MotoGP has finally unveiled the format that it will utilise in 2023 with the introduction of sprint races, with Saturday seeing the biggest changes compared to the 2022 weekend schedule.
The premier class has now officially done away with the traditional 45-minute FP3 session that takes place on Saturday morning in favour of a shorter 30-minute outing that precedes the traditional two-part qualifying session at around the same time FP3 used to run.
The morning action then leads into Moto3 and Moto2 qualifying in the afternoon, with the MotoGP sprint race – set to be contested over half the distance of a normal Sunday contest with half points being awarded – the final track activity to take place just under four hours after qualifying.
Friday action is largely unchanged, with the main alteration being a slightly extended MotoGP FP2 session at 60 minutes as a result of the axed Saturday running, with FP1 remaining the traditional 45-minutes.
Both Friday outings will combine to decide which ten riders will progress directly to Saturday’s pole shootout session, with the final two combatants to be decided as usual in Q1 with the pre-qualifying practice session effectively acting as the old FP4 test.
Sunday will also see changes to the pre-race warm-up format, with both Moto3 and Moto2 now losing their early morning running prior to their races – meaning the riders will enter the encounters fresh from qualifying.
MotoGP will retain the ten minute warm-up session it enjoyed throughout 2022, with the junior category warm-up outings being replaced by an expanded Rider Fan Show display that includes the riders parade and fan zone.
Unlike previous years in which some events would run with the MotoGP race running in between the Moto3 and Moto2 outings, all 21 race weekend’s will see the Moto3 race precede the Moto2 encounter, with the premier class completing Sunday running.
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