BECOMING an engine provider for all Moto2 teams in the MotoGP FIM motorcycle race starting in the 2019 season is a great achievement for the Triumph brand.
The announcement made last year successfully reinvented the brand as one of the best-performing models in the market.
Tests and improvements are being made on the three-cylinder engine base in preparation for the race. It is expected to restore the racing heritage of a brand involved in motorcycle racing for more than 100 years.
To get a clearer picture, Cars, Bikes and Trucks took the opportunity to interview Triumph Motorcycles chief commercial officer Paul Stroud, who is based in the United Kingdom.
This was his first visit to the country. He was on a formal visit to Malaysia’s leading Triumph brand distributor, Fast Bikes Sdn Bhd, to explain the brand’s mission and plans in the world stage of motorcycle racing.
QUESTION: Can you explain the latest developments for Triumph in MotoGP racing?
ANSWER: Triumph Motorcyles is exclusively selected by Dorna as the commercial rights holder of MotoGP to be an engine provider for each team competing in the Moto2 race for three years starting in 2019.
We will provide the three-cylinder 765cc engine that is used in the Triumph Street Triple RS 2017 model and tweak power and torque for use in the circuit.
QUESTION: What changes are made to the engine?
ANSWER: The 765cc engine is based on the Daytona 675R supersport model that won many championships such as the Isle of Man TT, Daytona 200 and the British Supersports Championship in 2014 and 2015.
For maximum performance, we perform modifications on the cylinder heads by optimising gas flow in the inlet and exhaust, install harder titanium valves and spring valves to increase rpm, install a low output racing kit alternator, provide a longer first gear ratio, install a racing slipper clutch, Engine Control Unit (ECU) developed with Marelli Magneti, new engine protector and use different engine oil tanks. The changes improve handling and acceleration.
QUESTION: What is the importance of Moto2 using the same engine for all teams?
ANSWER: Moto2’s mid-range category is a platform to give more racer talent to compete ahead of the MotoGP main category. The presence of Triumph as a single engine provider with customised ECUs is the best evolution in MotoGP history to enable every rider to acquire the best skills and learn motorcycle handling.
QUESTION: How has the announcement that Triumph will be a Moto2 engine supplier impacted the brand?
ANSWER: As soon as the announcement was made, traffic to our website spiked by 30 per cent, especially for the Street Triple model while year on year sales also grew by 13 to 14 per cent.
It also received interest from new users interested to know more about the Triumph brand as well as the models offered in the market.
QUESTION: What is Triumph’s plan for the next few years?
ANSWER: For MotoGP we will submit the first engine line to be tested for the teams competing in the middle of this year.
Triumph is also working with Bajaj, India’s largest motorcycle manufacturer to develop affordable models for more users to have the Triumph motorcycle in India and to be expanded to other countries.
For the Malaysian market, four new models will be launched next month, namely the Triumph Bobber Black, Speedmaster, Tiger XR and Tiger XC.