Guintoli gifted Hayabusa as Suzuki ‘Thank you’

Suzuki MotoGP tester and Endurance World Champion Sylvain Guintoli is now the proud owner of a Yoshimura SERT Motul replica Hayabusa.

To celebrate both Guintoli’s on track success and integral part in Suzuki’s recent racing achievements across the championships, the Frenchman was presented with a third generation Hayabusa sporting the iconic red and black livery of Yoshimura-powered endurance machines.

Enjoying the new steed during a track day at his local Donington Park, the Frenchman was openly enthused.

“Firstly, the bike looks amazing,” Guintoli confirmed. “I have to thank Suzuki for this beautiful bike to celebrate our successes over the past few years.

“Out on track the Hayabusa is fantastic, the throttle response is so linear and power delivery is smooth, it inspires so much confidence to push harder! While this is a stock bike, the Hayabusa held its own here at Donington today.”

Winner of both the Le Mans 24-hour and the Bol d’Or with Suzuki last season on his way to the 2021 EWC title with teammates Gregg Black and Xavier Simeon, Guintoli kicked off the team’s defence by repeating the achievement at the prestigious Le Mans 24-hour earlier this year. The Yoshimura-backed outfit currently lead the standings by 15 points after two rounds ahead of Suzuka 8-hour at the start of August.

The 40-year-old has also been heavily involved in the Suzuki Ecstar MotoGP project as test rider, assisting in the development which took Joan Mir to the 2020 MotoGP World Championship, however, now finds himself out of a job due to the manufacturer quitting its involvement at the close of the current season.