MotoGP: Final farewell to Suzuki in 2022

The gossip of the past few days has been confirmed as Suzuki officially announced its intention to withdraw its factory participation from MotoGP at the end of this season at a meeting with Dorna.

The decision by the Japanese company’s board of directors came as a complete surprise and left the team itself – when it was announced to them last week – shocked at the inglorious end that awaited their work in the crown of world motorcycling.

An official announcement was made by Dorna Sports, the MotoGP brand owner, claiming that Suzuki did not have the authority to decide to leave the sport on its own. The Japanese company, like all the manufacturers involved in MotoGP, has signed a contract that obliges them to stay in the sport until the end of 2026.

However, it appears that an agreement has been reached to end Suzuki’s contract with Dorna lest further legal and financial complications ensue. The Japanese company cited the financial pressure it is facing from both the coronavirus pandemic and war developments in Ukraine as the reason for its withdrawal.

Suzuki returned to MotoGP in 2015 after previously exiting in 2011. From 1974 to 2011 it continuously competed in the top category of motorcycle racing, winning championships with the emblematic Barry Sinn, Marco Lucinelli, Fu Kevin Swanz and Kenny Roberts Jr.

She left in 2011 due to the impact of the 2008 financial crisis, but in 2015 she was drawn back to the sport by regulatory changes introduced in 2016 – specifically the use of shared electronics and incentives to help new manufacturers looking to join MotoGP .

After its first modern win in 2016 with Maverick Viniales at the British GP, it won the championship again in 2020 with Joan Mir. In 2021 she replaced Davine Brivio in her race lead with former Honda and Ducati rider Livo Supo, while this year she started with two spots on Alex Rins’ podium and a firm spot on Mir’s sixth.

Nobody expected that today’s decision would come so quickly and so abruptly. “Unfortunately, the current economic climate and the need to focus our efforts on the major changes coming to the automotive world in these years have forced Suzuki to shift its costs and human resources to the development of new technologies.”according to the company announcement.

Dorna claims there is strong interest from private groups in the smaller categories to fill Suzuki’s place in MotoGP. Mir is rumored to be continuing his career at Honda, replacing Paul Espargaro while Rins’ future in the sport remains uncertain.