ROME: MotoGP promoter Dorna Sports on Tuesday unveiled its new bike for the all-electric world championships -- the FIM MotoE World Cup -- from the 2019 season.
"It's the dawn of a new era," said Motorcycling Federation (FIM) president Vito Ippolito, adding that after several years of testing "today we arrive at something really concrete".
Energy firm Enel will sponsor the series with all competitors using the same Energica Ego bike supplied with Michelin tyres.
"I really loved it, it's an incredible feeling, you can now even hear the sound of your knee touching the track," said Italy's former three-time world MotoGP champion Loris Capirossi.
"The bike is quite heavy but because the weight is quite low (because of the electric batteries) it's agile and builds power in a linear way."
The Energica bike has a horsepower of 147, can accelerate from 0 to 100 km/h in three seconds and reach a top speed of 250 km/h.
"The championship will take place at the same time as the classic MotoGP races to ensure maximum exposure for the new discipline," explained Dorna Sports CEO Carmelo Ezpeleta.
The grid will comprise 18 bikes across 11 teams from the Grand Prix paddock -- all seven MotoGP teams will field two, while four teams from the Moto2 and Moto3 classes will run one each.
The inaugural season will consist of races on five European tracks on the MotoGP circuit.
MotoE launches five years after the popular Formula E series -- the electric version of Formula One -- which has enjoyed increasing success.
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