Aprilia is making its mark early in the season, but the team from Noale is already focused on 2027, just like all its other rivals. Just over a week ago, in Jerez, the Veneto manufacturer's MotoGP prototype for 2027 took to the track with Lorenzo Savadori. By now, all the manufacturers have conducted at least one test with the new bike, and curiosity about what will happen is at its peak. Marco De Luca, Vehicle Manager for Aprilia, spoke about how work is progressing in Noale.
“Everything is going well; we’ve already done an initial test with a hybrid bike to run some trials,” he said. “Now we need to fine-tune it, and very soon we’ll be back on the track with a more advanced bike. We’re on schedule.”
Will the 850 have a completely different concept from the current 1000?
“It’s not a matter of a complete break; we might carry some of this year’s concepts over to the new bike and continue developing them, while others we won’t.”
Everyone is wondering how much difference there will be in lap times. Can you answer that?
“It will also depend on the time it takes us to catch up, as is often the case with rule changes. Of course, when you lose 40 or 50 horsepower, there’s nothing you can do; you can’t work miracles. I believe that at the beginning, the difference will be in the order of a second.”
Isn’t this regulation change as big as it seems?
“I don’t see an earth-shattering revolution, but it will certainly lead to something different.”
How important will the first collective test at Brno with the 850s be?
“It will be crucial, but I expect that no one will reveal all their cards at the start. In the first collective tests at Brno, no one will put everything they have on the track, nor will they have everything ready yet—we’ll be in the midst of development. It will be interesting to compare notes, but keeping all this in mind.”
The 2026 RS-GP is currently the benchmark—what does this mean for the new project?
“Having a good bike this year helps us balance resources correctly between the two projects. We’re still very responsive to what happens; with investments, you never have guarantees for the future, and you always have to focus on the present. Not to mention that it will give us better benchmarks for the new bike.”
From a technical standpoint, what will be the biggest challenge to face for 2027?
“There are many challenges. The tyres aren’t difficult, but they’re unknown—we’ll have to figure them out. So far, we’ve done some good testing and started creating our own models. As for the rest of the bike, we’ll have a completely different vehicle in terms of weight and weight distribution; we’ll have to be very careful in our simulations and head in the right direction—when you take the wrong path, you always realize it too late. Aerodynamics is interesting; there will be differences and some similarities, with greater or lesser limitations depending on the various areas. As for the downforce devices, it’ll be easy… we’ll just have to remove them (laughs). There will be fewer expenses and fewer complications.”
Will aerodynamics remain fundamental?
“Joking aside, I always say that, as long as aerodynamics aren’t banned, you’ll have to spend every possible resource on every centimeter of space you have available. It will certainly be different from now; there will be some limitations and fewer homologations—you’ll have to get it right the first time. Honestly, we spend as much as we possibly can. Aerodynamics will always be key; it will be a matter of adjusting the targets for certain components, and we’ll need to adapt it to a bike with less power.”
Next year, you will have a rider coming from Moto2 who knows Pirelli well?
"When I give these answers, I never get it right ( laughs). It would probably be a small advantage, but likely limited in time. MotoGP riders are phenomenal and adapt very quickly."