Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/1019648
SIC TEAM CONFIRMED FOR MOTOGP T he worst-kept secret in the paddock was confirmed at Silverstone with a lengthy formal announcement of the Petronas Yamaha MotoGP team compet- ing from next year, taking over from the long-serving Tech3 satellite team, and extending the involvement of the Sepang Inter- national Circuit (SIC) and Malay- sian sponsors Petronas across all three classes. There were no surprises, with MotoGP riders confirmed as Franco Morbidelli and current Moto2 rider Fabio Quartararo; Moto2's Malaysian Khairul Idham Pawi switching from Honda Team Asia, and John McPhee replacing Adam Norrodin along- side Ayumu Sasaki in Moto3. (Norrodin will be supported in the Spanish CEV Moto2 series for two years, to give him the chance to mature.) As encouraging from the paddock's point of view was the increased commitment from Petronas, spreading welcome sponsorship money and poten- tially attracting other corporate backing, according to the SIC chairman. The new MotoGP team will be supplied with one full-factory machine, and one "B-spec" bike for next year, with the "A-spec" bike earmarked for the more experienced Franco Morbidelli, with one year of MotoGP experi- ence as well as a Moto2 champi- onship in his cabinet. This was confirmed by the CEO of Yamaha Motor Racing Lin Jarvis, who said that Mor- bidelli's bike at the start of the year would be the equivalent of those supplied to Rossi and Vinales in the factory team. He would be third in line for any midseason developments, but at the same time there was the op- portunity to develop the machine to suit his personal style. The other advantage of the satellite team would be to have young talent potentially on stream to replace the factory rid- ers when the time came. Finally, "having four riders on the grid is better for the brand," he said. The Petronas team is tak- ing over the grid slot currently occupied by the Angel Nieto team, owned and run by former multi-champion Jorge "Aspar" Martinez, which will be dropping from MotoGP to Moto2 next sea- son, planning a two-rider squad alongside their existing Moto3 squad. The rider lineup has yet to be confirmed, according to sporting director Gino Borsoi, but they will be adding to the numbers using the KTM chassis with the new-next-year Triumph-powered class. Michael Scott IN THE WIND P40