Does Size Matter in Moto GP Racing ?

[Sheepman]

With the brilliant first round of the 2019 Moto GP season just done and dusted in Qatar, the issue of the physical size of the racers ( no,....not those parts of the body  ), again comes to mind.
Leaving the debate of the bikes, teams , money etc. out of the equation, what's your views on the physical size of the racers ? Does it influence performance negatively or positively ? 
A few pointers : VR46 is a lanky 182 m and 67 kg racer, whereas MM93 is 168 m and 59 kg. Clutch and Jorge is about the same size at 171m  and 63 kg.
Petrucchi is a heavy, knocking on 80 kg. Dani is the midget amongst the small guys ( though now retired ).
Tall timber from the past was Loris Baz at 192m and Leon Camier at 189m.

[Ganjora]

Got to be much easier to be the small guy when moving in tight spaces.

[Sonny]

I think the biggest problem a tall rider would face is to keep his weight comparable to the shorter fellows.
Otherwise height, in my opinion, is always an advantage.
Leverage jumps to mind. Also the ability to be all over the bike.

[8 min Mark]

I agree with sonny


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[IceCreamMan]

Dani struggled cos of his size in motogp....

Ain’t there a weight limit for bike an rider? That would negate any possible advantage except the engineers could add weight where it would have least effect.

Rossi done ok in all classes   Just saying

[TheBear]

Size, within reason, should not matter since the bikes are adapted, even designed for the rider.  For instance, when they wind tunnel test their fairings, the final testing is done with the actual rider on the bike.  The VR46 Yamaha fairing, may well differ in small ways to the MV12 fairing.  Same with seat, seat position, tank, tank position, etc.  Another example that I can think off is the "dent" in the top of the tank where the rider rests his chin is different for each rider.

It is true that the taller riders struggle more to adapt to the bikes as the bikes are very small and the distance between foot pegs and seat can only be adapted to a certain extend.  They should however have an advantage when it comes to leverage as suggested by Sonny already.  Their issue is usually added weight which does have an impact on tyre life and on performance.  I am not sure that the performance impact is big enough to be measurable, but tyre life is definitely a problem.   

All of the above is true for MGP, 1000cc era and even the current Moto 2 class.  In Moto 3 size, weight and length, do play a much bigger role due to the minuscule size of the bikes and their lack of torque. 

Dani struggled cos of his size in motogp....

Dani only really struggled after the introduction of the Michelin tyres.  The disadvantage he had during the previous era was much smaller.

[Sheepman]

Cool, it seems that the views are that it doesn't really matter, as long as your surname is not Pedrosa or Baz  = extraordinary small or very tall.
Most racers are more or less the same small size in any way, it seems - not dissimilar to race horse jockeys, with very good reason.
So, be max 60kg and 1.70 m, have extraordinary racing skills, no fear, huge tenacity, factory bike and all that goes with that and you could be a title contender, right ?

[TheBear]

Cool, it seems that the views are that it doesn't really matter, as long as your surname is not Pedrosa or Baz  = extraordinary small or very tall.
Most racers are more or less the same small size in any way, it seems - not dissimilar to race horse jockeys, with very good reason.
So, be max 60kg and 1.70 m, have extraordinary racing skills, no fear, huge tenacity, factory bike and all that goes with that and you could be a title contender, right ?

You are about 90% correct, but you forget the one thing where size does matter.   

[Sheepman]

Cool, it seems that the views are that it doesn't really matter, as long as your surname is not Pedrosa or Baz  = extraordinary small or very tall.
Most racers are more or less the same small size in any way, it seems - not dissimilar to race horse jockeys, with very good reason.
So, be max 60kg and 1.70 m, have extraordinary racing skills, no fear, huge tenacity, factory bike and all that goes with that and you could be a title contender, right ?

You are about 90% correct, but you forget the one thing where size does matter.   

How could I ? Huge goons of steel....no, sorry stainless steel.....and the weight of those never ever negatively impact on the performance package - to the contrary, it's the first tools required in the tool kit 

[Cracker]

Big balls lowers your COG ................ FACT!!!

[TheBear]

Big balls lowers your COG ................ FACT!!!

Only if they are hanging down,  If draped over your shoulders it will do exactly the opposite with your COG ....  FACT!!!

[Sheepman]

We forgot  to be a real title contender,you also require a a baritone voice