Michael Laverty exclusive
The one-time GP rider talks all things racing
The Lavertys are like the best possible throwback: a no-nonsense, properly oldschool bike racing dynasty. With selfconfessed road racing nut Mickey Laverty for a father, it was almost inevitable that at least one of his kids would follow in his footsteps. It’s natural for any dad to want their kids to surpass their own achievements, and with brothers Michael, John and Eugene having been an ever-present fixture in pretty much every major paddock around the world for the last 20 years or so, Mickey can be justifiably proud of himself and his boys.
We last caught up Michael in 2017 when he was racing in the British Superbike Championship for McAMS Yamaha. It’s safe to say that a hell of a lot has happened since then. He’s had had an amazing career, spanning AMA, BSB, World Superbikes and MotoGP, and now he’s rapidly becoming known to a new generation as that man off the telly – talking all things technical when it comes to MotoGP for BT Sport’s flagship coverage. The Great British Public can be a funny old lot at times, particularly when it comes to sports commentators and so-called experts. They definitely know what they hate, and they’re never afraid to show it... so maybe it’s down to Michael’s incredible depth of technical knowledge, combined with a natural ability to translate what’s basically a highly technical foreign language into something even the greenest of laymen can get their head around, that you’ll struggle to find anyone with a bad word to say about him. We sat down with MotoGP’s Mr Nice Guy to talk bikes, mics, tykes and, well, anything else for that matter.
So, on the subject of mics, what was the catalyst for the change in career path? “It’s weird how it all came about because I wasn’t ready to stop racing,” he said. “In 2018, I was still racing for Tyco BMW in BSB, and I started working with BT Sport as a pundit on a round-by-round basis. I was offered a full-time
role for the following year, but it meant stepping away from racing. It was really hard, but I spoke with my brother John (now a top rider coach and manager to younger brother and WSBK BMW rider Eugene). He said once you make that first move and get out of the bubble, it’ll only get easier. At 38 years old, I was still competitive at BSB, but I knew it was only going to get harder the closer I got to 40.
“In 2019, I made the step, but I was able to continue racing in the World Endurance Championship for the WEPOL team. I had a lot of fun and it was good to keep my toe in the water.”
Listen to Michael for a couple of minutes on any live broadcast and it’s clear he’s a total geek for the insane technology that now comes as standard in the sport’s premier echelons. Being up close and personal week on week with the kind of pit lane access afforded to broadcasters like BT Sport has definitely helped with his transition from poacher to gamekeeper. “I love the technical side, so working in MotoGP was brilliant, looking at the best bikes in the world going up and down pitlane, and I was also involved with Chaz Davies (his brother-in-law) in WSBK.”
Most of us can only dare to dream of making it to MotoGP as a rider but Michael always had his eye firmly on getting there. That dream became reality in 2013 when he joined the premier class with BSB stalwart Paul Bird Motorsport. It was a pioneering role that he and the team ultimately played. This was during the CRT period of the sport. Essentially, smaller teams with far smaller budgets could whack a (highly modded) superbike engine into a prototype chassis and get a few other concessions in the process, such as double the amount of engines as the factories and more fuel.
With the introduction of standard ECUs, this was the start of the evolution towards what is now the closest, fastest and most powerful pound-for-pound championship on the planet. Although he was sharing the track with the likes of Rossi, Marquez, Lorenzo and co, he knew where he needed to be and
adjusted his goals accordingly. “I had to set my own personal targets because I was never going to trouble the top 10; when you’re giving away 40 or 50hp, it’s just not possible – it was a hiding to nothing. I could always compare myself to Petrucci though, as we had the same Aprilia engine but a different chassis. When I beat him, I always knew I’d done a good job.
“My targets were finishing within one minute of Marc Marquez in the race or qualifying within two and a half seconds of pole position. To the people at home, it probably makes no sense, but I hit my personal goals and that was the only way I could stay motivated. We had an English team, and we had some success beating Aprilia, with their engine and our own chassis, so that felt really good”.
Having become so accustomed to the BSB life – one that affords you the luxury of being able to drive home at the end of a race week as well as being a far shorter season and less hectic schedule, Michael had to prepare himself for the adjustments needed for what is a gruelling travelling schedule from February to November. Was it a case of putting the personal life on hold?
“Pretty much, yes,” he said. “I was a professional racer in BSB, and was always busy in and around that, but with MotoGP, the travel and the schedule dictates that as your sole focus. In the first year, my wife decided to travel with me and we had a great time exploring Europe between races. But for the second year, she was planning our wedding and so I travelled with the team. It was great fun, but it does put everything else on hold. I can’t say I was putting myself out though; I was doing what I wanted to do – riding the best tracks in the world, with the best tyres and carbon brakes”.
Speak to anyone who’s made the jump from any form of Superbike racing to MotoGP and the question they get asked most is just how good are the bikes and how do they feel? “The bike was fantastic but whenever you’re against such high-level machinery, it looks distinctly very average – but it was a great bike to ride. The first year was tough, but once we got the anti-wheelie and traction control working, and smoothed that power delivery out and got the chassis working, it was actually really nice to ride. People think it must be a piece of shit because you’re finishing in 15th place, but it was honestly really good. And if you put it in WSBK, it would have been brilliant on Pirellis.”
Michael doesn’t seem the kind of guy who’s big on regrets. Top-level racers rarely have time to worry about what might have been. Those who do often find themselves on a slippery slope to retirement. Does he have any regrets about walking away after two seasons or, having seen plenty of riders do amazing things into their twilight years, was it the right time for him to draw a line under it?
“I watched Shakey (Byrne) ride into his 40s and still take a load of race wins, along
with (Max) Biaggi and (Carlos) Checa. I believe if you’re still motivated, like Rossi, then it is still possible. If I’d have had another MotoGP offer on the table at the end of 2014, I’d have stayed for sure. I would have loved a shot on something a little more competitive, though. I started a testing role for Aprilia in 2015, so I was riding a MotoGP bike which was closer to a prototype that year, but it was still bridging the gap between a CRT.
“We had a good development programme and I was riding a lot. (Marco) Melandri was racing for them and was struggling, so when he stepped away, I got to do one wild card in Sachsenring, so I got to share the MotoGP grid with my brother Eugene. That was really special.”
Stepping away from life as a rider has given him a more objective view of the sport. Michael explained how things have changed recently, particularly as the gap from first to last has become so tight across all classes of Grand Prix racing. “At world level, the margins between everyone are so close,” he said. “It is about getting the right equipment, working with the right people and having the right background, and doing those thousand hours of practice at a good level.
“The sport has evolved, especially in the last five or six years, and now it’s moving even more to the younger kids because they are getting such a good schooling in Moto2, and they are arriving in MotoGP ready to ride them properly.
“But I don’t think it’s impossible for the older generation of MotoGP riders, such as Dovi, Rossi, Lorenzo and Pedrosa. If they can focus on adapting their style, then it’s still possible”.
The sport has given Michael an almost immeasurable amount. You’ll struggle to find anyone as passionate about it. Fortunately for the next generation, he’s just as passionate about nurturing young talent, particularly young British talent – so much so that he launched the MLav Vision Track Academy last year. The long-term aim is to give some of the best UK prospects at least a fighting chance of lining up against the hordes of Italian and Spanish starlets produced on their amazing conveyor belts of blisteringly quick kids.
He definitely wasn’t short on motivation for getting it up and running. “The British Talent cup funded by Dorna no longer exists, which is a real shame, because the lads at the front there have seen no benefit from
it and are now back in BSB. I’m trying
to create a structure in the UK with my new academy to give our next crop of talent the platform to get into MotoGP. We have great tracks in the UK and a great series (in BSB), so let’s use it and create something that prepares the kids to look at a career in MotoGP.”
Cal Crutchlow’s departure from the grid at the end of 2020 caused a bit of a gaping hole –leaving no Brits on MotoGP-spec machinery in 2021 for the first time since 2010. How does Michael rate the prospects of the other Brits currently in the paddock getting a MotoGP ride?
“Sam Lowes should be considered for next year,” he said. “His level is good enough, but he now has a three in front of his age and Dorna are a little age prejudiced. It’s a shame because I think British riders are in their prime between 32 and 36. Jake Dixon is now primed and he can step up in the Petronas team, so it could just be a one-year stopgap for the Brits in MotoGP.”
In the shape of BSB we can be proud of having the best domestic championship in the world. After all, Cal Crutchlow, Sam Lowes and Jake Dixon, not to mention the mighty Jonathan Rea among others, all cut their teeth in the BSB Paddock. Why aren’t we seeing more guys coming through into the MotoGP classes?
“I think there’s a certain stigma attached to being a superbike rider that’s hurt us because we’ve got such a strong series, and we’ve become the best in WSBK; obviously Spies, Crutchlow and now Dixon have bucked that trend, but the Spanish and Italians see it that you’re supposed to grow up on proper race bikes, and not converted production bikes.
“It’s probably easier to make that adaption to get onto a MotoGP bike, but it certainly isn’t impossible to come from a Superbike. Jake stepped into Moto2, and in his first year he was very close to coming back to BSB. He had a tough year on an uncompetitive bike, but the door opened at Petronas at just the right time and now his career has a whole different outlook”.
With the announcement at Assen of Maverick Viñales’ bombshell exit, a year before the end of his contract from the Factory Yamaha Team, there’s likely to be some serious reshuffling of the order by the Iwata manufacturer. Combine that with the official announcement of the worst-kept secret in MotoGP – namely two grid spots for the Aramco Racing Team VR46 for 2022 backed by Ducati machinery, plus the increasing likelihood that 2021 could finally be Rossi’s last as a rider. The prospect of the GOAT retiring and Morbidelli’s potential promotion to the factory team... maybe that’ll open the door for Dixon within the Petronas SRT stable?
Laverty didn’t rule it out, suggesting if Jake keeps making progress, then there is every likelihood that when Rossi steps aside, Jake could step onto the bike. As for Marc VDS rider Sam Lowes, the other Brit in Moto2, Michael’s a little more cautious. “I think it’s tough for Sam. Gresini really like him, and they have two MotoGP bikes on the grid next year – I’d love to see him get that opportunity. I know that second seat on the Aprilia ruined Sam for a year, and he’s just back to his best now. I think it all relies on politics, and his age could go against him”.
And what of Rea? The greatest superbike rider and six-time WSBK World Champion hasn’t got a thing to prove. If he decided to have a blast at MotoGP, even just for a season, he’d command a top ride.
“He said when he signed his first Kawasaki contract in 2015, in his late 20s, that he was too old and that he’d missed the boat for MotoGP,” said Michael. “I think he accepted that he would finish his career in WSBK. He’s riding for a factory team, winning races, earning good money, and has the adulation in WSBK, so why would he go into MotoGP on inferior machinery for a lot less money, and have to grind away to get up to that level? He would have made it, no doubt, but he’d have had to put in a few tough years, and it would have been hard because Cal was already there as that British presence. It’s been tough for Johnny; he’s done fantastic in WSBK, but he never got that real opportunity in MotoGP”.
Laverty has made no secret of his admiration for MotoGP’s most successful ever rider, Valentino Rossi. He’s certainly more qualified than most to have a view on the GOAT. After all, not many people get to line up alongside him on the grid of a Sunday. How does he feel the sport will cope when Rossi moves on to pastures new? “I think the core fan base is at a level now where it would be fine; it’s so exciting with the likes of Marquez, Mir and Quartararo. There are always going to be die-hard Rossi fans; it doesn’t all depend on him, even if it does lose a little panache. It’s great that he’ll always remain involved, as a team manager.”
Life seems pretty sweet for Michael and the Laverty clan. He’s got the next generation of British talent in safe hands, the future of MotoGP is in great shape, the TV coverage is better than ever and, best of all, he gets to enjoy the action from both sides of the fence.
Those who get into this industry do so because we love immersing ourselves in every little thing about it. We’re fans, at the end of the day, but you’ll struggle to find anyone more fanatical about bike racing than the Lavertys.
Here’s to many more years of us lucky buggers getting to enjoy that passion.