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Öhlins, which is specialized in suspensions, has won every MotoGP World Championship title since Casey Stoner's World Championship triumph with Ducati in 2007. From the start of the 2010 season, in Qatar, to Brno in 2020, the Swedish manufacturer has claimed 227 MotoGP victories in a row. KTM then won a MotoGP World Championship race for the first time with Brad Binder and its own WP brand in the Czech Republic. Öhlins was recently purchased by Brembo.
Although Honda has been a major shareholder in Showa for many years, all Honda MotoGP bikes were equipped with Öhlins products for a few years. However, in 2012, Honda's new presidnet wanted to re-establish Showa in the premier class. That's why Gresini-Honda returned to the MotoGP World Championship in 2012, with Álvaro Bautista as their figurehead and the Japanese suspension brand, Showa. But the Japanese weren't prepared to accept Öhlins' MotoGP monopoly without resistance.
In 2012, the owner of the Gresini team was rewarded by HRC for using Showa products, with an annual payment of 250,000 Euros. Furthermore, materials and technical support, including manpower, were provided free of charge. Álvaro Bautista struggled with Showa for three years, with varying degrees of success.
Whne Gresini Racing allied itself with the Aprilia factory teams in the fall of 2014, they, once again, installed Öhlins material. Aprilia still relies on Öhlins today, like every other brand, with the exception of KTM and GASGAS, which is a 100% copy of the RC16.
In 2015, only Karel Abraham's private AB Motoracing team used Showa parts. It ended up not scoring any points.
Managers at Showa made very lucrative offers to Ducati, Suzuki, Honda, and Aprilia at the 2015 Japanese GP in Motegi. But the MotoGP manufacturers didn't bite. They kindly rejected the offers and extended their collaboration with Öhlins.
In 2016, Öhlins once again enjoyed a monopolistic position as a suspensions manufacturer in the premier class. This changed in 2017, with the entry of KTM and its in-house group brand, WP Suspension, formerly known as White Power.
"In 2017, all MotoGP manufacturers, except KTM, had contracts with Öhlins," Mats Larsson, Racing Manager for the Swedish company said.
However, other companies competing with Öhlins also appeared with their forks and shock absorbers. Kayaba (new name: KYB) left the premier class after the 2000 season with Tech3-Yamaha, and only tried out material for the premier class again during the Valencia test in November 2014, for two days with Forward Yamaha MotoGP riders Stefan Bradl and Loris Baz. But the material proved to be unusable. "The suspensions behaved like an air pump," one rider complained. KYB hasn' been seen in the MotoGP since then.
WP Suspension, which belongs to the KTM Group, had however been toying with the idea of entering the MotoGP class for years.
In 2013, two wildcard races were held on a trial basis with Martin Bauer (on a Suter BMW). In September 2013, Danilo Petrucci also tested WP parts, for a day in Misano, with IodaRacing (on a Suter BMW). From 2014, WP went from victory to victory in the Moto2 World Championship, until KTM withdrew from the Moto2 at the end of 2019.
From October 2015 (roll-out in Spielberg), WP Suspension prepared for the 2017 MotoGP World Championship along with the Red Bull KTM Factory Team in Munderfing/Austria.
But Öhlins' winning streak in the MotoGP World Championship has continued stubbornly since the 2009 Valencia GP, when Repsol Honda's rider, Dani Pedrosa, won with Showa for the last time. The forward-thinking LCR Honda team owner, Lucio Cecchinello, and also Randy de Puniet, were the first Honda team to opt for Öhlins instead of Showa.
HRC also then opted for Öhlins with the Repsol team, so as not to have to fear any disadvantages compared to Ducati and Yamaha.
Since Casey Stoner's World Championship triumph in 2007 on Ducati, Öhlins has won all World Championship titles in the MotoGP class and, from the start of the 2010 season in Qatarm to Brno 2020 (Brad Binder on KTM and WP), it claimed exactly 227 MotoGP victories in a row for more than ten years.
The last MotoGP World Championship title for Showa was won by Repsol Honda rider Nicky Hayden in the 2006 season.
As opposed to KYB, Showa was no longer even represented in the Moto2 class at RW Racing. The Dutch team relied on KYB during the years, with Japanese NTS bikes, but they switched to Öhlins after the 2021 Moto2 season, following the withdrawal of NTS.
WP Suspension has snatched several titles and victories away from Öhlins in the Moto3 and Moto2 World Championships since 2012. However, following KTM's withdrawal from the Moto2 as a frame manufacturer, WP didn't return to the Moto2 until 2024, with Red Bull Ajo, Liqui Moly Husqvarna, and CFMOTO.
During the 2020 season, Öhlins won its 14th consecutive MotoGP World Championship title thanks to Joan Mir on the Suzuki GSX-RR, followed by numbers 15, 16 and 17 in 2021, 2022, and in 2023 by Fabio Quartararo (Yamaha) and Pecco Bagnaia (Ducati). The 18th World Championship title in a row will most likely be decided between Jorge Martin and Pecco Bagnaia.
After all, KTM has interrupted the Öhlins winning streak five times with Brad Binder (Brno 2020, Spielberg 2021) and Miguel Oliveira (Spielberg and Portimão 2020, Catalunya 2021, Mandalika and Buriram 2022).
But, in the past two years, Öhlins has once again claimed all MotoGP race victories.
