English
Italiano
It will be Jason O'Halloran who will pick up the baton in World Endurance from Niccolò Canepa, Yamaha Motor Europe's new Road Racing Sporting Manager. In fact, this morning the European division of the House of Iwata announced that the Australian rider has joined the ranks of the Yamalube YART Yamaha EWC Official Team. Where he will join Karel Hanika, Marvin Fritz and reserve rider Robin Mulhauser.
Replacing a rider of Canepa's caliber, the most successful Italian in the EWC, will not be an easy task, but "O Show" has all the credentials to succeed. The most successful Yamaha rider in BSB, the 36-year-old Wollongong-born rider in fact has a wealth of experience in motorcycling that began in his native country. Graduating as Australian Supersport champion in 2007, O'Halloran then moved to the United Kingdom the following year, where he competed with Yamaha in the BSB Superbike class from 2019 to 2023, earning a total of 26 wins riding the R1.
Jason also has some experience in endurance racing, having raced as a replacement rider in the 2012 season. He achieved a podium finish at the Doha 8 Hours, a Top 10 at Suzuka and a fourth place at the Oschersleben 8 Hours. The seventh Australian to join the YART team, following Damian Cudlin, Steve Martin, Josh Brookes, Broc Parkes, Wayne Maxwell and Ricky Olson, the 36-year-old will help his teammates return to the title assault that eluded them at the Bol d'Or after an intense head-to-head battle with the SERT team.
"I am extremely excited to join the YART team and become a full-time EWC rider. I have spent many years in British Superbikes, but when I started speaking to the team, it just seemed like the perfect move. I want to thank everybody who made this happen," commented O'Halloran, who is eager to begin this new adventure in endurance racing.
"I cannot wait to join up with the team, and what a team! Endurance World Champions in 2009 and 2023, plus Marvin and Karel, are amazing riders, and the team’s achievements speak for themselves. I had a lot of success in BSB with Yamaha, so I am excited to get back onto the R1. It has always been the bike I gelled with the best; it suits my riding style, and I love riding it. I had a taste of riding in the EWC in the past, and it has always been a championship I wanted to race in. With Niccolò retiring, the timing was perfect, and I cannot wait for the challenge ahead.."
An addition to the team also greeted with enthusiasm by Yamaha Motor Europe's new Road Racing Sporting Manager, who is certain that O'Halloran is the right driver to focus on to get back into the title hunt. Starting with the 24 Hours of Le Mans, scheduled for April 17-20, 2025.
"We are really happy to have Jason joining the YART team, and we are excited to see what he can do on the bike. He has a lot of experience with the R1 and has shown his talent and ability in the British Superbike Championship with 26 wins, so I think he will bring a lot to the team," said Canepa. "I also think he has the perfect character to succeed in EWC, as you need not only to be fast but also to be a team player and be able to work with your teammates. I got to know Jason in BSB last year. I was his teammate for a couple of race weekends, and he helped me a lot during this time, which made me realise that he had the right attitude for EWC. He already has some endurance experience, but he will have to adapt quite quickly, and we feel that with his addition to the team, we will have the perfect package to fight for the title next season."
Automatic Translation by DeepL
