Finished the first season of Sprint races in MotoGP, which was exhausting: altogether, the riders competed in almost 40 races between March and November. Marc Márquez considers that the number of Sprints could be reduced in the future, and injuries are a concern.
The six-time champion of the premier class told journalists that the format is very demanding but also benefits the spectacle: ‘Of course Sprint races are good for the show, but very demanding for the riders. For me it’s not easy, in my personal opinion, to make 22 races plus 22 Sprint races. But it’s true is good for the show – even sometimes the Sprint is better than the main race. But it’s true that is super demanding and some riders already asked to have half and half. But at the moment it looks like we are going on that schedule’.
According to Márquez, the aspect of injuries is particularly concerning for riders after this first year with Sprint races: ‘One of the things that worries a bit more the riders is the quantity of injuries we had this year, and most of that injures were on the Sprint races. So it’s something to analyze for the future’.