MotoGP against expanding record-breaking calendar

MotoGP has no plans to expand its calendar beyond 22 races in the near future, according to Dorna Sports CSO Carlos Ezpeleta.

The championship added several new venues in recent years, amid rising demand from Asia and other regions to host major sporting events.

This expansion took MotoGP from 19 races a year prior to the pandemic to a record 22 rounds this year, just two short of Formula 1’s record of 24 grands prix.

The introduction of sprint races at each event in 2023 also made weekends more intense for riders and teams, who now face a total of 44 races annually.

To reduce fatigue, the championship eliminated triple headers from its schedule this year, and its 2026 calendar was also praised for avoiding long stretches of races.

Speaking at the Indonesian Grand Prix, Ezpeleta stated that MotoGP will not be adding more races to the calendar in the coming years, suggesting it has struck the right balance at 22 weekends.

“We don’t have any vision at all of going over and above 22 races,” he told TNT Sport.

Dorna CSO Carlos Ezpeleta

Photo by: Gold and Goose Photography / LAT Images / via Getty Images

Ezpeleta reiterated that Moto2 and Moto3 will continue to follow MotoGP around the world at each event, despite speculation that they will be reduced to a sideshow under new owner Liberty Media.

Unlike Formula 2 and Formula 3, the two bike racing series are world championships in their own rights, making it important for teams contesting them to maintain a large presence.

“All the conversations we’ve had with Moto2 and Moto3 teams, they’ve always said it’s essential for them to be at every single event, and we would never proactively not want them at an event,” said Ezpeleta.

“It would be a different conversation if the Moto3 and Moto2 teams came and said ‘We can no longer make 22 races’. That would be a different conversation, but we would try to help them stay at all events.  But by no means is it our target for them to not be with us at every event.”

MotoGP unveiled its 2026 calendar in July, with Brazil replacing Argentina as the series’ only South American stop.