Moto Ain – the winners of the FIM Superstock World Cup last season – have been faithful to the number 96 since joining the FIM EWC in 2016/2017. Although 96 wasn’t their initial choice, it has since become the trademark of this French team managed by Pierre Chapuis.
Out on the track, the number 96 is now firmly associated with Moto Ain’s Yamaha. It is all the more noticeable because the bike is regularly among the front runners. Moto Ain were the winners of the 2018/2019 FIM World Cup and have also topped the Superstock class this season, first at the Bol d’Or and then at the 8 Hours of Sepang at the tail end of 2019.
Yet 96 wasn’t the number Moto Ain chose when the team entered the FIM EWC four years ago.
My lucky number is 99, says Moto Ain team manager Pierre Chapuis. And that’s not because I’m a Jorge Lorenzo fan; it’s because I was born on the 9th of December! But 99 was already taken at the start of the 2016/2017 season. So we flipped the second 9 upside-down and opted for 96. The number 99 has since become available, but the team wanted to keep 96, which has now become our trademark number.
Original Source [ FIM EWC ]
