The 2027 MotoGP season brings one of the biggest technical shifts in recent memory with the switch from Michelin to Pirelli tyres, but as Motorsport.com reports, it has also sparked heavy controversy in the paddock. While full-time stars have been limited to brief, closed-door test days at Brno and Spielberg, Nicolo Bulega has already logged ten days of private testing aboard Ducati's new 850cc bike on Pirelli rubber. With a two-day Sepang shakedown still ahead for the Italian, his massive head start has left rivals frustrated.
Red Bull KTM Tech3 test rider Pol Espargaro did not mince words when discussing the situation, calling the program "crazy and unfair" for someone entering the grid as a permanent rider next year. Espargaro pointed out that Bulega is effectively building the machine around himself while gaining intimate knowledge of both the bike and the tyres at circuits like Mugello, Jerez, and Misano.
"The amount of experience and speed he's going to have is going to be insane," Espargaro said, adding that he expects Bulega to "smash everyone" straight out of the gate while also helping Ducati teammates like Marc Marquez and Pedro Acosta sort the bike.
That sentiment is shared across the paddock. Both Marc Marquez and Pedro Acosta, who will race for VR46 next year, named Bulega as the most interesting new rider to watch specifically because of his extensive mileage. Meanwhile, riders restricted to a single late look at the new machinery are feeling the squeeze. Fabio Di Giannantonio warned that having just four days to understand a new bike, new tyres, and a new team leaves almost no margin for error before the opening race.
Not everyone sees it as an insurmountable hurdle, though. Gresini Racing's Alex Marquez downplayed the advantage for anyone outside of Bulega, noting that tyre evolution and limited running mean the data might shift by the time the season actually starts in Thailand. Still, riders like Trackhouse Aprilia's Enea Bastianini argued that testing modified 1,000cc bikes on Pirelli rubber should have been made mandatory for everyone to prevent such a stark imbalance before the Valencia post-season test on 1 December.
