MotoGP

Consisting of eighteen races across 14 countries, MotoGP is the premier motorcycle racing World Championship. The world’s most skilled riders compete in competitive Grand Prix events, riding bikes manufactured by Ducati, Yamaha, Honda and Suzuki.

2011 Season

The enthralling 2010 campaign was already fresh in the memory when attention turned to the 2011 campaign. Defending World Champion Jorge Lorenzo is expected to be at the forefront of the action as he looks to emerge as the new dominant force for these Grand Prix events. Dani Pedrosa, Andrea Dovizioso and Ben Spies amongst others will be looking to challenge him though as they represent their various teams this year.

Then, there are three new riders to consider – Cal Crutchlow, Toni Elías and Karel Abraham have all moved from other categories to compete in MotoGP and will look to shake things up throughout the various races in 2011.

What is MotoGP?

With regards to what the Grand Prix events consists of, it is a three day event. Like Formula One, the first two days are for practice and qualifying. Then the third day is race day. Normally the 125cc contest begins proceedings, with the Moto2 class next and then finally event everyone has been waiting for – MotoGP event.

The Grand Prix weekend’s are big occasions in the motorsport calendar and they consist of three categories:

MotoGP

This is where the best talent in motorcycle racing meet. The maximum engine capacity is the much larger 800cc. You must be 18 to compete.

Moto2

Moto2 is seen as one step below MotoGP and is much more cost affective. Honda is the sole engine supplier, and Dunlop provide the tyres. The bikes are powered by a 600cc 4-stroke engine, with Honda as the only engine supplier. Dunlop are the manufacturers of the tyres. As with the above, the minimum age is 16 to compete.

125cc

This is the first step for young riders into competitive competition. The 125cc is the maximum engine displacement, whereas the maximum age for riders is 28 years. You can be as young as 16 to compete.

Key Dates

MotoGP has a rich history with a number of key dates contributing to where it finds itself today. Below are some of the significant events in its history.

2010

MotoGP is more popular than ever with 2.2 million people entering arenas across the world to watch one of the famous Grand Prix events.

2007

The rules were altered again five years later with the engine capacity limited to 800cc.

2002

Previously named 500cc, new technical regulations were introduced to allow four-stroke machinery and an engine capacity of 990cc. It then became MotoGP.

1949

Established as a World Championship.

Recent Years

The current MotoGP World Champion is Yamaha rider Jorge Lorenzo. He claimed the title in his first year competing and beat off competition from runner-up Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda) and nine-time World Champion Valentino Rossi in third. It was a fascinating season with many hard fought battles along the way.