I was not able to make up with Norick. That's what I regret.

Norifumi Abe, a.k.a. Norick, dreamed of becoming a professional rider and honed his skills at Circuit Akigase before venturing off to train in the United States. He became the youngest ever All-Japan Road Race Champion and made his debut in the World Road Race Championship, aiming to become the champion in the highest class.Always looking forward, he opened up his life as a rider with his face up, and his overwhelming aura and dazzling smile won the hearts of his fans.From Norick's childhood, to his friends at Circuit Akigase, to the All Japan Road Race and World Road Race Championships, the people he met at each of the places where he worked so hard to make a difference in the lives of others have shared their memories of him.

Norick was in a corps full of fast riders.

I was about 15 years old when I started riding motorcycles, and I was racing mini-bikes at the New Tokyo Circuit when the Circuit Akigase motorsport team came on an expedition. There were Norifumi Abe, Makoto Takeda, Daijiro Kato, Nagazumi Kameya, Yuichi Takeda, and others, and each of them was winning all over the place in their respective classes.I think there was someone, a producer, who measured the riders' abilities and divided them into classes so that they could win. In every class, the motorsporting was very active, and there was an army of fast riders. Norick was older than me, but I didn't feel like he was my big brother.I had just started riding, so I couldn't win at all. I had just started riding, and I couldn't beat him at all. That was frustrating, so I did my best. I rode selflessly, and a year later I couldn't win, and I often fell down, but I was able to ride at the same level.I don't know how much he remembers, but I think he was perceived as an "old rider" who didn't look like anyone else of his generation (laughs).

I was the one who knew how fast they were going.

I met them again when I was contracted by Suzuki to do testing for them and started competing in the All-Japan Road Race Championship in 1993.I was mainly testing, and All-Japan was a spot race, but Norick got a special promotion and was suddenly racing in the highest class, GP500. Deep down inside, I thought, "I'll never be able to ride that," but when it was over, I was the champion.I was beyond frustrated, and all I could do was admit that he was a great guy.I had ridden the Suzuki factory 500 as a test driver, so I knew firsthand how difficult it was. At that time, there were many works riders competing in the 500, and I think the level was quite high. Even if you were told to go out there and win, you couldn't win. ...... I thought it was impossible to do the time that Norick did. ......It was a complicated feeling, as if I had been confronted with my own lack of ability. I felt like I couldn't do it. ......I was testing the bike that Kevin Schwantz was riding in the World Championship (WGP), and Norick was going to battle with Kevin in the 1994 Japanese GP, and I thought I was no match for him.I think I was the one who knew how great Norick was at that time.But I wasn't going to keep losing. I thought I would someday.

Learning the "weapons" to win someday

Norick went to the WGP, and I was riding GP250 in Japan, but Daichan was so fast.I thought, "How can I win?"I thought I needed a weapon. I thought I would build a fast bike to compete with him. That's why I started studying bikes. I tried to compete by being superior in setting up the bike.It was great that Suzuki allowed me to test various bikes, and I continued to learn about machine settings.I started competing in the All-Japan Superbike series, and in 2003, I started racing in the UK. Thenin 2005, he entered World Superbike (WSBK). Norick also moved from MotoGP to WSBK and started competing in the same field.Norick only raced in WSBK for two years until 2006, but we battled a few times. That was the season when I had a better racing environment and my results were better than his, though.People said that Norick "couldn't ride a 4-stroke", but I think he just didn't fit the style.

The last conversation we had on the phone was "I won't allow it!

Living in the paddock at WSBK, Noriyuki Haga and Katsuaki Fujiwara were there, and we all had many chances to get together after the races. We would drink and make a lot of noise.Norick was a bit cocky. I was a year older than him, and we weren't too different, but he would come at me, and I couldn't back down, and when we had a few drinks, I would say, "Let's do it!I grabbed Norick by the chest and we were on the spot. A journalist had me in a tight knot and stopped me.I don't remember what the cause was, but it was a bad mood and I felt terrible.The next day, Norick called me andsaid, "Yukki, I'm sorry. I don't remember anything, but I heard you had a big fight.He said, "No, I remember. I won't forgive you," I cut him off.In 2007, Norick went back to All-Japan, but I was still in WSBK.I was wondering why I didn't tell him that I wasn't mad at him anymore. ......I regret that was the last time we talked.I don't think he thought anything of it because he was so open about it, but when I think of Norick, I can't help but think about that time.I wish we had made up properly and had another drink together.

Fast that can't be explained by logic.

There are three riders of my generation that I think are really fast: Noriyuki Haga, Daijiro Kato, and Norick.I am an analytical person, so I know why Noriyuki and Dai-chan are fast riders with both skill and speed.Noriyuki is very good at setting up his bike, and his step work is already a genius. His fastest points are different from those of his rivals, which makes the passing scenes thrilling and his racing style outstandingly interesting.Daichan has his own line and assembly, and he fits it in. When he gets it right, he is an orthodox rider who shows speed that no one else can match.Both of them have their own "formula for speed.But Norick's speed cannot be analyzed.It's impossible. The tires Norick was wearing when he won were so soft on the front that no one else could wear them. He is also extremely fast at the start. How can you over-rev and get such a fast start with just the clutch? I think.There is no theory there.In the qualifying he said he wasn't feeling well and didn't set a time, but in the race he suddenly becomes 2 seconds faster without making any major changes. It's impossible.Maybe it was just a bad qualifying because Norick couldn't make him go faster on what was originally a fast bike and tires. ......That guy's weapon is to jump into corners with tremendous speed and open the throttle from anywhere. Braking instability and all sorts of things that most riders would find problematic are not a problem for him.I'm sure Norick's mechanics and engineers were wondering, "How can he go so fast?" I'm sure they were wondering that.This unpredictable driving was Norick's charm.A speed that cannot be explained by logic.I don't think riders like that will ever appear again.Image Gallery (0)