In a week, MotoGP will return to Austria on a Red Bull Ring which, given the latest tests, should give wings to the Ducati. The fact remains that the Desmosedici will be castrated of their fins at the end of this year, a decision taken at the end of a meeting of the manufacturers' association in Assen. An epilogue which is difficult to pass among the reds.
Mass was said in the Assen Cathedral for the wings in MotoGP. Initially, this ban seemed to pass as a done deal. But since then, some have gone to the confessional, revealing schisms. At Aprilia, the boss of sport Romano Albesiano stepped up to the plate clearly regretting this ban motivated by specious arguments about security. This is now the first Ducati victim to give the lie with Paolo ciabatti who didn't beat around the bush on crash.net in his analysis of the situation. Clearly, the ban on fins was a maneuver by the Japanese manufacturers, led by Honda.
Dirty laundry will now have difficulty washing with the family. Between the European manufacturers and their Japanese counterparts, the smiles are superficial. Ducati may line up no less than eight Desmosedici on the starting grid, but its political weight is not worth that of Honda. The other European is called Aprilia and in 2017 there will be KTM. Opposite are Honda, Yamaha and Suzuki who advance under the banner of the empire of the rising sun.
Officially, the FIM asked questions about the fins, the MSMA bringing together the manufacturers responded and Dorna decided by pronouncing the ban. Behind the scenes, Honda was in charge from start to finish. What to exceed Paolo ciabatti : " In 2017 we will have a motorcycle without fins. This decision is both wrong and unfair. Bad because having motorcycles with fins gave cachet to the championship which represents prototype machines. By their vocation, they must stand out from production motorcycles and those of the Superbike. MotoGP is the pinnacle of motorcycle sport and it was good for the image of MotoGP ».
« It is also an unfair decision. There is absolutely no reason to ban fins. Some pilots started to complain but in practice, there were never any incidents. Was anyone injured by the fins? No. Has anyone had damage from a broken wing on the track? No. So the safety argument is a false excuse put forward by certain manufacturers to annihilate a competitive advantage. We worked on his fins, we spent time and money on them in full compliance with the regulations. We were made fun of at first, then everyone came. ».
Ciabbati then blurts out: “ We have done studies with trauma centers, the fins are not dangerous. They are not made of metal but made of a carbon-polystyrene mixture. They weigh 100 grams. This security argument is a fantasy. I reason on facts, and none have been produced in this case ". On the other hand, on the facts side, Ciabatta goes behind the scenes of the decision: “ we were ready to reach a compromise on the ailerons and in particular on their angle. It was Thursday ». A version that joins that of Aprilia. “ Then the next day when nothing had happened in 24 hours, any discussion became impossible. The matter had become simply political and the Japanese manufacturers were in charge. The role of the MSMA is to agree on rules which are in the direction of all manufacturers and not to obey a manufacturer which has a dominant position ».
He pursues : " At the moment there are three Japanese manufacturers and two Europeans at the MSMA. This majority thinks more about its own interests than that of sport in general. They don't respect the work done by one of them and being behind them ". And to be more precise on his target, the Italian talks about the reduction in costs that the disappearance of the fins could allow: “ we will still go to the wind tunnels to find what we are going to lose with the ailerons. At Ducati, we did not spend more on the wind tunnel than in other years because of the ailerons. And then the question of budget, the question was not asked when Honda arrived with the seamless transmission. The advantage was a tenth of a second. This technique is extremely expensive. Everyone spent a lot to get up to speed. Honda was smart and this expensive transmission was adopted by everyone. But don't let anyone tell me chimeras about security, because in the circumstances, it's really bad faith characterized ". This will further fuel the idea that it is Honda which makes the regulations in Grand Prix.
