MotoGP spy! Márquez, Bezzecchi, Razgatlıoğlu and others make their 850cc debuts

Marc Márquez tested Ducati’s new 850cc Desmosedici at Brno on Monday, and 24 hours later, Ducati announced that the reigning MotoGP king will stay with the Italian manufacturer for the next two seasons. Perhaps the two events are related, because originally Márquez only wanted a one-year deal…

Márquez suffered a low-side crash at Turn 1 before leaving Brno early, on his way to Assen, but was satisfied with progress. The only other faller was KTM’s Pol Espargaro who highsided exiting the first corner, badly damaging an 850 but escaping without serious injury.

Other riders included Fermin Aldeguer on the Ducati, Luca Marini and Joan Mir on the Honda, Marco Bezzecchi and Raul Fernandez on the Aprilia, Dani Pedrosa on the KTM and Toprak Razgatlıoğlu and Augusto Fernandez on the Yamaha.

The Pirelli private test was hugely significant because it was the first time that full-time MotoGP riders got to experience the 850s, which will be raced for the next five years at least. The test wasn’t open to the media, but our photographer managed to sneak through the woods surrounding the Czech venue to get these shots of all five 850s.

“The data collected today, along with those from the next private tests and from the September test after the Austrian GP and the end-of-season test in Valencia, will be fundamental in defining the final characteristics of the 2027 range,” said Pirelli MotoGP chief Giorgio Barbier.

Pirelli will start manufacturing its first batches of 2027 MotoGP tyres in September and October, because they need to be shipped around the world for the first tests and races of 2027.

The new 850s usher in the biggest technical changes since MotoGP was born in 1949: engines down from 1000cc to 850cc to reduce straight-line speed, shorter, narrower and lower aerodynamics to reduce downforce, no ride-height adjusters or holeshot devices, no electronic clutch software, 153 kilo minimum weight, down from 157 kilos, 20 litres of fuel, down from 22 litres (from 12 to 11 for sprints) and Pirelli tyres instead of Michelins.

No official lap times were released, so the lap times leaked from the test aren’t definitive. Also, lap times at this stage of motorcycle and tyre development mean next to nothing. Suffice to say, the top riders were lapping between high 1m53sec and low 1m55sec. And considering that the Brno new lap record established by Fabio Di Giannantonio on Sunday was a 1m53.1sec, the early prediction that the 850s would be two to three seconds slower than the 1000s is very far off the mark.

The 850cc engine regulations were written to avoid a repeat of the 800s, raced from 2007 to 2011, which were so peaky they could only be ridden in one way, so they created boring, one-line racing.

The maximum bore size of the 1000s is 81mm. Assuming the manufacturers go for the widest-possible bore, a 1000cc MotoGP engine’s bore and stroke will be 81 x 50.5mm. The maximum size of the 850s is 71mm. Once again, assuming engineers go as wide as they can go, an 850 will measure 71mm x 48.1mm.

This makes the 850s less over-square than the 1000s, which means the 850 engines should be more rideable than the 1000s. Usually, more rideable engines deliver better racing and allow riders to use different corner-exit techniques.

The biggest difference to the aero regs is the 50mm narrower front fairing, which has been pushed back 50mm, which will significantly reduce front downforce on the front wheel. This means riders will have to move around the bike more to contain wheelies.

“I believe we will have between 30 and 50% less downforce,” says Aprilia technical director Fabiano Sterlacchini. “Regarding the problems with overtaking, I think it will be easier with the new bikes, definitely.”

Banning ride-height devices will have a similar effect, because MotoGP bikes will no longer lower their centre of mass when exiting corners, so they will wheelie more.

These changes will also make the riding more spectacular, with riders moving around their motorcycles much more to change the centre of mass and reduce wheelies.

“The new bikes will definitely pitch more and the riders will have to work more,” says HRC technical director Romano Albesiano. “Talking with riders now, they say that the current MotoGP bikes are easy to ride, because the engines have perfect delivery and the bikes are very stable, due the aero and everything. Okay, to find the last second is super-difficult, but I expect the new bikes to be more challenging to ride. In general, the new bikes will be less perfect and more challenging, which should be good for the spectacle.”

The ride-height ban also applies to holeshot devices, which will have a similar effect when the lights go out, with riders working harder to make a bigger difference over their rivals as they charge towards the first corner.

“Now everyone can make a perfect start, more or less,” Albesiano continues. “Without the devices, bikes will reach the wheelie limit sooner, so the bikes will wheelie more, which is again good for the spectacle.”

Most riders are looking forward to the new rules because top racers believe in their skills, so they assume any changes that prioritise rider talent over engineering genius will be to their advantage.

“For me, the new rules look good, because anything that can better show the potential and talent of riders is much appreciated,” says factory Honda rider Luca Marini, who rode Honda’s new 850 at Brno, even if he won’t be with Honda next year.

The next time MotoGP’s full-time riders get to ride the 850 will be at Red Bull Ring, the day after September’s Austrian Grand Prix.