– From this Monday to Wednesday, three days of private MotoGP tests are on the program at the Circuito de Jerez in Spain. Aprilia, KTM, and Yamaha are taking the opportunity to test their 2026 season machines and also try out parts of the upcoming 2027 material.
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After the official pre-season tests in Sepang (February 3 to 5) and Buriram (February 21 to 22), work continues for the test and development teams of three of the five MotoGP manufacturers just two weeks after the season opener in Thailand.
Due to the concession rules, Aprilia and KTM will compete in Jerez with their test riders. At Aprilia, Lorenzo Savadori will take over the tests. KTM has not yet officially announced its selection, but everything indicates that Pol Espargaro and/or Dani Pedrosa will take to the track.
Photo gallery: The test and reserve riders of the MotoGP teams
Yamaha, as the only manufacturer with full concession benefits, could use any of its regular riders, namely Fabio Quartararo, Alex Rins, as well as the Pramac riders Jack Miller and Toprak Razgatlioglu. In practice, however, according to team logic, test riders Augusto Fernandez and Andrea Dovizioso will ride in Jerez.
A look at the 2027 machines
Particularly interesting about the three test days is that the teams have both the 2026 Michelin tires at their disposal and the new Pirelli compounds that the manufacturer is developing to exclusively equip the field from 2027.
Against this background, it is expected that KTM and Yamaha will split their test time in Jerez between the current machine with Michelin tires and the 850cc prototype for 2027. KTM was already on the track in Jerez on December 12 with the 2027 RC16, ridden by Pol Espargaro. Yamaha tested its 2027 prototype in mid-December in discreet private sessions in Iwata.
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Aprilia and Ducati are still waiting
The only two manufacturers that have not yet ridden their 2027 bikes are the Italian brands. Aprilia will further develop the 2026 bike in Jerez, which shone in Thailand, and also has Pirelli tires to study their behavior.
Whether the 2027 prototype will take to the track for the first time remains to be seen. However, the probability is low. Instead, the focus is on the bike that took the opening victory in Buriram.
Ducati had originally planned a Jerez test but is postponing it in favor of a private test in Misano on April 13/14, immediately after the Qatar Grand Prix, the staging of which is currently still uncertain. There, the engineers want to test the 2027 prototype with Pirelli tires for the first time, piloted by Nicolo Bulega.
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Aprilia will also ride the RS-GP27 at the Misano tests, regardless of whether the bike debuts in Jerez this week. Thus, by mid-April, all five MotoGP manufacturers will have presented their 850cc prototype for the 2027 season.
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