MotoGP protects Barcelona GP, putting other races in Spain and Portugal in doubt

MotoGP has revealed that it will host no more than two races in Spain and Portugal from 2027 after signing a new contract with Barcelona.

On Wednesday, MotoGP announced that it had agreed terms with Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya to keep the Catalan GP on the calendar until 2031. 

It’s a five-year deal that will come into effect following the end of the current agreement, which runs through the end of the 2026 season.

MotoGP has also clarified that Barcelona will not enter a rotation system, unlike Formula 1’s Belgian Grand Prix at Spa-Francorchamps, and will remain an annual fixture on the calendar well into the start of the new decade.

According to MotoGP, Barcelona will be one of only two circuits in the Iberian Peninsula that will remain on the calendar when the series’ new 850cc engine era begins in 2027.

This will mark a massive reduction in MotoGP’s presence in the region, with four grands prix taking place in Spain this year (Barcelona, Jerez, Valencia, Aragon) and another one in Portugal (Portimao).

Dorna CEO Carmelo Ezpeleta said that with the changing times circuits have to offer more than competitive racing in order to justify their place on the calendar.

“It’s very important to make a career, but it’s not just about racing,” he said. “The involvement of the government of the territories we are going to is very important and Catalunya has shown us that they are on the front line. 

“The races are the most important thing, but you have to have a whole environment for the grand prix to have a return that justifies the investment.

“We have realised that it is complicated. In principle it is not going to enter into rotations, but it depends on how things go, on the interest, not only here. Maybe in other countries.

“Now we have around 28 circuits that want a MotoGP grand prix, and we can only do 22. You have to look at the countries, the place. It goes without saying that there has to be a safe circuit and an organization, we need to see the added value to ensure that it is not only a sporting event.”

Ezpeleta denied that the reduction of races in Spain/Portugal was an imposition of Liberty Media, which is in the process of taking over a majority stake in Dorna.

“No, we have been saying that for a long time. We can’t just be popular in Europe,” he explained. 

“When Dorna took the world championship, there were only three races outside Europe. We have increased those grands prix and next year we will go to Brazil, which is a fundamental market. We have to make sure that the grands prix are a marketing tool for our manufacturers to sell bikes, which is what it’s all about.”

Ezpeleta reiterated that “22 grands prix is the amount we have set as a maximum per season,” but he did not want to reveal the identity of all circuits at the risk of being dropped from the schedule.

“It is not about those who are going to leave, but about those who are going to arrive,” he said. “The idea is to remove two or three races on the peninsula, but it depends, maybe we can keep some more.”