ELF Legacy in Motorcycles: A Journey of Innovation and Speed

Since 1973, ELF has been a driving force in motorcycle racing, blending technical innovation with competitive excellence. It all began with a partnership with the French Vitesse team, backing talents like Michel Rougerie and Christian Léon. Just a year later, ELF celebrated its first major triumph when Phil Read clinched the 500cc World Championship.

The late 1970s and 1980s marked a period of radical experimentation. In 1978, the groundbreaking ELF X prototype, designed by André de Cortanze, stunned the racing world with its frameless design and revolutionary front suspension. By 1980, Honda joined the ELF project, powering the 1000cc endurance bike with cutting-edge materials like carbon brakes and magnesium swingarms. The ELF E debuted in 1981, followed by the ELF 2 in 1984, which introduced a powerful Honda V3 engine.

In 1986, ELF made headlines again as the ELF-R shattered six world speed records at Nardo, Italy, with Ron Haslam piloting the refined ELF 3 to speeds over 200 mph.

The 1990s saw ELF nurturing future Grand Prix stars like Régis Laconi and Olivier Jacque, and in 1994, ELF celebrated a 500cc World Championship with Michael Doohan and HRC.

ELF’s modern era began in 2009 with a technical partnership with Kawasaki Racing Team (KRT) in WorldSBK. This collaboration bore fruit with Tom Sykes’ 2013 championship and Jonathan Rea’s six consecutive titles starting in 2015. In Moto2, ELF powered Tito Rabat to a world title in 2014 and became the title sponsor of Marc VDS Racing in 2020.

That same year, ELF celebrated two MotoGP wins with KTM-Tech3 and Miguel Oliveira. In 2024, ELF Marc VDS entered WorldSBK with Sam Lowes riding a Ducati Panigale V4 R, continuing a legacy built on speed, innovation.