, located in Hohenstein-Ernstthal, Germany.-MotoGP classification:...	USA 2010 United States motorcycle Grand Prix The 2010 United States motorcycle Grand Prix was the ninth round of the 2010 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season. It took place on the weekend of July 23–25, 2010 at Laguna Seca. Only the MotoGP class will be permitted to race at Laguna Seca....	CZE 2010 Czech Republic motorcycle Grand Prix The 2010 Czech Republic motorcycle Grand Prix was the tenth round of the 2010 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season. It took place on the weekend of August 13–15, 2010 at the Masaryk Circuit located in Brno.-MotoGP classification:-Moto2 classification:...	IND 2010 Indianapolis motorcycle Grand Prix The 2010 Indianapolis Grand Prix was the eleventh round of the 2010 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season. It took place on the weekend of August 27–29, 2010 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.-MotoGP classification:-Moto2 classification:...	SMR 2010 San Marino and Rimini's Coast motorcycle Grand Prix The 2010 San Marino and Rimini's Coast motorcycle Grand Prix was the twelfth round of the 2010 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season. It took place on the weekend of September 3–5, 2010 at the Misano World Circuit....	ARA 2010 Aragon motorcycle Grand Prix The 2010 Aragon motorcycle Grand Prix was the thirteenth round of the 2010 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season. It took place on the weekend of September 17–19, 2010 at the Motorland Aragón circuit.-MotoGP classification:-Moto2 classification:...	JPN 2010 Japanese motorcycle Grand Prix The 2010 Japanese motorcycle Grand Prix was the fourteenth round of the 2010 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season. It took place on the weekend of October 1–3, 2010 at the Twin Ring Motegi, located in Motegi, Japan...	MAL 2010 Malaysian motorcycle Grand Prix The 2010 Malaysian motorcycle Grand Prix was the fifteenth round of the 2010 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season. It took place on the weekend of October 8–10, 2010 at the Sepang International Circuit.-MotoGP classification:-Moto2 classification:...	AUS 2010 Australian motorcycle Grand Prix The 2010 Australian motorcycle Grand Prix was the sixteenth round of the 2010 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season. It took place on the weekend of 15–17 October 2010 at the Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit...	POR 2010 Portuguese motorcycle Grand Prix The 2010 Portuguese motorcycle Grand Prix was the penultimate round of the 2010 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season. It took place in the weekend of October 29–31, 2010 at the Autódromo do Estoril located in Estoril, Portugal.-MotoGP classification:...	VAL 2010 Valencian Community motorcycle Grand Prix The 2010 Valencian Community motorcycle Grand Prix was the final round of the 2010 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season. It took place on the weekend of November 5–7, 2010 at the Circuit Ricardo Tormo in Cheste, Valencian Community...	22nd	1

External links

• Profile on motogp.com