Why MotoGP's 'possum' isn't as dormant as its Qatar GP suggests

“The biggest surprise to me was Suzuki playing possum all winter and coming out with 355km/h, so clearly they found some ponies in Japan,” Ducati’s Jack Miller said after the opening day of the 2022 Qatar Grand Prix in which Suzuki’s Alex Rins topped the timesheets.

The “ponies” he refers to is the significantly increased stable propelling the GSX-RR from corner to corner in 2022. Suzuki’s engineers back at its Hamamatsu base have managed to tease more power out of its inline four-cylinder engine to the point where Rins out-dragged a Ducati on Losail’s main straight in Friday practice.

That was something unthinkable 12 months ago, when Joan Mir was stripped of second by factory Ducati rider Francesco Bagnaia and Pramac’s Johann Zarco on the run out of the final corner to the chequered flag in the 2021 edition of the Qatar GP.

For Mir, even passing an Aprilia in a straight line was cause for celebration.

“Well, I’m really happy because I was able to overtake the Aprilia on the straight,” Mir said after last Sunday’s 2022 season-opener, when he finished a disappointing sixth having shown greater promise in practice. “This is something that makes me really, really happy, that last year we couldn’t imagine this. Apart from that, I was able to see on top speed we are really close. Last year in the slipstream I was not able to follow them, so it’s a first step.”

That’s not to criticise Aprilia and the fine job it has done with its RS-GP. The bike was third-quickest through the speed traps in Qatar last weekend at a hair-ruining 354km/h.

Mir topped the speed trap standings with 357.6km/h during the Qatar GP

Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images

But from having a bike that couldn’t even take much profit of a slipstream last year, Suzuki has somehow built one that beat even the rocket ship Ducati in the speed charts. Miller’s Friday comment came after Rins clocked 355.2km/h in both practice sessions. Come the end of the weekend, it was Mir who topped the speed standings with 357.6km/h set during the race.

By comparison, the fastest Ducati – race winner Enea Bastianini on the year-old Desmosedici – tripped the speed gun beam at 355.2km/h in the race. So, at this juncture, we can say a Suzuki can at least match a Ducati in top speed.

PLUS: Why MotoGP’s newest winner can be a menace in the coming races

Top speed, of course, is only one element that makes for a competitive bike. But both Mir and Rins raved through the pre-season that the new engine had delivered more power without compromising the famed handling characteristics of the GSX-RR. Suzuki, then, seems to have done what Ducati did last year in building a bike that can turn just as well as it pokes a hole through the air.

"There were a lot of manufacturers in front of us [in Qatar], but it’s only the first race. I think the people who struggled here will not struggle in the future. Everything will, I hope, get back to normal" Joan Mir

That Suzuki only managed eighth and 10th in qualifying came as something of a return to reality. However, Mir was only 0.125s from getting on the front row in Q2, and he did his 1m53.407s lap without a slipstream – which was estimated to give around 0.3s in lap time. Qualifying 0.396s off pole, Mir was looking at second had he been able to hook up his lap with the added benefit of a slipstream. Rins would have jumped up from 10th to at least the second row in the same circumstances. 

But ifs and buts don’t win you races and Suzuki clearly need to find a little bit more over a single lap. Across 2021, Suzuki managed just two front rows - both in Portugal, with Rins second at the first Algarve race and Mir third in the second one. Mir, however, is still convinced the new GSX-RR is better in time attack trim than it used to be.

“Yes, by far,” Mir said of Suzuki’s qualifying gains. “We are a lot better than last year, even with problems I was able to make 1m53.4s, which is a good lap time. Then, for sure, we have a couple of tenths that we can improve, on the straight you probably gain a little bit more with the slipstream. But we are not that bad I think. I expected a little bit more, but we are really close and it’s like this. It is clear that we improved on quali. There’s more potential, I feel when the tyre is new and everything.”

Suzuki's engine updates have been a clear hit with both Mir and Rins

Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images

Qualifying down on the third and fourth row hasn’t typically stopped Suzuki riders from having good races. Miller said later in the weekend he was convinced Suzuki had gained “30 horsepower” with its engine, but was “intrigued” to see what effect this would have on tyre and fuel consumption.

PLUS: How Ducati turned its feared MotoGP strength into a problem in Qatar

Both Mir and Rins had grip problems in the race. The latter battled with the front trying to wash out from underneath him, while Mir also had some front tyre issues – though felt these were a normal consequence of running soft option while the pace in the Qatar GP was so hot. However, what he felt wasn’t normal was how quickly his medium rear tyre fell away and meant he “was having a lot of trouble making the bike go forward”.

But Mir didn’t think his more powerful engine had anything to do his rear tyre problems, while Rins says the front tyre issues he battled through were new to him but likely a result of the soft being too soft for the Suzuki. In the end, both managed sixth and seventh.

Even with these issues, the numbers from the race offer a more promising glimpse at Suzuki’s potential. Mir’s race time in 2022 in the Qatar GP was over 10 seconds quicker than he managed in 2021 when he fought for the podium, while Rins’ was around about the same when he was sixth.

After a lacklustre 2021 following the highs of its title-winning season before, Suzuki in general seems like a more galvanised unit. Ahead of the Qatar GP, Suzuki announced it had brought in ex-Honda and Ducati team boss Livio Suppo as team manager to replace Davide Brivio – who remains with Alpine having departed Suzuki last February.

It will take some time for Suppo to gel with the team and there are suggestions some within are not happy at his appointment. But one of those clearly isn’t Mir, who told Autosport exclusively last week that his “priority” now is to re-sign with Suzuki having seen enough from the new bike.

Could Suzuki repeat its 2020 feats this year?

Photo by: MotoGP

With the bike itself, Mir admits there is still some work to do. He didn’t feel as strong at the end of the Qatar GP as he typically would in races and says his rear tyre drop was likely a set-up thing that will need analysed going forward.

However, he is clear that what Suzuki showed in the Qatar GP isn’t at all representative of where it’s really at, adding: “There’s a lot of manufacturers in front of us [in Qatar], it’s true. But it’s only the first race, honestly. I think the people who struggled here will not struggle in the future. Everything will, I hope, get back to normal. I think as a team we have more to say than only to fight for that top five. I’m not worried. I know that everything will come better.”

Though the all-important results don’t show it, there is definitely enough evidence to suggest fears about Suzuki from rivals will be warranted

That comment is a far cry from how Mir sounded at the end of 2021 when he felt he could have done no better on the under-developed package he was given, which ultimately took him to third instead of the second world title he was aiming for.

What is clear after Qatar is Suzuki’s showing in the race has done nothing to quell the thought that the new GSX-RR is something to fear. Though the all-important results don’t show it, there is definitely enough evidence to suggest that those fears will be warranted.

Mir said his “priority” is to re-sign with Suzuki due to developments on the new bike

Photo by: MotoGP