Aprillia to return to MotoGP, maybe?

[FourWheelDrift]

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/59082

Autosport said:

Aprilia could make the step up to MotoGP in the next few years after the success of the company's restructuring under new owners Piaggio. Piaggio Group chairman Roberto Colaninno claims that the Italian bike company are looking at other avenues of racing outside of their current involvement in 125cc and 250cc events - and MotoGP is a possibility. Speaking at the presentation of the new Aprilia 750 road bike at their factory in Noale, Colaninno was quoted as saying by Gazzetta dello Sport: "We have won a gamble few believed in when we acquired the company at the end of 2004.

"We've restructured it and today we are presenting the first product built entirely - frame and engine - in Noale. We are taking some fabulous victories in 125 and 250cc, and now we are preparing for a big entrance in Superbikes and probably MotoGP.

"After the restructuring of the company, it's now time to make the leap forward. In the next three years we'll invest 340 million Euros for industrial development and we'll build a factory in Vietnam to produce the Vespa.

"That's where the philosophy to be in the most important two-wheel competition stems from."

[anonymous-user]

If they do (and I'd love it if they did) then I hope it's less of a beast than their last effort!

[Rawwr]

Now that would be nice

[Andrew D]

It's a pitty that the FIM didn't tweak the regulations to allow the original Aprilia triple to be competative, especially now the RC211V has gone. Having triples and fives in the mix made it really interesting from a technical perspective, whilst the current raft of 800cc fours is pretty dull.

[Waynester]

Be nice if they had another go at WSB...
Race on Sunday sell on Monday.

[randlemarcus]

Benelli are rumoured to be thinking of having a crack at MotoGP as well, by slicing a cylinder of the 1130 triple, giving them an 800 ish parallel twin. Chinese funding ought to see them get slightly further than Ilmor, cross fingers.

[Steve_T]

Andrew D said:

It's a pitty that the FIM didn't tweak the regulations to allow the original Aprilia triple to be competative, especially now the RC211V has gone. Having triples and fives in the mix made it really interesting from a technical perspective, whilst the current raft of 800cc fours is pretty dull.

I thought the problem with the Cube was not lack of power, but rather a difficult to manage delivery.

Steve.

[runnersp]

I can't see this happening any time soon. Considering they recently unveiled a 1 litre V4 which apparently will race in SBK, and also considering that Dorna wants 125s and 250s to go four stroke and Aprilia Racing top bloke Giampiero Sacchi has threatened that Aprilia might leave the paddock altogether if Carmelo Ezpeleta doesn't stop urinating on the smaller classes...

[Andrew D]

Steve_T said:

I thought the problem with the Cube was not lack of power, but rather a difficult to manage delivery.

Steve.

The Cube was the most powerful of the first wave of MotoGP's, but apparently making a triple knock out that kind of power made the bike unridable due to delivery/vibration etc. I don't think the suspension setup was too hot either.