Since Yamaha announced in the middle of last season that they were developing a V4 engine for its MotoGP project the prototype motoꦺr has been the subject of more speculation than almost anything else in the sport.

The Japanese brand, which has run with inline-four-cylinder engines since the four-stroke era of the premier class began in 2002, would complete a motion towards un😼iformity in MotoGP engine design, since Yamaha is the only manufactu﷽rer remaining to not race with a ‘big bang’, or unevenly firing, V4 engine.

However, it’s been around five months since Yamaha made the V4 announcement, and there is still no official timeline of when it wil🌟l be seen – or rather heard – 🅘on track.

“They didn’t give us any date,” said factory Yamaha rider Alex Rins following the open꧂ing day of this week’s official Sepang MotoGP test on Wednesday.

“For sure, as riders, we ask, but they prefer to keep it apart, to not lose time for the rider to thꦺink about when 🍸we will test it.

“For sure, if they test, then it’s good.

“I mean, I think for what they say to us, that they 🐽are going 🍃to bring it when it’s going to be better than the [current] bike.

“To have a V4 engine is not mandatory. In the end, Honda has a𝔉 V4 engine, and we are more or less with p♈roblems.”

Rins’ Wednesday comments were backed up by Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP team manager Massimo Meregalli on Thursday when he spoke to MotoGP.com’s After the Flag show during the final minutes of the second day’s 𒁃runnin🐼g.

“When it will be ready,” he said when asked w🐭hen Yamaha’s ܫV4 engine might make an appearance on track.

“For sure, it’s impossible to say anything.

“For su🐎re, we would like to go on trac🌠k [with the V4] as soon as possible but we will do that when we will be ready.”