MotoGP lacks a crucial rule on combined minimum weight – The lack of a compensation rule forces the tallest riders to follow strict diets
Unlike the Superbike World Championship, Moto2, and Moto3, MotoGP does not have a combined minimum weight for the motorcycle and rider. In theory, these regulations are intended to compensate for the disadvantage of taller and heavier riders.
In Moto3, the minimum weight for the motorcycle and rider is 152 kilograms, and in Moto2 it is 217 kilograms. The Superbike World Championship is a special case. There, the minimum weight of the motorcycle is 168 kilograms. In addition, there is a correction factor for the weight of the riders. Including equipment, 80 kilograms is used as the reference value. For lighter riders, 50 percent of the difference is added to the motorcycle as ballast.
For example, if a Superbike rider weighs 68 kilograms with equipment, the difference from the reference value of 80 kilograms is twelve kilograms. This means that six kilograms of ballast must be added to the motorcycle.
There is no such rule in MotoGP. The minimum weight of the prototype is 157 kilograms. There is no compensation for the difference between heavier and lighter riders. Nevertheless, all riders pay attention to their weight. “We are the elite of motorsport and we work on every detail,” emphasizes former world champion Jorge Martin. “And one of those details is weight. We are all really, really thin and try to be strong and have good endurance, but with less weight.”
However, the Spaniard also clearly states: “It’s always a struggle to find that balance. And yes, the guy who weighs more than 70 actually has a problem.” At 63 kilograms and 168 centimeters tall, Martin is one of the lightweights in the MotoGP field.
Luca Marini in favor of minimum weight rule
At the other end of the scale is Luca Marini, who was the tallest rider in the field in 2025 at 184 centimeters. Nevertheless, according to Dorna information, the Italian weighed only 69 kilograms without equipment.
“I weigh 70 kilograms,” says Marini himself on the subject. “But it’s always been the case that those who are lighter ride faster and use less tire wear—like Pedrosa. In my opinion, a minimum weight rule should be introduced, as in any other sport.
”Ultimately, that’s the only thing missing in MotoGP,“ Marini believes. ”But it’s always easier for lighter riders to gain weight. You just train or eat more. For heavier riders, at a certain point it becomes impossible to get below a certain weight.”
Four riders were taller than 180 centimeters last season. They were Marini (184 cm), Joan Mir (181 cm), Fermin Aldeguer (181 cm), and Alex Marquez (180 cm). Alex Marquez, in particular, emphasized as runner-up in the world championship that this was not a serious disadvantage.
Because height can also be an advantage, as Alex Marquez explains: “If you have a lot of changes of direction, height, or being taller, can be an advantage because you have more strength and can shift your weight to the sides at the right moment.”
That’s why the Gresini rider believes that the advantages and disadvantages of taller and shorter riders more or less balance each other out. Because: “It’s true that, for example, the weight of all MotoGP riders is now more or less the same.”
“We all weigh between 65 and 70 kilograms, more or less,” says Alex Marquez, who is roughly correct. “So you don’t feel those five kilos that much, and I don’t think height will be a problem for me.”
No rider weighed more than 70 kilograms last season. In 2026, another tall rider will join the fray in the form of Toprak Razgatlioglu. Yamaha states his height as 182 centimeters and his weight as 72 kilograms.
