Share

MotoGP grapples with problems of an interrupted season

MotoGP, like other sports and other businesses,is scrambling to deal with the problems posed by the coronavirus pandemic.

In the elite motorcycling championship, the 2020 season has yet to start. Teams, riders and organisers are trying to work out how they can rearrange the calendar, make up for financial losses and ensure a level track technically.

While the Moto2 and Moto3 categories competed in the opening race in Qatar, the headline MotoGP event was cancelled. 

Dorna, the series promoter, has also postponed the next three events in Thailand, Texas and Argentina and hopes to run them in the second half of the season.

The May races in Spain, France and Italy are in doubt.

Dorna has already said it will push back the end of the season two weeks to 29 November.

It could  also add races during the summer break (13 July-2 August) or extend the season further, within the limits imposed by logistics, time differences and weather. 

"Our aim," said  Dorna CEO Carmelo Ezpeleta, "is to maintain the Championship with the maximum number of races."

As things stand, the revised season will end with two gruelling blocks of three races in three weeks, with just one week off in between 

"Physically we can manage everything," said Suzuki rider Joan Mir from Spain. "Mentally it will put us all to the test."

Financially, MotoGP teams need to race, Herve Poncharal, the boss of the French Tech3 team, KTM's satellite in MotoGP and Moto3, told AFP.

"If there are no more GPs, there is no more income linked to sponsors and prize money," he said.  

Racing on tracks without paying fans is not an attractive option. 

"Closed-door racing, economically speaking, is unplayable. We need income," he said. 

Johan Stigefelt, who manages team SRT, a satellite of Yamaha that races in all three classes, tried to find an upside if more races are lost.

"Okay, in that scenario, we will also travel less so the cost for travelling will be less and so on," he said. 

The cancellation of Qatar also created a technical problem.

Bikes are inspected on the Thursday before the opening race, a process called homologation, and after that teams, with exception of relative newcomers KTM and Aprilia, cannot upgrade engines and can only change the bike's "aero-body" once per rider. 

In a statement on Monday, MotoGP said: "for reasons of equality and fairness the homologation must therefore be carried out remotely and digitally as soon as possible."

Like Formula One, in MotoGP teams are traditionally required to shut down their workshops in August. The four-wheel organisation has opted to lengthen and move forward that break to March-April but MotoGP "never considered a mandatory shutdown period". 

The effects of the coronavirus will be felt in 2021 as well.

F1 has been forced, as a cost-saving measure, to postpone by a year its "big bang," which was due to give birth to completely redesigned single-seaters in 2021.

MotoGP has not yet said whether it will postpone development, but Poncharal said, "freezing the technical regulations to those of 2020 or organising fewer races" would reduce costs next year.

Stigefelt agrees. 

"We are going to be travelling and racing until very late this year, until late in December perhaps," he said. "That means that the season next year will start early."

"If you have one month only to prepare yourself for 2021, one month or something like that before you start testing, that could be a difficult scenario for manufacturers."

We live in a world where facts and fiction get blurred
Who we choose to trust can have a profound impact on our lives. Join thousands of devoted South Africans who look to News24 to bring them news they can trust every day. As we celebrate 25 years, become a News24 subscriber as we strive to keep you informed, inspired and empowered.
Join News24 today
heading
description
username
Show Comments ()
Voting Booth
Should Siya Kolisi keep the captaincy as the Springboks build towards their World Cup title defence in 2027?
Please select an option Oops! Something went wrong, please try again later.
Results
Yes! Siya will only be 36 at the next World Cup. He can make it!
25% - 1273 votes
No! I think the smart thing to do is start again with a younger skipper ...
29% - 1473 votes
I'd keep Siya captain for now, but look to have someone else for 2027.
45% - 2252 votes
Vote
Editorial feedback and complaints

Contact the public editor with feedback for our journalists, complaints, queries or suggestions about articles on News24.

LEARN MORE