MotoGP riders, waiting before Dorna’s new invention

This Saturday at 4:00 pm MotoGP will introduce a new modality in your program. To differentiate it from the traditional race every Sunday, the one of a lifetime, it will be called Sprint, it will not count for the list of victories and podiums so as not to spoil the red book of statistics, but a separate classification will also have will be inaugurated this Saturday. A day after the premiere, the MotoGP riders discussed something new that was shoehorned into them last summer and still has a loose end.

Although the first thing that comes to mind is the F1 Sprint where they drink directly is the Superbike World Championship that Dorna directs. F1 has been doing it for three seasons, but in 2021 it was exhibited in three GGPPs, three more in 2022 it scored and now in 2023 it is six, they have not dared to include it in all GGPPs because the driver is more than enough for gallery-facing work.

But in MotoGP, a sport more dangerous for physical integrity than F1 and where a fall can lose you several races, they have been big, in all GGPP, although the pilots themselves handle the rest different information. Marc Márquez this Thursday seems to have dropped to the Safety Commission “we will adapt it and we have to take everything into account”, including that in some GGP it will not be sustainable.

All of them instilled in them that they should come together to regain the audience lost by saying goodbye to ‘The Fantastic Four’, especially to Valentino Rossi, and for this reason, although cautious in the Sprints, they accept the idea.

The defending champion pecco bagnaia he assured that “with the new format the approach of the weekend changes a bit because now in FP2 you have more time and you have to fit the time attack there. I have done some sprint race simulations and I feel good . It’s a way It’s different from approaching a race because you have to push like crazy without taking into account the excessive wear of the rear tire. In two or three races we will understand better how to approach it, but it is a good change.”

beside you Fabio Quartararo He is still one of the most skeptical pilots in this invention: “We came from a season with 21 races, and now we have 42. If it helps the fans to grow, it will be positive. But we must consider that it comes with a greater risk and it forces you to go to the limit because they are points for the championship. In some races we will understand it better.”

And at the other end is placed Marc Márquez for whom it always seems like a good idea: “I like the Sprint, it is made not to think about Sunday, it is made and designed to attack and create a show. Those give you of points, there are twelve laps… otherwise, in an SBK type format, which counts for the race on Sunday, so you can think about Sunday, but the sprint race in the end is one more race. What is very important is the qualifying, because with that result you will have two starts that will be very important.”

“Today the program is very demanding on Friday with two tests to count for Q1 and Q2 in 21 Grand Prix. We will enjoy the Sprint more and you as a spectator. The weekends are physical and, above all, intense the thought,” he pointed out. the six-time MotoGP champion.

Your partners Joan Mir he assured that it is “a challenge for everyone and a hobby for people and if it is for them, it is for us”.

Jorge Martín, one of the favorites for victories, explained that : “Knowing that after one lap I’m quite competitive, obviously in a short race I have a better chance to be good. I still don’t know how to accept it, we have to see if it’s worth fighting for a point more or less, because “Sunday is when the points are really distributed. I don’t think it’s worth risking an overtake in a last corner where you can hurt yourself and reserve more for Sunday and qualifying will continue to be more. more important than the sprint race”, stressed Pramac Ducati.

Reserve or risk

If there are doubts whether it is better to reserve or risk thinking about Sunday alex rinses He assures that “I don’t think that I will reserve. Even if I have half the points, they are points and at least I will go out and give it my all. Compared to a normal race, it is half the number of laps and I will definitely not that will be said in all circuits, but in most circuits if the soft rear holds we will go to the ‘soft’ because there is quite a difference with respect to the medium, so we have to go all out.”

Another skeptic at first was Aleix Espargaro and now he is hopeful: “We talked a lot about how to organize the best in the team and we have to try and see. The second will be better than the first and the third will be better than the second, step by step, we will see how it goes. The whole calendar will be demanding so it’s better to be relaxed, have a positive attitude and give your best. It’s all for the good of motorcycling and the championship”.

The local idol and only university graduate of the grill Miguel Oliveira He states that “every day counts a lot, I don’t know what to say about the Sprints because it will depend on the place you occupy on the grid, there are points, but not much, and the risk you run may not earn you have a lot and it doesn’t change anything going into Sunday. We’ll know what that means after this weekend.”