MotoGP, Aprilia queen of testing: the new components seen at Barcelona

2022 will go down as an historic year for Aprilia, the manufacturer having already scored its first win in MotoGP and now in pursuit of the world title. As it chases the ultimate dream, the Noale manufacturer is not standing idly by in terms of development, as proved during yesterday’s test at Barcelona.

Aprilia was probably the queen of the tests in terms of updates, with the appearance of some truly futuristic-looking aerodynamic components, which confirm Romano Albesiano’s desire to forge ahead into what appears to be the new frontier of technical development in the reigning class.

An innovative fairing, and that’s not all

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The most obvious new feature regards the fairing of the RS-GP, which looks to be something brand new. In recent times, we’ve never seen a fairing with such an obvious step. There is a clear separation of the fairing into two areas. The aim is to clean lateral flows, separating them, and improving – in the upper section - the extraction capacity of the air vent to the benefit of cooling and top speed. In the lower section, which has a different shape, the threads better trace the imaginary line that runs from the disk covers and fork, reducing turbulence to a minimum and encouraging a clean flow.

Still in the aerodynamics field, Aprilia has once again tested the rear winglet, positioned on the tail, already seen for a brief period over the Mugello race weekend – on Lorenzo Savadori’s laboratory bike.

The tail piece has also undergone modification, at least in its experimental version, becoming less sharp and more undulating, which again has to do with the air, in order to better close the slipstream and favour top speed. It’s difficult to say whether all these solutions will be seen in upcoming races, but Aprilia has clearly shown great courage and innovation on the aerodynamics front, in line with rival Ducati.

Translated by Heather Watson

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