Katsuyuki Nakasuga Claims Career 13th Title in Japan’s Premier JSB1000 Class

October 7, 2025

October 7, 2025—On October 5, Round 6 of the All Japan Road Race Championship was held at Okayama International Circuit. Yamaha Factory Racing Team rider Katsuyuki Nakasuga, riding a YZF-R1 in the premier JSB1000 class, crossed the finish line to claim his 13th career title at the age of 44, 18 years after his first title win in 2008 at the age of 27.

For Yamaha Motor Co., Ltd., this marks eight consecutive JSB1000 titles; a streak which began in 2018. It is Yamaha’s 15th overall title in the class. (Katsuyuki Nakasuga: 13 titles, Yuki Okamoto: 1 title, Kohta Nozane: 1 title).

This season, the 11-year-old 2025 model YZF-R1 is now further-refined after adopting new winglets. While Nakasuga missed out on victory at the season-opening Motegi 2&4 Race, finishing second, he won both races at Round 2 in SUGO, propelling himself and the R1 to the top of the standings before heading into the summer break with plenty of momentum.

Returning from the summer break at Round 4 in Motegi, Nakasuga lost out to a rival in both races but scored double 2nd places, gaining valuable points and opening a 24-point championship lead. At the following Round 5 in Kyushu, his home race, he took the win. As his closest championship rival was absent, Nakasuga was able to extend his points lead to 74, putting him on the verge of clinching the title heading into Round 6.

On Saturday in the wet, Nakasuga qualified 3rd for a front-row start. The race proved to be dry, and once he took the lead on lap two, he pulled away to build up a gap of over 13 seconds before cruising to his fifth win of the season and 94th career victory. In crossing the finish line, he claimed his 13th JSB1000 title, breaking his own record as the most successful rider in All Japan Road Race Championship history. Across the six events and eight races held this season, Nakasuga scored five wins and took three 2nd-places, meaning he stood on the podium in every race. At the upcoming 57th MFJ Grand Prix Superbike Race at Suzuka Circuit on October 25-26, his aim is to close out the season with another win.

Katsuyuki Nakasuga
“It was everyone waving Yamaha flags and showing their support that gave me the inspiration I needed to take the title back. Here at Okayama, I only needed one point to clinch the title, so I could have played it safe and guaranteed the title win, but that isn’t my normal racing style. Instead, I just focused on racing hard for the win like in any other race.
This is my 13th title, but the situation is different every year, so when we have these title-decider races I always feel the pressure. At Round 1 in Motegi, I got to see how fast my rivals were. At Round 2 at Sportsland SUGO, there was the pressure of knowing that if I didn't win, I could lose momentum. So doing the double there was big for me, because I did it while purposely racing to win. It also boosted the team's motivation and gave us some great momentum.
I want to say a big thank you to the whole crew who always set the bike up just right for me to be competitive. This title was earned by everyone, including our fans.”

Team Manager Wataru Yoshikawa
“First of all, achieving our main goal of winning the title has lifted a weight off my shoulders as Team Manager. Right from the opening round at Motegi, we saw our rivals start to gain strength, so I knew this was going to be a tough season. However, we managed to harness that tension in the right way and find our rhythm. Of course, winning back-to-back at SUGO was a high point, but the whole team, including Nakasuga, learned to fight strategically throughout the year. At every track we went to, the fans who came to our pit box to cheer us on gave us encouragement and the power we needed to keep fighting. So, I have to say thank you very much.”

Kazuhiro Uehara - Group Leader, Motor Sports Section, Motor Sports Strategy Division
“We knew our rivals would be stronger this year, so our whole team, the riders, the development staff, and management all came together and fought with everything we had. We won the title thanks to everyone doing their best in their own individual roles. I believe it was possible thanks to the passionate support of our fans and sponsors, who cheered for us through it all, on cold days, hot days, rainy days, foggy days, no matter what. I’d like to express our thanks once again and share this great achievement with everyone. We’ll be working hard to deliver another strong race at the final round of the season, so please keep cheering us on.”