Makoto Tamada
Makoto Tamada ( Japanese 玉田 誠 , Tamada Makoto ; born November 4, 1976 in Matsuyama , Ehime Prefecture ) is a Japanese motorcycle racer .
So far, he is one of the few riders who has won both the motorcycle world championship and the superbike world championship .
The 1.71 m tall Tamada has competed in the Superbike World Championship since the 2008 season , and in 2010 he competed in the Pro Ride SBK team on a Honda CBR1000RR .
Career
Beginnings
After starting motorcycling on minibikes at a young age , Makoto Tamada won a regional 250 cc championship in 1994 . From 1995 to 1998 he started in the Japanese 250 cc championship , which he finished fourth last year on a privately used Honda .
In 1999, Tamada switched to the Japanese Superbike Championship and for the following four years consistently placed in the top five of the overall standings. It was during this time that he caught international attention for the first time. In the 2001 season he won both rounds of the Japanese round of the Superbike World Championship in Sugo as a wildcard driver on a Honda , beating the entire world elite. In 2002 Tamada took another victory on the same occasion.
MotoGP class
His strong performances earned Makoto Tamada a place as a fixed starter in the MotoGP class of the motorcycle world championship in 2003 . He started for the team Pramac Honda on a superior at that time RC211V - four-stroke and was the Grand Prix of Rio de Janeiro celebrated his first podium finish with third place. With 87 points he was eleventh overall.
For the following season , Tamada switched to Sito Pons' Camel Honda team and spent his most successful year in the MotoGP class there. He was the only Honda driver to start on Bridgestone tires and was able to celebrate victories in Rio and at his home Grand Prix in Motegi , as the Japanese tires were superior to the competition from Michelin on these tracks . With 150 points, Makoto Tamada reached sixth place overall this season.
In 2005 and 2006 Tamada started for Konica Minolta Honda on Michelin tires, but was unable to match the performance of 2004. In 2005, a broken wrist prevented a World Cup placement in the top ten. In 2006, Makoto's results did not meet expectations either. At Tamada's best race, the Germany Grand Prix at the Sachsenring , he was in a promising position by Kenny Roberts jr. "Shot down". At the end of the season, only the twelfth place in the World Championship was recorded.
For the 2007 season, the Japanese switched to Dunlop Yamaha Tech 3 , where he raced for the first time on Yamaha and on the Dunlop tires, which were inferior in the preseason . Tamada regularly scored points and crossed the finish line in 16 of 18 races, but was clearly outdone in the overall standings by his young team-mate Sylvain Guintoli from France .
Superbike World Championship
Since he couldn't find a starting place in the MotoGP class for 2008, Makoto Tamada decided to switch to the Superbike World Championship in 2008 and to compete for the Kawasaki PSG-1 Corse factory team. Teammate was the runner-up world champion of the 2004 season , Régis Laconi from France. However, the Kawasaki ZX-10R turned out to be inferior and the Japanese only moved in the lower midfield throughout the season, the best place was eighth in the first run in Assen, the Netherlands . In the second half of the season, Tamada often did not even reach the points. In the overall standings, he finished 20th with 41 points.
Kawasaki then decided to withdraw the status of the works team from the San-Marines PSG-1 troops and to transfer it to the British Paul Bird, who had been leading a successful private team in the British championship and the World Cup for years . Since Tamada has a direct contract with the manufacturer, he joined this team. His teammate is the Australian Broc Parkes .
statistics
| year | Result |
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| 1994 |
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| 1995 | |
| 1996 | |
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| 1998 |
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| 1999 |
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| 2000 |
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| 2001 |
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| 2002 |
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| 2003 |
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| 2004 |
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| 2005 |
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| 2006 |
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| 2007 |
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| 2008 |
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| 2009 |
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| 2010 |
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Web links
- Official website (English, Japanese)
- Makoto Tamada on the official website of the Motorcycle World Championship (English).
- Makoto Tamada on the official website of the Superbike and Supersport World Championship
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Tamada, Makoto |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | 玉田 誠 (Japanese) |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Japanese motorcycle racer |
| DATE OF BIRTH | 4th November 1976 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Matsuyama |