The MotoGP calendar will have a record number of 21 Grand Prix races in 2024 – originally there were 22, but the one in Argentina had to be canceled. With the introduction of Sprint races last year, the program became even more exhausting. Massimo Rivola, CEO of Aprilia Racing, would prefer a shorter calendar, even if it meant less presence in Europe to focus on key markets.
The Italian stated to the press when asked if he would favor a decrease in the number of Grand Prix races: ‘If you ask to our families, they kind of agree. To be honest we didn’t speak to Dorna about that. We spoke at the beginning, but it isn’t a recent discussion. I know also that we have to sell something for the benefit of the motorsport as an event. I have to say also that after this one year experience having the Sprint race personally I finished the year totally destroyed because on Friday you already are in qualifying mood and when you are in qualifying mood everybody is in qualifying mood – the tension, the expectation. So every weekend on Sunday night we are quite tired. But the season was exhausting’.
Rivola continued: ‘Thinking about 21 or 22 [GP], that means 42 or 44 races, it’s a lot for sure. If you can have less than that for sure we’ll get a benefit. If it is good for the motorsport, this is something that we need to sit down maybe with Carmelo [Ezpeleta, Dorna’s CEO] and understand’.
For Aprilia’s leader, one path to follow could be fewer races in Europe and more focus on money and the market: ‘I’m Italian, but maybe we should have less races in Italy, less races in Spain maybe, less races in Europe, and go, let me say in a bad way, where the money is. Because we need to run this business in a way. We need big sponsors in this business. To attract them, maybe we need to go… it’s good to go to Indonesia, it’s very good to go to India. So let’s go to the places where the money is – or the market for the bikes’.