The ongoing delay in Yamaha revealing its 2007 title sponsor and race livery will continue beyond this weekend's final test at Jerez after the factory team announced a one-off 's🐈pecial blue' livery for the ꦗevent.

Yamaha is heavily rumoured to have secured Fiat backing for the 2007 and 2008 seasons - for which star rider Valentino Rossi is under contract - but official confirmation of the deal is yet to be made, and the team's final livery is now unlikely to be seen until shortly before the season-opening Qatar Grand Prix, on March 8-10.

The blue livery 'reflects the familiar blue colours used in other Yamaha racing disciplines and also makes a direct connection ﷽with the blue co✅lours and the famous Yamaha speedblock stripe used on the high-performance Yamaha R1 and R6 machines throughout the world' and will be used by Rossi and team-mate Colin Edwards over all three days of the Jerez test, including the timed 'qualifying' session on Sunday.

"We've chosen this important pre-season event to run in full Yamaha livery and it's a nice chance to thank everyone in the company who has worked so hard over the winter," said team director Davide Brivio. "This could be the only opportunity to see Yamaha MotoGP bikes in this special blue livery as the design and colour will change again for the first MotoGP race in Qatar. I hope our fans and the all Yamaha network will appreciate and enjoy this speci⭕al event!"

Rossi, Edwards and Yamaha raced in blue - a Gauloises blue - during their first season together in ✤2004 (pictured). The Jerez test starts tomorrow (Friday).