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It’s been more than a year that they’ve been complaining from the paddock about how eight Ducatis on the track are too many and, above all, that this gives Borgo Panigale an unfair advantage against the competition.
Let’s explain this. Races have long since become a “data” affair. Those who have more to analyze and, therefore, can figure things out, may quickly improve. So, this is where the definition of “unfair” comes from, in relation to Ducati’s policy that, in the best of cases, has twice as many motorcycles on the track as their opponents.
Massimo Rivola, CEO of Aprilia Racing, is among those who frown upon Ducati’s supremacy. He fears that the MotoGP World Championship will degenerate into a “trophy”. The Italian spoke of “unfair competition” because Ducati has more riders on the track and can, therefore, collect more data than any other constructor.
But, in reality, the Noale constructor doubled its presence just this year on the track, equipping the RNF team, which had abandoned Yamaha, and “renting out” the RS-GP 2022.
Rivola cited the Formula 1 as an example, where each constructor can only equip a total of three teams with their drive units. If they want to supply a fourth team, they need the consent of all the competitors.
This rule doesn’t exist in the MotoGP, where each constructor that provides bikes to a satellite team receives about 3 million from Dorna. At that point, the client team has to almost only worry about logistics expenses. That’s why Gigi Dall’Igna’s response wasn’t long in coming.
“If a private client team wants to use Ducati bikes, they do so because our bikes are better than others. This is my point of view,” Gigi told Speedweek. “There’s no maximum number of teams or riders indicated in the regulations. If, for example, KTM offered better bikes than ours, it would definitely have more bikes on the grid. Competition is free. I don’t see what’s unfair about that. On the contrary. It’s absolutely correct. If Aprilia wants to have more bikes on the grid, it can make an effort to convince more teams. Every MotoGP team is free to decide for themselves and on the choice of material.”
He also added: “The leasing costs at Ducati are rather high. We don’t give bikes away.”
Dall’Igna then stressed that he never asked to change any part of the regulation, like Ducati.
“I never asked for a change in regulations during my MotoGP period with Ducati. All other constructors want to change the regulations continuously. For example, they want to ban some devices that Ducati has developed. I, myself, have never asked for an amendment to the regulation. I study the regulations and move within the limits of what is allowed. The regulation says that Ducati can have eight bikes on the grid if it wants to.”
