The MotoGP season of 2023 was marked by the introduction of Sprint races, a format that hasn’t gained unanimous approval yet. Saturday’s races cover half the distance and award half the points of the longer Sunday races and were held in all Grands Prix except for Australia due to weather conditions. How would the championship have unfolded if only Sprint races counted?
Unsurprisingly, Jorge Martín scored the most points in Sprint races. The Prima Pramac rider won nine times and always scored (being the only one to do so), totaling 168 points. Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati) was the champion but, considering only Sprint races, he would have been second with 140 points. Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM) follows with 109 points accumulated on Saturdays.
A total of 21 riders earned points in Sprint races, with Raúl Fernández (CryptoDATA RNF MotoGP Team/Aprilia) in 21st place, registering only one point. Among the riders of the full-time grid, only Takaaki Nakagami (LCR Honda) and Joan Mir (Repsol Honda) did not score points in Sprint races.
MotoGP World Championship standings considering only Sprint races:
1st: Jorge Martín (Prima Pramac Racing/Ducati): 168 points
2nd: Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team): 140 points
3rd: Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing): 109 points
4th: Marco Bezzecchi (Mooney VR46 Racing Team/Ducati): 87 points
5th: Luca Marini (Mooney VR46 Racing Team/Ducati): 54 points
6th: Maverick Viñales (Aprilia Racing): 54 points
7th: Álex Márquez (Gresini Racing MotoGP/Ducati): 50 points
8th: Aleix Espargaró (Aprilia Racing): 48 points
9th: Jack Miller (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing): 47 points
10th: Marc Márquez (Repsol Honda Team): 38 points
11th: Johann Zarco (Prima Pramac Racing/Ducati): 37 points
12th: Fabio Di Giannantonio (Gresini Racing MotoGP/Ducati): 19 points
13th: Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Team): 19 points
14th: Miguel Oliveira (CryptoDATA RNF MotoGP Team/Aprilia): 14 points
15th: Enea Bastianini (Ducati Lenovo Team): 13 points
16th: Dani Pedrosa (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing): 10 points
17th: Álex Rins (LCR Honda Castrol): 9 points
18th: Franco Morbidelli (Monster Energy Yamaha Team): 7 points
19th: Pol Espargaró (GasGas Factory Racing Tech3/KTM): 4 points
20th: Augusto Fernández (GasGas Factory Racing Tech3/KTM): 3 points
21st: Raúl Fernández (CryptoDATA RNF MotoGP Team/Aprilia): 1 point
Didn’t score points in Sprint races
Álvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Ducati) – wildcard
Cal Crutchlow (Yamalube RS4GP Racing Team) – wildcard
Danilo Petrucci (Ducati Lenovo Team) – replacement rider
Joan Mir (Repsol Honda Team)
Jonas Folger (GasGas Factory Racing Tech3/KTM) – replacement rider
Iker Lecuona (LCR Honda Castrol and Repsol Honda Team) – replacement rider
Lorenzo Savadori (Aprilia Racing and CryptoDATA RNF MotoGP Team/Aprilia) – wildcard/replacement rider
Michele Pirro (Aruba.it Ducati and Ducati Lenovo Team) – wildcard/replacement rider
Stefan Bradl (HRC Team, LCR Honda Castrol, and Repsol Honda Team) – wildcard/replacement rider
Takaaki Nakagami (LCR Honda Idemitsu)
Takumi Takahashi (LCR Honda Castrol) – replacement rider