It’s a full-fledged motocross bike, yet it’s easy to ride. This is the key to winning races! | 2026 YZ450F Test Ride

Motocross bikes are pure racing machines. In a sense, it is their destiny to continue evolving in order to beat their rivals. This time, we test rode the 2026 Yamaha YZ450F motocross bike to see how much it has evolved.

Choose to win

In the top motocross category, the four domestic manufacturers are joined by KTM, Husqvarna, GASGAS, and others, creating a fierce battle. Amid this fierce competition, the YZ450F is highly rated by riders. When the 2023 model was released, it was particularly praised for its slim, easy-to-control design and ample performance even with the stock suspension. However, by 2025, rivals KTM and Honda had also increased their potential and followed suit. The 2026 YZ450F model aims to achieve the No. 1 performance to win races by completely revising everything from the engine to the chassis and suspension.
The engine was required to be powerful yet easy to handle. To achieve this goal, every detail of the engine has been tweaked. The intake ports and intake ducts have been revised, the ACM rotor’s inertial mass has been increased to improve controllability, and an exhaust resonator has been added to increase mid-range torque. It will undoubtedly be a powerful weapon in fierce battles.

The most notable features of this engine are the increased rev limit and the adoption of a hydraulic clutch. The increased rev limit definitely gives you an advantage in races. On busy courses, there are many situations where you have to shift up and then immediately downshift. A higher rev limit means you can ride through these sections without changing gears. Eliminating the loss caused by gear changes allows the rider to concentrate more on riding.
The hydraulic clutch is a feature that rivals are beginning to adopt. Because there’s no change in free play while riding, some riders have even fitted aftermarket hydraulic clutches to the YZ450F. However, adopting it on a production racer isn’t easy. Some riders accustomed to wire-operated clutches find the different feel unfamiliar. The new YZ450F thoroughly addresses these issues, achieving a feel equal to or better than that of a wire-operated clutch. Furthermore, the spring load has been increased to improve transmission and create a design that makes the clutch less likely to burn out.

High performance yet easy to ride

Tester Goto loves off-road riding, but he doesn’t have much experience with motocross bikes. His last time racing a competitive off-road bike (though that’s a bit of a stretch) was a few years spent racing a Husqvarna motard. This makes it difficult to comment on the performance improvements of the 2026 YZ450F. While I regularly ride off-road bikes on dirt, a top-of-the-line motocross bike is on a whole different level from a production bike. The response and power of a 450cc motocross bike are so intense that if you accidentally open the throttle, you could be thrown off. In fact, when I test-ridden a certain manufacturer’s motocross bike a few years ago, I got so enthusiastic that my arms lifted, and when I moved my right arm over a bump, the bike accelerated on its own, which left me in a panic. Riding a bike with this much power on a full-scale motocross course is completely different from riding a street-grade off-road bike on a forest road.

So I was quite wary of this market, but when I got on the bike I was surprised. The engine is started by a starter and it also has traction control. I thought “It’s evolved to be much friendlier,” but when I started riding it, this impression became even stronger. I realized that it was easier to ride than I had imagined.

In the past, 450cc motocross bikes seemed like something only highly advanced riders could ride, but if you set the power mode to smooth, they’re extremely easy to handle. Even when just cruising around the course, the bike’s light weight and power make for a smooth ride. Excellent throttle management ensures that the bike faithfully responds to the rider’s intentions. There’s no risk of unexpected acceleration. Of course, even in smooth mode, the bike’s power is fully available, and twisting the throttle delivers instantaneous acceleration, but the linear feel of the initial throttle opening makes it easy to understand, so there’s no fear. While the tester’s level doesn’t allow for full utilization of the suspension’s capabilities, you can still appreciate its excellent handling. The high front end’s grip on the road helps you gradually get used to it, and as you increase your pace, you’ll find yourself plunging into gaps at high speeds, but the bike simply glides along as if nothing happened. Rather than delivering pinpoint performance, the bike has a very wide tolerance range.

After riding for a while and getting used to it, switching to standard power mode increased response by about 20%, allowing for sharp acceleration over short distances. Even so, there was no abrupt throttle response, and the machine accelerated exactly as the rider intended, without any change. Not only has the inherent power of a 450cc been refined, but the YZ450F has also made significant advances in ease of handling, making it so enjoyable that even intermediate-level riders can enjoy motocross. These characteristics will surely prove effective even when top riders are engaged in fierce battles.

Detailed explanation