MotoGP front holeshot devices banned from Assen onwards

MotoGP front holeshot devices gone

MotoGP’s start-line technology race will be wound back from the Dutch Grand Prix, with the Grand Prix Commission confirming that front ride-height devices, or holeshot devices, will be removed from all MotoGP machines from Assen onwards.

The decision was announced overnight by the Grand Prix Commission, comprising representatives from the FIM, IRTA, MSMA and MotoGP, and follows consultation with all MotoGP teams. Riders have also been given extra practice-start sessions ahead of the change, allowing them to recalibrate their launch procedures without the front-end device in use.

Front-end launch devices removed

Holeshot devices are mechanical systems activated before the start of a race to lower the motorcycle and reduce the tendency to wheelie under hard acceleration. By holding the machine lower, teams have been able to keep more drive going into the rear tyre and reduce the amount of electronic or rider intervention needed in the first phase of the launch.

Brad Binder during a practice start at Jerez in April

The devices became one of the more visible technical battlegrounds of the modern MotoGP era after Ducati first brought holeshot-style systems into play late in the 2018 season. The idea quickly spread through the paddock and evolved into more complex ride-height systems, most notably at the rear of the bike, where lowering the rear under acceleration improved drive out of corners.

The front-end systems have been more contentious. True front ride-height devices used while the motorcycle was moving were outlawed as of 2023, but start-only front holeshot devices remained legal. This new decision removes those front start devices from the grid ahead of the wider 2027 regulation reset, under which ride-height devices are due to disappear from MotoGP altogether.

Because electronically controlled suspension is not permitted in Grand Prix motorcycle racing, MotoGP’s ride-height and holeshot systems have always been more of a somewhat clever mechanical workaround than a semi-active suspension system in the road-bike sense. Modern production machinery can now use sensors, ECUs and electronic adjusters to vary suspension behaviour on the fly, but MotoGP’s front and rear ride-height devices have had to remain essentially ‘dumb’ mechanical/hydraulic systems, manually triggered by the rider rather than automatically managed by electronics. That makes the technology both fascinating and somewhat anachronistic: immensely complex in its detail, but deliberately crude in principle compared with the electronic suspension systems now found on many high-end street bikes.

Francesco Bagnaia launches at Mugello last month

For riders, the immediate effect will be felt in the launch phase. With the front no longer locked down, starts will place greater emphasis on clutch feel, throttle control, body position, and the bike’s anti-wheelie strategy. Poor starts may become harder to mask, while riders who have always been particularly strong off the line may regain a little more of that advantage.

Grid spacing to increase from Germany

The Grand Prix Commission has also confirmed a change to the standard grid layout for all classes from the German Grand Prix onwards.

The vertical spacing between rows will increase from three metres to four metres. With three riders remaining on each row, that increases the distance between each three-rider row from nine metres to 12 metres. The stated aim is to improve safety at race starts, particularly during the critical first few seconds when riders are launching from close quarters and any stalled or slow-starting machine can quickly become a hazard.

That change will apply across MotoGP, Moto2 and Moto3, not just the premier class.

Six bikes per manufacturer from 2028

A further rule change has also been confirmed for the MotoGP class from 2028, with a maximum of six motorcycles permitted on the grid from any one manufacturer.

In practical terms, that means a manufacturer will be able to supply its own factory team plus a maximum of two additional teams. The rule is conditional, however, and will only apply if at least five manufacturers are competing in the championship at that time.

The 2028 cap appears designed to help preserve manufacturer diversity across the MotoGP grid and prevent any single marque from dominating the entry list through sheer numbers. It also gives factories and independent teams a long runway to plan supply arrangements beyond the incoming 2027 technical regulations.

For now, though, the most immediate change will be seen at Assen, where the front-end squat-and-fire launch era comes to an end.