MotoGP tyre manufacturer Michelin has announced it has postponed the introduction of its new front tyre until the 2026 season.
The tyre manufacturer intended to bring in its new front tyre for the 2025 campaign, but following rider comments at last month’s Misano test, it has decided to move the launch back another year.
Despite reports that many of the riders liked the tyre, the lack of testing time given to the new Michelin front has resulted in the delay to its debut.
“We did a very good test on Monday after the Misano race,” Michelin’s motorsport manager Piero Taramasso told MotoGP.com’s Simon Crafar.
“Some riders liked [the new front] a lot, some less.
“But what was very positive for us was that everybody gave the same comments.”
“For example, they said, ‘the tyre has more grip, we feel more contact patches, but the bike is heavy’.
“Also ‘we feel a good potential, we can push, but the movement is too much when you brake hard’.
“Some liked these characteristics, some not and some were in the middle.
“After looking at all the comments and all the data from the telemetry, we decided to push back by one season the introduction of the new front.”
What do the riders think about the new Michelin front tyre?
The postponement of the front tyre has caused frustration across MotoGP as the current one is seen as prohibiting close racing.
Riders currently face an eight second penalty in the Sprint race, or a 16 second penalty in the main race if their tyres fail to stay above the minimum tyre pressure.
While riders like Jorge Martin and Francesco Bagnaia were positive about the new tyre, Taramasso explained that the French manufacturer still needs time to develop rubber that works well for a variety of riding styles.
“All the riders said ‘wow, when you ride the first lap, it’s very strange. You need to ride more and more and more,’” Taramasso explained.
“It’s a different philosophy. They just need more time to understand it and so this is the decision we took.”
“It depends on riding style and bike, but basically this tyre is lighter, 1kg or 20% less.
“When you brake, you squash the tyre more, you get a bigger contact patch,” Taramasso explained, “that’s why it feels heavy, but the grip is better.
“They just need time and probably to adapt their riding style.
“But riders like Pecco, Jorge, Marc, Jack Miller, Luca liked it a lot.
“Others said no, we need more time. We need to find a model that works well for more riding styles.
“That’s why we need more testing and we decided to push back by one year more.”
