Quick Facts
Biography
Katsuyuki Nakasuga (中須賀 克行, Nakasuga Katsuyuki, born 9 August 1981 in Fukuoka Prefecture) is a Japanese motorcycle racer. He races a Yamaha YZF-R1 in the MFJ All Japan JSB1000 Championship.
Career
A former competitor in the MFJ All Japan Road Race GP250 Championship between 1999 and 2005, Nakasuga moved into the All Japan Superbike Championship, winning the title in 2008, 2009, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015 and 2016 for Yamaha.
Nakasuga had his premier class Grand Prix start at the Valencia circuit at the final race of the 2011 season as a replacement for the injured Jorge Lorenzo, finishing a creditable sixth place. In 2012, he made a wild-card appearance for Yamaha at his home race at Motegi, finishing ninth, before making another appearance for the factory team at Valencia, this time in place of the injured Ben Spies. Taking advantage of a wet circuit and numerous retirements ahead of him, Nakasuga was able to finish a distant second behind race winner Dani Pedrosa, becoming the only Japanese rider to score a podium finish in any class during 2012.
He won the Suzuka 8 Hours in 2015 with Pol Espargaró and Bradley Smith and in 2016 with Espargaró and Alex Lowes.
Alongside his racing duties, he currently is the lead test rider for Yamaha in MotoGP.
Career statistics
Grand Prix motorcycle racing
By season
| Season | Class | Motorcycle | Team | Race | Win | Podium | Pole | FLap | Pts | Plcd |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | 250cc | Yamaha | Technospeed Nakasuga | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 31st |
| 2003 | 250cc | Yamaha | SP Tadao Racing Team | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | NC |
| 2004 | 250cc | Yamaha | SP Tadao Racing Team | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | NC |
| 2011 | MotoGP | Yamaha | Yamaha Factory Racing | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 18th |
| 2012 | MotoGP | Yamaha | Yamaha YSP Racing Team Yamaha Factory Racing | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 27 | 18th |
| 2013 | MotoGP | Yamaha | Yamaha YSP Racing Team | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 22nd |
| 2014 | MotoGP | Yamaha | Yamalube Racing Team with YSP | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 26th |
| 2015 | MotoGP | Yamaha | Yamaha Factory Racing Team | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 23rd |
| 2016 | MotoGP | Yamaha | Yamalube Yamaha Factory Racing | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 23rd |
| Total | 10 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 63 |
Races by year
(key)
| Year | Class | Bike | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | Pos. | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | 250cc | Yamaha | JPN | RSA | SPA | FRA | ITA | CAT | NED | GBR | GER | CZE | POR | BRA | PAC 12 | MAL | AUS | VAL | 31st | 4 | ||
| 2003 | 250cc | Yamaha | JPN Ret | RSA | SPA | FRA | ITA | CAT | NED | GBR | GER | CZE | POR | BRA | PAC | MAL | AUS | VAL | NC | 0 | ||
| 2004 | 250cc | Yamaha | RSA | SPA | FRA | ITA | CAT | NED | BRA | GER | GBR | CZE | POR | JPN 20 | QAT | MAL | AUS | VAL | NC | 0 | ||
| 2011 | MotoGP | Yamaha | QAT | SPA | POR | FRA | CAT | GBR | NED | ITA | GER | USA | CZE | IND | RSM | ARA | JPN | AUS | MAL C | VAL 6 | 18th | 10 |
| 2012 | MotoGP | Yamaha | QAT | SPA | POR | FRA | CAT | GBR | NED | GER | ITA | USA | IND | CZE | RSM | ARA | JPN 9 | MAL | AUS | VAL 2 | 18th | 27 |
| 2013 | MotoGP | Yamaha | QAT | AME | SPA | FRA | ITA | CAT | NED | GER | USA | IND | CZE | GBR | RSM | ARA | MAL | AUS | JPN 11 | VAL | 22nd | 5 |
| 2014 | MotoGP | Yamaha | QAT | AME | ARG | SPA | FRA | ITA | CAT | NED | GER | IND | CZE | GBR | RSM | ARA | JPN 12 | AUS | MAL | VAL | 26th | 4 |
| 2015 | MotoGP | Yamaha | QAT | AME | ARG | SPA | FRA | ITA | CAT | NED | GER | IND | CZE | GBR | RSM | ARA | JPN 8 | AUS | MAL | VAL | 23rd | 8 |
| 2016 | MotoGP | Yamaha | QAT | ARG | AME | SPA | FRA | ITA | CAT | NED | GER | AUT | CZE | GBR | RSM | ARA | JPN 11 | AUS | MAL | VAL | 23rd | 5 |
Suzuka 8 Hours results
| Year | Team | Co-Riders | Bike | Pos. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 |  Yamaha Factory Racing Team |  Pol Espargaró Bradley Smith | Yamaha YZF-R1 | 1st |
| 2016 | Yamaha Factory Racing Team | Pol Espargaró Alex Lowes | Yamaha YZF-R1 | 1st |