MotoGP Mid-Season Review - Part 3 The Comeback Kids

2015 has seen not one, but two manufacturers return to the sport. Suzuki made their full factory return after an absence of three years and Aprilia theirs in ten years. Though not expecting to set the world alight in their first years, it was always going to be interesting to see what kind of progress they could make.

So, has there been any?

Suzuki's return to Grand Prix racing actually came at the season-ending Valencia race in 2014, and to say that it didn't go well would be something of an understatement. The team, with test rider Randy de Puniet behind the bubble, suffered three engine failures over the course of the weekend and retired from the race as a result. A lot of work had to be done over the winter. But, as pre-season testing progressed, improvements in the machine were clearly being made, and Qatar yielded a very respectable 11th for Aleix Espargaro and 14th for Maverick Vinales.

The Suzuki GSX-RR has displayed chassis strength above everything else, and this has allowed both riders, with the help of the open concession given to them, to get their bike into the mix in qualifying. Espargaro placed his bike in the middle of the front row in Argentina and in Barcelona qualified on pole, whilst Vinales followed him to 2nd on the grid marking the team's first 1-2 on a Saturday since Assen 2008. A good chassis only takes you so far though, and it isn't enough to keep the Suzuki duo in those positions for long; at Barcelona their smiles were wiped immediately when both riders slipped back to 12th and 14th by the first corner. Horsepower has been severely lacking despite a small upgrade for the Barcelona round. But horsepower can be a double-edged sword; too little and you don't stand a chance in a drag race, too much and you can completely ruin the balance and handling of your bike. This has happened with Honda and their RC213V (see part 2) this year, and Suzuki have been wary of doing the same thing. The team are hoping to introduce a more substantial engine upgrade before the end of the season, but before that they need to implement their seamless gearbox into the GSX-RR. Meant to have been ready for the Barcelona round (one wonders just how different this paragraph would be if they had), it was delayed and has been delayed again at the time of writing. A seamless shift will help with acceleration and stability whilst upshifting, whilst offering more stability under braking on the downshift. Espargaro said that had he been riding with this on his bike then he would have been able to keep Andrea Iannone behind him at Jerez for 6th place.

Suzuki have taken a step backwards in recent races, going poorly at circuits that really should have yielded much better results, but have largely enjoyed a very good start to their comeback. Aleix Espargaro sits 12th on 44 points and Vinales 10th on 57 points having finished every race in the top 15. Their prospects for the remainder of the season hinges on engine and transmission development, but the team have proved that they are on the right track in this respect and the future looks good.

Aprilia's year has been somewhat more difficult. This was most evident at the first Sepang test when Alvaro Bautista decided to scrap the 2015 frame for the post-Valencia version. Dampening spirits within the team even further was the revelation from Marco Melandri that he couldn't even ride the bike!

So the outlook for the season wasn't optimistic.

A DNF for Bautista after he lost a brake calliper when a recovering Marc Marquez scythed his way past on the opening lap of the Qatar race denied us a chance to see what he was capable of. Then he finished 15th at Austin – a circuit which really shouldn't have suited the underpowered RS-GP. He then went on a run of four points paying finishes from the Spanish Grand Prix, with a best result of 10th at the high-attrition Catalan Grand Prix. He secured a 14th in Germany to go 17th in the standings with 13 points. The Spaniard has really impressed this year. It seems this new project has given Bautista a renewed sense of confidence after a tricky 2014 on the satellite RC213V Honda.

Aprilia's speed at which they have reached consistent points finishes has come as some surprise given that 2015 is really just 18 extended test sessions. The Italian factory had earmarked 2016 as their comeback year, but decided to come in this year to get to grips with the electronics ahead of the the entire grid going 'open' next season. This meant that they didn't actually have a full prototype ready and are running a massively tuned Superbike engine in a prototype frame. So what we are seeing now is not accurate of what Aprilia will grace the grid with in 2016. But that's not to say that they haven't been working hard on this current 'interim' bike. Most notably they introduced a seamless gearbox to the bike at Mugello and this has been a big help.

Despite these improvements, Marco Melandri still struggled. His best results were two 18th place finishes in France and Italy. He and the team agreed to part ways prior to the German Grand Prix, and it seems the Italian's MotoGP chapter has closed for good. Michael Laverty jumped on the bike for the German round and got to the finish, albeit in 20th.

Though it doesn't look like Aprilia will be challenging for any podiums in the latter stages of the season, the future for the team looks promising. A strong development foundation and a renewed Alvaro Bautista have set the team on a good trajectory for the 2016 season.

#motogp #suzuki #aprilia