Could the machine that relatively recently revitalised US flat track racing and also provided the platform for the Lightweight class at the Isle of Man Tourist Trophy do the same for Moto3 grand prix racing? We’ re talking about the 650cc Kawasaki parallel twin that has been in production since 2006 and has been winning races for 18 years. And still is. The words“ tried and true” spring to mind. Another contender that has followed the same route is Yamaha’ s 690cc parallel twin, with more recent success than the Kawasaki. The 690 Yamaha won the AFT Production Twins Championship in 2019 and 2021 with Corey Texter and in 2025 clinched the AFT SuperTwins Championship at the September 13 season finale at Eldon Missouri’ s Lake Ozark Speedway with Dallas Daniels.
TOO BIG, TOO MUCH TORQUE Either one of these Japanese twins could provide the platform for the planned major revision in the Moto3 class of Grand Prix racing where there is concern that many of the current crop of riders are simply too big for the little 250cc single cylinder race bikes provided by Honda and KTM. When the Moto3 class was initiated, the
minimum age for riders was 15. In recent years that has been slowly raised and is now 18 years. There are now several riders who struggle to fit onto the small, lithe 250cc singles and this is a concern for Dorna. There is another concern— the step up to the Moto2 class is now difficult for some riders. There is a big difference between an 84kg 250cc 55hp single and a 150kg 765cc Moto2 machine. When the Moto2 class was initiated as a replacement for the 250cc GP class, the Honda CBR600 engine was used in bikes weighing 140kg. Riders stepping up from Moto3 today not only have to deal with heavier machines than before, but, more importantly, they need to adjust to the vastly different torque output of the Triumph 765cc engines used in Moto2. This has been a topic of conversation within Dorna Sports S. L., the Spanish company that has
Previous page: Peter Hickman broke the Kawasaki domination of the Lightweight & SuperTwins class – on a Yamaha YZF-R7 Below: In 2009 Bill Werner turned a $ 1500 eBay purchase into an AMA dirt-track racer, after spending another $ 6000 on development. Jay Springsteen was the test rider.( Photo courtesy The Kneeslider).
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