MotoGP single-bike proposal falls through after one manufacturer says no

Discussions regarding a single-bike rule in MotoGP seem to have ended without an agreement being reached, with KTM said to have been the manufacturer that was against the idea the most. 

Rumours of the single-bike per rider rule surfaced a few months ago, before discussions took place between MotoGP and its current manufacturers, with the last round of talks taking place at Silverstone last weekend. 

It’s claimed that Ducati and Aprilia were the brands most in favour of the proposal, while Honda and Yamaha were on the fence about the new rule, which would have begun in 2027, had an agreement been found.

However, it was KTM’s refusal which denied the MSMA manufacturers’ association the unanimous agreement it required to change the current regulation, according to a detailed report from El Periódico.

The single-bike proposal was presented as a potential cost-cutting measure, although major complications would have needed to be ironed out. For example, riders could have been left facing a situation where they missed an entire session, such as qualifying, a sprint race, or even the Grand Prix, if they suffered a crash that effectively wrecked their machine.

This was one of the areas that was most likely to affect the spectacle of MotoGP, had the new rule gained approval. It would have also impacted flag-to-flag races, where riders swap to their second machine during a race with changing conditions. 

With all of this said, a second bike would still have been needed in certain situations, which casts doubt as to how much money would really be saved by the manufacturers.

This led to rumours of a compromise potentially being reached, which would have allowed riders to have a second bike available to them from qualifying onwards, although that too has been squashed as part of the proposal’s inability to get the unanimous approval needed.

Find the latest motorcycle news on Visordown.com