The MotoGP grid, as well as the Moto2 and Moto3 World Championships, is largely made up of Spanish riders, many Italians, and few from other nationalities. Dorna wants to have a truly global championship and does not want such a monopoly by one nationality – even though it is a Spanish company.
Dorna’s CEO, Carmelo Ezpeleta, made a comparison with the Olympic Games, stating to the newspaper AS: ‘In the Olympic Games, if you are American and you are fourth in your country, you don’t go. It cannot happen, and I am Spanish, that gentlemen who had more opportunities than others because things work well in Spain monopolize the grid. It cannot happen that we fill the grid with Spaniards. That is the clear decision of the championship. This has to be global’.
When asked if other countries should take action, Ezpeleta replied: ‘No. It’s over. And in the future, there will be fewer. It adds nothing. Among those who are here now – and I won’t say who – there are some who should not be. No. That doesn’t improve the championship. We cannot want a global championship and continue putting Spaniards and Italians. And this applies to anyone. How many Spaniards are here who shouldn’t be, if we think about it?’.
In the view of the Dorna’s executive, it is essential to give opportunities to those who haven’t had them: ‘What needs to be done is to give opportunities to people who haven’t had them. And in the case of [Jack] Miller, it is very clear because he is a rider who has won MotoGP Grands Prix, and others who criticize him have won less than he has. Let’s not talk nonsense’.