YZ250F: On The Brink Of History

Is it true? Is the YZ250F yet to win an AMA MX title? 

Washougal MX Park, the home of last weekend’s Round 9 of the 2014 Lucas Oil AMA Pro Motocross Championship, hasn’t been a happy hunting ground for Yamaha. In the 33 years the event has been running at the picturesque Washington-based track, Yamaha hasn’t taken a win in the 450 class since Jimmy Button in 1999. And in the 250 class, it’s been almost 20 years – since Jeff Emig’s win way back in 1993.

So, when Yamaha riders, Justin Brayton and Christophe Pourcel, both claimed holeshots in both motos on the weekend, the blue brigade was looking for a change in their Washougal luck. But the KTM boys had other ideas. In the 450 class, Ryan Dungey soon stormed to the lead and went 1-1 in a dominant performance. And in the 250 class, likeable Frenchman, Marvin Musquin, went 1-1 to claim his first Overall of the season (and KTM’s first ever 250-class win at the track). Incidentally, Musquin became just the third international rider in 33 years to win at Washougal (after Chad Reed’s 450-class win in 2009 and Ben Townley’s 250-class win in 2007).

Of course, all those stats are academic when you consider that Yamalube/Star Racing/Yamaha teammates, Jeremy Martin and Cooper Webb, are running 1-2 in the 2014 250-class title chase. With just three rounds remaining, Martin’s 43-point gap over Webb gives Yami real hope that the young Minnesota kid will go on to win the title. Incredibly, it would be Yamaha’s first title in the class since 1992, when Jeff Emig won the 125cc class aboard a YZ125. Which means, even more incredibly, that Yamaha’s venerable YZ250F – the bike that first appeared in 2001 and is widely regarded as the machine that revolutionised small-capacity motocross – has never won an AMA Motocross title. Now there’s a stat that’ll surprise a few people.

For a detailed look at Yamaha’s 2014 YZ250F model, that finally received a major overhaul from previous models, pick up a digital edition of Transmoto Dirt Bike Magazine‘s 2014 January (#39) issue. Just jump on the App Store or Zinio and search “transmoto” to download our free App and purchase from there!