MotoGP’s aero push “not good for the show”

Aerodynamic development in MotoGP has accelerated since Ducati turned up to the 2015 season with winglets on its bike.

At last weekend’s Portugal pre-season test, Aprilia rolled out a radical Formula 1-inspired aero concept on its RS-GP which featured wings on the front fork behind its main front aero fairing, strakes on the swingarm and a t-wing on the seat unit.

On the final day, Yamaha unveiled a massive F1-style rear wing on its bike aimed at aiding turning.

MotoGP has moved to quell the massive spending that comes with aero development by limiting the number of permitted fairing designs to two per season per manufacturer.

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But the effects aero has had on safety and the impact it has had on the racing spectacle has been repeatedly debated by riders, with Marquez known for being against developments such as aerodynamics and ride height devices.

After seeing what was unveiled by the likes of Aprilia and Yamaha in Portugal, the Honda rider said: “Every time it’s getting more and more difficult to follow riders.

“With the aero it’s changing the bike balance a lot, changing a lot the way to ride, the stopping.

“And following somebody every time is more and more difficult. And even sometimes it’s worse in many parts of the track.

“But as we saw with Aprilia, with Yamaha [at this test]… I hope for the future, they need to understand what way they [MotoGP] want to go because for me, for the show it’s not the best way.

“For the performance, we are riding faster. But for the show, I feel it’s not the best way. But we need to keep going because it’s what we have now.”

While KTM didn’t unveil any radical new aero fairings in testing, the packages it has been running have been developed in conjunction with the Red Bull Formula 1 team at its Milton Keynes base.

Aleix Espargaro said the Aprilia aero created “huge” amounts of downforce, though Quartararo felt Yamaha’s massive rear wing didn’t offer any benefits and joked that one of his mechanics hoped it didn’t work because of how ugly it looked.