Sixteen-year-old road racer Hunter Charlett is all set to represent New Zealand at the Yamaha R3 BLU CRU Asia-Pacific Championship’s Round 4 to be held in Japan this weekend, September 5-6, 2026.
Charlett, of Christchurch, is the only New Zealander chasing this key international development title. The rising talent had a string of bad luck at the first two rounds but, at the halfway point in the six-round series, he is closing in on the top 10.
Sixteen-year-old Hunter Charlett is ready to shine in the Yamaha R3 BLU CRU Asia-Pacific Championship with Round 4 taking place at Motegi, Tochigi, Japan this weekend. Photo: MNZ/Derek Morrison
Round 4 of the series moves to the stunning 4.8km Motegi circuit in Tochigi, Japan, this weekend with practise and qualifying on the Saturday and racing on the Sunday. Hunter said it was a long “18 hours on planes” to get to Motegi, but the circuit looked great. He is travelling with his mum, Angela.
“It’s got a lot of elevation and it has a lot of straights,” Charlett reveals. “We’ll get to check it all out tomorrow. It’s a very long track – it takes two minutes and 15 seconds for a lap on an R3. You get to go underneath bridges and that sort of thing. It looks like a fun track to ride. So far all the tracks have been really good – I like them all.”
Charlett’s goal for Motegi is simple: “I want to win because I know I can do it,” he smiles. “It’s just I haven’t been able to do it yet – but that’s my goal. I want to qualify top five and win from there.”
Qualifying in the top five was important, Charlett said.
”It’s important to get into that lead group on the grid because when you’re in the middle of the pack, you get stumped a lot,” he adds. “Sometimes the slower riders get ahead of you and then you have to pass them back and you’ve already lost the front group.”
The first two rounds, held in Sydney and Adelaide, proved challenging for Charlett as luck went against him.
“At the first round in Sydney, I was pretty happy getting into it and into practise,” Charlett recalls. “And then I qualified 12th, which I wasn’t happy with. In the second race, I was in the front group fighting and some guy decided to fall off in front of me and I had to take avoiding action and then lost the chance of winning the race right then.”
Charlett regathered for the second round held at The Bend in Adelaide, but luck was still not on his side.
“I was doing well in practise again and it came to qualifying and it was wet,” he shakes his head. “I got to the final corner on my qualifying lap and crashed.”
Charlett was one of seven who crashed. He was the fastest of all of them in the practise, so he qualified 15th. But, he didn’t get to line up on the grid.
“I went out on the sighting lap, which was wet,” he explains. “And I just phased out, or did something, hit the white line and crashed.”
Charlett was knocked out for a few seconds after the high-side.
“I went to medical and passed all the tests for concussion, but the doctor didn’t let me race. So that meant two races with no points.”
Hunter Charlett #73 competes at the second round of the Yamaha R3 BLU CRU Asia-Pacific Championship, held at The Bend Motorsport Park, Adelaide, Australia, May 1-3, 2026. Photo: Marc Jones/Foremost Media
For the third round, held at the brand new Pertamina Mandalika Street Circuit in Lombok, Indonesia, Charlett went 11-11.
“That same guy who fell off in front of me at Sydney, fell off in front of me again at Lombok,” he offers. “I’ve had a lot of bad luck lately.”
Charlett said the Lombok track was real grippy considering how hot it was over there – and he said it was very fast on an R3.
“The grip was very weird because it was grippy in the first stages of a race – like the first five laps and after five laps it would get a little bit slippery – just because it’s so hot and the tyres just get worn out.”
Angela, said the Yamaha R3 BLU CRU Asia-Pacific Championship was similar to the Oceania Junior Cup that they have been racing in Australia for the past few years – racing with a development focus.
“They provide the Yamaha R3 motorcycles and they’ll sit the boys down after they’ve had time out on track and they have all the information – what gear they’re in, where they’re braking – a full analysis,” she explains. “They’ll have their fastest lap there and they compare you to where you are on your lap time and they tell the riders where they need to go better. It’s quite involved.”
Charlett said it was a great opportunity to develop.
“I don’t usually get one-to-one coaching,” he adds. “It’s really good because you get coaches who have won races in World Superbikes – at that top level. They know what they’re doing.”
Charlett said he could already see how much he has improved … despite the rotten run of luck, that he hopes hasn’t followed him to Japan for this weekend’s racing.
Hunter Charlett at the Pertamina Mandalika Street Circuit, Lombok, Indonesia. Photo: MNZ/APAC
2026 Yamaha R3 BLU CRU Asia-Pacific Championship
Round 1: March 27-28 – Sydney Motorsport Park, NSW, Australia
Round 2: May 1-3 – The Bend Motorsport Park, Adelaide, Australia
Round 3: July 17-19 – Pertamina Mandalika Street Circuit, Lombok, Indonesia
Round 4: September 5-6 – Mobility Resort Motegi, Tochigi, Japan
Round 5: November 13-15 – Chang International Circuit, Buriram, Thailand
Round 6: November 19-22 – Chang International Circuit, Buriram, Thailand
Hunter Charlett walks the circuit at Round 4 of the Yamaha R3 BLU CRU Asia-Pacific Championship, held at Mobility Resort Motegi, Tochigi, Japan. Photo: MNZ/Charlett
Fast Facts: Hunter Charlett
