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/1542400
VOLUME 63 ISSUE 1 JANUARY 6, 2026 P121 Seemed like a good idea. Take away 20 percent of the cubic capacity, and the outer reaches of top speed would go with it, no? That turned out to be vaguely true; take a snapshot at Qatar, with its kilometer-long straight. Dani Pedrosa's factory 990cc Honda RC211V clocked 205 mph (330.2 km/h) in 2006; the next year Stoner's 800cc Ducati ran a relatively measly 202 mph (324.7 km/h). But here's the thing. Pole lap time was actu - ally marginally faster. In 2006, Stoner's satellite LCR Honda team ran 1'55.683. Rossi's 2007 pole on a Yamaha was 1'55.002, better than half a second faster. (Mugello, by the way, the more usual yardstick for top speed comparisons, ruled itself out because qualifying was damp in 2007.) Apart from again proving the long-understood axiom that top speed is not the most impor - tant aspect of bike racing, this revealed that while the quantity of the power may have been af- fected, the change in its nature was more significant. Engineers had taken the opportunity offered by smaller engine internals to build ex- tremely high-revving short- stroke motors. This led to a generation of bikes that, with similar power but lower torque and less able to spin the rear wheel, offered riders less scope for different riding techniques. The bikes were more exacting to ride, and while higher cor - ner speeds made for good lap times, creative riding was much less possible, and overtaking opportunities were much fewer. These tactical regulatory errors were in turn consigned to history with the switch to 1000cc engines in 2012. A crucial difference between the 800s and the new 1000s was a limit to maximum bore size. This made as much, if not more, difference than the extra capacity. Ultra-short-stroke en - gines with super-high rev limits, as seen in F1 cars, were kicked out of the bike paddock. The change was most wel - come and initially very success- ful, leading to the longest-lived MotoGP generation, lasting 15 years. But by the end of it, different technical advances, in aerodynamics and variable ride- height devices, had reawakened some of the same gremlins. While racing was close, overtak - ing had become relatively diffi- cult, but for a very small handful of genius riders—Marc Marquez the prime example. In 2027, the 1000s will be forgotten. The new generation, still four-cylinders by decree, drops to 850cc; and the maxi - mum bore size from 81mm to 75mm, a 7.4 percent bore reduc- tion compared with 15 percent capacity drop. This should be effective in preventing scream- ing high revs. At the same time, variations in ride height are banned—both the holeshot devices that squat front and rear off the start line and the secondary rider- controlled systems that drop the rear on corner exit (Ducati had started to develop similar sys - tems for the front, but they were banned while still in the cradle). And aerodynamics will be considerably limited, narrower fairings with shorter noses; and a limit to the proliferation of secondary aero on the seat. What will it mean for the rid - ers, for the engineers? And for the spectators? This is the concern. While the rule changes directly address difficult overtaking, the aspect that works against exciting rac - ing and exaggerates the differ- ent abilities of the riders, what about the unintended conse- quences? What rendered the 8 00s so unpopular? These almost go with the territory. Those writing the rules may be full of good intentions, but those charged with obeying them have a different agenda. Rival engineers view rules as things to be circumvented in the search for advantage. Ducati's Dall'Igna is a past master: Just to take one among many exam - ples, look at how he designed a scoop ostensibly intended to cool the rear tire, but which ac- tually introduced aerodynamic downforce in a way the rules specifically intended to avoid. It remains to be seen, of course. Meanwhile, the best advice is to enjoy the last of the 1000s to the max. We will not see their like again. CN