Third Master Camp gets off the starting blocks

Six new Yamaha VR46 Master Camp prospects have arrived in Cattolica for a full-on week of training with the VR46 Academy

Following last year‘s very successful first two editions of the Yamaha VR46 Master Camp, Yamaha Motor Co., Ltd. and the VR46 Riders Academy will get their third five-day programma underway today. They‘ve invited six young Yamaha talents hailing form Asia, Oceania and North-America to experience the training of a lifetime.

Not only will the Master Camp students go out on track with the VR46 Academy riders, they will also have an exclusive view behind the scenes at the VR46 headquarters and get the opportunity to learn from nine-time World Champion Valentino Rossi and many other experts in the racing industry.

Thailand‘s Peerapong Boonlert (18), Indonesia‘s Anggi Setiawan (18), Japan‘s Shota Ite (15), Malaysia‘s Muhammad Akid bin Aziz (18), Australia‘s Brandon Demmery (19) and Canada‘s Tomas Casas (17) each traveled half-way across the world to Cattolica, Italy, were the Master Camp has its base (you can watch a video of yesterday's orientation day HERE). Today, May 10th, they will embark on their Master Camp adventure, with the goal to acquire as much knowledge and as many skills as possible over the five-day long training period.

Similar to the first editions, Yamaha Motor Co., Ltd. and the VR46 Riders Academy have the Master Camp riders‘ schedule fully booked with on and off track events.

Movistar Yamaha Motogp, Third Master Camp

The timetable for May 10th – May 14th again includes gym sessions and various riding activities on flat track and road circuits with the VR46 Academy riders, as well as a theoretical lesson with renowned racing expert, Pietro Caprara, the Sky Racing Team VR46's Technical Director and Crew Chief.

Instructors attending the sessions are VR46 Riders Academy‘s Francesco Bagnaia, Andrea Migno, Luca Marini, Lorenzo Baldassarri and Franco Morbidelli, as well as Yamaha VR46 Master Camp‘s very own Apiwath Wongthananon (season 2 student), and three-time English Flat Track Champion and two-time American and European Flat Track Champion Marco Belli. The mentors will take the Master Camp riders under their wings both on and off track and will provide the students with useful tips and the necessary encouragement to help them in their quest to enhance their racing skills.

Movistar Yamaha Motogp, Third Master Camp

Peerapong Boonlert (Thailand, 18)
I‘m so happy that I am able to come here. It‘s a great chance to learn a lot and I‘m very grateful to have been given this opportunity to join the Master Camp. I would like to say thank you to Yamaha Motor Thailand. I will try my best to make the most of this experience to be a better version of myself as a rider.

Anggi Setiawan (Indonesia, 18)
"I‘m very proud to be here. I want to take this opportunity to further my career and reach a better level, thanks to the experience of the Academy riders, as well as the graduated Master Camp rider, Apiwath, who came here before us. I'm also grateful to the Master Camp team and the instructors for putting together such a great programme."

Shota Ite (Japan, 15)
"I‘m really looking forward to get started. I want to use this opportunity to the fullest to increase my racing skills. I am very excited for this five-day programme and the activities on our schedule."

Muhammad Akid Bin Aziz (Malaysia, 18)
I‘m really looking forward to starting this programme. I will take this opportunity to learn something and improve my future career in racing with both hands. I will be learning from people who‘ve already put on a successful first and second Master Camp, so I‘m very excited and grateful.

Brandon Demmery (Australia, 19)
"I‘m really looking forward to getting on track with Vale at the Motor Ranch and riding some dirt track, as well as having a bit of fun on the go-karts and mini bikes. I am really looking forward to Misano as well. I‘m excited to be here. Yamaha and VR46 have put on an amazing programme and put together something really special for us and I‘m privileged to be invited."

Tomas Casas (Canada, 17)
"For me, this is an opportunity of a lifetime and it‘s going to be an absolutely amazing experience for myself. I‘m looking forward to meeting Valentino Rossi and to be able to ride with him on track. The most important thing that I‘m going to take out of this experience is the learning that I get to apply to racing when I get back home and improve my racing career. As far as the Master Camp, it‘s a great programme and I give a huge thank you to Valentino, VR46, Yamaha, Yamaha Motor Canada for giving me this opportunity. It‘s great to see someone like Valentino share his charisma with young riders and hopefully this can bring better things in my racing career and I hope to some day be in the World Championships."

In an effort to support young Italian riders aiming to become world-class racers, Valentino Rossi decided to put his vast experience and knowledge from his many years of racing to good use in 2014 and established the VR46 Riders Academy.

In March 2016 Yamaha Motor Co., Ltd. entered into a formal three-year partnership agreement with the VR46 Riders Academy as an Official Partner and also as its Official Motorcycle Supplier.

In July of 2016 Yamaha Motor Co., Ltd. and the VR46 Riders Academy staged the inaugural Yamaha VR46 Master Camp with the goal of helping selected young Yamaha talent make their way in the racing world by increasing their skills and experience.

The Yamaha VR46 Master Camp is a non-profit programme put together by Yamaha and its partners in collaboration with the VR46 Riders Academy. The riders for the third edition of the Yamaha VR46 Master Camp were selected by the Asian, Oceanic and North American Yamaha distributors. The line-up is based on the riders' talent and promise in the racing industry. A place in the Yamaha VR46 Master Camp can't be bought.

In the future Yamaha aims to do a similar programme with Yamaha distributors in other parts of the world.

Yamaha is currently in the process of creating a step-up model and system to provide tier-based opportunities for young riders to further develop their careers.