MotoGP and heterogeneous design

This chapter takes as its central focus the design of the MotoGP racing motorcycle. Our key aim in scrutinising MotoGP is to conceptualise the location of design and its meaning: to reflect upon where and how design happens; and to enrich understandings of the heterogeneous, networked and distributed character of design. Whilst many consumer objects are mobile, our analysis extends beyond the design of the motorcycle as a single mobile artefact to consider both the motorcycle-rider assemblage (Pinch and Reimer 2012) as well as the complex architecture of design technologies which support MotoGP racing. We stress the agency of material objects and non-material inputs (expressions and emotions) that operate relationally and act upon the MotoGP motorcycle, crucially defining its movement and performance. The chapter emphasises the multifaceted nature of design: it runs through mechanical engineering, the design of electronic control systems, the regulation of international motorcycle racing; and the physical body of the rider.