In 2002, the upper echelon of grand prix motorcycling experienced a sudden and seismic shift in its technical regulations.
Having raced with 500cc engines since the inception of the category in 1949, the top class moved to 990cc powerplants, opening up the engine capacity to something almost twice as large.
As the 500cc moniker was now obviously redundant, the new formula prompted a switch to the infinitely more marketable MotoGP name. For the world of bikes, this was akin to the top level of English football breaking away from the other divisions in 1992, and rebadging itself as the Premier League.