2014 Suzuki MotoGP bike

When Suzuki announced that it would be leaving the MotoGP championship at the end of 2011 due to economic reasons, the company did give fans a little ray of hope.

"Having an eye to returning to MotoGP in 2014, Suzuki will now focus on developing a competitive new racing machine for that class," read the official statement.

Exhibit B) your honour, a prototype 1000cc test bike that looks very much like a thoroughbred race machine designed for the 2014 MotoGP season. Or possibly earlier.

Don't call it a Suzuki GSV-R though because it's not a V4 - the new MotoGP machine is packing a 1000cc inline four like the GSX-R1000, and was being tested by Suzuki's go-to development rider, Nobuatsu Aoki.

The photos were taken at Sugo in Japan last month and first appeared on US website Cycle World, with the positioning of the exhaust pipes evidence of the engine's inline configuration.

What's interesting is that serious testing of a new chassis and engine has been underway since early 2012. Is Suzuki planning on entering a few races as a wildcard in 2013? Watch this space...

The plot thickens when Japanese magazine Young Machine reports that the 2014 Suzuki MotoGP bike share much of its genetics with the next GSX-R1000, splashing an image of the MotoGP development bike on its front cover, with the GSX-R photoshopping for good measure.

While the Japanese magazine has no solid evidence to back up such reports, it does make a few cogent points. It argues that Dorna is likely to push all manufacturers to adopt parts the CRT formula, whereby ECUs and rev limits would be standardised.

This in turn will neuter the factory bikes somewhat and could make the 2014 GSX-R engine competitive with the prototype factory teams - at least more than the current Claiming Rule Teams (CRT).

A small comeback of sorts will take place for Suzuki at the Indianapolis MotoGP this year in mid August when a Suzuki-powered CRT MotoGP will make use of a GSX-R1000 engine.