MotoGP Aerodynamics Have Jumped The Shark And Stole Its Fins

Note the wild rear wing on the GasGas KTM RC16Photo: Hazrin Yeob Men Shah/Icon Sportswire (Getty Images)

MotoGP preseason testing is currently underway at Sepang International Circuit. The teams have rolled out motorcycles featuring aerodynamic upgrades that look close to cartoonish out on track. While the focus on aero development over recent years has created the fastest bikes ever, the racing product has suffered. The technical revolution has ruffled the feathers of many around MotoGP, including eight-time world champion Marc Márquez.

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Aprilia’s Formula 1-inspired blown diffuser has been the most radical design introduced during testing. The Italian manufacturer has overhauled its RS-GP for the 2024 season, including its tail. The rear end has two downward-pointing edges on either side, similar to a floor-mounted diffuser that you would see on an F1 car. The exhaust is mounted right alongside the diffuser to accelerate airflow, like Red Bull’s championship-winning cars during the early 2010s.

No, the Respol Honda team isn’t promoting the next Jurassic World moviePhoto: Hazrin Yeob Men Shah/Icon Sportswire (Getty Images)

The blown diffuser is just the tip of the iceberg. KTM’s simple, thin rear wing has evolved into a multi-element aero device. The rear tail on the Honda has sprouted stegosaurus spikes. Márquez, on a Ducati this season, has been vocally opposed to this aero war for years. He told Motorsport.com today:

“It’s a compromise, but when you are talking aerodynamics, it will be more difficult to follow the bikes and to overtake. This is what has happened to Formula 1. In MotoGP, we had the good thing that we were able to fight in a big group but now if you are going more and more on aerodynamics.

So I will prefer to develop on the chassis area, on tires and engines, than aerodynamics, but it will affect the show that is the main race. For the show, it doesn’t matter if you are three-tenths [of a second] faster or three-tenths slower. People want to see overtakes.”

Márquez is right. Lap times in a vacuum are just a vanity number for fans. The marginal differences in speed aren’t really observable from the stands or on TV cameras. However, people do notice when a rider can’t close down another bike in a corner because of a wall of dirty air. MotoGP needs to take action before it completely devolves into a processional world tour.