MotoGP bosses made a bold move for the 2023 season, announcing last summer that Sprint Races would take place on each Grand Prix weekend. The first race of its kind will take place next weekend at the season opener in Portugal. Here’s an update on the details of the format that’s becoming the norm.
What’s on the schedule for MotoGP?
With the introduction of the Sprint Race on Saturday afternoons, MotoGP will eliminate one of the four free practice sessions. The two Friday sessions will last 1 hour and 45 minutes instead of the previous 1 hour and 30 minutes. The third session, which will take place on Saturday morning and will last 30 minutes, will be the equivalent of the previous FP4 and will still be called “Free Practice”.
Qualifying will follow, again divided into Q1 and Q2. Saturday afternoon will be dedicated to the sprint race, starting at 15.00 and a grid procedure of just 15 minutes. At the end of the race there will be a ceremony on the podium, but not on the official podium.
On Sunday, the MotoGP will continue with the traditional morning warm-up, but for just ten minutes. The main race will not undergo any changes, either in terms of length or starting grid. Instead, after the warm-up there is a parade of riders who go around the circuit, stopping several times to interact with the fans and finishing with a run on the Hero Walk.
Championship officials said they had tried to reduce track time as much as possible in all MotoGP weekends, despite the addition of these races and the reorganization of the programme. However, the combined time for free practice, qualifying and warm-up for the premier class will be reduced from 3 hours 35 minutes to 2 hours 55 minutes.
The weekend schedule:
Friday | |||
9:00-9:35 | Tests 1 | Moto3 | 35 minutes |
9:50-10:30 | Tests 1 | Moto2 | 40 minutes |
10:45-11:30 | Tests 1 | MotoGP | 45 minutes |
1.15pm-1.50pm | Tests 2 | Moto3 | 35 minutes |
14:05-14:45 | Tests 2 | Moto2 | 40 minutes |
15:00-16:00 | Tests 2 | MotoGP | 1 hour |
Saturday | |||
8:40am-9:10am | Free tests | Moto3 | 30 minutes |
9:25-9:55 | Free tests | Moto2 | 30 minutes |
10:10-10:40 | Free tests | MotoGP | 30 minutes |
10:50-11:05 | Q1 | MotoGP | 15 minutes |
11:15-11:30 | Q2 | MotoGP | 15 minutes |
12:50-13h05 | Q1 | Moto3 | 15 minutes |
1.15pm-1.30pm | Q2 | Moto3 | 15 minutes |
1.45pm-2pm | Q1 | Moto2 | 15 minutes |
14:10-14:25 | Q2 | Moto2 | 15 minutes |
15 | Sprint Race | MotoGP | |
Sunday | |||
9:45-9:55 | Warm up | MotoGP | 10 minutes |
10am | Pilots Parade | MotoGP | |
11:00 am | Competition | Moto3 | |
12:15 | Competition | Moto2 | |
2pm | Competition | MotoGP |
What categories are involved?
The Sprint Race will be held only for the MotoGP class. The Moto2 and Moto3 riders will continue to compete in a single long race on Sunday. However, the minor classes will undergo some changes as a result of this change, as the free practice sessions will be reduced and no more warm-up sessions will take place. In Moto3 the non-competition track time will be reduced from 2 hours and 40 minutes to 2 hours and 10 minutes, and in Moto2 from 2 hours and 40 minutes to 2 hours and 20 minutes.
Furthermore, the duration of the Moto2 and Moto3 races will be reduced “to adapt to other competitions with similar bikes”: the duration of the race will be approximately 36 minutes in Moto2 and 34 in Moto3.
Another change is that in the European Grands Prix the MotoGP sessions will always be the last after the Moto3 and Moto2 sessions, instead of being spaced out between the other two classes, even on Sundays to allow for a longer podium ceremony, or also to allow the public to invade the track.
How long should the Sprint Race be?
From a purely sporting point of view, the sprint race will offer half the distance of the main race. We can therefore expect the sprint race to last around twenty minutes. The regulation provides that in case of an odd number of laps, the total number of laps will be calculated based on the lower number.
Alex Rins, Team Suzuki MotoGP leading at the start
Photo by: Dorna
Which starting grid for the Sprint Race?
The starting grid of the sprint race will be identical to that of the Sunday race. It will be decided on the basis of the results of the qualifying rounds. For the latter, direct entry into Q2 and the mandatory passage into Q1 will now be dictated exclusively by the combined result of the first two practice sessions organized on Friday, compared to the three sessions previously taken into consideration.
How are points awarded in the Sprint Race?
The first nine drivers who will finish the sprint race will get additional points for the championship, according to the following scale:
* 1st position: 12 points
* 2nd position: 9 points
* 3rd position: 7 points
* 4th position: 6 points
* 5th position: 5 points
* 6th position: 4 points
* 7th place: 3 points
* 8th position: 2 points
* 9th place: 1 point
The points scale for Sunday remains unchanged, awarding the top 15 drivers: 25 points for the winner, then 20, 16, 13, 11, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2 and 1 .
What are the rules for sprint races?
The rules of the main races also apply to the sprint races, with the exception of the amount of fuel that can be carried, which will be 12 litres.
If a driver overshoots the track, he will receive a caution for the first offense and a long-lap penalty after three overruns (compared to five in the long race).
If a driver is penalized during one of the weekend sessions, the penalty will be applied during the main race. Similarly, if a driver is penalized on the starting grid, the penalty will only apply on Sunday and not on the sprint race grid.
What impact on the calendar and regulations?
The governing bodies have assured us that the addition of these races to the schedule will not result in any reduction of the calendar, which this year has reached a record 21 events. The tire allocation and engine quota for the full season will also remain unchanged.
When will the first MotoGP Sprint Race take place?
The first MotoGP Sprint Race will take place on Saturday 25 March, on the occasion of the first round of the championship in Portugal. The new race will start on Saturday in Portimão at 15.00 local time.
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