Turnkey RaceTeam: Pro 2015 Yamaha R3s

In Japan, Race by Tim HuberLeave a Comment

I recently sat down with Axcess Racing Team owner Dr. Laura Ellis for an interview about starting her team (that won the championship its first year!) and other race-related topics. It became increasingly clear to me that starting up a racing team, even one using “entry-level” production bikes is beyond taxing. It’s for this reason that makes coming across a turn-key racing team so noteworthy, especially when the machinery being sold is of such a professional-caliber like this pair of pro-grade racing R3’s that are currently on the market. Each machine features over $12k in aftermarket parts and that’s before accounting for the hours of professional labor for both bikes.

Offered up for sale are two identical (aside from the paint) 2015 Yamaha R3’s that have both undergone a complete transformation resulting in a pair of top-of-the-line 300cc production-based racers that are 100% ready for competition. The complete build lists are available upon request from the seller who was nice enough to email it to me for this post, however it’s extensive length means I’m only going to include a few highlights but it did cement to me how special these two particular Yamaha’s really are. Unsurprisingly both bikes wear full Öhlins suspension, Dynojet quick-shifters, shift-rods and custom fuel mapping, all sitting atop pairs of Dunlop racing slicks wrapped around the powder-coated rims.

The rest of the parts list is made up of premium components from names like Graves, Woodcraft, Driven, Antigravity, CRG, and a few others, along with a handful of lightweight aluminum parts and even a few one-off custom parts that the team fabricated for these special two-wheelers. The Amrour Bodies plastics both sport race-ready fully-custom paint-jobs with matching rims along with custom saddles that have been raised by two-inches. Interestingly these bikes feature front master-cylinders off a ’06 R1 paired with a 4-piston front-caliper conversion from a ’98 Ducati 900SS, connected via braided-lines. These bikes are both completely safety-wired and boast onboard lap-timers and transponders making them that much more race-ready. One of these machines has only 300 miles under its belt while the other has clocked 900 miles in its lifetime.

Why I personally find these machines so appealing, apart from the fact they’re both outfitted with today’s most advanced components all professionally installed, is because these are track-bikes that can actually be ridden and pushed to their limits by mere mortals like myself. As epic as modern liter-bikes are, the vast majority of non-professional pilots can’t even begin to come close to fully exploiting the capabilities of larger machines, again, myself included. So while some may turn their nose up at the smaller displacement of these R3’s, in my book; it makes them that much cooler. I don’t love the Batman-themed livery but it’s no reason to overlook the awesomeness that these two racers exude.

Having received an option to transition to racing the new R6, the seller has put both of these top-notch R3’s up for sale along with dozens of extra parts such as spare bodywork, and sets of tires and rims that running a race team would necessitate. Also included in the sale are different fuel mapping and finely-tuned suspension setups which will in-theory save the buyer dozens of man-hours. These two 2015 Yamaha R3s can be purchased individually for $9,500 each or you can buy the entire turnkey team with both bikes for $19,000 with these offerings here on Craigslist in West Hills, CA.