"Aero Side:"
Aprilia's Big Step
A
prilia is now MotoGP's reference in
terms of aerodynamics. Having intro-
duced winglets under the rider's legs mid-
way through last year—an innovation since
adopted by Honda and KTM—its "F-Duct"
fairing was the talk of the paddock at round
one in Thailand. Its riders can now change
the airflow through its fairing by placing
their forearms over a duct just below the
resting position when fully tucked in.
"We pushed quite hard on the aero
side," said Massimo Rivola, CEO of Aprilia
Racing. "We think it's always a bit of here
and there. Small details always make the
difference. You can see the shape of the
bike is quite different to last year. What
I like the most is that even if the new
aero package is difficult to digest for the
riders, every time we introduce some
-
thing on that side, it works. It means our
models are working well. Every year we
become a better factory—if that's the
case, you'll have better performance.
"Since the middle of last year, the bike
is adapting more easily to the tracks with
the Aprilia's DNA of being especially fast
in quick corners," explained a jubilant
Rivola.
Neil Morrison
Aprilia MotoGP riders can now change the
airflow through their fairing by placing
their forearms over a duct just below the
resting position when fully tucked in.
Ten Kate Debuts
a Crossplane Crank
YZF-R6
W
ith 12 WorldSSP
titles—including the
2025 Championship with
Pata Yamaha Ten Kate
Racing's Stefano Manzi—
Ten Kate Racing Products
(TKRP) has revealed a
unique interpretation of the
Yamaha YZF-R6, featur
-
ing a bespoke crossplane
crankshaft developed
entirely in-house.
Traditionally reserved for
larger-capacity machines
such as the Yamaha YZF-
R1, crossplane-crank tech
-
nology has not previously
been applied to a 600cc
inline-four in this manner.
Ten Kate's engineering
team undertook a full de
-
sign and testing program,
producing several proto-
type crankshafts before
finalizing a version deemed
suitable for track use.
The revised engine
setup alters the firing order
from the standard scream
-
er-format R6, emphasizing
smoother torque delivery
and better connection to
the rear tire rather than
boosting peak power. Per
-
formance figures are said
to stay mostly consistent
with the traditional model,
although the delivery char
-
acteristics are noticeably
different.
Adapting the R6 engine
to this layout required
careful attention to internal
forces, especially because
there was no balance
shaft. To address this, ex
-
tra mass was added to the
crank assembly to control
vibration and ensure dura
-
bility during racing.
The electronics have
also been recalibrated to
match the changed com
-
bustion behavior. Although
not meant for production,
the project functions as
a technical showcase of
what is possible within the
now-discontinued YZF-R6
platform.
CN
VOLUME ISSUE MARCH , P21
Ten Kate Tuning | Yamaha YZF-R6 Crossplane
