The London debut of Kenny Robert’s Proton Team KR V5 MotoGP machine earlier today is just additional evidence that private constructors are prepared to compete with the traditional factory teams in MotoGP.
Along with the Harris WCM and Moriwaki teams, Team KR intends to grid its own machinery, with private sponsors unaffiliated with any major factory (Moriwaki, it should be noted, does purchase its engines from Honda, while WCM and KR manufacture their own engines).
In Formula One automobile racing, of course, constructors teams are the rule rather than the exception. Private teams designing and manufacturing their own chassis, sometimes with and sometimes without automobile manufacturer’s engines, dominate the grid. Is this where MotoGP is headed? In the short term, it is not likely. In the long run, perhaps.
In any event, here are some images of the new Kenny Roberts machine. The bike will make its MotoGP debut no sooner than the second round of the series (it will not be ready for Suzuka in two weeks).
