Marco Bezzecchi
Guenther Steiner is about to embark on his first season as a MotoGP team boss. Steiner’s Tech3 team joined suppliers KTM in revealing their 2026 bike on Tuesday.
Steiner, who used to run the Haas Formula 1 team, has taken over from Tech3 founder and long-time boss Herve Poncharal. He has appointed business partner Richard Coleman as team principal.
Steiner’s arrival is a sign of MotoGP’s growing appeal to investors following Liberty Media’s takeover. The 60-year-old has not made any major changes so far.
What do you think of KTM’s bike for the 2026 MotoGP season?
The team are using the same name, virtually the same livery and the same riders for 2026, with Enea Bastianini and Maverick Vinales honouring the contracts offered to them by Poncharal.
Guenther Steiner wants to take over KTM’s entire MotoGP operation
According to a report from GPOne, Steiner’s ambitions are already growing. He is ‘in the running’ to buy the KTM team from majority shareholders Bajaj Auto.
Bajaj only acquired their stake in November 2025 after a year of uncertainty around KTM’s future, but there have still been lingering doubts about their long-term commitment to MotoGP.
If you could add any team to the MotoGP grid, who would you choose?
Therefore, Steiner knows that buying KTM would ‘guarantee’ the future of satellite team Tech3. He could then turn the two squads into a ‘franchise’, perhaps similar to Red Bull and Racing Bulls in Formula 1.
The deal, should it go through, would effectively make Steiner the boss of four riders, including Brad Binder and Pedro Acosta for as long as they stay put.
Conflicting report says Tech3 and KTM will split at the end of 2026
Motorsport Espana, on the other hand, are reporting that this will be the last year of the KTM and Tech3 alliance. They say that Steiner has already ‘closed a deal’ with another unnamed manufacturer for 2026.
KTM are apparently planning to downsize, operating solely as a factory team rather than leasing out any bikes. But perhaps that’s exactly why Steiner senses an opportunity – he senses Bajaj’s waning interest.
How do you think Guenther Steiner will fare in MotoGP as Tech3 boss?
There have already been rumours that Tech3 could partner with Ducati. Steiner is said to have a close relationship with the Italian’s brand CEO, Claudio Domenicali.
Ducati could lose VR46 at the end of the year, potentially opening the door for Steiner should he choose to go in this direction.
Receive racing news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
