MotoGP is experiencing a phase of great balance among manufacturers and teams, where even satellite teams are capable of fighting for top positions—as evidenced by Pramac’s title last year and the current leadership of its rider Jorge Martín. Even the less competitive manufacturers are not radically far from the top in terms of lap times, a leveling that hasn’t always existed. Carlos Ezpeleta, Dorna’s Sporting Director, discussed the keys to achieving the current scenario.
In the Por Supuesto Podcast, the Spanish official began by talking about how essential it was to implement a single tyre supplier: ‘The first important thing we did, I think, was moving to a single tyre supplier. That is key. Before, we had Bridgestone, Dunlop, Michelin, all competing, and it was key for us to have a single tyre. That was created in 2009 or 2008, I believe’.
On the other hand, according to Ezpeleta, it was important to make manufacturers see that a balanced grid would be beneficial for everyone involved: ‘Then, the other thing was demonstrating to the teams, to the bike manufacturers—because there was a moment when we only had Honda, Ducati, and Yamaha – that we would all benefit from having a much closer product because what really interests us is the global audience’.
Ezpeleta acknowledged that there was initial resistance in this aspect, followed by another front of work – the bikes provided to satellite teams:
– There was quite a bit of resistance at the beginning, showing that it wasn’t necessary for the business to make bikes like NASA. Let’s start with engine architectures that make sense for the road because it will make more sense to invest in that engine since everything they learn can be used on the road and will be much cheaper. And then make them very interested in selling or, let’s say, leasing those bikes at the same level as theirs to customer teams. It’s all that, along with the single ECU, which was very important.
There are still differences in budget and investment capacity in MotoGP. For Ezpeleta, the idea is to limit the advances that can be made solely due to money: ‘In my opinion, it’s very difficult to really control what a company or a manufacturer spends on a sport. Our job is to make sure that every million spent doesn’t equal a second – that it makes as little difference as possible based on money. And that’s what we achieved. And that the teams see great value in having a satellite team with strong riders, where they can hire a good Moto2 rider, have them in a satellite team, and then bring them to their team; to be able to test more things, etc. That’s what we achieved, and they are all very level, and all providing very strong material to their satellite teams’.