Why Is Triumph Supplying Moto2 Engines So Remarkable?

The news that Triumph is all set to sign a deal with Dorna to supply engines for the Moto2 race machines isn’t new anymore. Although the company is tight-lipped on the matter, the venture is almost set and, according to sources, should be official in few days’ time. The company arrived on Indian shores in November 2013 and slowly carved a niche for itself in the hearts of Indian motorcycling enthusiasts. Today, after more than three successful years and rapid ongoing expansion, Triumph is well known for its performance motorcycles such as the Speed Triple range, the Tiger and the Daytona – the first proper supersport to be offered in the country. Its classic range is also very popular, but a whisker less than the modern bikes it offers, especially those using the inline three cylinder motor. 

But, wind the clock back 30 years and Triumph was nowhere near from where it is now -- no racing, let alone the possibility of producing race winners like the Daytona.

History

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Triumph was established back in 1902, which makes it one of the oldest motorcycle brands still up and running. Despite such an age, the marque’s then owners never thought that racing was important for new product development or marketing. However, the brand was largely not affected by this until the late 70s when buyers started to incline towards more modern Japanese motorcycles. Thankfully, for Triumph, a real estate businessman named John Bloor invested in the firm in order to revive the brand in 1983. The firm went under his receivership until he completely bought it in 2000. Bloor took inspiration from the Japanese manufacturers and adapted their techniques to make winning motorcycles. The company worked on inline three- and four-cylinder motors, which powered bikes like the Trophy 1200.  

Since then, the company has climbed in reputation and has introduced both new genres of products like the Tiger and revived its old bikes like the Bonneville range. This has worked for it in overseas markets and it has worked for it in India.

A Successful Racing Future?

Coming back to the Moto2 developments, Triumph hasn’t been into Grand Prix racing for a very long time. It did compete for a very brief time (a couple of years in separate events before 1970), but nothing significant such as being a full-time racing partner or participant.

However, when considering our country (and current times), it won’t be an exaggeration if we say that the Triumph Daytona 675R is the ultimate weapon of choice of the majority of Indian racers. For instance, the 2016 JK Tyre Racing Championship was outright dominated by the race-prepped Daytonas on all the top three spots! And why not? Most of the participants were riding the hot-headed three-pot British racebike.

As you might be knowing, the Daytona is powered by a 675cc inline-three cylinder, which in India produces 118.5PS@12,305rpm of power and 70.2Nm torque. The peak power delivery along with a strong mid-range makes it ideal for track use. However, the Moto2 engine is going to be a 750cc motor, inspired from the same inline-three that the Daytona uses. The testing for the bike will start from the 2018 season and Triumph will surely rise as a more mature performance bike manufacturer following the experiences it will absorb from the newfound racing development opportunity. 

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The new motor, as opposed to the current Honda engine which is an inline four-cylinder unit, will be slimmer, produce a fresh exhaust note, be less polluting and will be lighter in construction. This could affect the looks of the bike, as a compact engine can make do with a leaner chassis and a lesser overall weight. However, Triumph’s beater will still have a lot to live up to. Most importantly, it has to be very reliable, which the Honda units always have been, with only around five failures in one million kilometres.

Moreover, the news of a new bigger racing motor also inevitably confirms the possibility of a middleweight supersport motorcycle sitting above the Daytona 675 or, better, replacing it. If everything works fine and Triumph is able to live up to the requirements of Dorna for Moto2, then we sure are up for a new chapter in motorcycle racing. And who knows, Triumph might also enrol a team in the GP class as well, in the approaching years.