Yamaha paid tribute to Fabrizio Pirovano at the final round of the 2020 FIM Superbike World Championship, which was held at the Circuito Estoril in Portugal on 17th and 18th October. 27 years ago, the same circuit was the venue for the WorldSBK season finale and, representing Yamaha, Fabrizio Pirovano took his 10th and final WorldSBK victory in a rain disrupted and hotly contested Race 1.

“The King of Monza” retired from the sport in 2006. He sadly passed away in 2016 after a long battle with cancer.

In his honour, a special 'Piro' Replica R1 was taken to the track and, immediately ahead of the final WorldSBK race on Sunday, 18th October, Piro's close friend Alessandro Gramigni rode a lap of the circuit. The replica, which is based around a 2020 Yamaha R1, was created by Yamaha Motor Europe and is adorned with the famous white and pink colours of the #5 Yamaha YZF 750 SP, on which Pirovano rode to victory at the Circuito Estoril in 1993.

After the race, the Piro replica R1 was auctioned online with all proceeds going to the cancer research charity, Fondazione Oncologia Niguarda Onlus, which the Pirovano family have supported since Fabrizio’s passing.

Yamaha is happy to announce that a total of EUR 27,000 was raised for the charity.

Visit Yamaha’s Racing website to learn more about Fabrizio Pirovano.