Rivals block KTM request to open up engines amid breakdown woes

Halfway through a season beset by reliability issues, KTM boss Pit Beirer says the factory needs to skirt the engine freeze over the summer - but only Aprilia has agreed to this

KTM's motorsport director Pit Beirer has admitted that something is amiss in the engine of the unreliable RC16 MotoGP bike - and that the manufacturer is seeking special permission to investigate the problem.

A string of KTM breakdowns in the first half of 2026 was headlined by the frightening Barcelona shunt involving Alex Marquez, who ran into the back of Pedro Acosta when the latter's factory RC16 shut down at high speed.

The ongoing breakdowns are not only a concern for KTM, but also for rider safety in general. Riding in the slipstream of an RC16 is becoming debatable from a safety perspective - but the 'engine freeze' homologation rules in MotoGP don't allow KTM to open up its engines and see what's wrong.

Beirer is playing that safety card as he looks to seek special permission to circumvent the freeze - a move that all four rival manufacturers must agree to.

Motorsport.com understands that several meetings were held over the Sachsenring weekend as KTM tried to convince its competition. But only one of the other manufacturers gave it the nod.

Speaking to Sky Italia, Beirer said Aprilia had already lent its blessing to such a move.

“I want to thank Fabiano Sterlacchini and Massimo Rivola of Aprilia who are helping us,” said Beirer, naming the technical director and CEO respectively. "The situation is not easy, there is something wrong inside our engines.

"We know there's still this risk with some parts... there is a problem, and we have to solve it.

"We must use the summer break for this,” added Beirer, highlighting that the current recess would be the ideal moment for a thorough investigation.

KTM has struggled with reliability this season

Photo by: Gold and Goose Photography / Getty Images

There is a precedent for special permission being granted for manufacturers to make amends to their power units - such as for Yamaha in 2020. On that occasion, however, the manufacturer had already identified the problem: valves from a supplier that had changed their dimensions by a fraction.

In this case, however, there is no certainty that KTM knows what the problem is. And given the tight nature of this year's championship, it appears that Ducati, Honda and Yamaha are unwilling to concede any perceived advantage - particularly in view of the rules limiting the number of engines to be used over the course of a season.

MotoGP manufacturers above category D concessions - of which KTM is one - must seal their engines before the first race of the season, delivering an identical unit to IRTA's technical direction so that there is always a reference engine with which to compare the parts. Once an engine has been sealed, it cannot be opened and, much less, dismantled without the authorisation of all the members of the MSMA - in other words the manufacturers.