MotoGP’s looming battles

So far this year there hasn’t been a single last-lap pass for the win, even though four races have been won by less than a second (Losail: 0.3 seconds, Termas: 0.8 seconds, Jerez: 0.3 seconds, Mugello: 0.6 seconds and Assen: 0.4 seconds). This tells the story of MotoGP in its current state – you can get close to the rider in front but it’s almost impossible to get past, unless you are considerably faster.

If Dorna executives want to keep the money rolling in they need to do something about this situation, because fans want battles, not processions.

And they are aware of the dangers of less-than-thrilling racing.

“It is a concern for us and sooner or later we are making a proposal to the manufacturers,” says Dorna’s director of technology Corrado Cecchinelli. “Motorcycle aerodynamics isn’t our concern, but having lots of people happy watching the racing and happy with the show is our concern.”

Many riders, engineers and factories believe MotoGP could go some way to fixing the problem by banning shapeshifters (also known as ride-height devices) and at least reducing the amount of downforce aerodynamics.

Right now it seems only Aprilia and Ducati are keen on maintaining aero at its current level. No surprise there because the two Italian factories have created by far the best aero systems on the grid. As for shapeshifters, everyone apart from Ducati would rather have them gone.

Again, no surprise here, because both these technologies were pioneered by Ducati, who can only be congratulated for its innovations. The job of a race engineer is to make the motorcycle faster around the racetrack, simple as that. And Ducati has done this with amazing creativity and clever engineering, transforming its Desmosedici into a very rideable motorcycle, which as a result won the last two constructors championships.

Factory rider Jack Miller summed this up nicely last month at Sachsenring.

“This year’s bike works really well, especially in the first sector,” said the Australian, who finished the German Grand Prix in third place. “I remember a few years ago wheelying the Ducati down the hill towards Turn 3 and it was like trying to turn a London bus. Now it feels more like a Mini Cooper, so it’s good.”

Shapeshifter malfunctions have become the most common cause of technical DNFs

So, would it be fair for Dorna to punish Ducati engineers for their creativity by banning their creations? And can Dorna actually do this?

Well, Dorna has already taken matters into its own hands. Usually, the MSMA (the manufacturers association) must ratify all technical regulations, but earlier this year Dorna bulldozed through that convention by unilaterally banning front-end shapeshifters (introduced by Ducati for the 2023 championship), from the end of this season. Ducati complained loudly, but to no avail.

So presumably Dorna is now free to repeat the process and unilaterally reduce downforce aero and ban rear-end shapeshifters?

Especially since Dorna could play the safety card. In recent races there have been several crashes and incidents caused by riders trying to brake while in the vacuum created by machines carrying a lot of downforce aero. And shapeshifter malfunctions have become the most common cause of technical DNFs, Aprilia’s Maverick Viñales almost losing control when his shapeshifter stayed locked down during the German GP. (It’s worth noting here that it’s the other manufacturers that usually suffer shapeshifter problems, not Ducati.)

So Dorna should be able to get rid of these technologies, right?

Maybe not.

Ducati has spent lots of of money transforming its Desmosedici from mid-pack wannabe into title contender via aerodynamics and shapeshifters, so the company will not want to give up its hard-won performance.

So what will happen if Dorna tries to reduce or ban these technologies?

If I was the big boss at Ducati I would quietly remind Dorna that Suzuki is out at the end of the year, Yamaha is halving its presence and without Ducati’s support the grid will look very thin in 2023. Next year more than one third of the grid – eight bikes out of 22 – is due to be Desmosedicis, so I would ask Dorna execs to imagine how the MotoGP grid would look if Ducati didn’t show up. I’d also remind them about MotoE, which becomes a Ducati series next season.

In other words, Ducati currently has more power in the MotoGP paddock than any other manufacturer. They’re not stupid at Borgo Panigale.

Of course, this kind of thing is nothing new. A decade ago Honda MotoGP boss Shuhei Nakamoto threatened to quit MotoGP if Dorna introduced same-for-all spec software to MotoGP. On that occasion Dorna won the argument.

This is simply how racing works and has always worked. Racing doesn’t only take place on the racetrack, in pit-lane garages and dyno rooms, it takes place in boardrooms, paddock meetings and via heated telephone conversations. Political power and corporate power are as important as horsepower and are wielded via sabre-rattling and horse-trading.

“Obviously anything we do we want to do with the consensus of the manufacturers, we want to work with them,” adds Cecchinelli. “But it’s not easy. If you listen to people in favour of aerodynamics they say it would be a mistake to go backwards, because downforce makes the bikes more stable on the brakes and in fast corners, so overall the motorcycles are more stable.

“On the other hand, we hear concerns from some riders about when they get too close to the rider in front they get sucked in, so they have unpredictable braking and other disturbing effects.

“The problem is that when you enter into this sort of discussion [with the manufacturers], you’re not talking to people who approach issues with intellectual honesty.  They approach problems like this: OK, how can we change the rules so that I can retain all my strong points and make some new limits where I’m not the best?”

Where does this leave MotoGP and its (relative) lack of excitement? I have no idea. But over the next few months there will be meetings between Dorna, the manufacturers and other stakeholders. I suspect the discussions will be interesting, to say the least, maybe even exciting. So perhaps Dorna should broadcast them live?