I want to be clear from the start of this piece: MotoGP is in an excellent place right now, in some of the most important senses. The grid, currently 24-riders strong, is one of the most competitive line-ups the sport has ever seen, and all six manufacturers feel very level in the bikes they’re producing. The gap between factory bikes and satellite counterparts has never been smaller, and we’re consistently seeing a varied mix of riders winning races every season. We’ve crowned three different champions in three years, and could easily see a fourth if Pecco Bagnaia continues on his current trajectory.
That said, there’s been something very clearly absent from the top tier of racing lately: overtakes. There has been a severe lack of passing in MotoGP this season, particularly at the front of the races. So much so is the issue that the last time we saw a last-lap overtake for the lead was actually this time last year in Aragon. In every race since, the rider that has led across the line at the start of the final lap has gone on to win the race. Not exactly the most engaging conclusions.
A big part of this is technical. Riders are struggling to attack each other under braking thanks to the numerous technical upgrades introduced in the last two years. Front and rear ride height devices combined with modern aero packages have introduced a massive amount of pressure to the front ends of MotoGP bikes, so braking later to try an overtake is becoming increasingly difficult. Add to that the issues with current Michelin tires overheating the second a rider finds themselves tailing another rider, and it’s no wonder the racing is becoming processional.
The timing of such an issue couldn’t have been worse, however. 2022 has marked the first season all circuits have had fans returning to the grandstands since the beginning of the covid pandemic, yet audiences aren’t returning in the same droves as they did before the pandemic. Some tracks have reported Sunday trackside numbers similar to what they saw in 2019, but a number of key circuits that were once festivals of the sport saw massive downturns in attendance this season, including both Mugello and Misano.
It’s clear that something needs to happen to draw attention back to MotoGP, and this was a key discussion point in the recent fan survey organised by Dorna. Many of the questions posed in this official survey referenced ideas that had been used by other motorsports, including key rivals to MotoGP such as Formula 1 and WSBK. Dorna were looking for ways to replicate other series’ successes in MotoGP in the hopes that it would draw audiences back, and in bigger numbers.
The thing is, it appears that the results of the survey weren’t interpreted in the ideal manner. Not long after the banner ads for the survey disappeared from the official website, it was announced that MotoGP would be racing a sprint race at every circuit in 2023, something that has been attempted by both aforementioned rivals in recent years. Additionally, last week saw an agreement formed between Dorna and Saudi Arabia that will likely lead to future races being held in the middle eastern country.
Let’s back up a bit. What is actually missing from MotoGP right now? I would argue there are three main items absent that are holding back the sport as it currently exists: exciting racing, characters the audience can get behind, and diversity in both its audience and those on board the bikes. The first point is being limited at present by the technical points I mentioned earlier, and if/when they get banned the sheer depth of the field should allow for some fierce battles on track.
The second point – that of characters – is something that was damaged by the loss of Rossi, but also by the slow fading of the generation that rode with him. The current, younger squad of MotoGP riders are all shiny-faced and PR trained, which is good for the brands they represent but bad for those that love a good rivalry. Thankfully, racers are inherently ego-driven, and given enough time these boys will surely form some rivalries that will break the news cycle and drive audiences to pick sides in a Rossi-Lorenzo-Marquez-esque manner.
Then there’s the point of diversity. The fan survey had 13% of respondents marked as female, which is too low to be a realistic but probably not as far off as we would want. It’s easy to see why women aren’t coming forward as fans of the sport – we currently only have two female riders across four classes in the Grand Prix paddock, with Ana Carrasco in Moto3 and Maria Herrera in MotoE. Without proper representation up and down the grid, stigmas against women in motorsport will continue.
There’s also a distinct lack of representation in MotoGP for members of the LGBTIAQ+ community and people of colour. To my knowledge – I could be wrong on this front, but I’m usually pretty keen on these sorts of stats – there isn’t a single openly gay or trans rider within the entire paddock, which is statistically impossible given the combined grid is over a hundred strong. And while the prevalence of European riders is slowly being eradicated by opportunities like the Asia Talent Cup, it feels like we’re a long way away from having a Lewis Hamilton of MotoGP.
A fairly simple set of solutions jump to mind when reviewing all of this. The talent of the current grid is unquestionable, but they’re being restricted by technical elements outside of their control. Banning a few of the more restrictive components of both the bikes themselves and the rules that control the racing would allow riders to battle more freely, and such racing would inherently promote more interesting dynamics between riders both on- and off-track.
As for representation, more weight being applied to entry-level series like the Asia Talent Cup would continue to bolster the diversity of nationalities represented on the grid, while the introduction of a W-series similar to the Formula W championship would increase the interest for female viewers and inspire young women and girls to sling a leg over a bike and chase their own dreams of racing on the world stage. Simple, right?
Yet we face a future of sprint races, and GP’s hosted by countries with truly horrific human rights records. It was bad enough that we were already starting every season off in Qatar, but sending the MotoGP grid to Saudi Arabia is such a blatant example of sportswashing that I can barely believe it was a consideration. That 13% representation of female fans can hardly be expected to grow if Dorna is going to continue taking the sport to places where women aren’t respected or treated equally.
I think the biggest flaw of all of this future planning is that those in charge of the sport are attempting to solve MotoGP’s attendance issues by simply increasing the amount of content. Dorna and the FIM saw that fans weren’t turning up in droves to grand prix weekends, so they decided to add an extra race to each weekend. They saw that the numbers were down across the board at all existing circuits, so they started looking for new ones that could pay the bills while they were at it.
For MotoGP to actually change for the better, issues need to be addressed internally before those with power start to look outside the paddock for solutions. The reason people aren’t watching the sport isn’t that there isn’t enough of it, but rather that the action isn’t exciting enough. The reason women aren’t making up enough of the fanbase isn’t because they aren’t engaged by the existing riders, but because there isn’t enough representation in the paddock. Going to Saudi Arabia isn’t going to change any of this.
What happens to the sport from here is difficult to say with certainty, but it sure feels from here like the results of the fan survey have paved a clear path forward that Dorna is blatantly ignoring in favour of their own ideas and preferences. A little introspection probably wouldn’t hurt.
Solomon Talks Bikes 