MotoGP 850cc: Steiner expects a step back first, then the progress

• Steiner describes the switch to 850 cc as a small step back that should ultimately deliver two steps forward
• Less power, less aerodynamics and the end of the ride-height devices are meant to give riders more control
• Pol Espargaro expects Moto2 graduates to have the edge at the start of the new era

A few weeks before the summer break, former Formula 1 team principal Günther Steiner explained why MotoGP does not have to get better straight away under the new regulations. Steiner has been running the Red Bull KTM Tech3 team since this season, taking over from Hervé Poncharal at the end of last year. On the Friday of the British round at Silverstone he talked about what the move from 1,000 to 850 cc will bring in his view. His formula is a short one: a small step back in order to take two forward.

What does Steiner mean by a step back?

Steiner expects the new bikes to be slower at first, but to make the racing itself better. For him, less power and less aerodynamics do not mean a weaker show, but closer duels out on track.

He does not consider current MotoGP boring at all. „I think the racing is pretty exciting now, most of the time. You get the odd race where you can say it could be a little bit better, but I think it’s quite exciting“, he said at Silverstone.

On the new regulations he added: „I think what [the 850cc bikes] will put in there is that we make a little bit of a step back to make two forward towards racing. A little bit less power, a little bit less aerodynamics, and I think that will happen. The riders tell me they are handling nice, they have control over it, and that’s the most important thing.“

Why should less power and less aerodynamics help?

The basic idea behind the regulations is to hand more influence back to the riders. Less downforce from wings and the end of the ride-height devices, the systems that lower the bike while riding, are meant to achieve exactly that.

A second point concerns the front tyre. It has increasingly become the critical component in recent years, ever since minimum pressures started being policed more strictly from 2023. Anyone running close behind a rival gets hot air and rising pressure in the front tyre and loses feel at the front. Less aerodynamics should reduce that load and make attacks easier again. Within the ongoing 2026 season, the last under the 1,000 cc rules, this is one of the defining topics in the paddock.

Why could Moto2 graduates have an advantage?

Pol Espargaro expects riders coming up from Moto2 to have a clear advantage at the start of the new era. The KTM test rider is one of the few who have already spent extensive time on the 850s with Pirelli tyres.

Espargaro stood in at Silverstone for the injured Maverick Viñales and summed up the change like this: „It’s a different world. Next year it can happen that riders who are not performing this year, are going to be super fast next year. And the opposite.“

He describes a deep intervention in riding style. The bike has changed massively, he says, the power is far lower, and the tyres force a completely different approach. For riders who have spent many years on Michelins, the switch will be difficult. In his assessment the Moto2 graduates will have a big advantage early on, because the new package currently sits closer to Moto2 than to MotoGP as it has been.

How far along are the manufacturers with the MotoGP 850cc prototypes?

There are no reliable comparisons so far, because every manufacturer is testing behind closed doors and no official lap times exist. Steiner assumes the pecking order will only become visible at the start of next season.

He comments on the paddock rumours with visible detachment. „At the moment it sounds like we’re going to have five world champions next year because all the testing is going fantastic for everyone“, he said. That, he added, is normal in motorsport, much like the start of any season. You are really good until somebody is better. For now it is enough for him that the teams are banking laps, gathering data and understanding the tyres. How competitive a manufacturer really is can only be answered next year.

According to media reports, Ducati and Aprilia are considered early favourites for 2027. Also according to media reports, Yamaha is said to have already run an engine at Silverstone during test rider Augusto Fernández’s wildcard outing that comes closer to the upcoming 850 cc V4 than the regular 1,000s. That has not been confirmed.

When will it become clear who is really out in front?

The next test comes in September. After the race weekend at the Red Bull Ring there is another private test, at which current full-time riders will also get on the new machines.

Some of them already gained a first impression in June at Brno, where a handful of MotoGP riders made their debut on the 850s with Pirelli tyres. Espargaro still plays down expectations. It is very early, he says, and there are many months ahead for everyone involved. Pirelli will pick the best tyres over the course of the year, so the material keeps changing. The tyre is the most important part of a bike, and with every change both the riding style and the required setup shift. On a 1,000 you can be fast from the first lap today with only minor adjustments, whereas on the 850 a great deal still has to be tried out. That applies to all manufacturers, not just KTM.

For Tech3 the upheaval comes at a difficult time. The 2026 season has been a slog for the team, above all because of the situation around Maverick Viñales, whose shoulder injury from July 2025 has still not fully healed and whose public criticism of KTM grew louder in the run-up to the summer break. At Silverstone he was replaced by Pol Espargaro. For 2027 it currently does not look as though Viñales will get a bike.

➜ This article is part of our comprehensive overview: 2026 MotoGP Season: The Complete Overview – Teams, Riders, Calendar & Championship Standings. Find all key information on this topic in one place.

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