MotoGP: ‘Crazy’ holeshot device not already used, says Reed

Supercross legend and MotoGP fan Chad Reed has told MCN that it’s ‘crazy’ that no one in Grand Prix racing has already experimented with holeshot device to help get their bikes off the line, after rumours that Ducati tried out exactly that at the Sepang test. A regular feature in off road riding for the best part of two decades, he says that it’s common sense to try them out on track.

“We’ve been using holeshot devices since 2001 in Supercross, so it’s for sure crazy that MotoGP haven’t used it before now! I’ve never started a MotoGP race before so I’m your typical armchair racer on this one, but in Supercross it’s impossible to star without it now – it’s like riding a MotoGP bike with traction control. There’s no negatives – it’s just better in every way.

“I can see pros and cons to using them in MotoGP. For example, in Supercross we have mechanics on the line who can help us set them up, so you’d need to really slam the brakes to engage it on a road bike. We use a lot more suspension travel and use it a lot faster, so there’s more potential for it to catch and get stuck on too – they get a lot more benefit out of their suspension when it’s fully compressed. It would need a much more complicated system than we have to make sure of that.

“But MotoGP riders are short and it would definitely help the shorter guys have better control over the bike off the line by letting them reposition their weight, same as the wings let them do. That means you could use less electronic help and more mechanical, so you could get more power down quicker.”