Three-time 500cc grand prix winner Daryl Beattie says he is a convert to MotoGP’s new-for-2023 Sprint races, one of which is scheduled today if weather permits.
Dorna Sports last year made the decision to follow Formula 1 and introducing racing on Saturdays, but took the concept even further by rolling it out at every event.
It was a surprise move which split riders, with 2021 world champion Fabio Quartararo labelling it “totally stupid” but others, such as Australian Jack Miller, expressing support.
If event organisers are able to beat the worst of today’s forecast winds, then Australian fans will have their first chance to see Sprints unfold in front of their own eyes in coming hours at Phillip Island, after multiple changes to the weekend’s schedule.
Beattie, the 1995 500cc world championship runner-up, admits he was among those who had preferred to stick to a more traditional format of practice on Friday, qualifying on Saturday, and a single race on Sunday, but has now come around.
“I like it,” he told Speedcafe ahead of reprising his role as a Network 10 MotoGP expert.
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“But, before it happened, I was probably again one of those ones that’s like, ‘Oh, really, do we need a Sprint race?’ but I’ve really enjoyed it.
“It’s been good. It’s obviously tough on those guys but when you think about WSBK, they run multiple races for the weekend.
“Maybe that is leading the championship races to what we’re seeing now, with those points hauls and losses – I don’t know – but it’s certainly been enjoyable.”
One occurrence which was not possible under the traditional format was the championship lead changing twice in the space of a single round.
However, that is exactly what happened last weekend at Indonesia’s Mandalika circuit, when Jorge Martin threw away the ascendancy in the MotoGP title battle by crashing out of the lead of the Grand Prix race.
The Pramac Racing rider had moved into top spot in the riders’ standings a day earlier when he scored a fourth straight Sprint victory, meaning he had scooped a total of 48 points versus Francesco Bagnaia’s 25 on those particular Saturdays.
Before that run – through Misano, Buddh, Motegi, and Mandalika – Martin had trailed his factory team counterpart by 66 points.
Still, the rider who currently holds the #1 plate – who has since extended his championship lead back to 27 points with a second place in the Grand Prix race at Phillip Island – can also count himself lucky to have Sprints to bolster his tally, having failed to score in five Grand Prix races already in 2023.
Beattie identified the introduction of Sprints, as well as the struggles in recent years of Honda and its six-time champion Marc Marquez, and even the length of the season, as probable factors in the wild swings in the championship battle.
“When Marquez hasn’t been in a championship battle with them, the seasons are really up and down; the point changes and DNFs are extraordinary,” he noted.
“Bagnaia obviously leads the championship now but six races without points [including one Sprint] is extraordinary.
“Normally, if it’s one race or two races in the past, you were battling.
“They’re such big seasons now, I guess, and with two races on a weekend, he’s leading by 18 points now and you can that back in a weekend if someone has a bad run.”
Network 10 and 10 Play will air the Australian Motorcycle Grand Prix live and free today.
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