The skill of the best riders in the world in terms of MotoGP™ bike switching comes to the fore when races are declared as ‘flag-to-flag’, which means those competing in the premier class can enter the pit lane during a race to change to a second bike.
The flag-to-flag rule stipulates that if a race is declared as wet before the start, or if white flags are shown during the race to indicate the presence of rainfall, then the riders are allowed to swap bikes during the race.
All MotoGP™ riders have two bikes and in fact they are allowed to swap between the two as many times as they want, once a race is being run under flag-to-flag conditions.
Why do MotoGP™ riders switch bikes during a race?
The reasons behind MotoGP™ bike switching in races relate to safety and performance. In completely dry conditions riders use slick tyres for better performance, whilst in completely wet conditions rain tyres are safer and quicker.
If a MotoGP™ race is declared wet before the start, sometimes it is still unclear for the riders and their teams whether it will be safer and/or faster to ride on wet tyres or slick tyres.
This pre-race calculation and decision-making process is particularly difficult when there is only light rainfall, or it has rained and the track is beginning to dry out (wet-drying conditions).
Likewise, during a race when the white flag has been shown (to indicate the switch from dry to wet conditions), or in the case of a wet race where the track is beginning to dry mid-race, the riders must judge if and when to enter pitlane and switch to their second bike with different tyres on.
So dry race and wet race strategy comes into play when the riders are contemplating a MotoGP™ bike change and flag-to-flag races only add to the drama and excitement of MotoGP™.
Flag-to-Flag racing in MotoGP™: How it works and why it matters
To describe the intricacies of MotoGP™ bike switching and how the flag-to-flag rule works in Grand Prix racing, who better than MotoGP™ Race Director, Mike Webb, to give us the details.
He states: “The flag-to-flag procedure applies only in MotoGP™ because the riders have two bikes. It means that in wet conditions the riders are allowed to use their second bike during the race. Before the race, we can declare the race wet from the beginning, before the sighting lap, anytime,” he states.
Webb continues, “As soon as it’s declared wet you can change your bike during the race. We only wave the flags if it starts dry and starts raining later, then the riders are also allowed to change the bike.”
“So flag-to-flag means as soon as we see rain drops, we see rain is coming, we use the white flags to say, it is now allowed to change bikes and the riders decide when to change their bikes.”
The rules also allow for unlimited bike swaps, though changing too often obviously impacts a rider’s chances of staying ahead of his rivals.
Webb explains further, “In the early years there were some limits on what you could change and which kind of tyres you could use. The simplest way, which is what we have now, is that you can change your bike as many times as you like. It doesn’t matter if it stops raining, the race is now flag-to-flag.”
“So, after the flag-to-flag signal you can change as many times as you like and we don’t care what tyres you have on the bike. So, if you have slick tyres on the bike and you come in and change to the spare bike with slick tyres, it doesn’t matter. Rain tyres to rain tyres, rain to slick, it doesn’t matter. You can change the bike and continue.”
When riders enter pit lane to change bikes they must slow down and respect the speed limit otherwise they will face a double long-lap penalty.
The FIM World Championship Grand Prix Regulations stipulate: “A speed limit of 60 km/h will be enforced in the pit lane at all times during the event. Riders must respect the speed limit from where the sign 60 km/h is placed up to where the sign 60 km/h crossed out is placed.”
“For exceeding the pit lane speed limit during a race the standard penalty will be a 2x Long Lap Penalty. However the FIM MotoGP Stewards may apply further or different penalties (for example for excessively high speed causing danger).”
When the riders reach the area just in front of their pit box (team garage) their crew will be waiting with the second bike prepped to immediately go back out on track. The riders jump from one bike to another as quickly and smoothly as possible and make their way back out onto the track.
Strategies behind MotoGP™ bike switching
The riders must calculate carefully if and when to make a bike swap, depending on their race strategy, the conditions, their feeling with tyres, the actions of other riders and in particular the tactics of their direct rivals.
The timing of a MotoGP™ bike change to a machine set-up with slick or rain tyres can have a huge impact on the rider’s race position and their final result under the flag-to-flag rule.
The teams help their riders to make a decision on which tyres to start the race with and what the smartest strategy during the race might be.
The respective record and quality of the rider in different conditions, the experience of the team, the precise weather data and the team’s data from previous races and practice sessions in dry, wet and wet-drying conditions can all influence the decision-making process.
Once the race is underway, however, even if the team relays information to their rider via the pit board at trackside or the virtual pit board on the rider’s dashboard, the decision on when to enter the pits and change bikes is down to the rider.
MotoGP™ Race Director, Mike Webb, explains, “The riders are very happy that they can choose what to do and they can decide on their strategy. If they feel good on the slick tyres and the rain is not so bad they can continue for some laps.”
“Or they might say, ‘No, I want some advantage to go in the pit lane early, take the second bike early and maybe gain some advantage. They can make some strategy.”
Famous MotoGP™ races featuring bike switching
Before flag-to-flag races were introduced to MotoGP™ the standard procedure was to interrupt races which had started in the dry and then been affected by heavy rain, in order to keep the riders safe.
Now, unless the weather conditions are so extreme that the race has to be stopped for safety reasons, the action can continue in wet and changing conditions because riders are able to choose for themselves when is the best moment to switch.
Phillip Island hosts the first ever flag-to-flag race
The first ever flag-to-flag race took place in 2006 at the Australian Grand Prix at Phillip Island, with Marco Melandri judging the conditions best for a memorable win.
The Italian celebrated by taking the final corner one-handed as he saluted the crowd at approximately 200 km/h!
A dramatic miscalculation for Marquez in 2013
Once again at Phillip Island seven years on there was huge drama at the 2013 Australian Grand Prix, with former tyre supplier to the premier class Bridgestone calculating that their tyres would not last the full race distance on a resurfaced track, having not been able to test beforehand.
In this exceptional case unrelated to weather conditions, the decision was made that the MotoGP™ riders would have to make a compulsory change to a second bike with new tyres on laps nine or 10, following a flag-to-flag procedure.
A miscalculation saw Marc Marquez make his bike change too late and he was disqualified, with Jorge Lorenzo taking the victory. The result was a blip for Marquez as he charged to his remarkable first MotoGP™ title as a rookie, becoming the youngest premier class champion in the process.
Lorenzo masterclass at Aragon
In 2014 Lorenzo won another flag-to-flag contest at Aragon, this time in the rain, having changed to wet tyres. Marquez and his teammate Dani Pedrosa had stayed out in the wet on slick tyres and both crashed in the rain, yet Marquez once again recovered to go on and retain his MotoGP™ crown.
Binder’s thrilling 2021 Austrian win
Perhaps the most thrilling win in a flag-to-flag race ever was that of Brad Binder at the 2021 Austrian Grand Prix. The South African demonstrated incredible skill and held his nerve to take the victory after electing to stay out on slick tyres in spite of heavy rainfall over the final three laps. Out of those in the front group, only a lone KTM chose to continue past the entrance to pitlane and roll the dice.
Underlining the difficulty of what Binder had achieved was the fact that Francesco Bagnaia overtook six riders on the final lap to grab second place.
Mixed flag-to-flag fortunes
What seems like a chance to win big can also be deceptive. Not all gambles go the way Binder’s did. Misano has hosted two examples from two eventual champions. In 2015, Lorenzo, Marc Marquez and Rossi all pitted at the same time to switch from slicks to wet tyres. So far so good, but then it started to dry out again.
Lorenzo then opted to pit back in for slicks not long after Marc Marquez as the 93’s laptimes started to shine. But Lorenzo crashed out not long after, unable to make that work, as teammate and title rival Rossi converted the conservative choice of staying out a few more laps into a much bigger points advantage in the championship.
At Misano in 2024, Martin was also caught out in a flag-to-flag race chasing glory. With light rain falling Martin elected to enter the pit lane to change to rain tyres much earlier than most, with his rivals staying out on slicks.
The rain eased off and Martin had to pit a second time to revert to a dry set-up, eventually finishing 15th, with Marquez winning the race and Bagnaia picking up vital championship points in second place.
Ultimately, though, it would not prevent Martin from going on to win his first ever MotoGP™ title at the final GP of the year at Valencia.
Want to read about more golden flag-to-flag memories? Check out this article from the highly experienced MotoGP™ commentator on some classic flag-to-flag victories.