Yamaha’s announcement comes while the two companies are still in the midst of negotiating the terms of a settlement agreement that would amicably resolve the dispute that arose between them earlier this year. Altadis considers that Yamaha is still bound by a legal obligation that prevents Yamaha from collaborating with sponsors whose products compete directly with the Gauloises brand or with Altadis products for the 2006 season.


Altadis laments that Yamaha, even while acknowledging that “Altadis/Seita have been sponsors of the Yamaha Factory MotoGP project for the past 3 seasons under both the Fortuna and the Gauloises brands during which time the companies shared 2 world championship victories in the MotoGP class in 2004 and 2005,” appears poised to disregard the significance of the Altadis investment in that project.

In the absence of a settlement, Altadis will not hesitate to seek the appropriate legal remedies if Yamaha fails to abide by its legal obligations towards Altadis and the Gauloises brand.