We're entering a new world order...in MotoGP. Yes, gone are the days when everyone and their mother used high-displacement, high-revving, inline motors. Rather, Ducati—of all companies—showed the way forward with its V4 motors. And now everyone's following suit as they race (pun intended) to catch the team from Borgo Panigale which is just dominating the field.
The last holdout was Yamaha, and I get why. I mean, you cannot deny that the crossplane yowl of the Yamahas wasn't anything short of iconic. You could tell exactly where the Yamahas were on track, and on the street, it's easily one of the best sounding motorcycle engines around.
I still dream of my time with the MT-10, and that was nearly 8 years ago.
But late last year, Team Blue said they too would be swapping to the V4 architecture, and that they'd already worked out an engine design. Whether that'd end up in this year's or next year's motorcycle, however, was still up for debate. And given that the rules for MotoGP are set to change next season, everyone thought we wouldn't see it until closer to the end of the year.
That isn't the case, however, as Yamaha will test its new V4 MotoGP engine this week in Valencia during a private session. So you know someone is going to leak what that bike sounds like the minute after the test is done.
According to our siblings over at Motorsport, Yamaha will begin testing the V4 motor on a GP circuit for the first time later this week. "This will be the first time the V4 engine has been tested on a European circuit," states the outlet, adding, "Earlier this year, it made its debut in a private session at Sepang in Malaysia. That test featured a very early version, however, with a lot of work still to be done on the electronics in particular."
While MotoGP's testing concessions would've given the team's actual racers the chance to play with the new engine around the track, it seems more likely that Augusto Fernandez or Cal Crutchlow will play as test riders. It should've been Andrea Dovizioso, however. But because of an injury, he's been sidelined, though he already has time with the motor during prior testing sessions.
But while all of the backroom inner workings of Yamaha's testing regimen is neat and all, I want to hear what this engine is going to sound like?
Will it feature a noise we haven't heard before? Will Yamaha deliver an aural experience that's similar to the brand's crossplane motors? Can Yamaha get away with an engine architecture that's different from KTM, Aprilia, Ducati, and Honda so that it is unique? I wouldn't put it past Yamaha to try something new and innovative, but we'll have to wait and see what leaks from the test.
Because as much as MotoGP's testing is a tight ship, everything leaks.
