The MotoGP format will change from 2023 

This Saturday, Jorge Viegas (president of the FIM), Hervé Poncharal (president of IRTA, the teams association) and Carmelo Ezpeleta (CEO of Dorna Sport, promoter of the world championship MotoGP) held an exceptional press conference to give the broad outlines of a new GP weekend format starting next season. 

The big news is the introduction of a sprint race on Saturday afternoon. Unlike the F1, there will be a sprint race on each event on the calendar. This will not define the grid for the Sunday race. “ (…) So, it’s true, you already know that we are going to introduce, from next year, a sprint race on the Saturday afternoon of each Grand Prix ; not like in Formula 1, but in every Grand Prix, confides Jorge Viegas. We believe that after two years of Covid-19 during which we all made incredible sacrifices to continue organizing this important Championship, it is time to give more exposure, as Carmelo says, on television, but also to spectators. We need more spectators, we need a better show, and we need to fill Saturdays. There are some details that still need to be defined, decided together with the teams, with the drivers, with the manufacturers. But, in principle, you have already announced most of the new features ! The only thing I think you still have doubts about is that this sprint race will not count for the starting grid ; the grid is defined by the qualifications. »

🔴 What we know about the new race format #MotoGP which will include one sprint race per weekend ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/UkR2OpGakF

- CANAL + MotoGP ™ (@CanalplusMotoGP) August 20

The MotoGP category will have two free practice sessions on Friday which will last longer. The combined ranking of these will determine the list of drivers who will go directly to Q2 and those who will have to go through Q1. On Saturday morning, FP3 will be similar to the FP4 currently in place and this will be followed by Q1 and Q2. The sprint race will then take place at 15 p.m. and will include half the laps of the Sunday race. Half of the points will be awarded: 12 points for the winner, 10 for the second… The rest of the weekend program still remains to be discussed and settled.

The desire behind this new feature is to add more spectacle to MotoGP. “ It is the objective of the Championship, of the FIM, of the IRTA and of Dorna, since the beginning, to try to improve each time, as much as we can, everything concerning this sport: the safety, the show, everything, explains Carmelo Ezpeleta. We work in all areas, but especially in this one. We looked at other sports to find different possibilities and we try to put on a better show, especially for the fans, promoters and television. It is very important for us to come up with a new program which we believe will improve our presence in all Grands Prix. This is something that has obviously been discussed with the FIM, with the manufacturers, and with the teams, and then yesterday, I spoke with the drivers within the Safety Commission. Even though it is responsible for safety, from the beginning I am very proud to talk with the pilots about different things. Obviously the issue of informing the drivers is something that has to be done by their individual teams, but yesterday we had some discussions and I am very happy to hear the FIM president say what we want to announce today today. »