Nobuatsu Aoki joined Proton Team KR IN 2002 after a year away from racing. It triggered a spectacular career revival. The former GP winner rapidly found top form, and joined McWilliams in giving the Proton KR3 its best ever season.
Although McWilliams got the glory of the fastest laps, Aoki actually finished ahead of him in the World Championship, saving his best efforts for race day.
Now he too sees his role change, from last-of-the-breed two-stroke racer to a pioneer development rider on the radical new Proton KR V5 four-stroke.
He is relishing the task. “I have a lot of experience, especially with Bridgestone, in understanding motorcycle set-up and feeling,” he said.
“I also think I was able to work well with my team last year. We have very good understanding, and the engineers are also very experienced. It will be very interesting to develop the V5, to find out how to get the best out of something completely new, and I am confident we will do it,” continued Aoki.
“Of course, most of all I like to race – and that’s what our aim is. To make the V5 into a competitive racing bike as soon as possible.”
Aoki – soft-spoken and multi-lingual – was one of the trail-blazing Banzai brigade that sprang out of intensely competitive Japanese pocket-bike racing. An instant hit in the 250 class, he won a GP in his first full season, and was a regular top-ten championship finisher. He moved to the 500 class in 1997, where he was an amazing third in his debut season.
Aoki then switched to Suzuki during a lean period for the factory team; though he still managed top-ten championship finishes. In 2001 he found himself with an interesting choice: an uncertain GP future, or a top place in a dedicated tyre testing team, formed by Bridgestone tyres in preparation for their MotoGP class entry in 2002.
A slump turned into a huge benefit, as Aoki used the year in a full-time study of motorcycle tyre, suspension and chassis performance. “I learned such a lot during that test programme,” he said.
When he returned to racing with Proton Team KR last year, he brought that experience with him. The result was plain to see, in a thoughtful and consistent rider who was also extremely fast.
Nobuatsu is the eldest of three famous “Fireball Brothers”. Middle brother Takuma was on the brink of a highly promisng GP career when cut short by injury; third Aoki Haruchika twice won the 125cc World Championship.
Nobu raced from the age of 11, rising to the top in the Pocket Bike boom of the mid-Eighties to be hand-picked for a factory Honda in the All-Japan 250 series. He was third in a wild card GP debut in 1992.
Unmarried, Aoki lives in Monaco, but visits his home at Gumma in Japan as often as possible. During the winter, he is a passionate snow-boarder, using the sport to keep fit and his reflexes sharp.
Career Highlights:
Starts: 132
Poles: 1
Wins: 2
Best Championship Rankings:
250cc: 6th
500GP/MotoGP: 3rd
2002: World Championship MotoGP ‚ 12th (Proton KR)
2001: Bridgestone Tyre Test Team (Honda)
2000: World Championship 500cc ‚ 10th (Suzuki)
1999: World Championship 500cc ‚ 13th (Suzuki)
1998: World Championship 500cc ‚ Ninth (Suzuki)
1997: World Championship 500cc ‚ Third (Honda)
1996:World Championship 250cc ‚ Seventh (Honda)
1995: World Championship 250cc ‚ Sixth (Honda)
1994: World Championship 250cc‚ 10th (Honda)
1993: First GP Season, Malaysian GP - First (Honda)
World Championship 250cc ‚ 11th (Honda)
1992: Japanese GP (Wild Card) ‚ Third (Honda)
All-Japan 250cc Championship ‚ Third (Honda)
1991: Japanese GP (Wild Card) ‚ Fifth (Honda)
All-Japan 250cc Championship ‚ Third (Honda)
1990: First GP, Japan (Wild Card) ‚ Eighth (Honda)
All-Japan 250cc Championship ‚ Eighth (Honda)
1989: All-Japan TT-F3 Championship ‚ Second
All-Japan 250cc Championship ‚ 13th
1988: Triple Japanese Minibike Champion
1986: 50cc Minibike ‚ multiple race winner
1985: Japanese Pocketbike Championship - First
1983: First race, Pocketbike
1982: First motorcycle