MotoGP
Yamaha set to test F1-style rear wing in Portugal MotoGP test
Yamaha is set to trial a new Formula 1-style rear wing on its MotoGP bike at this weekend's final 2023 pre-season test in Portugal.
Germán Garcia Casanova
Edited: Mar 13, 2023, 12:02 PM
Copy link
Share on Viber
At last year's British Grand Prix, Ducati surprised the paddock with the introduction of what was branded a 'Stegosaurus' rear wing, which comprised several vertical strakes protruding from the back of the seat unit.
The idea of placing a spoiler in that location of the bike was introduced earlier in the year by Aprilia, which tested a wing reminiscent of a car, but shelved that idea as the rest of the grid followed Ducati's lead through the final races of 2022 and the Valencia post-season test.
Yamaha tried the rear wings in Valencia last November, but those were quickly discarded by 2021 world champion Fabio Quartararo, with the Japanese marque the only manufacturer not to have any rear aero package on its bike in last month's Sepang test.
However, for the test this weekend in Portugal, Yamaha has brought two new aero updates to try: a 'Stegosaurus' design and a new F1-style concept.
"We have two designs ready to test, but at the moment we haven't had the chance and we will see if during these two days of testing at Portimao we can do it," Massimo Meregalli told Motorsport.com on Friday in Portugal.
With the F1-style wing, Yamaha is looking to achieve something different than Ducati's innovation offer, which is to make the bike turn a bit more rather than improve braking stability.
"We have two parts here to test, but we only have two days of testing, so I don't know if we're going to have time. That wing is not part of the package to be homologated, so we can leave it for later," concedes Meregalli, before acknowledging that the new part "is really different to what has been seen so far" from Yamaha.
Cal Crutchlow, Yamaha Factory Racing
Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images
For Yamaha right now the tail of the M1 is not its main concern in regards to aero, as it is yet to finalise the front concept it will race with - the first design of which must be homologated prior to the first round of the season.
"During these two days we have to make an important decision with the fairing. After the Sepang test our riders decided to postpone the decision until Portimao," added Meregalli.
"They have worked a lot in the factory this winter, never in all my years at Yamaha have I seen anything like this, a huge amount of parts to test. We had several fairings, with a different central part, and we must make a decision before the end of the test to be able to homologate it."
In addition to the aerodynamic part, Yamaha is concerned about the M1's single-lap performance, which Quartararo called "a nightmare" at Sepang last month.
"In Sepang, the pace was good, but not so in the time attack, so we must work in that area, both Fabio and Frankie [Franco Morbidelli] must be able to ride, do some long run," Meregalli noted.
"In Sepang there were so many things to test that we couldn't do more than three laps in a row and Fabio doesn't like that, he prefers not to touch the bike too much during a race weekend."
Read Also:
- Aprilia reveals 2023 MotoGP livery ahead of final test
- Morbidelli: Riders “need to be a chameleon” to win MotoGP title now
- The signs that MotoGP's Japanese powerhouses are changing
We want your opinion!
What would you like to see on Motorsport.com?
Take our 5 minute survey.
- The Motorsport.com Team
Read and post comments
Read also :
Share Or Save This Story
Copy link
Share on Viber
Previous article Aprilia reveals 2023 MotoGP livery ahead of final test
Next article Aprilia reveals radical new aero concept for MotoGP at Portugal test
Top Comments
There are no comments at the moment. Would you like to write one?
View More & Comment
More from
Germán Garcia Casanova
Marc Marquez will have to perform his "juggling act" in coming MotoGP races, says Alex
MotoGP
MotoGP
Indonesian GP
5 h
Marc Marquez will have to perform his "juggling act" in coming MotoGP races, says Alex
Pedro Acosta: "I'm going to Ducati to learn from Marc Marquez, not to beat him on same bike"
MotoGP
MotoGP
Indonesian GP
Pedro Acosta: "I'm going to Ducati to learn from Marc Marquez, not to beat him on same bike"
Latest news
Why Mercedes switched George Russell to its old F1 car spec in Singapore
Formula 1
F1 Formula 1
Singapore GP
2 min
Why Mercedes switched George Russell to its old F1 car spec in Singapore
Max Verstappen found responsible for FP1 clash at Portimao GTWC finale
GT World Challenge Europe Endurance
WCEE GT World Challenge Europe Endurance 1 h
Max Verstappen found responsible for FP1 clash at Portimao GTWC finale
“Wow, okay” – How Max Verstappen’s team-mate Ben Barnicoat reacted to his early GTWC driving
GT World Challenge Europe Endurance
WCEE GT World Challenge Europe Endurance 1 h
“Wow, okay” – How Max Verstappen’s team-mate Ben Barnicoat reacted to his early GTWC driving
Feature
Discover prime content
Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
You have 2 options:
- Become a subscriber.
- Disable your adblocker.
Subscribe now Already subscribed? Sign in here
Already disabled your adblocker?
Reload page
Manage Alerts
Subscribe