MotoGP to introduce new era of zero-carbon fuels by 2027

MotoGP, the top division of the Grand Prix motorcycle racing held on road circuits sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme (FIM), has announced it will introduce 40% non-fossil origin fuels from 2024.

The championship is currently divided into four classes: the eponymous MotoGP, Moto2, Moto3 and MotoE. The first three classes use four-stroke engines, while the MotoE class introduced in 2019 uses electric motorcycles.

By 2024, the series aims to have all three classes of the world championship, including Moto2 and Moto3, to use these fuels.

By 2027, all three classes will use zero-carbon fuels, produced using renewable energy, either “lab-created” or derived from waste materials.

“I’m really proud of this announcement, after many months and even years of negotiations with petrol companies and manufacturers, we’ve reached an agreement,” said FIM President Jorge Viegas. “This will allow MotoGP to be the leader in this real revolution for sustainability.”

Every MotoGP manufacturer will work with their fuel supplier, creating a selection of sustainable fuels. Moto2 and Moto3 will continue to be powered by a control supplier – which is currently Malaysia’s state-owned oil and gas company PETRONAS.

The “drop-in” sustainable fuels will be used in standard internal combustion engines, suggesting MotoGP has no immediate plans to switch to hybrid engines.

“We want to really show the way to all the motorcycle manufacturers that it’s possible to have the fun we all like but with sustainable fuels,” said Viegas.

“We hope by 2027 to have completely carbon free fuels in our competitions, leading the way and showing that, even if the racing is a small part of emissions, we must be the leaders of this change; show the way.

“Thank you to all the stakeholders for the negotiations, finally now we can announce the good news.