Full Name: Noriyuki Haga
Date of Birth: 2nd March 1975
Place of Birth: Aichi, Japan
First Race: 1980
World Superbike Debut: 1994
Grand Prix Debut: 1998

 

Noriyuki Haga first became popular with race fans around the world with his distinctive style and his determined, all-out racing attitude. His spectacular performances on the Yamaha four cylinder 750cc superbike earned him nicknames such as 'Nitro Nori' and 'The Samurai of slide'. Noriyuki is married with two sons.

 

Noriyuki got his first minibike in 1979 and made his debut in pocket bike racing in 1980. He didn't start road racing until 1992 when he finished in 13th place in the All-Japan 250cc Championship. In 1993, Noriyuki raced with Jun'ichi Matsushita in the Suzuka 8 Hour on a Yamaha.

 

In 1994 Haga finished in 9th place in the Japanese Superbike Championship and raced with Masanari Hirayama in the Suzuka 8 Hour riding a Yamaha. This year also saw Haga make his debut in the World Superbike Championship. He raced his Ducati at the Sugo round, finishing in 12th place in race two.

 

Haga finished 10th in the Japanese Superbike Championship in 1995 and also had his second season in the World Superbike Championship. He rode a Yamaha YZF750SP for team YDS and scored two 2nd places.

 

In 1996, Noriyuki finished in 8th place in the Japanese Superbike Championship. His bike was run by Techno Motor Engineering and he had six top four places including a win at Sugo. He raced at Sugo in the World Superbike Championship finishing in 2nd place in race one. In the Suzuka 8 Hours he rode alongside Colin Edwards as they took victory.

 

Noriyuki rode a Marlboro Yamaha YZF750 in 1997 winning seven races and finishing second three times. These results earned him The Japanese Superbike Championship. Near the end of the season he filled in for Edwards, who was injured, in the Yamaha World Superbike Team. He rode in four races resulting in a win, a second, a third and a fifth place. These results earned him a full time ride for 1998. In the Suzuka 8 Hour his team mate was his brother, Kensuka Haga, and they finished in 17th position.

 

Riding on Dunlop tyres, as opposed to his team mates Michelins, his results for 1998 were above expectations for the bike. He set pole in Spain and won five races and with fourteen finishes in the top eight. He scored 258 points, finishing in 6th place overall. He also raced for the Yamaha Racing Team in the 500cc Japanese Grand Prix finishing in 3rd place as well as racing twice in Japanese Superbikes, finishing 5th and 7th. With his team mate, Simon Crafar, he finished in 6th place in the Suzuka 8 Hour.

 

1999 was a good year for Haga, but not a great one. This season he was riding the new Yamaha YZF-R7 with Michelin tyres. His racing was consistent, although he only took one win (in Spain) and finished the season on 196 points and in 7th position. With Regis Laconi, he finished in 4th place in the Suzuka 8 Hour.

 

Haga had some impressive results in his third season in the World Superbike Championship in 2000. Challenging for the title, he was penalised for taking performance enhanced drugs after a rapid weight loss programme. He was able to win five races and although he was disqualified from one of these races. He still managed another fifteen top four results. His challenge for the title was thwarted by the ban but he still finished in 2nd place with 335 points overall.

 

2001 saw a GP outing and Haga was back on a 500cc Yamaha for the first full season. Again he was riding on Michelin tyres and was in the top six for several races, but unfortunately he had too many crashes. He scored 59 points finishing in equal 14th place.

 

Returning to World Superbikes in 2002, and riding the Aprilia RSV1000, Haga was more at home. Although his bike was not up to the Hondas or Ducatis, he put it on pole in Sugo and set four fastest laps during the season. The best chance he had of winning was at Laguna Seca but he came off whilst trying to pass Edwards. His final score was 278 points, giving him a 4th place finish.

 

In 2003 Haga moved back to MotoGP but with Aprilia but the bike proved a difficult one to master. He was unable to qualify above the fourth row. His results were disappointing and his best was a 7th place. His contract was not renewed as he finished on 47 points and 14th place overall.

 

It was back to World Superbikes in 2004, this time with Ducati. Noriyuki looked in good form, winning the second race. Unfortunately, there were problems in Italy and Germany but he did manage five more wins, fourteen results in the top four plus seven fastest laps. Scoring 299 points gave him 3rd place overall in the Championship.

 

Yamaha returned to World Superbikes in 2005 for the first time since 2000. Noriyuki joined the team and rode the YZF-R1 superbike. He took the bike's first wins at Brno and Brands Hatch and after this always seemed to be on the podium. His score was 271 points at the end of the season and 3rd place overall.

 

Haga remained with Yamaha in World Superbikes for 2006. He chased Bayliss early in the season, but the Ducati rider eventually won the Championship by almost a hundred points. Haga was pipped for second place by James Toseland, riding the Ten Kate Honda. He finished in third position for the third season in a row.

 

For 2007 Haga was once again riding for Yamaha, alongside new team mate and former Champion, Troy Corser. As a strong challenger he started the season slowly but gradually worked his way into being one of the contenders for the title, along with Toseland and Biaggi. A double win at Monza kick started his challenge. Four podiums from the six races leading up to the final round saw him arrive at Magny Cours with a chance of winning the title. The Japanese rider did all he could, in winning both of the final races, but was ultimately pipped to the title by Toseland by just one point.

 

Yamaha signed Haga again for 2008, together with team mate Troy Corser.

 

2007: 2nd place - World Superbike Championship
2006: 3rd place - World Superbike Championship
2005: 3rd place - World Superbike Championship
2004: 3rd place - World Superbike Championship
2003: 14th place - MotoGP World Championship
2002: 4th place - World Superbike Championship
2001: 14th place - 500cc Grand Prix Championship
2000: 2nd place - World Superbike Championship
1999: 7th place - World Superbike Championship
1998: 6th place - World Superbike Championship
1997: 1st place - All Japan Superbike Championship
13th place - World Superbike Championship
1996: 8th place - All Japan Superbike Championship
1st place - Suzuki 8 Hour
1995: 10th place - All Japan Superbike Championship
1994: 9th place - All Japan Superbike Championship
1993: 13th place - All Japan 250cc Championship