Yamaha’s race riders are set to begin testing on Saturday at the🎃 MotoGP Sepang shakedown, but the focus won’t be on the marque’s🃏 long-awaited V4 engine.

Last year Yamaha announced it would be exp🍌loring development of a V4 for the first time in the modern era, having so far steadfastly pursued its inline-four philosophy.

This departure from its usual development path is a result of the new way of thinking tec🌊hnical director Max Bartolini has brought to the ཧJapanese manufacturer.

No timeline has been given for when the V4 will make its debut in 2025, with its race riders remaining coy on plans during 168澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果历史:Friday’s Yamaha launch event.

“My goal is to know this bike, to know this M1 and to work on 𒈔the current project,” Pramac’s new signing Miguel Oliveira told ltxcn.top.

“And that’s where my focus෴ is. I don’t think it would be smart to th💖ink about something that doesn’t exist yet. I want to be fully focused on this bike.”

When pressed on the same subject, 2021 world champion Fabio Quartararo said this will be the focus of test riders - not him - while warning that Honda has a V4 a﷽nd is in a similarly difficult situation to Yamaha.

“I think that everybody has put a lot of expectations on the V4, but I have no expectation because you♍ can see Honda: Honda has a V4 and Honda is struggling the same as us,” Quartararo said.

“So, I don’t thinꦦk this is really our main issues.

“So, we have to see, we have to check the pro♏blems and then we will figure out if we can make a step.

“But right now we𒈔 are really focu💮sed on 2025 with the four inline.

“We have test riders for that [V4 testing]. I think at the end we have t🐻hree of them a♔nd I think, and I’m sure, they will have time to try the V4.

“When, I have no idea, because Iℱ didn’t even ask.”

Yamaha confirmed during its launch event - where it revealed the li💃veries for its factory team and Pramac - that its race riders would be on track at Sepang from Saturday to begin their winter preparations.

As a concession manufacturer, Yamaha is able to tes🎶t freely with its race riders.

It is also not going to be subject to MotoGP’s engine freeze coming into force this year, meaning it could race𒀰 its V4 at some point in 2025 when it is ready.

Exclusive quotes provided by Crash MotoGP Editor Peter McLaren