Yamaha And The Performance Problem - New Engine Only In 2024?
Categories: MotoGP
Yamaha’s new engine, designed by Luca Marmorini will not debut next season. The Japanese will have to wait until 2024.
For the new season, Yamaha wanted to tackle the long-standing engine problem. The signing of ex-F1 engine engineer Luca Marmorini was a coup. But the step came too late for a completely new power unit.
In an interview with La Gazzetta Dello Sport, Yamaha team director Massimo Meregalli talks about the work with Marmorini:
“The priority was to improve speed. The numbers that the engineers have shown us are comforting.”
But despite the new collaboration, a completely new engine will not be launched until 2024. This is mainly because other problem areas were also worked on during this year’s winter.
“We also concentrated on aerodynamics and, above all, on cornering, also to go a bit in Morbidelli’s direction. The 2022 bike cornered less and he suffered much more than Quartararo.”
For 2023, Meregalli announces an improvement in Yamaha’s top speed but no groundbreaking revolution.
“The fruit of the collaboration with Marmorini will be seen in 2024,” admits Meregalli. “This year’s engine is still the child of that of 2021 and 2022, he is focusing on the next one.”
After the post-season test in Valencia, there was a discussion about the Japanese engine performance.
In contrast to the Misano test, the previously found extra power had suddenly been lost again – the team seemed at a loss.
However, in the meantime the reasons for the disappointment in November have been found, Meregalli reassures.
“We tried too many things together or in the wrong order, and what the engine gave, something else took away.”
“Fortunately, it happened in Valencia and we were able to fix it, it would have been much worse in Sepang.”
The pre-season test in Sepang is considered the first important date of the 2023 season. Only then can a first prognosis be made for the performance of the MotoGP grid.
