Last year saw 20 MotoGP races … already too many for people like KTM boss Stefan Pierer. Next year there will be 42 races, including 21 full length GPs on Sunday and 21 half-distance Sprint Races on Saturday.
Do the riders get a salary increase for all this extra work? Apparently not, although there should be more opportunity for race win and podium bonuses. The Sprint Races dole out roughly 1/2 the points of a full-distance GP, cascading down from 12 points for the winner to a single point for 9th place.
Free Practice 4 will disappear, but the regular Q1 and Q2 qualifying sessions will be held, and will decide the grid positions for both races. This elevates the importance of qualifying up front.
42 races means the riders must navigate through 42 first corners. The first corner is the most dangerous part of the race, and getting through the first corner in good position will be even more important in the shortened Sprint Race. How many more injuries will result from this?
Of course, crashes and injuries during the race will also go up. Riders crash during a normal MotoGP race, and a Sprint Race, if anything, will be more frenetic. Tire life will be much less of a factor, if a factor at all, during Sprint Races. This means the riders can push harder through the checkered flag.
Running two races on separate days will also increase the odds that riders will have to navigate rain and wet tracks during a race. This creates its own problems from the standpoint of rider safety and logistics for the weekend.
Dorna runs MotoGP and undoubtedly expects a big boost in TV revenue. As stated earlier, not all of the riders will gain any significant additional income in 2023. Several riders are unhappy, as you might expect.
The intensity of having a race on Saturday before the main event means one other thing. Some teams will benefit greatly from the knowledge they gain in the Sprint Race, i.e., sometimes an actual race yields more bike set-up information than a practice. We could see teams and riders that struggled with set-up before the Sprint Race become much more competitive in the Sunday race.
Is the addition of a Sprint Race at each round a good idea? Let us know what you think in the comments section below.
We all miss Dirck! Let’s welcome him back with a request for what we readers want. What is the one hypothetical motorcycle that a great American Motorcycle Company could build to make most of us happy?
Mine: a mid-size American twin dual-purpose that is 420 lbs. max, with 8 inches of travel.
OH NO ! Here we go !
My request is quite simple: Give me a great high-performance, multicylinder Sport Tourer. BMW should bring back the K1300S (I own a 2012 K1300S HP). Or how about a great high-performance, multicylinder street bike that isn’t just a track weapon with lights ? I never have, and never will, race a motorcycle on the track. I have no desire to be hunched way over, on a bike with no chance of ever having a passenger ride with me, on a race track, or mountain highway. My 1997 Strontium Yellow Daytona T595 Triple (955cc) that I bought brand-new 27 years ago (!) is an awesome motorcycle, but I’d be first in line at my local Triumph dealer if there was a modern replacement with a liter or more displacement… as long as they don’t turn it into a track bike !
Cycleworld.com recently posted a comparison test (Superbike Shootout: Aprilia RSV4 Factory vs. BMW M 1000 RR vs. Ducati Panigale V4 SP2) of three bikes that are perfect for the track… but not perfect for the street. And there’s no way I want a twin KTM Duke ADV bike with it’s ultra upright riding position and middling horsepower. I suppose I want to turn back the clock 10 or 20 years and buy one of the bikes available back then; well, since I already own two from that era, maybe I’m not the right customer anymore. Too bad.
https://www.cycleworld.com/story/motorcycle-reviews/aprilia-rsv4-factory-vs-bmw-m-1000-rr-vs-ducati-panigale-v4-sp2-comparison-test/
Hyabusa. I understand they are also refining and moving the bike upmarket. Amazing bike. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=t-1G9SmmnIA
I spoke with Dirck on the phone this morning, all is good. Our beloved motorcycle website MotorcycleDaily.com is still going strong, Dirck intends to get back to posting interesting news and articles on a regular basis as before very soon.
Stay tuned for an update from Dirck shortly. Keep the faith !
This is a good thing, I was curious because periodically when I try to access the web site, there is a message stating that there is a data transfer problem, and my last two comments have disappeared when the site is on.
Oh well, got something to look forward to now, thanks for the update Del.
Someone must know “Dirck” IRL and can get us an update, right? Just to let us know everyone is alright.
24 days, do we still blame it on the Hollidays?
No. Something is akimbo with the lone Edge. Hope he is severely OK.
Just don’t ask if he’s
Just don’t ask if he’s – what ?
This ain’t the first time…
It has been a slow motorcycle new period the last three weeks. Marquez has made a few off script statements and Royal Enfield invested fifty million in Stark Future.
But you have to really care about what Marquez thinks or wonder why Enfield is interested in a dirt bike company.
I just hope that Enfield isn’t going to pull a Harley Davidson on Stark Future. Every time I see a Harley now I see an Alta murdering jalopy. Not that they ever did anything for me in the first place. But now they have a aura of filth that will never wash off.
HD is the most perplexing company I have ever watched over a long time.
Design and engineering culture seldom changes in a corporate entity, even as a result of a serious merger between two similar product lines. HD has almost come up to popular standards many, many, times then flunks out by not following thru with big energy and commitment. The dark horse is always a profiteering association with the existing tough guy image of a past customer base. They are living in the past man !
Now – I really like the efforts of SOMEONE at HD to try, especially lately, with new for HD designs, but they still reflect the bean counter and traditional decisions. The world does not need any more $ 30 thousand conspicuous consumption trophies or interesting Buells saddled with a crap no rpm engine . I’m encouraged by the new types, but still do not see a commitment where HD is accepting a modest financial reward over a long time with newer riders instead the huge profits from fat old pensioners with stinking badges on their hats.
So there for now.
This comment is once again awaiting moderation. Good !
I seek approval too.
This article was written on December 12th. You should change your moniker to Motorcycle Monthly (or, at the rate you are going, bi-yearly)
My goodness!
Marquez has been running his mouth recently in ways that Honda is sure not to like.
More popcorn please.
Any of you guys hear Marquez recently where he opined to about the current and future state of MotoGP? He basically said that it is becoming very difficult for riders to have enough influence over the bike to win on the “wrong” bike.
I think that GP history has a lot of examples of riders who have done just that. I guess a guy could use Q to both argue that he certainly won on what looks like the wrong bike quite often. But he didn’t win the championship on it did he?
Whatever, he goes on to say that you can’t find the limits of the current Honda without crashing it. He crashed 18 times and the other Honda rider each crashed over 20 times.
The video then goes on about some Dutch F1 driver whose taem manager won’t let him ride a GP bike. He seems to think that the bike will pull his arms and legs off. That driver should find another team. I would never work for a guy like that. He should tell the manager that he can’t drink coffee because it will make him so nervous that he will bite the ends of all of his fingers off.
https://youtu.be/2pxqQ4gOVq4
Guys… It’s the holidays… They are allowed some time off, lol
Bueller? Bueller?
Dirck – Inquiring minds want to know, what did you have for breakfast today ?
Sincerely,
Rufas T. Grinder
18 days and counting. No idea why, perhaps this site is a complete one man show, and something has befallen our intrepid hero Dick?
Hey Dirck, is everything OK? We miss you. Happy Holidays!
It’s a trick, to get us to engage in the thread, respond when challenged etc.
The talk about tires reminds me of Rob Muzzys response to the question of tire quality “this years crap is better than last years crap”.
But you can reply like “I can’t see into sorts of … crap”.
It’s a decision that suits the people who attend races, and that’s a good thing. The people who shell out the money and arrange the trip to the circuit deserve more viewing time.
Even if your personal hero crashes out of one race early, you’ve got a good chance of getting to see them next time around.
It’s for the fans, not the factories, and I applaud that.
It’s going to be interesting to see the lap time differences between short and long format races, as well as how the different manufacturers stack up.
I second this opinion.
It sounds like an attempt to get more people to come to the races on Saturday. I don’t know if the bet will pay off. Do they think they’ll convert 10’s of thousands of day-trippers into overnighters? That people will travel the same distance to see the sprint, then the main the next day? I think fans will largely pick the more compelling day and watch the sprint on EuroSport from the comfort of home, like they already do with qualifying.
People have already paid for the sprint race with the price of their ticket, and a race, shorter or not, is what most consumers want to see, not qualifying. Classic consumer behavior models would predict some conversion of Sunday-only attendees. It’s also important to keep in mind that large percentages of the attendees for any given race live within 2 – 3 hours of the track making two day trips no big deal.
In the end I think it will be a hardware/wetware change that a slim majority of people won’t like.
On the hardware side Ducati has clearly had reliable enough engines to run a higher state of tune. Their riders will enjoy even move advantages as the season requires more race laps at full, or for the sprint races even more, power. Yahama may or may not have issues with their new engine. But anyone softening their tune for survival, like Yamaha did with their old engine is going to have an even larger problem.
Which brings us to the wetware. Guys like Q are always going to produce results just because of their level of awesome, But if Yahama’s new engine continues to require Q to pump out awesome like there’s no tomorrow, well, there is a bottom ot every well no matter how deep.
In the end,there wil be more total racing. But if I had money in the game I just might be pulling it out at the end of next year.
I wonder if they are going to increase engine allotments. Wasn’t it a couple of years ago that Yahama was having reliability issues causing speculation about whether or not they would finish the season before running out of engines? And haven’t they been “slow” since, possibly pointing to continued reliability problems? Well throw in a bunch of sprints where teams are obviously going to want to run the moon tune and, well, they are going to want more engines.
If not, isn’t this just going to make Ducati “faster”? They are obviously able to run a moon tune all year and survive with multiple bikes. They have found excellent suppliers and have a robust design. They will have a leg up on a season with more races as the other manufacturers carefully tune to survive, unless they can get a larger engine allotment.
I didn’t like this idea from the start because I feel that it is going to be a blood bath the first year, or at least the first few races, and I am 100% on the side of the racers.
But even if I cared as much for the racers as I many of you know I care for their four stroke bikes, less then zero. I feel that these extra races, at least for the first few years, are going to strongly favor the manufacturer with the most robust bikes, and put a heavy slant on the season results.
Does this series really need to make Ducati look any better than it already does? Does Yamaha need to look and “slower”? Does another manufacturer leaving sound exciting?
I might not be a fan. But does this series need more disgruntled ex-fans like me around?
I could be wrong. I’m pretty sure that I have been wrong before. But I could easily be wrong about that.
It’s becoming like NFL football. The attrition of talent due to injuries during the grueling season greatly impacts the results in the playoffs. But it is exciting, dangerous, a spectacle. Isn’t that why we watch football – and now motorcycle racing – if not to see the sensational and dangerous? Baseball and golf have few injuries and collisions, and thus the viewers are less engaged emotionally. Promoters and advertisers need danger. In the newspaper world the motto is “If it bleeds, it leads” on the front page. Bring on the blood!
Don’t know many baseball and golf fans, do you..
If crashing and injury were completely impossible in motorcycle racing, I’d find it more entertaining because at the end of the season there would be far fewer “what if’s”. I want to see great athletes compete, not crash.
It is impossible. Sophia Goggia got her wrist broken at the first attempt at downhill. But was a winner at the second start. They are sportish.
I don’t agree with that at all. The fact that it is very possible to crash is what makes motorcycle racing far more interesting than other sports. It’s what brings excitement and drama to every pass or every tenth of a second a rider is trying to pull out of a lap to keep a pursuer at bay. The riders are flirting with that risk to whatever degree they dare in order to finish as far up the field as possible. Heck, that same risk-reward is the reason I participate in two-wheeled sports. It’s fun to do, not just to watch.
That doesn’t mean I want to watch racers crash or get hurt. I do not. But I want to watch them plan and execute with the knowledge that they might, which means crashes are going to be inevitable. The whole “what if” thing is immaterial. There are plenty of what-ifs even without crashes (and frankly I think such hypotheticals create great discussion fodder for enthusiasts like us.) The only thing that matters is the outcome of what happened. Great athletes on motorcycles are the ones who do amazing things without crashing. Take the possibility of crashing away, and they aren’t doing anything amazing.
I’ve checked out of professional sports entirely. I get my own kicks. I do TV sports with friends as a social thing. Other than that, I really couldn’t care less.
Worse for me on street bikes is that racing stopped improving the breed decades ago. A 90hp street bike hasn’t lost an ounce in all that time, unless you buy something like a Kramer. So I have a certain contempt for road racing. It hasn’t even done anything for the cars either.
You can get a lot of power. But light weight is only given to the dirt bikers. And most of the dirt bikes now have glorified lawn mower engines in them. Ewww.
It won’t be so exciting if/when the top riders or half the field get injured at some point, which during 42 starts is quite possible. Idiotic change, heads need to roll at dorna.
Opinions aplenty. I guess we’ll have to see. It’s clearly a business decision. So on that topic – It’s been awhile since I’ve attended a MotoGP race. When I did, I often attended all three days at the track. Friday was quiet in terms of attendance, and Saturday wasn’t much different (even for qualifying), Sunday featured a crush of fans (easily 4 times those present on Saturday). Could there be a lot more fans attending live on Saturday with this new format? Seems possible.
Can anyone describe the precise effect having another sprint race had on WSBK business? Maybe not the best analogy, because SBK has had a two-race format for a long time. But there must be some data available on the effects of adding a sprint race to Sunday morning.
It’s interesting to look at the 2022 WSBK standings. There were virtually no DNF’s in the sprint races among the top 5 all season though DNF’s are less common among the top-5 in WSBK compared to MotoGP. They simply don’t crash as much.
Signal that KTM is right at the limit of what they are willing to spend currently.
Man! KTM bolting would be quite a bombshell.
I can’t really understand why they are there in the first place. What does GP really do for them? They race. But road race? Not so much.
Full disclosure. My front line race bike is a KTM. But I’m a two stroke guy. So…
Make no mistake. My Yamaha race bikes bring it.
At last a real race to see who is fastest. No turning the power down to save fuel or going slow because the tyres can’t make a full race. Sprint for a full 10 laps.
It should also dictate the start position for Sunday.
Already booked for Portimao to watch the first one.
100% on the money. I enjoy the strategy of the longer races (to an extent). But after watching World Superbike this year I am a big fan of the shorter races for the same reason as you.
Those are all elements in determining who is the fastest.
If the commentators didn’t tell you about the strategy you’d be unaware that it was happening, just like you won’t be able to see the difference in performance between Saturday races and Sunday races with your eyes. The Saturday race will just be shorter and more dangerous.
I don’t need the commentators to tell me the lap times are slowing. Racers constantly mentioning it is another tip off.
Long races are fun to watch and so are sprint races. Doubt the racers are concerned about the safety of a sprint race. The extra race is a strategy to spice up the show to increase fan participation and money flowing through the coffers. It’s a business and the racers understand they wouldn’t be able to make a living doing it if it wasn’t.
“ I don’t need the commentators to tell me the lap times are slowing. Racers constantly mentioning it is another tip off”
If you’re interested in knowing you do, because you can’t visually detect the differences by watching. The races they do now are sprint races. They can’t carry enough fuel to complete a “long” race.
As for the racer’s concern? They absolutely are concerned. Every last one of them and so are their teams. Even though it’s shorter, the sprint race doubles the cost and risk every weekend.
We’ll see if it has the effect they hope it will. As you can see, many of us are skeptical.
So I don’t have a problem with differing opinions Dave but I was mostly in disagreement being your comment about lap times and not noticing if the commentators didn’t mention they were slowing.
Having followed the sport since the 70’s (and racing in general) one realizes it’s all about the lap times, analyzed ad-nauseam. Thus all the statistics about races discussed everywhere, it’s a primary driver of the sport.
I think we’re misunderstanding each other. I don’t disagree that laptimes are important. I’m just pointing out that during the live action, they don’t matter unless a commentator or graphic is feeding them to the viewer.
With our eyes we cannot “see” the time differences made by the strategic decisions that must be taken throughout the race. Even without the commentators providing the reference, nobody would deny that it was exciting watching Bastaini make late race charges to the front on the merit of his tire management. We’ll lose that with short races.
Probably so Dave. No doubt the conversation would be different interactively.
As I mentioned, I do like the “strategy” part of the longer races as they manage fuel load and consumption and tire life. But a gloves off (so to speak) shorter race with no worries about those things is a great show as well. And I do like the idea of more races over the course of the weekend.
Honestly if they want a 2-race format just do 2 sprints (isn’t this what WSBK does)?
Tire issues that Michelen can’t fix despite their being theoretically the best tires in the world? No more!
Just get rid of the aero and riders switching maps and ride height and everything and let them race 2 sprints and we might see some real racing again.
Or, better, format as it has been but lose the tech tire supplier (well yes in addition the aero and other crap).
That’s another interesting question. Are there “tire issues”, or is this just all the better that can be done? I don’t recall everyone being happy in the Bridgestone days either. It can’t be easy making tires that hold up to the rigors of GP racing.
Heh, actually first I meant “spec tire supplier” LOL
But anyway Rossi sure seemed to do good with the Bridgestones and lost his way on the Michelins…IIRC….
Sometimes I think people forget it might not be easy (even with current technology) to make tires for a single track vehicle that can withstand 300? HP to the pavement for 40ish minutes.
Will be great to see them race at full power with a light fuel load from start to finish.
Michelin says the tires aren’t designed to handle the downforce from the aero packages and are running hotter as a result. They are basically at thermal limit in clean air which is why following too closely behind another rider can cause overheating.
They say engineering a new tire isn’t an issue, but the problem is testing time. The way the rules are written, there is so little test time allowed, and at no point are the teams required to use that time to test new tires. As a result, they typically don’t test new tires and instead test bike developments on the tires they expect to be racing with during the season. Michelin says with an unrestricted testing protocol, they could likely have new tire designs readied between seasons. As it is, it takes 2-3 years.
I’m not convinced with the downforce explanation. I’ve read that they’re accomplishing around 40lbs of downforce in the upper ~25% of the speed range, which mostly serves as support for the wheelie control system (freeing up a few more hp’s). There are only a few brief points on most tracks that bring this condition. For this to be the difference between a-ok and overheating seems unlikely. I wouldn’t be surprised if they had similar issues without the added downforce. Engineers miss the target all the time. I think it’s just an issue with this generation that they’re working through.
It’s noteworthy that some teams (cough… Ducati.. cough..) are breaking the low pressure limitation and they’re not having the same issues.
World Superbike does two races (similar in length to a GP race) and a sprint (that they call Superpole.) So three races per weekend.
I was going to cancel my motogp.com subscription until they announced the extra races. It will keep the leaderboard interesting and give fans more of what they tune in for. There are a lot of very dangerous jobs in this world, and these guys are compensated better than in most of them, so I don’t see the danger argument as reason enough not to do it. I’m hoping it all works out well.
Terrible/dangerous decision .
Ummm. Did I miss the memo? I just signed up for the full pkg for WSBK and each race weekend consists of two full length races and a “Super Pole” or sprint race. I loved it. Lots of race action and the short races were awesome. And I think someone said something about the teams having to set up pits twice as much? They won’t, just and extra race at each venue over the course of the race weekend.
Bad and useless idea. And as well reported, will probably prove unsafe also ..
I won’t even care about these short races, never saw any of these in Wsbk, will be the same for Motogp.
I think it’s a bad idea. It’s a desperate attempt to get more fans. They undoubtedly lost a lot of fans when it became a pay for view sport. I was a faithful follower, and even took a couple of long trips to see races, but you have to draw the line on expenses somewhere, and I decided I could live without MotoGP. Instead I’ve started following Formula One. There are a lot of things I could choose to spend my money on, and there are a lot of good free options as well (or at least free in the sense that races or other sporting events are part of my regular streaming package). If they want to get new people interested in the sport, they need to start showing races for free on cable or streaming channels. I’m sure they also miss having Rossi on the grid. Even late in his career when he wasn’t competitive, he was still, arguably, the sport’s biggest draw.
There’s simply no comparison between watching a Formula One race and the excitement of MotoGP… or even WSBK for that matter. I usually watch 2-3 F1 races a year, just to see what’s happening on the 4-wheel side. But passing is a rarity, mostly end up watching a parade. Motorcycles pass far more frequently, quite often with a pass and a re-pass in the same corner.
F1 cars pit twice during the race, which means a big factor in winning is how quickly your pit crew can change 4 tires and top up your fuel… is it 3.2 seconds or 2.8? Ho-hum. I want to see racing, not fast pit stops. Car drivers are barely visible, compared to motorcycle riders who are laying their bodies and lives on the line every time they race, throwing their bikes back and forth, scraping knees and elbows on the asphalt. Considerably more entertaining.
BTW, MotoGP is caried here in San Diego by CNBC (or NBC for the bigger draws like COTA), which are basic cable channels, so it’s no additional charge.
I’d be curious how many places carry MotoGP on basic cable. SD is basically Mexico so it makes sense there.
Geez Tim C. You never miss a chance to prove you are a racist bigot.
I guess your OK as long as everyone looks like you and thinks like you. But wait you got here first right.
Oh yeah those pesky Native Americans were here first.
Weird…
How is it “racist”, presumably against Mexicans, to point out that they are more likely to be able to walk and ride upright, than to crawl around on all four like the fatso neighbours to their north?
Where the hell did you get “racist”??? I was observing that SD has a large Mexican population and they actually care about MotoGP, unlike Americans stuck on NASCAR, and hence local broadcast outlets are therefore more likely to carry bike racing, I’d think at least.
Calm down, have some dip.
Uh…my reply seems to have disappeared. Apologies if it shows back up and this is therefore a duplicate, but where did you get “racist”??? I pointed out SD has large Mexican population which I would expect would drive local TV to cover bike racing when most Americans are stuck on NASCAR.
I guess I should tread carefully because now I’ve offended the Whites probably?
Must be tough going through life with this level of sensitivity. Really hope you get the help you need and turn this around…
Great, woke dickheads have decided to destroy yet another area of our lives.
I live in the Midwest and MotoGP is broadcast on CNBC/NBC here via Spectrum.
I think a more interesting question is whether or not the non-pay networks that do carry MotoGP will air the sprint race. CNBC currently doesn’t air Moto 2 or Moto3.
I don’t disagree, I loved watching MotoGP. The main point I am trying to make is you can’t entice new fans if you don’t make your product readily available for viewing. If you want large crowds at races the more people you expose to your sport, the healthier your sport will be in the long run. In the short term subscriptions may have helped their bottom line, but in the long run it hurts the sport.
Yes, there are a lot of things to watch. Even during the winter. I think in terms of speed, danger and technical skills alpine skiing world cup is close. And there is a lot of competition. May be even not that boring as MotoGP.
Disagree that it’s a bad idea. It will help the sport in sustaining (increasing?) fan support. But I agree that without live broadcasts at other than high prices, MOTOGP will have some serious issues as a fan-based sport.
if marquez can’t win a 40 minute race, maybe he can win a 20 minute one.
… uhmmmmmm….. i see …..
Uh yeah. That’s it. It must be a conspiracy of some kind.
Did FIFA buy MotoGP? Sheesh @@
When racing series are in decline (think NASCAR), the first resort is gimmicks. Sprint races are a gimmick.
Since it’s a done deal, I’m looking forward to it and want to see how it all turns out.
SUZUKI is looking smarter all the time.
COTD
(LOL I was informed recently that younger people don’t understand this. I mean “Comment of the Day” which I expect most here understand. The newer version is “choke on two dicks” which didn’t even make sense in the context I was called out on it over.)
Hah, I had no idea that stood for “comment of the day.” Nor was I familiar with the most recent phraseology, either.
Wow! Just when I thought my opinion of Dorna couldn’t possibly be any lower they prove me wrong. It has just gotten quite a lot lower. Congratulations!
I suppose the next shark jump will be the Friday race while on fire stunt.
I’m sure serious lessons will be learned from this and changes made along the way. Hopefully sooner than later. I’m starting to wonder about Dorna.
When the hell did MotoGP wussify their logo, anyway?
Sounds like Nascar to me. Next they’ll have them racing Baggers on Saturday night.
This is ridiculous, even a 20 race schedule is tight for teams tearing down and putting up shop. The expense of this will eventually kill Moto GP. The cost for Superbike is much lower than Moto GP and less exciting too. I lost interest in Superbike when it adopted the race 1/race 2 format.I haven’t even added in the increase in race injuries from fatigue. Not for me, and those in charge should reap the punishment of rider injuries or worse.
Presently MOTO 3 ,MOTO 2 & MOTO GP races are all run on Sunday ,Friday is free practice 1 & 2 ,Saturday free practice 3 & 4 plus qualifying for grid position for sundays race ,I think a change is good & as per usual you are going to have the whiners & backers ,let’s wait till the end of next years MOTO GP season to see how it all pans out , hopefully it works out great , for anyone wishing to get full Moto GP coverage should consider enrolling for Moto GP annual subscription ,great live coverage of all 3 races ,lot’s of tech info on their website with almost daily news , archive any race in all 3 classes going back 20 years from present ,I have been a subscriber for the last 6 years and I am more than happy with their coverage .
They should have been doing something like this for a long time. Like has been said, WSBK and national race series all run Sat and Sunday. You need more than one day entertainment. Do they run Moto3 and Moto3 on Saturday or Sunday? I actually don’t know.
Most of the major race series don’t do this. NASCAR, F1, MotoCross (they race twice in the same day), Supercross, all 1 day of racing. The MotoGP formula is working. Racing is closer than it’s ever been, more bikes and riders are winning than ever before. I’m not sure the sponsors will get what they’re hoping for from this.
I guess we’ll wait and see. I am concerned that the sprint race will cause more crashes and we’ll see race the race season end with a lot of “what if’s” surrounding it.
From what I’ve read, the business decision behind this comes from a bit of a pushback both from venue promoters and television deals. Those purchasing the rights have basically complained that while they have to purchase this very expensive package from Dorna to host/televise the races, two of the three days they are paying for produce almost nothing in the way of attendance/viewership. The sprint races are a means to increase the value of that weekend package with the bonus race on Saturday and Q1/Q2 placement decided on Friday (assuming that is still the planned format.)
I suppose piloting a sprint race in World Superbike must have delivered satisfactory results for the commercial side of the series. That is almost certainly why they are moving forward with it in MotoGP.
That’s an interesting idea. Do a matinee sprint, then the support classes, followed by the main event on the same day. Make it like watching football, where your your gal just writes you off all day.
They’ll never get a thin dime of my money. But I think that they would do well to make a race day a race day.
This will addd more stress to the riders and the teams as now they both have to work 1.5 times harder to set up and ride the bikes. WSBK runs two races in the weekend BTW.
Do the teams also get extra engines if they are running them harder?