Yamaha MotoGP chief Paolo Pavesio has revealed that Yamaha will launch the V4 engine on its M1 MotoGP bike, only if it proves to be better than the inline-four unit being used currently.
Considering the extensive testing and development process involved in ensuring the new engine ticks all the boxes, Pavesio stressed that it won't be released this season.
Yamaha has been facing a challenging period in the premier class of motorcycle racing.
While it does enjoy the sport's concession benefits that allow extensive testing and exempt it from an engine freeze, Yamaha continues to explore other areas that have worked for other teams in elevating its performance, such as the V4 engine.
The Japanese manufacturer is the only team on the grid to feature an inline-four unit.
At the end of the 2024 season, Yamaha officially confirmed that it had made considerable progress in developing its own V4 engine.
While the Japanese manufacturer had not revealed a timeline for its debut, it suggested the engine could make its first track appearance during the 2025 season.
However, Pavesio has now dismissed that notion, stating that it would be unrealistic to anticipate its rollout in 2025, especially since the entire bike will have to be redesigned to accommodate the new engine. He said:
"Our goal in the short to medium term is to finish races in the top five. And at the same time, we are developing the V4 project. It's an entire bike, not just an engine.
"We have to get results today, while working for tomorrow. When the bike with the V4 engine is better than the one we use now, if it ever is, then we will introduce it.
"It is unrealistic to think about making the switch to V4 in 2025. When we give that bike to the official riders, we have to be convinced that it is at a good level.”
While the V4 engine could be viewed as a key to improving performance in MotoGP, Yamaha's Fabio Quartararo believes that performance gain expectations from the new engine are too high. He said:
“I think that everybody has put a lot of expectations on the V4, but I have no expectation because you can see Honda: Honda has a V4 and Honda is struggling the same as us.
“So, I don’t think this is really our main issues.
“So, we have to see, we have to check the problems and then we will figure out if we can make a step.
“But right now we are really focused on 2025 with the four inline.
“We have test riders for that [V4 testing]. I think at the end we have three of them and I think, and I’m sure, they will have time to try the V4.
“When, I have no idea, because I didn’t even ask.”
