MotoGP's push to hand each rider a single bike from 2027 is close to falling apart, with manufacturers split and the paddock's biggest names lining up to condemn it.
The proposal, championed by Aprilia and initially backed by Ducati, would strip riders of their second machine. The plan is centred on practice, where a crash currently means a quick vault over the pit wall to a spare bike and straight back out. Supporters framed it as a cost-cutting measure, trimming the mechanics and equipment each garage hauls around the world.
That rationale has convinced almost nobody on the grid. "It's a really bad idea," said KTM's Pedro Acosta, who spelled out the risk in blunt terms: "If you crash in warm-up, you will not race."
Honda's Luca Marini took aim at what the change would cost the spectacle. "It's worse for the show," he said, pointing to the drama of a rider sprinting down the lane to swap bikes. "If it's a matter of cost or money, I don't think it would change anything."
Fabio Quartararo, Yamaha's 2021 world champion, questioned how flag-to-flag races would even function once riders could no longer switch between a wet and a dry bike mid-race. "I think it's bad. I mean, how do you do a flag-to-flag race?" he said. "I think it is nice to have two bikes." Aprilia's Jorge Martin, whose own manufacturer is driving the idea, admitted: "I'd like to have two bikes, honestly."
Not everyone is opposed. Honda's Joan Mir, a former champion, shrugged off the change: "If everyone has one, it's fine. In Moto2 and in Moto3, I had one bike and it's not a problem."
The loudest objection came from Tech3 boss Guenther Steiner, the former Haas Formula 1 principal now running a MotoGP team. He could not see the saving and warned it would gut the racing. "We steal from the show, for the spectators," Steiner said, singling out the rain-lashed bike swaps that produce some of the sport's best television.
The politics may settle the matter before the arguments do. Under MotoGP's rules, the Motorcycle Sports Manufacturers Association must agree unanimously before any change reaches the Grand Prix Commission. An initial agreement was struck at the Hungarian round at Balaton Park, but KTM reversed its position at Assen and is now categorically against. Honda has stayed neutral, and independent teams say they see no tangible benefit.
With one manufacturer opposed, the unanimity is gone. "The single-bike proposal isn't dead yet, but right now it looks much more difficult for it to be introduced," one figure involved in the discussions conceded. Several riders have privately called the idea little short of madness.
Suspicion lingers over the motives of its backers. Rivals believe Aprilia and Ducati, confident in their 2027 prototypes, pushed the measure partly to slow everyone else's development. A final verdict is expected at Silverstone, three weeks on from the German Grand Prix. On current numbers, the one-bike era looks like it will stall before it starts.
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*Originally published on [Motorsports Global](https://motorsports.global/article/motogps-one-bike-plan-for-2027-teeters-as-riders-revolt). Visit for full coverage.*