SBK, Yamaha on the attack in 2026: Pata Maxus and GYTR GRT teams unveil their R1s

The M1s of the Maxus Pata Yamaha and GYTR GRT Yamaha teams for the 2026 Superbike season have been unveiled.

Without Toprak Razgatlioglu, Yamaha has no longer been able to fight for the SBK world title and has taken only one win in the last two years, but in 2026 it hopes to be more of a frontrunner in the class, also thanks to the fact that the Turk will be in MotoGP, creating more opportunities for other riders to reach the podium. In the factory Pata Maxus team, Andrea Locatelli has been confirmed with a contract through 2027: now in his sixth season with the same squad and the R1, he is certainly the reference point. A new teammate has arrived in the garage in Xavi Vierge, immediately at ease with the Iwata machine after his years on the Honda and determined to measure up to the Italian.

In the GYTR GRT team, Remy Gardner is confirmed, also on a two-year contract, and they have welcomed a very promising rookie in Stefano Manzi. The 2025 Supersport world champion aims to do well already in his debut Superbike season. He too has signed through 2027, so he races with the peace of mind of knowing he will be on the grid next year as well.

This morning Yamaha revealed the colors with which the Pata Maxus and GYTR GRT teams will race in the 2026 SBK World Championship. Unsurprisingly, blue dominates. There are no major upheavals compared to the recent past, aside from some sponsor changes that bring a few tweaks to the liveries.

Notably, Pata Snack is the title sponsor of the official Yamaha WorldSBK team for the eleventh consecutive season, making it one of the longest partnerships in the championship’s history. The Pata logo will also be present on the GYTR GRT team’s R1s. This collaboration extends across all categories, with the Italian snack maker also serving as title sponsor of the Pata Yamaha Ten Kate WorldSSP Supported Team, as well as the main backer of FIM Yamaha R3 bLU cRU world champion Alessandro Di Persio in the brand-new FIM Sportbike World Championship for 2026.

A new multi-year agreement has also been signed with DP World, a leading provider of end-to-end global supply chain solutions, which will be the official logistics partner of Yamaha’s MotoGP, WorldSBK, and WorldSSP teams. The Pata Maxus squad welcomes new partners such as Pont Grup (a Spanish specialist in motorcycle and motor vehicle insurance) and iXS (a Swiss apparel and performance brand from the Hostettler Group)

It should also be remembered that Yamaha is also present in the Superbike World Championship with Sandro Carusi’s Motoxracing team: this year the riders are Bahattin Sofuoglu and rookie Mattia Rato. They were not present at the recent test in Jerez, unlike the other two outfits. As explained in the official press release, if the weather permits, Pata Maxus Yamaha and its riders will continue pre-season testing tomorrow, with three potential days of running scheduled at the Autódromo Internacional do Algarve (Portimão, Portugal).