Our first look at the 2023 MotoGP calendar has been revealed, with the Portuguese GP at Autodromo Internacional do Algarve set to open next year’s season for the first time ever, at the end of March.
MotoGP reveals 42-race 2023 calendar
Updated: Friday 30th September at 16:20. MotoGP has released its 2023 calendar, featuring 21 grands prix and 42 races in total.
The big news is the additions of an Indian and Kazakh Grands Prix. With both circuits still to be homologated for motorcycle races there’s a chance of changes, but should every race go ahead it would be the longest calendar in MotoGP history,
MotoGP had already announced that it will hold a sprint race at every single race weekend, which means the season will top 40 races with all taken into account.
The other major change to the season is that the number of races on the Iberian peninsula has been limited. Traditionally a heartland of Motorcycle racing, the gradual increase of races in South West Europe had led to Spain hosting events at Aragon, Jerez, Catalunya and Valencia with Portugal’s Portimao adding a fifth round in the region. These five races have all been signed to new contracts that allow for rotation, meaning there will only be four Iberian races a season.
The season will kick off on 26th March in Portugal, before heading across the Atlantic to race in Argentina and the US in April, before it returns to Spain for the Spainish Grand Prix at Jerez.
A European season taking in France [Le Mans], Italy [Mugello], Germany [Sachsenring], the Netherlands [Assen], Britain [Silverstone], Austria [Red Bull Ring], Catalunya [Barcelona] and San Marino [Misano] stretches from May to September, punctuated by the first trip to Kazakhstan on 9th July.
The rest of the season will then traverse Asia through MotoGP’s debut in India at the Buddh International Circuit – the former home of the Indian F1 Grand Prix – the Japanese Grand Prix at Motegi, a return to Indonesia, the Australian Grand Prix at Phillip Island, Thailand [Chang International Circuit], Malaysia [Sepang] and Qatar before the season finishes at its traditional end point of Valencia.
Also of note will be the 1,000th Grand Prix motorcycle race, which will come at the fourth round at Jerez and the fact that for the first time there will be three triple headers.
Grande Premio De Portugal | Autodromo Internacional do Algarve | 26th March 2023 |
Grand Prix of Qatar | Lusail International Circuit | TBD |
Grand Prix of Indonesia | Pertamina Mandalika Circuit | TBD |
Grand Premio de la Republica Argentina | Termas de Rio Hondo | TBD |
Grand Prix of the Americas | COTA | TBD |
Gran Premio de Espana | Jerez | TBD |
Grand Prix de France | Le Mans | TBD |
Gran Premio d’Italia | Mugello | TBD |
Gran Premi de Catalunya | Circuit de Catalunya | TBD |
Grand Prix Deutschland | Sachsenring | TBD |
Motul TT Assen | TT Circuit Assen | TBD |
British Grand Prix | Silverstone | TBD |
Grand Prix von Osterreich | Red Bull Ring | TBD |
Gran Premio di San Marino | Misano | TBD |
Gran Premio de Aragon | Motorland Aragon | TBD |
Grand Prix of Japan | Motegi | TBD |
Thailand Grand Prix | Chang International Circuit | TBD |
Australian Motorcycle GP | Phillip Island | TBD |
Malaysia Motorcycle GP | Sepang | TBD |
Gran Premio de la Comunitat Valencia | Ricardo Tormo | TBD |
MotoGP to race in Kazakhstan in 2023
Updated: Tuesday 27th September 2022 at 13:45. MotoGP has announced that it will hold its first ever race in Kazakhstan in 2023, at the new Sokol International racetrack.
The circuit is located just outside the largest city in Kazakhstan, and its former capital, Almaty, and the 2023 race will be the first of a five-year contract.
Announcing the deal MotoGP’s statement said: “The FIM MotoGP World Championship is coming to Kazakhstan! 2023 marks the start of a new five-year deal that sees MotoGP touch down in a new region of the world as the stunning Sokol International Racetrack joins the calendar.
“The region will be a new pitstop for MotoGP as the sport continues to expand around the world, engaging with new markets and fanbases.
“Kazakhstan will also become the 30th country to host a motorcycle grand prix since 1949, a perfect landmark number to celebrate the ever-expanding history of the world’s first motorsport World Championship, and Sokol International Racetrack will be the 74th venue to host a premier class grand prix.”
Sprint Races to be held at every round in 2023
Updated: Saturday 17th September. MotoGP will run half-distance sprint races at every round of the 2023 season, it has been announced.
Unlike F1’s introduction, the two-wheeled sprints will not affect the starting grid for the full Grand Prix the next day, and the sprint race will award half points.
Each sprint race will take place at 15:00 on the Saturday of the grand prix weekend, with the full race following on Sunday at 14:00. The grid for each sprint race will be set in the same qualifying session as the Grand Prix.
This is a big moment for the sport, as the first time a MotoGP season has opened in Europe since 2006. It also happens to be only the third time that a MotoGP season has opened in Europe over the last three decades.
Portimao will be hosting official pre-season tests in the weeks before the first race of the season too, though exact dates are yet to be revealed. For now, the countdown is on to the weekend of 24th-26th March 2023.
For now, only the season opener has a date, though we do have a rough order of what’s to follow, including the Silverstone-based British GP’s regular midsummer spot. Find the full evolving 2023 MotoGP calendar below.
Images courtesy of MotoGP and Motorsport Images.