Michelin open to ‘in race’ MotoGP tyre pressure penalties – Exclusive

Michelin is open to changing MotoGP’s current tyre pressure penalty system by introducing in-race punishments, such as long laps, rather than applying time penalties after the chequered flag.

Under the existing regulations, any rider who fails to stay above the minimum specified safety pressure - 1.8 bar for the front, 1.68 for the rear - for at least 60% of grand prix laps is handed a 16-second post-race penalty. In Sprints, the threshold is 30%, with an 8-second penalty.

However, because these sanctions are only applied after the race, it means the results are changed long after podium celebrations have taken place.

While no MotoGP rider has yet lost a victory due to a tyre pressure infraction, several riders have been demoted from the podium.

The most recent example came in Qatar, where Maverick Vinales finished second and celebrated what would still be KTM’s best result of the season, only to be dropped to 14th due to a front tyre pressure violation.

It also meant VR46's Franco Morbidelli, promoted to third place, missed out on a podium appearance.

Four riders were then penalised under the same rule at the recent British Grand Prix at Silverstone, underlining that, despite their best efforts, riders and teams will continue to be caught out.

"The problem is the way you apply the penalty"

Michelin’s two-wheeled racing boss Piero Taramasso told Crash.net that real-time monitoring technology has a proven level of accuracy that could support penalties being issued during the race itself.

“We are still discussing, talking with Dorna, FIM, the MSMA. We are open. If they find another system that works better, we are willing to change,” replied Taramasso, when asked if the current tyre pressure regulations could change.

“The problem is not on the technical side, which is working well; the sensors and the measurements are super precise.

“For me, the problem is the way you apply the penalty. After the race, after the podium.

“This is what upsets people. So we need to find a way to maybe get the penalisation before, with long lap penalties, during the race.

“Maybe at 3/4 of the race distance, you look at the data and see if it’s OK or not.

“For me, this could be one solution.”

With a standard long lap penalty costing around 3-5 seconds, even a double long lap would be significantly less severe than the current 16-second drop, while allowing results to stand at the finish line.

Why one pre-race pressure is "unfair"

Taramasso also addressed why in-race pressure monitoring, rather than pre-race grid checks, is the fairest system.

“About the technical side, to find something better than this will be very, very difficult,” he said. “Because now you get the real pressure, in real time on the track. This is what you want.

“It’s also fair [to allow teams the freedom to decide their own starting pressure], because each rider is able to start with the pressure they like.

“If you impose one pressure for all - for example, 1.8 on the grid - this is unfair because guys starting at the front and the back want different starting pressures.”

According to Taramasso, most infringements involve marginal pressure drops and are part of a misjudged race strategy, rather than blatant technical oversights.

“The teams know the system very well now, they manage well. When [a penalty] happens, it’s always for very, very little. They are not running below by 0.5 bar,” he added.

“The riders also have [dashboard] warnings. So it's just one more strategy to manage, where you can decide if you want to attack, stay behind, stay in front.

“I don't say it's easy, but when you are playing at the limit, sometimes there is a price to pay [for being under].”

Asked whether the minimum front pressure of 1.8 bar could be reduced further in the future, Taramasso was clear: “No. We are at the limit. We cannot lower anymore,” he said.

“We were only able to go to this very low limit thanks to the accuracy of the real-time system, because we know exactly what the pressures are on track.”

That confidence is why Taramasso believes it’s time to explore applying penalties during the race.

“So far, every time we’ve checked the sensors, we never see a problem,” he stated.

“[In-race penalties] is just an idea, just to say that we are open to everything, to different solutions.”

The downside of an in-race penalty is that it would punish all low-pressure breaches, regardless of cause.

That includes unexpected damage such as the leaking rim suffered by Pedro Acosta at Mandalika last year, for which the Tech3 rider was able to escape a post-race penalty.

Michelin will remain MotoGP’s exclusive tyre supplier until the end of the current technical era in 2026, after which Pirelli will take over from 2027.