In MotoGP they are thinking about how to create more excitement: Johann Zarco and Fabio Quartararo, however, are not fans of sprint races and extra points
MotoGP promoter Dorna is thinking about the future of the motorbike world championship. The global fan survey, which was carried out this year, should help. Among other things, the survey also asked for changes to the weekend format and the points system.
Among the MotoGP riders, world champion Fabio Quartararo and Johann Zarco were asked to give their opinion on a sprint race and points for qualifying. Both are sceptical about such shenanigans.
Yamaha rider Quartararo thinks the current qualifying format is “a good solution”. He added: “It’s just a few laps. I think it’s a pretty mythical part of the weekend. Qualifying is about putting yourself in the best position for the race. So I don’t think sprint races would be a good idea. “
Johann Zarco would be in favour of a Superpole
And compatriot Zarco agrees: “The sprint race would be good for the show, of course. But I don’t see myself doing a race on Saturday to be prepared on Sunday.” The Pramac Ducati rider throws out another suggestion that could make MotoGP Saturday more exciting.
“Maybe a Superpole could be good to watch, because it’s about pure speed on one lap, without any help from other riders,” Zarco argues for a single time trial. “That could be a possibility for MotoGP. Better than a sprint race. “
MotoGP has only recently gained experience in this area, as in the early years of the MotoE World Cup the grid was determined using an E-Pole. However, this format has been abandoned in the meantime.
Fabio Quartararo doesn’t want qualifying points
For Zarco, in any case, it is important to keep the combination of qualifying and race. He argues, “You can work well in practice and prepare everything as well as possible there to be as fast as possible. But the race is a different story. When you have both, it’s the perfect combination.”
As for the races themselves, Zarco is a little more open to experimentation. He can imagine running a Grand Prix over 30 minutes instead of the current standard 40. “Why not? It depends on the weekend,” he says. “Because after 40 minutes at the Sachsenring, the gaps between the riders were already quite big.”
And what about points for qualifying? Quartararo waves it off. His alternative suggestion: “What could do would be an extra point for the fastest race lap, like in Formula 1. That could be fun.” But extra points for qualifying, that’s not something the MotoGP World Champion is comfortable with.
A few years ago, the Superbike World Championship, the other major motorbike world championship, changed its weekend format. Since 2019, there has also been a Superpole sprint race over ten laps in addition to the two races. Formula 1 has been experimenting with sprint weekends since 2021, which have met with little approval.
