Yamaha U.S. Factory Roadrace Team Commemorates 50th Anniversary With Yellow And Black Race Bikes In celebration of its 50th anniversary, the U.S. Factory Yamaha road race team’s YZF-R6s and Graves Motorsports YZF-R1s will race “old school” today only with yellow and black color schemes carrying the traditional black and white “Yamaha strobe” graphics during the AMA Supersport and Superstock races at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca. As a further nod to the past, the designer of the original paint scheme, Molly Sanders, was enlisted to paint the new race machines. The Yamaha factory racing colors from the past are indelibly associated with road racing and dirt track legends from the 1970s like Kenny Roberts, Kel Carruthers, and Eddie Lawson. Keith McCarty, Yamaha racing manager, says the colors bring back a lot of memories. “I’ve seen a lot of guys win championships with wearing the ‘bumblebee’ colors both roadracers and motocrossers. It will be fun to see Aaron Gobert, Damon Buckmaster and Jason DiSalvo on the line in yellow and black!” Watch for Team Yamaha riders to “buzz” the competition in AMA Superstock and AMA Supersport classes. Editorial Note: Yamaha Motor Corp. U.S.A. currently does not have any plans to sell production bikes with the “Bumblebee” racing color scheme.