After a lifetime on Kawasakis, James Stewart's switch to Yamaha for 2009 was a shocker to see. Our man Simon Cudby filed away this Racer X Films video from James' earliest days testing his new L&M Racing machine--the previous generation YZ450F. The Stewart/Yamaha relationship may not have had the perfect ending, but it started out well. Also, you'll see James' 2009 teammate Kyle Chisholm in the back of these shots. A little trip down memory lane!

Make sure to check out our previous videos on the countdown: Hangtown Remastered, Justin Barcia on a 450 circa 2010 and Ryan Dungey and Ken Roczen.

Film: Simon Cudby

Text: Jason Weigandt