Ducati are to lose their concessions for the 2016 MotoGP season. Meeting at Assen, the Grand Prix Commission decided to apply the system of concession points which was due to take effect from the 2016 season to the results of Ducati for this season. This means that from next year, Ducati will race under the same rules as Honda and Yamaha, which means that they will have seven engines per season, with no development allowed during the season, and testing with factory riders restricted to official tests and a handful of private tests.
That Honda and Yamaha had been pushing for Ducati to have their concessions removed for next year was first reported here after Jerez. After Ducati's strong start to 2015, with six podiums from eight races, it was clear that the Desmosedici GP15 is a competitive motorcycle. Technically, Ducati would only have had their concessions for 2016 taken away if they had won a race in the dry. While the GP15 is fast, it is still a very young project, and needs some work doing to it. Winning a dry race would also require beating Valentino Rossi, Jorge Lorenzo, Marc Marquez and Dani Pedrosa, not the easiest of tasks at the best of times.
At Mugello, sources close to one Japanese factory told MotoMatters that they did not expect the matter to be decided before the end of the year. That would give Ducati most of the rest of the 2015 season to try to win a race. If they had not done so by the time the GP circus headed overseas for the flyaways, the concessions could have been removed by the GPC once they met in Japan or Valencia. The GPC appear to have decided to act earlier, to allow Ducati to prepare.
This means that Ducati will start the 2016 season under the same condition as Honda and Yamaha. All of the bikes on the grid will have the same amount of fuel (22 liters), the same spec electronics, and the same allocation of tires, the special soft tire having been removed. But Honda, Yamaha and Ducati will have seven engines per season, with no development allowed, and testing with factory riders limited to official tests and five days of private testing. Aprilia and Suzuki will have twelve engines per season, will be allowed to modify the design of their engines during the season, and will be allowed to test with factory riders at private tests as often as they like, within the constraints of the tire allocation limit for testing. Should they accrue six concession points in a season, then they will lose the right to test with factory riders immediately, and all of the concessions for the following season.
The GPC also introduced a number of other rules. They allowed factories to provide three different specifications of homologated engines, including engines from previous seasons. The two factory riders must be on the same engine spec, riders for satellite teams may have different spec engines, even in the same team.
The press from the FIM is shown below:
FIM Road Racing World Championship Grand Prix
Decision of the Grand Prix Commission
The Grand Prix Commission, composed of Messrs. Carmelo Ezpeleta (Dorna, Chairman), Ignacio Verneda (FIM CEO), Herve Poncharal (IRTA) and Takanao Tsubouchi (MSMA) in the presence of Javier Alonso (Dorna) and Mike Trimby (IRTA, Secretary of the meeting), in a meeting held on 26 June in Assen, made the following decisions:
Technical Regulations
MotoGP Class
Concessions - MotoGP Class – Effective Immediately
In 2015 any manufacturer who currently benefits from concessions and who achieves six concession points in dry or wet conditions will lose all concessions from the following season.
Note: As Ducati have already achieved more than six concession points in 2015 they will lose concessions from 2016.
Engine Allocations in the MotoGP Class – Effective 2016
In the interests of cost saving, manufacturers may use engines with specifications homologated from previous seasons, providing that such engines still comply with current technical regulations.
Each manufacturer may homologate a maximum of three different specifications before the first event of the season.
Before the first event of the season, every rider must nominate one specification of homologated engine which he must exclusively use for the entire season. This means that in a non-factory team different riders might use engines with different homologated specifications.
However, every manufacturer must nominate one team as its “Factory Team” and each rider in that team must use engines with the same homologated specification.
MotoGP Electronics, Sensors and Devices – Effective 2016
With the use of a single ECU and unified software it was necessary to clarify and update the regulations concerning supply and ownership of ECUs, the homologation of permitted sensors and the list of “free devices” that can be connected to the ECU. Full details will be published in the on-line version of the FIM Grand Prix regulations.
Sporting Regulations
Effective Immediately
In the interests of safety a regulation was approved which prohibits a rider stopping on the start and finish straight after the chequered flag.
Medical Code
The Commission approved initial plans to make changes to the structure of the Grand Prix medical services. This will involve changes to responsibilities within the permanent management and also better integration and involvement of the local circuit doctors.
A regularly updated version of the FIM Grand Prix Regulations which contains the detailed text of the regulation changes may be viewed shortly on:
http://www.fim-live.com/en/sport/official-documents-ccr/codes-and-regul…
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Comments
Why bother with rules
when you change them whenever it suits? In reality, they should have waited for the dry win that may well still come this year (Motegi anyone?). Instead the big two have conspired to change the rules as soon as the bike showed early promise, possibly a little premature if the last few races are any guide.
I'm not against this actual decision now that Ducati are there or thereabouts, it's the recent spate of spontaneous rule changing "with immediate effect" that gets to me.
Need a Win
So Ducati better get Stoner to do a wild card at Phillip Island. If they are going to do the time then they may as well do the crime.
Good. Ducati are competitive
Good. Ducati are competitive enough. New electronic rules and tires is enough of a field-leveling. I was hoping this would happen.
Ducati/Audi are big boys, no more special treatment. Suzuki on the other hand, they deserve some catch up time, and their debut this year has already been much better than anyone expected.
i think
its correct. ducati cant complain because i cant remember ducati give any japanese factory extra rules in wsbk. so duc may thank the japs on their knees to develop the bike unlimited. next year are new rules all the same for all.
I disagree with most posts here
Right at the beginning let me lay down the grounds on which I am disagreeing with those who believe that it is right to advance all the rules meant for 2016. My disagreement has nothing to do with fact that Ducati now owned by Audi has truck loads of money or that Ducati have not extended the same courtesy to the Japanese in WSBK. It is simply meant to indicate fairness. If I have been given a certain framework of concessions and told that I have upto this much time to try and catch up with the leaders and then suddenly because I am doing pretty well but have not reached the pinnacle (victory) if all concessions are withdrawn one year in advance, then the plans that I may have made keeping in mind the extra year may come to nothing. In which case the credibility of the rule makers is completely lost. And Ducati can feel that they have been manipulated. I think that it the original rule which said 2016 is the year after which concessions are withdrawn then it has to remain so. Dorna or the FIM cannot bend to the Honda and Yamaha because Ducati is now giving them butterflies in their respective stomachs.
exactly...
... this is NOT under 15s club racing.
This is the world championship with millions of dollars and massive amounts of R&D committed.
To change the rules 6 months out? What a farce. Ducati are still in the early stages of their GP15 program, and this is undoubtedly going to throw a spanner in the works.
They have not won a race yet, which was a condition of them losing these concessions, so they should not lose them! If this was an announcement for 2018, maybe...
This just sucks!
Once again we are back to Motogp being a Honda/Yamaha fiefdom. Remind me again, when was the last time another manufacturer won a race? So Ducati (and Suzuki, should they get close enough) are condemned to being bit players in the YamaHonda show: close boys, but no cigars for you, EVER! Based on this why would Aprilia or BMW EVER consider entering? As soon as they get close they'll be nobbled, never allowed to make up that last 0.5% to REALLY challenge. I listened to Mark Weber (ex-F1) last night singing the praises of Motogp........but after reading this and wondering how future teams will be affected I'm not so sure Motogp is a hell of a lot different to F1. I mean can anyone reallly see anyone other than Yamaha or Honda winning Championship in the next 5 years? 10 years?
Reply to Seven4nineR
You said: "I mean can anyone reallly see anyone other than Yamaha or Honda winning Championship in the next 5 years? 10 years?"
My reply is yes. I can. Suzuki in the shorter term, especially if they can retain Vinales and Ducati longer term, probably with Iannone. It's only my opinion based on gut-instinct and probability over a 5-10 year period but you did ask.
Flexible time
Dorna has done much to make MotoGP a better championship with a brighter future but it's habit of allowing regulation changes during a race season has not been one of their better practices. It shows a weakness in dealing with the larger stakeholders in the series and in my opinion will undo all the positive changes they have made for the future success of the World Championship. I agree with may posters that if this practice continues it will drive many manufacturers away or prevent them from entering the World Championship. Dorna needs to decide if it can prosper based chiefly on the support of Honda and Yamaha or by spreading the stakeholder base to a larger array of manufacturers and teams.