Yamaha MotoGP goes all-in on the 850cc project: development progressing slowly ahead of 2026

Given the current situation, all things considered, Yamaha didn’t do that badly at the Sachsenring. Fabio Quartararo and Jack Miller in Q2, with the former delivering very respectable results in both the sprint and the full Sunday race. Of course, when talking about Yamaha you’d expect more, but the difficulties in this 2026 season were anticipated. So much so that there won’t be much to expect in terms of developments for the current YZR-M1V (1000cc).

As seen on track, at the Sachsenring Fabio Quartararo’s M1 ran with a new aerodynamic profile on the fairing that had already been glimpsed in previous tests. In practice, the triplane is now boxed, a solution that’s a compromise between the triple 2025 winglet (still chosen by the Pramac Yamaha duo) and the 2026 solution (still chosen by Alex Rins). There were also changes to the swingarm, but there’s no news about the new engine spec that had even been announced for the Le Mans Grand Prix. Maybe after the summer break, who knows.

The decision to switch to a V4 engine instead of Yamaha’s inline-four was actually made in the summer of 2023, with study and design carried out in 2024 and the on-track debut in 2025. The V4, in Yamaha’s recent history, represents a revolution that offers long-term advantages, even if it means suffering this year. A transitional season of analysis and validation was factored in: any issues found with the V4 even at 1000cc displacement would be corrected along the way so they don’t resurface looking ahead to 2027. A go-all-in season for Yamaha, where there will be no room for missteps. Especially after a recruitment campaign that saw the Tuning Forks secure the current top two riders (Jorge Martin and Ai Ogura) in the championship standings.