Cheating in Motorsport is nothing new: some call it an alternative interpretation of the rules and while some get away with it, others don't. But when is cheating not cheating? When it's a gentleman's agreement, apparently.

Francesco Bagnaia Won the Jerez MotoGP By Cheating!

Every single race engineer in the world is paid to read the rule book for whatever race series he participates in and find the loopholes. Some call it cheating, others call it gamesmanship and the powers-that-be try their hardest to close all the loopholes before they are discovered but, usually, it's like closing the stable door after the horse has bolted.

According to Mat Oxley, a respected motorcycle racing journalist writing in Motorsport magazine, Francesco Bagnaia's Ducati GP22 MotoGP bike was illegal for each of the 25 laps of the Jerez circuit because his front tyre pressure was below the minimum stipulated by the rules. The rules allow for the tyre to be under pressure for 12 laps of a race.

Michelin's front tyre has been the source of much anguish and late night agonising by teams and riders alike since it was first introduced back in 2016. It has been criticised for being inconsistent but you have to feel for Michelin's engineers.

MotoGP bikes are getting faster and the brakes are increasing in efficiency, all of which puts increased strain on the front tyre, making it difficult to maintain temperature and pressure. The harder the tyre works, the more heat builds up and the tyre pressure increases to the point where the tyre shape changes and, with it, the grip characteristics. Thus, riders are tempted to start the race with the tyres below the pressure threshold in order to try and maintain the correct temperature when running in hot air behind another rider. This is a situation that has hampered Quartararo in particular in recent seasons.

Now, there is a gentleman's agreement that teams will not run tyres below the stipulated minimum pressure. Being such, riders or teams cannot be penalised for breaking the rules. But it is a dangerous thing to do: running too low a pressure could lead to the tyre failing.

The only answer is to do as World Superbikes do: take random pressure samples on the grid: any infraction and the rider is forced to start from the back of the grid. I hate to encourage more rules than necessary - let's face it, there are enough already - but no-one wants to see a crash due to a tyre failing.