The ‘rumour’ that emerged about Michelin before Pirelli secured 2027 MotoGP tyre deal

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MotoGP have confirmed that Pirelli will replace Michelin as the official tyre supplier from the 2027 season onwards.

The Milan-based brand – who supply the tyres for Formula 1 – already manufactures the rubber for Moto2 and Moto3. Now, Pirelli will replace Michelin in the premier class.

News broke on Thursday that the latter’s 11-year association with MotoGP will end come the conclusion of the 2026 season.

Fermin Aldeguer’s crew chief Frankie Carchedi was stunned by Michelin’s decision. They will leave the premier class as Pirelli signs a five-year deal – starting for the regulation changes in 2027.

‘Rumour’ suggest Michelin and Pirelli engaged in a ‘bidding war’ over MotoGP contract

MotoGP feels Pirelli supplying tyres for all three classes will ‘provide the perfect development ladder’ for riders. But journalist Neil Morrison says Michelin ‘absolutely want to continue’ working in the premier class after catching up with Piero Taramasso.

Speaking via the Paddock Pass Podcast YouTube channel, Morrison says the ‘rumour’ is Pirelli and Michelin had a ‘bidding war’ over the MotoGP contract.

“I caught up with Piero Taramasso, the head of two-wheel motorsport earlier today briefly just to understand what they’re thinking was and it’s to safe to say that they were still coming to terms with the news,” he said.

“They absolutely want to continue in MotoGP and there is a rumour that I’ve heard that it turned into a bit of a bidding war between Pirelli and Michelin for the MotoGP contract.

“They just weren’t interested in going into Moto2 or Moto3, just didn’t offer them the feedback that they felt would be applicable to their products they can use on the road.

“I did ask him also what does this mean for the rest of your time in MotoGP and he said: ‘Well we’ve still got two years to go’.

“But with regards to the new front tyre which is proposed to come in next year, they’re going to test it at the Jerez test after the Spanish Grand Prix and then after the Aragon GP, the Aragon test which is in June I think.”

MotoGP riders not allowed to criticise Michelin until Pirelli replaces them

Michelin’s exit from MotoGP comes after several complaints from riders and teams. Marco Bezzecchi questioned the tyre allocation in Sepang testing as he felt there was not enough of the soft compound.

Aprilia chief Massimo Rivola blamed Michelin for Jorge Martin’s highside in Malaysia. The defending champion suffered fractures in the crash, with another accident in training ruling Martin out of the Argentine Grand Prix.

Taramasso claimed Martin was outpacing his rivals before the crash. He deflected blame from Michelin after seeing the Aprilia rider’s data.

MotoGP riders are not ‘allowed’ to criticise Michelin until Pirelli takes over in 2027. The idea is that any issue will be dealt with behind closed doors.