Shuhei Aoyama (born December 5, 1984, in Ichihara, Chiba) is a former Grand Prix motorcycle road racer. He is the younger brother of MotoGP rider Hiroshi Aoyama.

Shuhei Aoyama
Aoyama at Brands Hatch in 2008
NationalityJapanese
BornDecember 5, 1984
Ichihara, Chiba
Motorcycle racing career statistics
Grand Prix motorcycle racing
Active years20012002, 2004, 2006 - 2007, 2009
First race2001 125cc Pacific Grand Prix
Last race2009 250cc Valencian Grand Prix
Team(s)Honda
Championships0
Starts Wins Podiums Poles F. laps Points
47 0 1 1 0 243

He rode in the All-Japan Road Racing Championship until 2005, when he won the 250cc championship with Honda. He previously won the 125cc championship in 2003, also with Honda. He also rode a couple of events as wildcard rider in the Grand Prix World Championships during his stint in Japan.

After winning the 250cc championship in Japan, Aoyama secured a Grand Prix World Championships ride with Honda's 250cc factory team in 2006. He replaced his brother Hiroshi Aoyama, who moved to KTM. He scored his first podium finish with a third-place at Le Mans, finishing just ahead of his brother, Hiroshi. He finished the season eighth in overall standings with 99 points and was named as Rookie Of The Year for his performance in his debut season.[1] In 2007, he remained with the team, but he failed to improved on his rookie season. He failed to record a podium finish and finished the season 12th in overall standings. However, he recorded his first pole position in his home race at Motegi.

In 2008, he moved to World Superbike. He once again teamed up with Honda, riding a Honda CBR1000RR motorcycle with Alto Evolution Honda Superbike. However, he struggled to adapt with the bigger 1000 cc four-stroke bike and only managed two point-scoring position.

Aoyama was left without a permanent ride in 2009, but he made a return to 250cc Grand Prix World Championships as a wild-card rider in his home race at Motegi. He finished with a 6th place after starting from 17th on the grid.

It was not possible to find a contract for the 2010 season even though he wanted to aim for the world title. Aoyama announced his active service retirement on his own blog on February 8, 2010. Afterwards, he participated in the Japanese Auto Race series.

Career statistics

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Grand Prix motorcycle racing

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By season

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Season Class Motorcycle Team Number Races Win Podium Pole FLap Pts Plcd
2001 125cc Honda Showa Denki Team Harc-Pro 66 1 0 0 0 0 0 NC
2002 125cc Honda Showa Denki 66 2 0 0 0 0 21 20th
PEV Moto ADAC Sachsen 2 0 0 0 0
2003 125cc Honda Team Harc-Pro 66 2 0 0 0 0 0 NC
2004 250cc Honda Team Harc-Pro 76 1 0 0 0 0 8 26th
2005 250cc Honda Team Harc-Pro 75 1 0 0 0 0 0 NC
2006 250cc Honda Repsol Honda 73 16 0 1 0 0 99 8th
2007 250cc Honda Repsol Honda 250cc 73 17 0 0 1 0 90 12th
2009 250cc Honda Harc-Pro 73 1 0 0 0 0 10 19th
Racing Team Germany 4 0 0 0 0
Total 47 0 1 1 0 243

Races by year

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(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position, races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year Class Bike 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 Pos Pts
2001 125cc Honda JPN RSA SPA FRA ITA CAT NED GBR GER CZE POR VAL PAC
Ret
AUS MAL BRA NC 0
2002 125cc Honda JPN
6
RSA SPA FRA ITA CAT NED
25
GBR
10
GER CZE POR BRA PAC
11
MAL AUS VAL 20th 21
2003 125cc Honda JPN
Ret
RSA SPA FRA ITA CAT NED GBR GER CZE POR BRA PAC
21
MAL AUS VAL NC 0
2004 250cc Honda RSA SPA FRA ITA CAT NED BRA GER GBR CZE POR JPN
8
QAT MAL AUS VAL 26th 8
2005 250cc Honda SPA POR CHN FRA ITA CAT NED GBR GER CZE JPN
Ret
MAL QAT AUS TUR VAL NC 0
2006 250cc Honda SPA
Ret
QAT
13
TUR
Ret
CHN
8
FRA
3
ITA
9
CAT
Ret
NED
12
GBR
13
GER
9
CZE
6
MAL
6
AUS
5
JPN
6
POR
Ret
VAL
6
8th 99
2007 250cc Honda QAT
10
SPA
7
TUR
16
CHN
Ret
FRA
9
ITA
6
CAT
11
GBR
5
NED
13
GER
12
CZE
9
RSM
6
POR
Ret
JPN
9
AUS
8
MAL
13
VAL
17
12th 90
2009 250cc Honda QAT JPN
6
SPA FRA ITA CAT NED GER GBR CZE INP RSM POR
12
AUS
14
MAL
10
VAL
11
19th 27

References

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  1. ^ "Shuhei Aoyama". motogp.com. Dorna Sports S.L. Retrieved 5 April 2014.
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