Moto 2...

There are many reasons to mourn the loss of the 250cc class in next years Moto GP season. Never again will you hear the wonderful sound of a full-on 2-stroke 250cc Grand Prix spec race bike bouncing off the limiter, never again will you smell that wonderful aroma (Which may cause lung damage and other nasty respirartory problems in later life but trust me, it's well worth it) that only a 2-stroke can provide.

Another reason to mourn the loss of the 250 strokers is that in next years "Moto 2" class there will be a single engine manufacturer (Honda Racing Corporation) and a single tyre manufacturer (Dunlop) which means curtains for fans of Aprilia (Who made possibly the finest 250 bike ever, imho, the RS250) and Gilera.

However, there is reason to be cheerful as the single engine manufacturer HRC has built a bike that is a more than adequate replacement. Here's the specs as stated on the official Moto GP site.

Powered by a one-make 600cc 4-stroke engine, producing around 150hp, the Moto2 class will continue the 250cc series' pursuit of developmental excellence with the running of a prototype chassis -free from limitation.

No production bike parts will be permitted for the frame, swing arm, fuel tank, seat or cowling, meaning that these aspects of the machine will be left to the manufacturer and designers. discretion.

However, electronic systems will be more limited than those currently permitted in 250cc, which has seen select factories bringing in traction control in recent years. Moto2 rules will allow for data loggers, ECU and timing transponders supplied by the organiser, with a maximum total cost of the ECU's components set at 650 euros. No other electronic control, nor datalogging systems, will be present on the bikes.

So, with limited money spent more teams will be more competitive and will therefore have an equal chance of winning races. The added advantage of the four stroke is that it runs cleaner than the current 250cc bikes and are easier on the environment. Plus, they sound amazing as this video, featuring former 500cc World Champion, Kevin Schwantz, shows.

Afterwards Kevin spoke about the bike...

"It’s a new project, it needs a little bit of work with settings as far as suspension goes, but as far as how nicely the bike goes and the power it delivers I think it is an amazing package right now. I’m convinced Moto2 is going to be great for the sport. For me it was all just for fun, but the new Moto2 bike should make for some interesting racing. I think whether you are a bigger guy like me, or whether you are smaller like Dani Pedrosa or Marco Melandri, if you are good enough you can make up for your size on a bike like this."

Like the saying goes, every cloud has a silver lining.