Lin Jarvis, Yamaha Managing Director and Team Principal, will leave the Iwata factory at the end of the season following 26 years of service. Instrumental in aiding the Japanese manufacturer’s rise to the pinnacle of the sport, including persuading Valentino Rossi to join from Honda in 2004, the Brit has revealed that this will be his final campaign with the team: "This will be my last season at Yamaha, I will quit at the end of the year.
"I will decide later what I'm going to do, what I will dedicate my time to," Jarvis told
autosport.com at the Americas GP.
"I started the factory team in 1999. It has been an unusually long period. I'm 66 years old now and I'm starting to get a little tired of travelling. I've been doing this for 26 years, and it's quite extraordinary for the same person to lead a project, in a factory, for such a long period.
"The time has come to do something new. It's the ideal time to make this transition. We have to be able to close my chapter and start the new one, in harmony. That is the best solution for both parties.”
Jarvis also revealed that his probable replacement has already been found, with an internal appointment to be made.
"We have already identified the candidate who will most likely become my successor, although it has not yet been made official. But it will be a man from the Yamaha group, who will take over my position in January next year."
Autosport suggests that Jarvis’ replacement will be Paolo Pavessio, currently the marketing and racing department director for Yamaha Europe.
The news comes just days after
Fabio Quartararo inked a new deal with Yamaha, and amid talks that they are planning to add an Independent Team to their ranks in the near future.
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