Dorna CEO delivers update on concessions talks - and reveals who disagreed

Carmelo Ezpeleta has led negotiations to update the current ruling in order to help Honda and Yamaha, the Japanese manufacturers who have fallen behind the Europeans in terms of competitiveness.

Although he won’t confirm the details of the new rule, he hopes that protracted negotiations will be signed off during the Valencia MotoGP.

“We are with the last adjustment now,” he told AS. 

“It is sent to the brands and will be approved this weekend in Valencia.

“There has been a bit of discussion because KTM and Aprilia wanted more things to be taken away from Ducati.”

Ducati, as the most dominant team of the year, could be hit with the sternest concessions in order to level the playing field.

Ezpeleta said: “I still have the theory that when there is a regulation in force, and everyone has complied with it, changing it is not right. 

“So what I have to do is convince that it is good to change it. 

“Ducati is doing very well now and Ducati has not done anything that cannot be done. “Aerodynamics was for everyone and she knew how to take advantage of it as well as the systems to lower the suspensions. 

“I see that this is separating the championship a lot and I'm going to Ducati and I have to convince them first to let me make concessions.

“Honda and Yamaha gave us some concessions that allowed everyone else to take a step forward. 

“Nobody remembers that before eight Hondas, eight Yamahas and two Suzukis raced here, and that it was Honda and Yamaha that gave the OK so that the other bikes would have some advantages in training and other things. 

“That allowed Ducati, first, then Suzuki and then the others to raise the level. 

“I, since I am the same, cannot forget that. 

“What have I done? Try to do this by convincing Ducati to leave things to these factories and that they have a little less.”

Fabio Quartararo, in ninth, is the highest-placed rider from a Japanese team in the current MotoGP standings.

Intriguingly Marc Marquez’s switch from Honda to Ducati in 2024 means he will go from a team who are set to benefit from concessions, to a team who will be prohibited by them.