IN
THE
WIND
P46
MOTOGP TECH FASHION STATEMENTS
T
he latest technical fashion
in MotoGP is in carbon fiber
chassis cladding, designed to
modify stiffness ratios.
Already seen on factory Hon-
das in the past, Suzuki continued
to test the system, and Ducati
also had a pair of new chassis at
Assen—one each for Lorenzo and
Dovizioso—similarly equipped,
with fillets of carbon-fiber let in at
the swingarm-pivot area.
At Suzuki, team chief Davide
Brivio said Alex Rins had two of
these, having liked them from his
first trials before the Barcelona
race, but Iannone had just one,
because he had taken until the
post-race tests to appreciate any
advantage.
Both riders also had upgraded
engines, with slightly improved
power, Brivio added.
Ducati's carbon fiber experi-
ments were in search of better
cornering performance on worn
tires, said the team's Davide
Tardozzi. Andrea Dovizioso liked
them so much he asked for a
second chassis the same. This
was impossible, but his team
raised a laugh by playing a trick
on him, using stick-on carbon
fiber lookalike on Saturday morn-
ing.
At Yamaha, Maverick Vinales's
bike was fitted with a sensor to
measure clutch lever movement—
an attempt to pin down the rea-
son for his bad start at Catalunya.
Small things can make a big
difference when the racing is
so close, and Vinales's bike
had another change that clearly
helped to bring his season back
on track—new forks.
The troubled rider has
switched to the carbon fiber Oh-
lins forks the rest of the factory
riders adopted last year.
According to Yamaha's Mas-
simo Meregali, "he didn't like
them when he tested them last
year, and because we had other
problems this year we didn't
want to make any other changes
while we worked on them."
The main difference for the
forks is in saving some steered
weight, making direction chang-
es marginally easier.
Michael Scott
Maverick Vinales
switched to the
carbon fiber forks
and has seen
immediate results.
