The Yamaha R1 has carried championship-winning pedigree across both national and international competition for more than two and a half decades. Since its introduction to the racing scene, it has established itself as one of the most successful machines in the two-wheeled world – earning seven British Superbike titles from 2009 onwards, while also proving its worth on the world stage with FIM Superbike World Championship titles with Ben Spies in 2009 and Toprak Razgatlioğlu in 2021.

The R1’s most recent international triumph came in Endurance racing, as the YART squad claimed the 2025 Endurance World Championship title.

For McAMS Yamaha, the 998cc powerhouse has been the cornerstone of the team’s success in British Superbikes, delivering title glory with Tarran Mackenzie in 2021 – a landmark year in which the team secured both the Riders’ and Teams’ Championships simultaneously after taking victory in a remarkable 22 out of 33 races

Over eight seasons contesting the British Superbike Championship aboard the Yamaha R1, the outfit has amassed over 100 podium finishes and over 50 race victories – statistics that firmly cement the squad’s status as one of the most successful teams in BSB history.

Team owners Raceways Motorcycles made their BSB debut in 2017 and have remained loyal to the Yamaha R1 ever since. Last season, following a sabbatical, they returned to the series and immediately made their mark – constructing a record-breaking campaign and claiming ten victories from the opening twelve races alone.

At the heart of the McAMS Yamaha R1 lies a 998cc liquid-cooled, forward-inclined parallel four-cylinder engine, featuring DOHC architecture and four valves per cylinder. Producing in excess of 230 bhp, the unit is fed via fuel injection and managed through a MoTeC system, channelling power through a six-speed constant mesh gearbox and chain final drive. The result is a finely tuned, race-bred powerhouse – renowned for its smooth power delivery and corner speed that has long defined the R1’s success in BSB.

As the officially supported team for Yamaha Motor UK, the McAMS Yamaha squad receive race-developed parts and technical support from Yamaha Motor Europe Research and Development in Italy – with many of the chassis’ parts featured on the BSB-specification R1 to those of Andrea Locatelli and Xavi Vierge’s WorldSBK spec machines.

The R1’s chassis is equally formidable, built around an aluminium casting frame and equipped with Öhlins 46mm front forks offering 135mm of travel, complemented by a link-assisted rear swingarm with 100mm of wheel travel. Braking duties are handled by Brembo hydraulic discs – a 336mm dual setup at the front and a 218mm single disc at the rear – while Pirelli rubber across both 17-inch wheels ensures maximum grip. Weighing in at just 168kg wet and spanning a 1,450mm wheelbase, the R1 strikes the ideal balance between agility and stability, making it a competitive package within the domestic national series.