MotoGP in : The race weekend format

A Grand Prix weekend now produces two scoring races. Since 2023 every round has included a Saturday Sprint over roughly half distance, paying 12 points to the winner down to one for ninth, alongside the Sunday Grand Prix that pays 25 down to one for fifteenth. Grid position comes from a two-part qualifying session, with the ten fastest riders from Friday's hour-long Practice going straight through to Q2. There are no scheduled pit stops. Tyres come from a single supplier, Michelin since 2016 and Pirelli from 2027, and the rider who best manages a rear tyre over the closing laps usually decides the race.

The modern championship is defined by Ducati. The Bologna factory won six consecutive constructors' titles from 2020 to 2025 and supplies roughly a third of the grid, while Aprilia, KTM, Honda and Yamaha fight over the rest under a four-tier concessions system built to close the gap. Marc Marquez ended a six-year title drought in 2025, scoring a record 545 points in his first season with the factory Ducati team. Off track, Liberty Media completed its purchase of series promoter Dorna Sports in July 2025, placing MotoGP alongside Formula 1. A sweeping technical reset arrives in 2027: 850cc engines, smaller fairings, no ride-height devices and fully sustainable fuel.

MotoGP's rulebook splits into three parts: the sporting regulations that govern the weekend and the points, the technical regulations that define the motorcycle, and the disciplinary code administered by the FIM MotoGP Stewards. Almost all of it is written around one constraint, the tyre. A rider gets a fixed allocation for the weekend, cannot change it mid-race except in a flag-to-flag, and must hold the front above a minimum pressure for most of the distance. Understand the tyre rules and the rest of the format follows logically.