Kohta Nozane to Compete in 2023 Moto2 World Championship

October 5, 2022—Kohta Nozane, who currently competes in the WorldSBK Championship, will contest the Moto2 World Championship with the Yamaha VR46 Master Camp Team in 2023.

Yamaha has supported Nozane throughout his time in the All Japan championships and now in WorldSBK, and will continue to support him as a role model for young riders aiming for the global stage.

The Yamaha VR46 Master Camp Team was established in 2017 in conjunction with the VR46 Junior Team S.R.L. Until 2018 the team competed in the FIM CEV Moto3 Junior World Championship, and from 2019 to 2021 they contested the FIM CEV Moto2 European Championship.

In 2022 the team became part of Yamaha’s bLU cRU rider development program in the Moto2 World Championship, with the project serving as a platform to develop skills at the world level for riders aiming for MotoGP.

Nozane won his first title in the All Japan Road Race Championship’s pinnacle JSB1000 class in 2020. In 2021 he moved to Europe to compete the world's premier production racing series of WorldSBK. In his first season he finished 14th overall, and in 2022 after eight rounds he is currently ranked 19th. Nozane has previous Moto2 experience, having ridden once in 2012 and three times in 2013.

Kohta Nozane

“I was able to win the JSB1000 title in 2020, and since then I’ve spent two years in World Superbike. It’s been a big challenge trying to get results, and I’ve had a lot of difficult races so far, but I’ve also learned a lot and gained a lot of experience. For 2023 I’ll make a fresh start and compete in Moto2. I realize this will also be a big undertaking, but I’ll do my best to produce some great races for my fans and for Yamaha.”

Tetsu Ono - Yamaha’s Motorsports Strategy Division General Manager

“We are excited to announce that we will welcome Kohta Nozane to our Yamaha VR46 Master Camp Team for the 2023 season. He is one of the best riders in Asia who has Yamaha bLU cRU experience. We will start a new chapter with him with the goal of showing everyone motorsports excitement. We will also continue to promote talented riders from Asia. We hope everyone will follow our challenge in Moto2.”