Brno MotoGP: No test for new Suter BMW 1000cc bike

Swiss tuner Eskil Suter will not go ahead with a planned test of a new MotoGP project powered by a tuned BMW engine at next week’s Brno test in the Czech Republic.

Suter has been working on a new 1000cc MotoGP concept machine in preparation for new rules that will be introduced in 2012.

The premier class will allow four-stroke four-cylinder machines up to 1000cc with a maximum cylinder bore of 81mm to compete in MotoGP in 2012.

Suter had planned to test the bike during Monday’s test session against a crop of current 800cc machines competing in MotoGP.

A first public unveiling of the new bike, scheduled to take place in Brno this weekend, has also been cancelled.

Suter, who has a large number of teams using his chassis in the new Moto2 world championship, said the Brno test had been cancelled because it was obvious that the new bike would not be allowed to compete in 2011, with the grid remaining exclusively for 800cc bikes only next season.

He told MCN: “There was no sense to rush the project when we can’t race until 2012. It gives us more time to work on the bike before we plan to test next month.”

Suter will now show the bike for the first time at the Misano round in early September, The 1000cc rules for 2012 are a desperate attempt by Dorna to bolster dwindling grid numbers in MotoGP.

It is hoped the new rules will encourage Aprilia and BMW to join the series while opening the door for private teams to run production-derived engines in prototype chassis to save on the high costs of leasing machinery from the likes of Honda, Yamaha and Ducati.