MotoMatters.com | Kropotkin Thinks

What we should be talking about tonight is the return of MotoGP to the place that houses its soul, and the explosion of passion and racing that emerged from the Circuito de Jerez. But despite a tense race with a scintillating last lap that played out in front of the largest crowd to pack the Jerez track for perhaps a decade, the main topic of conversation is the level of stewarding. MotoGP at Jerez looked like the pinnacle of motorcycle, surrounded by adoring fans, and overseen by a bunch of amateurs.

The circuit was a cauldron of emotion from the crack of dawn. I walked down to Turn 10 to watch the warm up, to get a sense of who had drive out of that crucial corner, but to be honest I was captivated by the crowds. There was an intensity that has been rare in MotoGP since the Covid-19 pandemic hit, only seen at Le Mans, the Sachsenring, Assen. It felt like the old days.

The new MotoGP format was supposed to bring a little more excitement to a weekend, and it has certainly done that. If anything, it has brought a little too much excitement at some points: Of the 22 riders who turned up on the Thursday before the season opener at Portimão, only 17 started the race a week later in Argentina.

The sprint races themselves have made for fantastic viewing, mainly because they have encouraged riders to try to make more passes. The problem is, the MotoGP manufacturers – or rather, the European manufacturers which are dominating MotoGP – are doing everything in their power to build bikes that are hard to overtake. So the only way to get past is to take a lot more risk, especially on the opening lap.

I say 'only way', but in fact there is another way to get to the front without taking any risks in passing. And that is to take risks during qualifying. And to take risks in qualifying, you first have to take risks in the two practice sessions on Friday, to ensure a spot in Q2. If you are starting on the front row, you have to worry a great deal less about what happens behind you.