what is MotoGP?
The basics
MotoGP is the premier class of motorcycle road racing and is governed by the Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme (the FIM).
The championship was first brought into existence in 1949 as the FIM Road Racing World Championship Grand Prix. The FIM remains as the sport sanctioning body with the commercial rights being owned by Dorna Sports.
Since the inaugural season, 996 Grand Prix have taken place in 53 different countries to make up 73 seasons.
the origins
MotoGP is the oldest of all motorsports World Championships with the inaugural season being held in 1949.
Motorcycle Grand Prix were held from the early 1900s in various different countries. The FIM’s predecessor the Fédération Internationale des Clubs Motorcyclists (the FICM) announced a European Championship in 1938 but this was interrupted by the Second World War. After the Second World War it was some time before fuel became available in order to create a truly international motorcycle racing series.
The series started off with various classes of motorcycles based on the size of the engine. This is something that has remained in the series right through to the current season.
the format
A typical race weekend takes place from Friday to Sunday and includes free practice, qualifying, the sprint and the Grand Prix race.
There are three free practice sessions. FP1 takes place on Friday morning and lasts for 45 minutes, FP2 takes place on Friday afternoon and lasts 60 minutes and then FP3 takes place on Saturday morning and lasts for 30 minutes. The practice sessions allow teams to get their bikes out on track to work on set up and put in some fast lap times to ensure a strong qualifying position. The combined times from FP1 and FP2 determine who goes directly through to Q2 and who will have to go through Q1 first.
Qualifying takes place on Saturday with two sessions: Q1 and Q2. Q1 takes place first for 15 minutes with the two fastest riders from that session going through to Q2 to have another chance at a strong grid position. The riders that do not go through to Q2 will take up the grid positions 13-22 based on their fastest times. Q2 takes place for 15 minutes where the riders will fight for the first 12 grid positions. The results from qualifying will then go on to determine the starting grid for the sprint race AND the main race on Sunday.
The sprint is the final session to take place on Saturday and will be half the distance of the Grand Prix on Sunday. Riders will score championship points in the sprint races however it will be half points awarded in a Sunday Grand Prix. In a Saturday sprint the winner will score 12 points with the following 8 riders scoring 9, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1.
The Grand Prix takes place on Sunday and is the final and main event of the race weekend. Once the chequered flag is waved at the end of the race the top 3 finishers will take to the podium and receive trophies. The points system means that the winner scores 25 points with the following 14 riders scoring 20, 16, 13, 11, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1.
the bikes & Tyres
The bikes that we see in MotoGP are not like what we see on the roads, they are essentially prototypes. The engine regulations mean that the manufacturers each build 1000cc four-stroke, naturally aspirated engines for their bikes. MotoGP bikes are capable of speeds above 200mph with the top speed record currently standing at 225.744mph. Each rider is allowed 7 engines throughout the season but if they must exceed that amount, they must take a penalty.
Manufacturers are also not permitted to develop their engine throughout the season. They can design a new engine prior to the start of the season but once their design has been homologated, they cannot be changed.
Aerodynamics have started to play a big part in the series as manufacturers have started to experiment with rear wings mounted on their bikes to help with braking stability. Aerodynamic upgrades on the front fairing are limited to just one change per season.
Tyres are a crucial part of a MotoGP race weekend as it’s important that the teams and riders select tyres that work for them, and they can utilise to its full potential for the race weekend. Michelin are the provider for tyres in MotoGP and they decide which specifications of tyre are brought to each race weekend. The tyres used during dry race weekends are referred to as slicks.
There are three different compounds of tyre: hard, medium and, soft. The harder option is identifiable with a yellow band, the soft option has a white band, and the medium is black with no colour marking. Over the weekend, a rider will have 22 slick tyres available, 10 front tyres and 10 rear tyres. The allocation for the front tyres will be made up of a maximum of five from each specification (soft, medium and, hard). The allocation for the rear tyres will be made up of a maximum of six softs, four mediums and three hard. There is also an extra slick in one of the three compounds available for the two riders who progress from Q1 to Q2 since they take part in two qualifying sessions.
There are also compounds developed specifically for wet track conditions. They are typically soft and medium compounds. Riders are allocated 13 tyres (six front, seven rear) in a combination of the two compounds.
the teams
There are currently 11 teams competing in MotoGP. Teams each have two different riders who compete at all race weekends. Each year, the teams compete in the Teams Championship and the Constructors Championship which run alongside the Rider Championship.
The teams are divided into ‘Factory’ and ‘Satellite’ teams. The Factory teams are directly managed and funded by the Factory that manufacture their bike. So, this year our Factory teams are: Repsol Honda, Monster Energy Yamaha, Ducati Lenovo, Red Bull KTM and, Aprilia Racing. This means that riders in the Factory teams will have the most up to date bike specification and access to updates throughout the season.
The Satellite teams are teams that have bikes on lease or purchased from a Factory. So, our Satellite teams this year are: LCR Honda, Prima Pramac Racing, Gresini Racing, Mooney VR46, GasGas Factory Racing and, CryptoDATA RNF Team. This means that generally, Satellite riders will have technology from the previous year and an older version of the Factory bike.
the riders
There are currently 22 Grand Prix riders on the MotoGP grid. The riders compete in the World Rider Championship each season, which is decided when the rider at the top of the table cannot be passed in the championship by any of the other riders.
the tracks
The 2023 season of MotoGP heads to more tracks than ever before with 21 Grand Prix scheduled for this year’s season. In order to hold a MotoGP race, a track must be given a Grade A circuit licence by the FIM.
There have been various different racetracks used for the series throughout the years; race circuits such as Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli, street circuits such as Madalika International Street Circuit and, road/race circuits such as Sachsenring.
the feeder series
MotoGP couldn’t be the pinnacle of motorsport without a supply of young talent to keep the series going. This supply generally comes from the feeder series. The feeder series are the categories which support young riders hoping to progress into MotoGP.
The current feeder series are Moto2 and Moto3 which follow the same calendar as the MotoGP series. The Moto3 class always takes place first throughout the weekend, followed by the Moto2 class and then MotoGP rounds off the weekend. The feeder series have been crucial in providing support to so many of the riders that we see on the premier class grid.
Now that’s the basics of MotoGP, click below to keep up with the news, see the series’ schedule, meet the teams and riders and check the standings.
