Yamaha has taken one of the biggest steps in their MotoGP history by revealing and racing a completely new V4-powered M1 prototype, a bike that represents both a technical revolution for the Japanese brand and the beginning of a new era. After many months of development and testing behind closed doors, the bike finally appeared in public at Misano during the San Marino Grand Prix weekend, where fans and rivals were able to witness the first laps of a project that had been kept under wraps until now.

For many years, Yamaha stood out as the only factory on the MotoGP grid still committed to an inline-four engine configuration, believing its smoother delivery and balance offered the best way to win races. The results in the past supported that belief, as riders like Jorge Lorenzo and Valentino Rossi won titles with the M1. However, as the sport has evolved and rivals like Ducati refined their V4 engines, Yamaha’s bike has often lacked the acceleration and top speed needed to compete on equal terms. The inline-four was simply running out of time, and so, despite knowing that MotoGP rules will change in 2027 to smaller 850cc engines, Yamaha made the bold decision to invest in building a 1000cc V4 now, with the intention of learning and developing in time for a full switch in 2026.

The official reveal at Misano took place on Thursday inside Yamaha’s hospitality unit, where the V4 bike, in striking blue livery, was shown to the media and paddock. While spy shots and rumours had circulated for months, this was the first time that the bike was formally revealed and confirmed to be ready for competition. Yamaha entrusted the honour of racing it to test rider Augusto Fernandez, who had lined up for the weekend on the new prototype. Fabio Quartararo had already tested the bike in a private test at Barcelona earlier in the week and is expected to give further feedback during the official Misano test on Monday.

When Fernandez went on track for free practice on Friday morning, all eyes were fixed on him. Despite riding a bike with very little real-world data, he was immediately able to lap within a second of the fastest riders, not only showing his talent but also showing the promising base of the new bike. His progress was briefly interrupted when a faulty sensor forced the M1 into an automatic shutdown, but after jumping onto his second bike he quickly resumed running and continued to improve. By the end of the day he had recorded a lap just six tenths slower than Quartararo, and his times were also close to others in Yamaha, a sign that Yamaha’s V4 was already operating in a competitive window.

Fernandez was quick to point out that the new M1 had already solved some of the long-term issues that haunted the older bikes, particularly in terms of rear grip and tyre management. These had been Yamaha’s Achilles’ heel for years, and the test rider noted with relief that the V4 had improved significantly in this area. At the same time, he acknowledged that the inline-four still had strengths in certain parts of the lap, especially in how the bike handled the front end, but he expressed confidence that with more testing the V4 would be able to combine the best of both concepts.

Saturday’s sprint race, however, showed how much work still remains to be done. After qualifying only 22nd in the morning, Fernandez could manage no better than finishing 18th, more than 28 seconds off the lead and around 10 seconds behind the nearest Yamaha. He later admitted that the V4 is extremely sensitive to small set-up changes, often behaving well one session and then feeling completely out the next, which makes it difficult to find a consistent performance window. In addition, he struggled to ride in traffic, something Yamaha had been unable to test in private sessions, and he reported heavy vibrations that made the bike hard to manage, a problem that also affected Quartararo on the current inline-four M1.

Even so, the atmosphere within Yamaha remained positive. Quartararo himself said he was impressed by how close Fernandez had been in practice, praising the speed of the bike and noting that there is still a huge margin to unlock through settings and development. Andrea Dovizioso, who had tested the bike privately, also spoke highly of it, saying that from the very first lap he had felt the V4 had great potential. Project leader Kazuhiro Masuda added that the bike’s progress was in line with expectations and confirmed that further tests are planned in Sepang and Valencia later this year.

It is important to remember that this is not simply a new engine put into an old bike. The switch from inline-four to V4 had forced Yamaha to redesign the entire motorcycle, including its frame, aerodynamics, electronics and even the way the rider interacts with it. Fernandez had already tested different fairing concepts, and the team is preparing more aerodynamic evolutions for upcoming wildcards. There are also plans to race the bike again at the Malaysian Grand Prix in October, which will provide a valuable chance to see how it performs in extreme heat and humidity.

For now, the V4 is not yet faster than the inline-four in every aspect, but it is already showing strengths where the old bike was weakest, and that alone is a sign of optimism. The Japanese factory has also confirmed that Fernandez will continue as its official test rider until at least 2027, ensuring continuity as the project develops and adapts to the new MotoGP rules.

The San Marino Grand Prix weekend may not have delivered results that stand out on the paper so far, but it represented something much more important for Yamaha: the start of a new journey. The V4 is a bold gamble, one that could either bring Yamaha back to winning ways or leave it facing a long rebuilding process, but the early signs suggest that the decision to change course was the right one. The future of its MotoGP programme has arrived, and it is already beginning to show.