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Two years ago, Italian Moto2 manufacturer Luca Boscoscuro presented an interesting proposal. The 1995 European 250cc champion - who currently holds 1st and 2nd place in the middle class after 11 of 20 races (and 7 wins this season) with Sergio Garcia and Ai Ogura - emphatically called for more displacement for the smallest GP category with the single-cylinder 250cc four-stroke engines, which are allowed a maximum of 13,500 rpms.
The reason for this request is because the age limit for the Moto3 rose from 16 to 18 years in 2023, and young riders are also getting taller in stature. So Dorna, the MSMA, and the Grand Prix Commission are also discussing more engine displacement. Will there be more powerful 500cc twin-cylinders instead of 250cc single-cylinders for the 2027 season? Or will they even pick a sole engine supplier like in the Moto2? Or will we see one bike for everyone, like the MotoE Ducatis in the electric class?
The Italian manufacturer, Luca Boscoscuro, was the only brand to record a Moto2 GP victory in the 2018 Moto2 World Championship, alongside Kalex (eleven wins) and KTM (six wins), when Fabio Quartararo won in Catalunya at the time. The forward-thinking executive did not only concern himself with the lastest Moto2 technology, he's also regarded as a highly successful talent scout, with an alert mind when it comes to further developing the championship and the MotoGP as a whole.
As one of three current Moto2 World Championship manufacturers, Luca Boscoscuro is always a welcome guest at GPOne.com, since he thinks a lot about the future of this sport. He already racked his brains over the new age limit in 2022 and discovered weaknesses in the system. After the tragic deaths of teenagers, such as Jason Dupasquier (19) and Dean Berta Viñales (15) in 2021, the minimum age for the Moto3 and Moto2 World Championship classes was raised from 16 to 18 years for 2023. In the former 125cc two-stroke World Championship, talents such as Tom Lüthi, Randy Krummenacher, Domi Aegerter, Stefan Bradl, Sandro Cortese, and Jonas Folger were still able to debut at the age of 15!
Boscoscuro: "The riders are taller and heavier and the gap between the Moto3 and Moto2 too considerable"
"Now the riders come into the Moto3 World Championship class at the age of 18. They're 180 centimeters tall and may weigh seventy kilo," Boscoscuro told GPOne.com. "Then they have to ride the small 250cc single-cylinder bikes with 60 hp. In my opinion, we need larger vehicles with more powerful engines for the Moto3 class. Not only because of the 18-year-old rookies now, but also because the gap between the 250cc engines and the 765cc three-cylinder engines in the Moto2 has become very considerable. They have to think about whether they should switch to two-cylinder engines with 400cc or 500cc in the Moto3 World Championship. Aprilia, for example, has a very good 500cc V2 engine that produces around 70 hp. In the Supersport World Championship, the maximum displacement of 600 cc has long since been increased."
In fact, Ducati is competing against the four-cylinder 600 cc SSP bikes from Yamaha and Kawasaki with a 955cc twin, for example. In fact, Moto2 riders such as Fermin Aldeguer and 2022 World Champion Augusto Fernández didn't enter the Moto2 World Championship through the Moto3 but through the National Supersport Championship.
Ezpeleta: "The Moto3 needs to be changed, but not before 2027"
"It's true that young riders today are bigger on average than in the past," Dorna CEO Carmelo Ezpeleta also admitred. "Lately, I've even seen young riders in the Red Bull Rookies Cup and other junior series who are very tall for the Moto3. Two years ago, Filippo Farioli was at least a head taller than Finnish rider Rico Salmela. I agree. We have to think of something."
Nevertheless, the Moto3 regulations are enjoying stability for the time being. "We can think about something new for 2027 only if we consult with the factories," Ezpeleta explained. "We're still thinking and hoping that we'll have more clarity by the end of the season."
The technicians and officials from IRTA and Dorna, as well as the engineers and managers from the factories have, for example, taken a look at 400cc twin-cylinder bikes. However, the Japanese haven't yet included these bikes in their program. So a 500cc displacement limit is also conceivable in the Moto3. Aprilia and KTM already have suitable bikes in their range. The Japanese, Ducati, and other European factories would have until 2027 to make a contribution, which means two more years.
Pierer Mobility is involved in the Moto3 class with four brands (KTM, GASGAS, Husqvarn,a and CFMOTO). Since Honda is also strongly represented in this junior class and won the 2023 World Championship with Jaume Masiá, there's resistance towards a sole engine supplier and a sole bike brand among the manufacturers involved. Even if the Japanese don't join in, others could be interested in the Moto3 in Europe - such as Aprilia, Ducati, Fantic, SWM, or even BMW.
With regard to the Moto3, such a step could also solve a dilemma for the teams. More top riders are only staying in the Moto3 class for as short period of time as possible. Guevara, Foggia and Garcia, the top three in the 2022 World Championship, have been promoted to the 2023 Moto2 World Championship. After the 2023 season, we saw guys like Masiá, Sasaki, and Öncü taking on the Moto 2 challenge. Others like Alonso, Ortolá, Holgado, and Veijer are following this direction for 2025. They hold the top four places in the rankings at the moment.
Liqui Moly Husqvarna Moto3 team owner Peter Öttl, whose racing team regularly fights for the title and wins races, hasn't yet given a new Moto3 format a second thought. "From a team perspective, you have to accept the rules as they are decided," Öttl said. "I'm not too worried about that. For me, the current regulations are fine. If they're no longer right, the people in charge will react. There are some riders who are now definitely at a disadvantage due to their height. But we've always had this problem in the junior classes. That's why there's an overall weight limit for the bike, rider, and equipment."
For the time being, the officials from Dorna and IRTA are only holding talks with the two factories involved in the Moto3 World Championship: Honda and the KTM Group, namely Pierer Mobility AG's executives. "We're discussing and clarifying which direction we should take for the future of the Moto3," a top technician told GPone.com. "Two options are being discussed. We could choose a different engine configuration, and we're also discussing whether or not to appoint a sole supplier if this package proves to be the correct program for the championship."
