Yasutomo Nagai

Nagai in 1993 on a Yamaha at the Suzuka 8-hour race

Yasutomo Nagai ( Japanese 永 井 康 友 , Nagai Yasutomo ; born October 29, 1965 in Koshigaya , Saitama Prefecture , Japan ; † September 12, 1995 in Assen , Netherlands ) was a Japanese motorcycle racer .

Career

Yasu , as he was called, started his racing career on minibikes . He drove his first road race in 1986 at the age of 21. Since 1989 he started for Yamaha .

Superbike World Championship

Yasutomo Nagai made his debut in 1994 in Sugo, Japan, as a wildcard pilot in his home race in the Superbike World Championship . He was able to take pole position straight away for the Yamaha team YRTR . In the two races he finished third and fifth out of 40 drivers who started.

In 1995 , Yasutomo Nagai was appointed as a regular rider in the Yamaha works team, the Yamaha World Superbike Team . On September 10, 1995, he was seriously injured in an accident during the second run of the day in Assen, the Netherlands . On the penultimate lap of the race he slipped on the oil of a driver in front of him and crashed badly. He was hit by his motorcycle and suffered severe skull injuries . The race was stopped and Yasu was taken to the hospital.

At 9:40 pm on September 12, 1995, Nagai died of serious injuries in the hospital in Assen in the presence of his girlfriend and parents. The Yamaha works team withdrew its second rider Colin Edwards from the remaining four races of the season. At the time of his death, Yasu was fourth in the world championship and fifth in the final standings.

Results

• 1994 - Superbike World Championship , YRTR, 2 races, 24th , 26 points (1 podium, 1 pole position)
• 1995 - Superbike World Championship, Yamaha World Superbike Team, 5th , 188 points (2 podiums, 1 pole position, 1 fastest race lap)

Web links

• Yasutomo Nagai on the official website of the Superbike and Supersport World Championship
• Nagai at www.motorsportmemorial.org (English)