MotoGP, Sportrik Media - Michelin has dismissed suggestions that Aprilia Racing’s dominant start to the MotoGP World Championship 2026 season was driven by tyre specification, insisting the Italian manufacturer’s advantage lies in the overall performance of its RS-GP package.
Aprilia controlled the opening rounds in Thailand and Brazil, with Marco Bezzecchi securing commanding victories in both grands prix. In Brazil, the result was reinforced by a 1-2 finish alongside team-mate Jorge Martin. These performances led to early theories that Michelin’s stiffer tyre construction, introduced to cope with extreme heat and high-speed layouts, had played a decisive role.
The stiffer casing was specifically deployed at circuits such as Buriram and Goiania to manage thermal stress and load demands. Aprilia’s RS-GP was widely perceived to extract superior performance from this specification compared to its rivals, fuelling speculation that tyre characteristics were central to its competitive edge.
However, the United States Grand Prix at the Circuit of The Americas (COTA), where Michelin reverted to its standard tyre construction, provided a contrasting scenario. Expectations suggested that Ducati would regain competitiveness under these conditions, yet the Italian manufacturer failed to secure a podium finish. Instead, Bezzecchi led another Aprilia 1-2 ahead of Martin, reinforcing the consistency of the RS-GP across varying technical conditions.
The Austin result effectively challenged the initial narrative linking Aprilia’s success to tyre specification. The RS-GP’s performance, which also delivered its first sprint victory of the season, underlined a broader competitive strength beyond tyre variables.
Michelin MotoGP boss Piero Taramasso stated that he had never subscribed to the theory that tyre construction was the primary factor behind Aprilia’s dominance.
“I always thought it wasn’t that, because we’ve been supplying the stiffest casing for several seasons,” he said in an interview with Motorsport Italy.
“Everyone knows how to interpret it and how to work on the set-up. Even the riders are used to it. Right now, Aprilia has something more in terms of the bike.”
Michelin deploys the stiffer tyre construction at selected venues including Red Bull Ring, Mandalika, Buriram, and Goiania to address extreme heat demands. Historically, the specification has produced mixed outcomes, particularly for Ducati.
While Ducati has traditionally performed strongly at the Red Bull Ring and dominated at Buriram in the previous season, it encountered difficulties with the same tyre at Mandalika, especially with the GP25. In contrast, the GP24 proved highly competitive under those conditions in the hands of Fermin Aldeguer. During the 2026 Buriram round, Ducati was left puzzled by its performance, having not experienced similar issues during pre-event testing.
Michelin’s position reinforces the view that Aprilia’s early-season dominance is rooted in its technical package rather than tyre-related advantages. Attention now turns to the upcoming rounds to determine whether Aprilia can sustain its performance across different circuits and tyre specifications throughout the championship.
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