EXCLUSIVE - Joan Mir on “importance to riders” of 2027 MotoGP rules
In our exclusive interview with Joan Mir, we quizzed the 2020 World Champion on the 2027 MotoGP regulation changes and also the switch to Pirelli tyres
Joan Mir made it clear that the regulation changes in 2027 will give “importance to the riders” as the engine sizes are stripped down to 850cc from 1000cc, with aerodynamics reduced and, maybe most importantly, the removal of ride height devices.
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Mir said: “Yeah, I mean the people watching on TV don’t really appreciate if we are two or three seconds slower. But in terms of safety for us, we certainly feel if the crash is two or three seconds slower!
“In terms of the show, if we are able to give more importance to the riders and your own riding style, skill and all this stuff, it will also improve the show because we will see races that will be completely different.”
When asked what he meant by “different” races, Mir explained how the current set of bike regulations limits what the rider can do, as the differences they can make are “small”.
He said: “If somebody pushes at the beginning of the race, they’ll pay at the end of the race because of the tyre drop off.
“But now, everything happens at the start and the tyres don’t drop as the electronics are so accurate, the aero makes the bike work perfectly and what the difference that rider can do, is small.”
Having raced in the MotoGP class since 2019, Joan Mir has only raced with Michelin rubber and with the change to Pirelli tyres coinciding with the bike regulation changes, we asked if riders from the lower grand prix class or even superbikes could take advantage of the switch as they currently use Pirelli tyres.
“It’s hard to say, MotoGP riders are the ones who have passed through all the filters/categories with Moto3/Moto2,” he said.
Mir is no stranger to adapting to Grand Prix machinery. After winning the 2017 Moto3 world title, he spent one year in Moto2, riding in the final year of the 600cc Honda engine in 2018 on Dunlop tyres.
Whilst he didn’t achieve a victory in Moto2, he impressed with four podiums and a sixth-place finish in the standings.
This led to Suzuki signing him for 2019 in the MotoGP class, which resulted in his greatest career moment in 2020 with him winning the World Championship in just his second season in MotoGP.
The Honda rider doesn’t think the advantage for riders currently using Pirelli tyres will be huge, as MotoGP is a completely different prospect in terms of tyre characteristics, “It will just be a matter of trying to adapt ourselves with the tyre, I am sure that the construction of tyre will be different from the Moto2 class compared to the MotoGP one in 2027 and even with the Superbike tyre,” he said.
“Because this bike requires a completely different thing. It needs to be more rigid for example and if you put a superbike tyre on this bike, I don’t think we’d be able to make three laps as it would destroy the tyre.”
